tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53358812124163033372024-03-07T13:48:56.052-05:00Gundyville On WheelsWe take to the road full time in our 43' Newmar DUTCHSTAR and you get to come along for the trip- all expenses paid!Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08947436453581681709noreply@blogger.comBlogger599125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-13368105013067995052014-02-10T14:21:00.003-05:002014-02-10T14:21:42.127-05:00The Final ChapterThe final chapter has yet to be written, and despite the title here, this isn't it! But just as an update for those who have expressed interest and/or concern- YES, we did take the rig off the road and YES we did buy a home and a piece of land in Sequim, Washington. Full timing is definitely behind us at this point. The coach is parked out back, plugged into 50 amp service and full hookup, while we clean and get it ready for sale- a process that is nearly complete. EVERYTHING is in excellent working condition, and looking pretty darn good, if I do say so myself. Price and details will follow in the next few days, so if you or someone you know has any interest, that would be the time to let us know. Stay tuned!Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08947436453581681709noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-4156518328949308752013-08-31T22:27:00.000-05:002013-08-31T22:27:16.860-05:00Bright Star First day of crabbing in Sequim! It sure felt like the first crab hoop we pulled for today had a really BIG crab in it, but as it rose to the surface in the relatively clear cold water it looked empty! Just the empty dark bottom of a trap with no crab. And yet the chicken in the bait bag was also not visible which it should have been. Vas es loaf? as the Dutchman would say. The answer to all the questions was soon answered. The ENTIRE bottom of the crab hoop was covered by a gigantic sea star with 20 arms. We have never in all our years of crabbing come across something like this. It was a thing of mystery and beauty. <br />
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As it turned out we crabbed about three hours and brought home only a single 6 1/4 inch across the carapace male dungeness crab for the day. But it was a beautiful day and we talked to a bunch of locals who really had some good local knowledge for us regarding the fishing rights between what one business owner called the "Indians and the Cowboys." VERY INTERESTING STUFF!<br />
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Just another word about the dungeness crabs that we brought up on this day. Most of them had a deep purple color on the legs which we have not seen anywhere else. Very pretty. Just mostly not big enough to keep and eat.<br />
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<br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-69973235638483129522013-08-21T22:00:00.000-05:002013-08-21T22:00:24.544-05:00Edelweiss and The Lonely Goat HerdWe spent most of the day two days ago humming tunes from The Sound of Music! Why? Because we made our first foray up to Hurricane Ridge in the Olympic Mountains of Washington State. The ridge is only a few miles from Sequim where we are camped. The road to the peak of the ridge literally puts you at eye to eye level with the top of Mount Olympus. That will take your breath away. On Olympus and the adjacent peaks that make up the Olympic Mountains there are any number of glaciers. The vistas are magnificent. The meadows of the ridge peak are jam packed with black tailed deer and on a clear day (which this was) you can see many many miles in every direction- including Canada on the far side of the Straits of Juan de Fuca. We strolled trails along the ridge in wonderment breathing in the cool smell of the pines. We literally hummed a few tunes from Sound of Music and felt like we were "there" in person. I may have actually yodeled across the valleys to a lonely goat herd- only there was no goat herd and no answer was echoed back.<br />
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I will use a few stills from that day trip but not nearly all the shots as there will be another post that gets in to the subject in a bit more depth in the not too distant future.<br />
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<br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-24881401497888584542013-07-28T22:38:00.001-05:002013-07-28T22:38:43.537-05:00Elk, Clams, and BassAll right, already! I've been a computer lazy oaf since we landed in Lakeside, Oregon on the Ten Mile Lake near the little fishing village of Winchester Bay and a short ride north of Coos Bay. It's not that we haven't been busy. It's just that the things I thought I would be writing about this time of year simply are not happening this summer. Kinda strange. Like earlier in the season, not much in the way of a salmon run and still hardly any crabs to be caught unless you have a boat and can get off shore. I don't. So I can't. End of story. And the wind? Never stops for even a short while. Sand blasted on the beach when we go collecting kelp for our little craft projects, air blasted on the dock when we try crabbing, too windy to cast a line in to the surf. A tough gig on the coast so far this summer. But clamming has been OK, in fact we found a mess of Empire clams, better known elsewhere as "gapers" on the flats off the tip of, where else, Empire, Oregon a little known stretch between Coos Bay and Charleston, where the oyster farm is. They are big clams the size of your hand, give or take a bit; a might chewy but fine in chowder or cut in strips and deep fried. I just like digging them, even in the wind on a crisp cool day on the flats. They are usually arm-pit deep in mud or sand so when you do finally bring one up it feels quite rewarding.<br />
