April 2010 Camping Trip - #2

Frenchglen, Oregon - Day 1

Karen and I, along with our "side-kicks" Dave & Sandy, arrived at Frenchglen, Oregon this afternoon. We headed down to Eugene on Hwy 99 (South), then cut over on Hwy 126 (East), then over the Santiam Pass along Hwy 20 (East) to Burns, Oregon, then finally South on Hwy 205 to Frenchglen. We took this route to allow for the melting of the snow that fell overnight onto the mountain passes. Luckily... the pass roads were clear, but we still had falling snow as we drove through.

*** Click on pictures to make them larger for viewing ***

Following Dave & Sandy over the mountain passes

Camp site... early morning

Peter Cotton-Tail

Frenchglen is way back in the background

One of our favorite areas to see while here, is the National Malheur Wildlife Refuge. It's only a short drive to the lower end of the "Center Patrol Road" from the Steens Mountain Resort (about 1 1/2 miles), which you can drive though grasslands, ponds, and lakes where beautiful birds and wildlife reside. The following pictures are an example of this area.

The "P-Ranch" along the Center Patrol Road

The P-Ranch

Mule Deer

Wetlands in the Malheur Refuge

More wetlands

More wetlands

Note the snow covered Steens Mountains in the background

Ibis

Young Raccoons

Canadian Geese

American Coot

Huge Cowboy silhouettes Branding Cattle (you can see the real size of the cattle around them)

"Star" - The wild free-roaming "Kiger Mustang" here at the RV Park

Karen feeding "Star" some oats

Abby (a.k.a. - The "Chicken"), gets close to Star

The Malheur Overlook

Overlook - looking South towards Frenchglen

White Puffy Clouds...

We are staying at the "Steens Mountain Resort" (Site 38), which has Full-Hookups (30amp/Water/Sewer), and also contains a small store, propane, and laundry facilities. There is also a BLM Campground nearby for dry camping that is beautiful as well. It's called "Page Springs", and has been recently upgraded. Below are a few pictures of this campground.

Page Springs BLM Campground

New group cooking area


New Pit Toilets

Please make sure to check back over the next 4 days, as I'll make updates and post more pictures from our travels and adventures in this area.

Gary & Karen

April 2010 Camping Trip - #1

Spring has finally arrived, and with it the Willamette Valley is blooming in beautiful pinks & white blossoms. Karen and I took advantage of some warmer weather, and drove up to McMinnville, OR for a visit with our son and daughter-in-law (Kevin & McKenzie). They just recently moved into a newer home in February, and have been working their fingers to the bone painting and fixing up the yards. Ahhhh... first time home owners. :-) A few weeks ago, both Karen and I helped out with building a fence to enclose their backyard, as a Golden Retriever is in their sights for someday. They have a beautiful open field behind them, and a gate was placed along the back fence so that their future dog can run to its heart content. Abby got to try it our herself just to make sure everything was up to par. :-)

*** Click on pictures to make them larger for viewing ***


Abby and Karen playing in the field behind Kevin & McKenzie's house

Karen and I stayed at the Olde Stone Village RV Park in McMinnville, OR (located right next to the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum, and across from the airport on Hwy 18). This park is very clean, and our site came with Full-Hookups (30/50amp, Water, Sewer, Cable TV, and Wifi), all for around $25 a night. Being that it's close to the McMinnville Airport, your daytime noise consists of airplanes, helicopters, and an occasional jet taking off, but at night it is very quiet here.

Site 256 from the front

A backside view, with the bathrooms and showers in the background

One of the other nice perks for this RV Park, is its location right next to the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum (and an IMAX Theater as well). There is a very nice paved walkway (about 1/4 mile) to the Evergreen Museums, or you can call a shuttle to come pick you up if you don't feel like walking.