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When it has been just too windy to do much of anything else on the coast, we have headed inland, and driven along the Umpqua River until we come to a likely spot and then we get out and see if we can locate any of the Elk herd that frequents the area. Most times we do and they surely are beautiful animals. I like to photograph them. Admittedly I would also like to eat them, but hey! It's not hunting season and probably if it was, I wouldn't be able to locate them.<br />
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One day about a week ago we were sitting by our camp fire (a controlled fire in the pit despite the wind) and looking out over the lake. A whole host of guys with bass boasts pulled into camp, had some kind of a group meal by the boat house and then disappeared again. But early the next morning, and the next two days, they launched from the camp dock and headed out into Ten Mile Lake on what was a semi-pro bass fishing tournament. Each day at three o'clock they would come in with their "live bags" and weigh in up to five bass for the competition. Once weighed, each team took off again to release their fish in the areas where they had been caught. Normally on this lake a bass must be 12 inches to keep, but not more than 15 inches. For the tournament though, there was no up side limit because all the fish were being released alive anyhow. There were some beautiful fish brought in for weighing, and that was great, although just looking at those high tech bass boats was quite a treat in and of itself. None of this fold up on the side of your camper boats for these guys. Big bucks! (and no Chuck, my friend, I do NOT mean to say bulls this time).<br />
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Right now we are spending quite a bit of time each day on our kelp crafts. It's fun and it keeps us out of trouble and when people see what we are producing from what looks like seaweed rotting on the beach, they are a bit surprised. Me too actually.<br />
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Another week yet here and then on to Washington State. Looking forward to visiting with Derek and Karin and doing a bit of house hunting. Thinking the time is drawing nigh that Gundyville needs to have roots again instead of wheels. But we shall see what we shall see!<br />
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Slide show:<br />
<embed flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&hl=en_US&feat=flashalbum&RGB=0x000000&feed=https%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2F107726454583328066448%2Falbumid%2F5903677605355686193%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26hl%3Den_US" height="400" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" src="https://static.googleusercontent.com/external_content/picasaweb.googleusercontent.com/slideshow.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="600"></embed><br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-91854927243100026932013-07-07T16:36:00.001-05:002013-07-07T16:36:57.851-05:00Our New Fishing/ World Ocean Cruising BoatGreat news! As our land yachting of the North American Continent winds down, a new opportunity has arisen. So before leaving Gold Beach on the rugged coast of Oregon, we decided to purchase our next toy: a ship large enough to be used for deep sea fishing, crab pot hauling and world class ocean cruising adventures. The deal was just toooooo good to pass up, so we decided to make the purchase after giving it much consideration. And the owner agreed to let us keep her in her current location so we didn't have to move it and pay for weatherization and winter storage rates. True, it will need a bit of TLC, but her structure appears to be fine and we are really excited to get going in the Spring.<br />
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Those of you who have fished and boated with us in the past, get ready for some fun in the sun on the high seas coming soon!!! I think our virgin cruise will be the Alaskan Inside Passage.<br />
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<br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-3174983037118670292013-06-24T19:18:00.000-05:002013-06-24T19:29:47.051-05:00Crazy Kelp!As promised!<br />