The nice paved walkway, with the Space Museum in the background

Karen and I have been to both the Flight and Space Museums, but this time we went to the on-sight IMAX Theater, and watched our first "3-D" movie about the Hubble telescope. I highly recommend seeing this movie! All the 3D images were taken from the new cameras mounted into the Hubble Telescope (from it's last visit from a space shuttle crew), in April of 2009. You get to experience "flying" through Nebula's, Millions of Stars, and the lift-off from one of the few remaining shuttle missions. You'll experience objects that are trillions of light years away from Earth (right at your finger tips), all from the comfort of your padded chair. It's Awesome!!!

The Evergreen Museum is home to the "Spruce Goose", and the Space Museum located next door contains rockets (a fully upright Titan II Defensive Missile), Apollo, Gemini, and Mercury equipment. This museum was constructed to hopefully be able to display one of the retired space shuttles some day into the future!

In front of the Evergreen Aviation Museum. The "Spruce Goose" fills the building behind the pictured F-15 Eagle, from wing tip to wing tip (over 300ft. in width)


You can just make out the nose of the Spruce Goose through the glass windows

They have also started construction of an inside "Water-Slide Park". A Boeing 747 will be lifted onto the top of the steel structure, and the water tube rides will start from inside of the jet, emptying you out into the pool below.

The new Water Park under construction, with the 747 Jet being readied to be lifted onto the top of the steel framed structure. Note the Grape Vineyards on both sides of the construction road.

Where else can you get "Spruce Goose" Wine?

Thanks for traveling along with us once again. Hopefully we've given you some ideas on what to see and where to go in your traveling future. Happy Trails...

-Gary & Karen... and Abby too!-

March 2010 Camping Trip - #2

This early spring camping trip brought us two NEW events... camping at a new county campground, and the "maiden-voyage" for Dave & Sandy's new Evergreen "Ever-Lite 27RB" trailer. Even though we had rain the first day, the second day brought out the Sun, Lafuma chairs, afternoon coffee, and snacks of dark chocolate Biscotti's and orange flavored Milano's! You know, enjoying the "fruits of our labor". :-)

We stayed for the first time at this newer Lane county campground (opened up in 2009), called Armitage County Park. Some friends told us about this place, and it's in a beautiful location along the McKenzie River within an hours drive from home. Perfect for a quick "get-a-way", but still within minutes of Eugene, Oregon or the fun Antique shops of Coburg, Oregon.

*** Click on pictures to make them larger for viewing ***

Site #16


Full-Hookups (Water, Electric 30/50amp, Sewer) with Cable TV, and Free Wifi... all for $25 a night!


Nice level (and spacious) paved sites

The excitement of our arrival to this newer campground, gave way to seeing Dave & Sandy's new trailer all setup for the first time. It's a beauty... which I'm sure will bring years & years of fun on our future "Thurlacki" adventures together. It took some doing, but Dave finally succumbed to the "Dark-Side" (after some "gentle" prodding from Sandy), and for a guy that owns too may tents, he ended up selling one of them (their Coleman Utah tent trailer of 7 years), for a hard sided RV... complete with all the amenities like a flushing toilet, shower, microwave/convection oven, furnace, air-conditioning, and a flat-screen television! You know, back to the basics of "roughing it" on camping trips! :-)

The "Maiden Voyage"

What a nice looking trailer!


Dave demonstrating the proper way to take a "camp" shower

This campground is located along the McKenzie River, and future camping spaces will be placed closer to this river. They will be upgrading the larger "Group" camping sites this summer in this park, with new showers and a laundry facilities to be built.

Abby and I walking beside the river


Wild "Bleeding Heart" flowers

Oregon Grape in bloom


There were bunches of wild Trillium flowers

Without a doubt, camping offers a way to relive the stress of "everyday" life and get away from the day to day monotony. The only thing better, is being able to share this time with close friends and family.

More Milano's please


Ahhhh... camping can be so relaxing
(Note the distance between camp sites)

Until our next trip... Happy Trails.

Gary, Karen, and Abby Too!