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When we had a short stay here at Turtle Rock RV on the Oregon coast last year, we were both really "taken" with the art work of the owner hanging on the all in the registration office. The pieces looked like maybe leather, maybe birch bark, maybe something else. Wrong! They were made from dried pieces of kelp. they were beautiful. They were unusual. They were captivating. And we vowed we would come back here- especially if she would agree to show us how they were done. No problem- the artist/owner of the campground offers a class in this craft to anyone who requests it for the more-than-reasonable fee of ten bucks a piece. So this year we took that class and really had a wonderful learning experience and, just maybe, a "project" or hobby for life.<br />
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Within a week of taking her class, we had amassed large quantities of kelp (some fresh and wet- some old and dried)and began to prepare them for the creations that these material could become. What fun! People wondered what in the harry we were doing with all those goodies laid out all over our campsite, we showed then what we had done, and with that there were more and more people gathering on their own. And taking the class. An unexpected bounty from the sea. Boundless bounty from a boundless sea!<br />
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In our very first class, we both produced something we felt very proud to have created. Here, then, is a look at the collecting, the processing, the class, the process, the results- all with cations (in the slide show)....<br />
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<br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-37991346065220302792013-06-23T18:43:00.000-05:002013-06-23T18:51:36.541-05:00Wind SurferA while back I mentioned that in the near future the International Wind Surfing Contest would be held just a few miles down the road (7 miles to be exact). Well, the day for the big event finally came, but the wind did not. And it didn't come the next day or the next day or the next day- and this in a place where the wind almost never stops blowing. We have tried to walk on this beach on days when our faces were sand-blasted really badly and we had to abandon the day's stroll. But finally, when all seemed lost, enough wind came up to get the surfers in the water, and the event was "back on..." I'd describe the wind on that day more like a whimper than a gang buster, so we didn't see the best competition that we might have otherwise, but it was still a good afternoon and we got some pretty decent pictures.<br />
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Looking back, I can tell you that Marilyn and I fell in love, with NO DOUBT, to the music of Roy Orbison. We have cd's of (I think) everything that Roy ever recorded, even dating back to the Traveling Wilburys. The Travelers, or the Wilburys, if you prefer, consisted of Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison .... I'm guessing you didn't know there was a Beatle and a Stone at the launch of Roy Orbison's career, but yes indeed! And why is this important to talk about on a post about Wind Surfing? Well that is the title of one of Roy's most popular numbers ever. And if I'm being honest, which I strive to always be, the real reason I was so excited for this event to get off the ground, was because I wanted to tie it in with Old Roy and a music video of this catchy tune that I have always liked.<br />
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So here we go: some stills, a slide show from a single heat of the competition, and a video clip of Wind Surfer by Roy Orbison. Enjoy!<br />
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<iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/iLdo3Mq42gQ?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-26399454896485505972013-06-15T16:08:00.000-05:002013-06-15T16:12:47.204-05:00Harvesting The PacificA lot of people are happy just to look out over the expanse of an ocean and listen to the sound of the waves on the coast. I like that too. But hunter/gatherer better describes how I like to appreciate the sea and its many and diversified resources.<br />
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Wind. You may not associate wind with the sea, but you should. The variation in temperature between the land and the sea creates a disturbance that creates a breeze- and some times a pretty darn good one. It makes opportunities for recreation like sailing, wind surfing, kite flying, kite surfing and other such activities possible. One of the top 5 places in the world to wind surf is at Pistol River, Oregon. That happens to be just a few miles down the beach from our Gold beach base. Not that I am going to wind surf, mind you- those days are pretty much long gone. But an international championship will be held there in just a matter of days and we plan, weather permitting, to attend the event and see what it's all about. Should be fun, and will make for something that I have never posted about before.<br />
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Found on the beach. depending on where you are and what kind of shoreline you have, there are a whole host of goodies you can find on the beach, from shells to sea glass to drift wood and maybe even a message in a bottle. The beaches here do not have much in the way of shells at all. Plenty of driftwood that we collect because either it is just plain beautiful or it will fit in our camp fire ring very nicely. No sea glass at all. Some fine gold, though. And at the high water mark, pieces of dried kelp that we will use to make "baskets" and the like in a class coming up real soon. More on that later.<br />
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Musseling, crabbing, clamming, all fun and we go as often as tide and time will allow. Fishing? Same thing- mostly from the dock or the jetty or a spit as we have no boat here that can go in these rough waters. But this week I made a deep sea trip with Five Stars Charters out of Gold Beach. On their charter trips, you set crab traps on the way out, fish all day out at sea, then pull the crab pots on the way back into port. If we catch plenty of crab, all on board have their crabs cooked for them back at the dock while the fish are being cleaned. On this trip, the crabbing, as it has been for us so far, was pretty bad. The sea temps are just too cold for the crabs to be close to shore right now. The fishing for Ling Cod was pretty good. The sea swell (the feature of the sea that can make you sea sick) was also very active and for the second year in a row fishing deep sea here I spent much of the day fighting hurling my cookies over the side. Fortunately I did not do that and managed to keep fishing. And for that effort I was rewarded with a limit of two ling cod (both about 12 pound fish) and a limit of black and blue rockfish. I caught a few other species that the season was closed on and they were returned to the water unharmed. It was a day when the fog and drizzle did NOT roll in, so we had a clear view of the shoreline and the sea rocks and stacks around us at all times. I hasten to add that the smell of those rocks from the abundance of sea lions and birds made for a not so great odor; in fact, if you were not gonna get sick from the sea swell, you might just do it from the smell of the local wildlife.But still, plenty of fish for the freezer at the end of the day and enough crab to take home as a treat for Marilyn who never met a crab she didn't like.<br />
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One further note: I briefly had to battle a Stellar sea lion who decided (though it doesn't happen often) to grab a ling cod on my fishing line and make it a meal of his own. For a minute there I thought I had a whopper of a fish. Turned out to be a big bad bull sea lion who came up to the surface with the fish and lure in his mouth, looked right at the boat, gave out a mighty roar or two, shook his head and spit out the lure, setting him (and me) free, but keeping the fish secured in his jaws. I am quite sure he sustained no injury from the contact, BUT I am just as sure that he was pissed off! Pardon the French!<br />
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You should notice there are absolutely no pictures anywhere from the actual deep sea fishing part of the trip this week. That is because I knew I had two choices: one- look through a view finder and puke my guts out, OR two- forget about taking pictures, look at the beautiful scenery and keep on fishing. It was, after all, a fairly simple choice to make. <br />
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It was a good week for harvesting the Pacific.<br />
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Wind surfers near Gold Beach<br />
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Captain setting crab traps at sunrise <br />
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a dungeness crab <br />
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a red rock crab <br />
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Slide Show:<br />
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Video Clip: Big Red Crabbing machine coming down the dock!<br />
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Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-42694800458265780192013-06-08T19:49:00.002-05:002013-06-08T19:52:41.766-05:00About BandonAnother windier than before day sent us on a drive north to see what we could see out and about up in Bandon, Oregon. Here, the Coquille River dumps into the Pacific and the layout of the delta is ripe for violent wind action and that is exactly what we got on our excursion. The weather created a truly inspired water-scape between the jetties and while the camera NEVER catches it the way the eye sees it you just might get the idea. The blue skies b-lie the effect but with the photos and the videos and the sounds of the wind- maybe! <br />
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The ocean was the main attraction to be sure. But the crab dock was pretty darn fancy, the town is just filled to the gills with taverns and places to grab a bite to eat and there are quite a few specialty shops that we poked in and out of. En route we stopped at a couple wood slab operations and a carver or two. Our friend Jude will be please to know that Bigfoot, alias Oregon Squatch can be found very easily in these here parts! And I took a couple infra red shots to prove it.<br />