Our Annual Trip to the Beach - March 2010

This doesn't really count as a "Camping Trip" per-se, but all the same, it was time away from home enjoying the company of our best friends Dave & Sandy. We make yearly trips over to Yachats, OR together, and stay at the Fireside Motel. One of the best features of this Motel (other than the room decks overlooking the ocean a mere 50 ft. away), is that they allow dogs to stay with you in your room. And Abby just loves stretching out on a King sized bed.

The "804 Trail" which runs right behind the Fireside Motel, has miles of beautiful scenery to enjoy, and tide pools to explore. If you head North on the trail from the motel, in about 3/4 of a mile you'll hit sandy beaches that stretch out for miles. This is Abby's favorite running area.

After eating lunch at the "Chowder Bowl", we headed down to the beach to exercise the dogs before heading south to Yachats, and the Fireside Motel.

*** Click on pictures to make them larger for viewing ***

Perched Seagulls at Nye Beach

Sandy, Dave & Maggie, Karen & Abby enjoy a windless beach


Foggy Sun & Seagulls

After stuffing ourselves on a couple of pounds of freshly cracked crab for dinner, we were blessed with a different sunset every night. Here is our first nights sunset, taken from Dave & Sandy's deck.

First Night Sunset

One of our favorite things to do while we stay here, is to drive the "Yachats River Road" from the South end of Yachats, all the way up to Cape Perpetua Overlook. If the whales are traveling along the coastline, you'll be able to see them from up here.

Abby and Karen exploring on the Beach


Abby & I taking in the sights along the 804 Trail


More 804 Trail scenery

During our last night, we went out to dinner at the "Drift Inn". We always get a great meal here whether its breakfast, lunch, or dinner! Afterward, we crawled back to our rooms, put on our comfortable "stretchy" pants, and wondered if we'd ever be hungry again.

Last nights sunset

Thanks for following along with us on our trips, and always remember... "Life's a Beach", so grab some for yourself!

Happy Trails until our next adventure.

Gary & Karen

February 2010 Camping Trip

Winter camping can be very rewarding... especially if you're prepared for the colder weather. Some of your favorite campgrounds can be less crowded, and during the winter season, familiar summertime haunts can be just as beautiful with new things to see and explore. Karen and I took advantage of some nice weather (no rain), and headed out to the Belknap Hot Springs Resort near McKenzie Bridge, OR off of Hwy 126.

On our way to the resort, we had a "Good Oman" appear right before us along Interstate 5. A Bald Eagle flew across the front of our truck when we headed south towards Eugene, OR, and the Hwy 126 exit. After this experience... Karen and I knew everything was going to be better than normal on this camping trip. :-)

*** Click on pictures to make them larger for viewing ***

The Upper Camping Area - Site 16


The McKenzie River was right behind us

The Upper Pool, Heated with the "Hot Springs" water (about 104º)

Miles of walking paths and beautiful gardens to explore

The Japanese Garden

Entrance to the "Secret Garden"

With all this water... Abby took the time to quench her thirst

A fungus stair-stepped tree

We also took the time to drive around the surrounding area, and explored some of Oregon's beautiful side attractions. See some of our finds below.

Clear & Cold... the McKenzie River has a beauty of it's own

Fish Lake reflections

Double Rainbow at Koosah Falls

Mt. Washington with a forest fires destruction

Sahalie Falls

Water drips can become "Stalagmites" by morning

Our "Pirit Heated Hose", worked great in the freezing temps, and kept us supplied with fresh water for the trailer

During the daytime, the outside temperatures got up into the high 40's or low 50's, and at night dipped down into the lower 20's. Inside the trailer however, we stayed nice and warm, and listened at night to the McKenzie River as it rushed by... putting us to easily to sleep in our toasty bed (with the help of a mattress warmer). Of course we made a lot of visits to the upper hot springs pool (about 50 yards from our trailer), and enjoyed just soaking and relaxing until our fingers were pruned. Yep... the winter blues can be easily chased away if you just know where to hide. :-)

Happy Trails...

Gary & Karen (and Abby too!)