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This post you get a few stills, a slide show and some video content...<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/em-PNZ5b3ZM?feature=player_detailpage" width="640"></iframe><br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-15598419846900164632013-06-03T16:23:00.000-05:002013-06-03T16:23:10.048-05:00Coasting- NorthAnother clear day with gentle but cool breezes sent us off up the coast this time to see what we could see. The mission was as it was for Coasting South- poke into all the nooks and crannies along the Oregon coast- only this time in a roughly 30 mile stretch from Gold Beach north towards Bandon. We had as always, some marvelous discoveries along the way, and we may have hit another 20 or so miles and gone all the way to Bandon but by mid afternoon the gentle breeze had become gusts to 40 mph. That's a lot of wind along the shoreline and when I tried to step out of the car to take a picture at Cape Blanco Lighthouse, I actually had a hard time opening the car door and a harder time getting out and then had to lean way into the wind to avoid getting swept off the bluff. I thought about being a rugged explorer and continuing on but decided it would be better to wrap things up right there and get back to the coach and the awnings and the tent we have set up. So far so good although we are in Day 2 of a big blow. Strange: you hope and pray for a clear day and then you get it and with it comes the wind and then you ALMOST hope and pray for the fog and drizzle to come back. I said ALMOST!<br />
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Along the way we stopped at one spot to talk to some fishermen and found out that it was FREE FISHING WEEKEND in Oregon- meaning that folks can fish where-ever they wish without the necessity of having a fishing license. It seems like a good promotion to get folks, especially kids, interested in the sport of fishing. To that end, Oregon Fish and Wildlife was holding a FREE FISHING DAY for kids under 10 at the salmon/trout hatchery on Elk River in Port Orford. Fishing for trout, including some enormous rainbows in the cement pond of the hatchery! You gotta love those odds, and sure enough the kids were hauling in the goods with a limit of three each under the guidance and watchful guides from the department. It was a fun experience. I think from the reaction of the volunteers we were the only non-parents to make a contribution to the program but we had as much fun as the kids did, got some swell photos, and, truth be told, Marilyn did try to get me registered for some free fishing. The warden said I didn't look like I was 10. To which Marilyn said , "No, but he acts like it sometimes and doesn't that count?" Later he and I each agreed that we WERE 10 - about 6 and half times that is....<br />
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As an indication of just how isolated and inaccessible parts of this rugged coast can be, please watch for the thought-to-be-extinct brontosaurus picture we captured in this post's slide show!<br />
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And when it comes time to take a look at the boatyard we visited (Port Orford), please note that this is strictly a "dolly" yard. One of only 6 in the world! All boats are resting on dollies which are rolled to a lift and placed and retrieved from hoists on the dock. NO boats are left in the water either at the dock or on moorings- it simply is too rough and too rocky for that. There are a few pleasure boats about, but not many, as this is a place for serious fishermen and their commercial boats. Having said that, this is also the spot where we had our most favorite meal of all last summer- a tiny little hole in the wall shanty dead center on the dock called Griffs. We had lunch there again this trip and were not disappointed- the meal was excellent again. The seafood is cooked pretty much literally while it is still dripping wet with salt water- that's how fresh the product is. I had four oysters and a two piece fish and chips and Marilyn got a scallop plate. Put your thumb and your first two fingers together and touch them to your lips and blow a kiss in Italian style to understand how delicious it was.<br />
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<embed flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&hl=en_US&feat=flashalbum&RGB=0x000000&feed=https%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2F107726454583328066448%2Falbumid%2F5885350155539928209%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26hl%3Den_US" height="400" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" src="https://static.googleusercontent.com/external_content/picasaweb.googleusercontent.com/slideshow.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="600"></embed><br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-66681105131120977682013-05-27T17:10:00.000-05:002013-05-27T17:10:03.471-05:00"Coasting" To The SouthWe've been driving both north and south from our Gold Beach base to do various activities and see specific things since first staying here a year ago, and in the three weeks we have been here so far this year. The Oregon coast is rugged and beautiful and you can easily enjoy it just driving up and down the coast. But we wanted very much for some some time now to go poking down every little side road off coastal 101 to see what there was to see away from the highway itself. We were given an absolutely amazing day over the Memorial Day weekend and we grabbed the opportunity to do the first of our discovery routes.<br />
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The mission: drive down each and every side road from Gold Beach south to Brookings- a stretch of coast about 30 miles long. From Turtle Rock to Whales Head. From Cape Sebastian to Harris Beach State Park. Check out every pull off with a small hiking trail. Check facilities of all state owned land in this stretch of which there are quite a few. In short- get to know the physical area really well. A fishing, clamming, musseling and beach combing scouting mission if you will, as well as a nature appreciation day.We spent the entire day at it. Most of the shots will be scenic in nature from distant vistas to close ups, although we did run into a festival of sorts when we got down to Brookings and there were a few activities there that seemed they needed a picture or two as well.<br />
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Slide Show: Coasting<br />
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Along the banks of the river, we collect myrtle (Oregon Bay) leaves for drying and wild dill and anise. Around the coast from the mouth of the river, we go musseling for beautiful blue mussels some of which we steam and eat, some of which we saute in white wine and garlic for immediate consumption, and some of which we steam then place in chili oil and smoke for an hour or so in our portable smoke house.<br />
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We also pick up and tote back to our site as much dry driftwood as we can carry each time we go out. Already we have had free campfires that would have cost us big time had we purchased the firewood- something I have a strict aversion to....<br />
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We've been fishing along the jetties and the spit between the north and south jetties with some good success and we have taken pictures of the spit from both sides of the mouth of the river.<br />
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One of the things you can count on is that the sea lions will be in the surf fishing along with you. That isn't a problem until the salmon start running at which time they are definitely salmon thieves! The salmon run has not begun in earnest because the lack of rain has allowed the water in the river to get too warm. That is what they say. Hard to believe as many of the days are completely socked in with heavy fog so that we are often in a mist- but that is different from steady rain and therein lies the problem.<br />
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There are frequently horse back riders coming through camp to go out to ride on the beach. Depending on the light on the beach, that provides a very beautiful and picturesque scene.<br />
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The natural beauty of the area is something to behold. We offer a slide show in support of the things mentioned in this report. In future posts we will be photographing the coast while exploring the "little roads" that veer off of the coastal route 101. Really looking forward to that!<br />
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<embed flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&captions=1&hl=en_US&feat=flashalbum&RGB=0x000000&feed=https%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2F107726454583328066448%2Falbumid%2F5881254351623512897%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26hl%3Den_US" height="400" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" src="https://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="600"></embed><br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-64049413724754943642013-05-13T00:03:00.000-05:002013-05-13T00:03:19.418-05:00Mother's Day Fishing ReportMother's Day, 2013. Dickie called his mom first thing. He's really good like that! In fact I handed a sleeping Marilyn the phone so he could wake her up himself. Best way for a mom to wake up on a Mother's Day to be sure. I called my mother a short while later, and we had a nice long chat as well. Sent notes to my sister, whose three kids took her out buffet-ing the night before to celebrate. Not only was it Mother's Day for her, but her birthday as well!<br />
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But this is not a report about Mother's Day. This is a fishing report! We've been here 6 days. Blue Mussels- low tide harvest is a given- all you need to do is show up and pick and cut them off the coastal rocks at low water, clean and eat. We went a couple times ourselves and showed some other folks "the ropes." We've eaten some steamed fresh out of the water and smoked a couple batches in hot chili oil and vac-packed them up for later. We made our first trip to B Street Dock in Crescent City (Northern California) for a day on the crab dock. Thankfully we went with some friends Jim and Georgia and had a really good time....because there wasn't a single crab in sight. NEVER take a banana on a fishing trip? Superstition? All I know is we went all day without seeing a crab..... So the crab count stands at ZERO as of this report- a position that I assure you WILL NOT STAND even if I have to put on my dive gear and go down and grab those little boogers with my bare hands (not that I think it will come to that.) And fish- we have been surf fishing three times already. The first day I got four surf perch and Marilyn practiced her casting. The second time I got two more surfies and Marilyn continued to fine tune her casting skills. And today, on our third time out and on Mother's Day, she struck first with a really big one, then another and another. I caught up at three after a while and then we went into overtime where I managed to eek out one more as the "bite" was on the wane. I wound up with four to her three but in truth she owned the biggest fish of the day! Kudos! Surf fishing is not easy. But once you feel the bite, and set the hook successfully and real in a good fish through the surf- that is a good, no, a great feeling...and she did that all by herself AND took the fish off the hook and dropped it in the cooler. Game on!<br />
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In other activities to date, we dropped by a search and rescue training "op" on a cliff near our mussel locale, and took a few nice pictures of "Turtle Rock" and the immediate coastline at our campground which takes its name from the rock- no doubt you will see the turtle.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTD7xTyy5_6L4Xzt1zHtjodN8Wgo4J-cwv52YdXkxJ_05-wRqliGXzLvMpcoqN4mP_msGKhpNAFdtexXGmMYm3fRsjJm-26LpiYl7G9WxRx5Ele-JYqbF-STq0fnY6li9Gtor65BeERn4/s1600/DSC_0006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTD7xTyy5_6L4Xzt1zHtjodN8Wgo4J-cwv52YdXkxJ_05-wRqliGXzLvMpcoqN4mP_msGKhpNAFdtexXGmMYm3fRsjJm-26LpiYl7G9WxRx5Ele-JYqbF-STq0fnY6li9Gtor65BeERn4/s640/DSC_0006.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<embed flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&hl=en_US&feat=flashalbum&RGB=0x000000&feed=https%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2F107726454583328066448%2Falbumid%2F5877299006421959617%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26hl%3Den_US" height="400" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" src="https://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="600"></embed><br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-18761242552035438632013-05-07T12:05:00.000-05:002013-05-07T12:05:23.338-05:00The Welcoming Committee We hit the coast of Oregon after traveling a roundabout trail down from Grants Pass. It was a nice ride on a lovely day. The first roadside pull-off we came upon, we pulled off for a few pictures and a nice deep breath of the fresh salt air. Always good to be back on the ocean. We got back on the road towards the campground but hadn't traveled more that another 10 or 15 minutes when my eye caught the telltale spray of a whale just outside the surf below us. We pulled over again and jumped out. Sure enough there was a whale right below us and he popped up a number of times for photo ops. Never showed his tale or blew again that I could catch, but the evidence is here for all to see. What a welcoming committee!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0iuCRMWiQxEB30o7TMRRax98mM_Ykeveb6QEMIiQyBwPZxi0mzpshOkzFRAZwywNoed_5dUb9BCqfuof02HE0Qs1cOKtkKwl5KzHZ_arcd7e3_-8BAXvHHAfjksH6GfR6So1QT9SxzK0/s1600/DSC_0001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0iuCRMWiQxEB30o7TMRRax98mM_Ykeveb6QEMIiQyBwPZxi0mzpshOkzFRAZwywNoed_5dUb9BCqfuof02HE0Qs1cOKtkKwl5KzHZ_arcd7e3_-8BAXvHHAfjksH6GfR6So1QT9SxzK0/s640/DSC_0001.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<embed flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&hl=en_US&feat=flashalbum&RGB=0x000000&feed=https%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2F107726454583328066448%2Falbumid%2F5875279353351757665%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26hl%3Den_US" height="400" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" src="https://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="600"></embed><br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-23179437771996304472013-05-05T22:25:00.001-05:002013-05-05T22:30:41.441-05:00River Park RV- Commentary I'm not in the business of rating RV parks. Some are nice, some are OK, some are neither. But every once in a while you find something special and that's what we did this time around. We are backed right up to the Rogue River in Grants Pass, Oregon at River Park RV. The campground is small by many standards, but it is clean, quiet, nicely appointed with some unusual sculpture, and has an immediate intimacy upon arrival. The host was and is exceptional at accommodating whatever you need. We will be here only a total of three nights and I don't know whether or not we will have the occasion to be here again, but if we do, or if you are passing this way, you certainly will be happy with things here. Swim at the sand beach. Fish for salmon right behind your rig. Pet owners have a washer and dryer for pet blankets, etc. Who else has that? Sit under the giant shade trees and read a book by the river or just stroll the grounds like an outdoor art gallery.<br />
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And speaking of art....this piece is called "Obama and Biden." I will restrain myself from going all political on you and therefore I will not comment on this piece excepting to say if you look closely you will get a sense of how the local bird life feels about the dynamic duo. And who doesn't love birds?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-FbZ4scyPi-ypwhf7qjWHkrcK_KJ2PIVwbEwI6RtMxIQSm1rZgzQbURTnRKWUNalSU9ayibNAZvEodl2tz2GFi33ECB0OIhvMlxFUuMB9Hw2f9LNjt-oEcdUIEMivXBgFZNr87E85-10/s1600/DSC_0007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-FbZ4scyPi-ypwhf7qjWHkrcK_KJ2PIVwbEwI6RtMxIQSm1rZgzQbURTnRKWUNalSU9ayibNAZvEodl2tz2GFi33ECB0OIhvMlxFUuMB9Hw2f9LNjt-oEcdUIEMivXBgFZNr87E85-10/s640/DSC_0007.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUcoWumD16UUu3Ce9Bx5XQzrTFx6wzj4gD6o313C0624O2ahCCZvo1ud7IsDiJ8c4-WvDbDsl9-Imfjk69u3wq2FvFiaFs-CztqEYH2vq409Z7Y-I1M1rO1G1JgsOMKXMWu9sw1qZgeaQ/s1600/DSC_0018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="402" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUcoWumD16UUu3Ce9Bx5XQzrTFx6wzj4gD6o313C0624O2ahCCZvo1ud7IsDiJ8c4-WvDbDsl9-Imfjk69u3wq2FvFiaFs-CztqEYH2vq409Z7Y-I1M1rO1G1JgsOMKXMWu9sw1qZgeaQ/s640/DSC_0018.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And here, for you viewing edification, is a slide show from the campground:<br />
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<embed flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&hl=en_US&feat=flashalbum&RGB=0x000000&feed=https%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2F107726454583328066448%2Falbumid%2F5874694054592213777%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26hl%3Den_US" height="400" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" src="https://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="600"></embed><br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-29174937116399966272013-05-04T18:10:00.001-05:002013-05-04T19:47:35.101-05:00Jet-Boating Hellgate Canyon On The Rogue RiverWe are back in Oregon after a safe and fun but otherwise uneventful trip up from Arizona. Thanks be for that! Rather than going directly to the coast, this time we are taking a few days in Grants Pass in order to see more of this area and to ride the famous jet boats on the Rogue River from here down into Hellgate Canyon. Last year we rode the jet mail boats up stream from Gold Beach. This is a different run altogether. Much of the wildlife is the same, but the vegetation along the banks and the character of the river are quite different as you will see. We made this run on a Saturday, so lots of folks were out enjoying the gorgeous May weather that is rather unexpected it seems but much appreciated. What you won't see in this post are the spins and general soakings that the captain sees fit to do to keep you wide awake during the trip...because the camera had to go into hiding every time he got "cute" with the boat. But the scenery was very nice and I think there is a fair representation of that.<br />
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Captain Donnie was a real character. He had tons of one liners and even though some of the folks just nodded their heads like they were hanging on his every word, he in fact stated at the outset that he never allowed the truth to get in the way of a good story, so, for example, when he told us the turtles we stopped to see didn't like the cold weather in the winter and therefore migrated to Mexico before returning on May first, a lot of people just put on their "oh, really?" faces. Duh! But the laughter on board was every bit as wonderful as the scenery, and the champagne brunch, included in the cost of the ride, and held at a tremendous cabin facility just above the canyon walls was off the charts delicious. I don't think anyone on board was anticipating such a classy meal in the wilderness. What fun! Let's get started.<br />
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Video clip- click the arrow to begin....<br />
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The launch dock:<br />
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Bald Eagles all along the river:<br />
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Running part of the lower canyon: <br />
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Fine dining in the wilderness: a gigantic tropical fruit plate, followed by biscuits and gravy (maybe the best I ever had), followed by scrambled eggs with bacon and sausage links- all served with fresh squeezed orange juice and a delightful bottle of champagne.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTPINE1d9D9b0O3SQk-cLhY-kRw9D6R3nA0a0seGowLA6C4aVunKguhMKKjmutUiZiqo9KFcQ15be0dW4k3cikB7r_IvujD6CKJh6TGuGY0GSpUtvL_ZqR0mWGeBRfCf5sfQFUwt820LE/s1600/DSC_0051.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTPINE1d9D9b0O3SQk-cLhY-kRw9D6R3nA0a0seGowLA6C4aVunKguhMKKjmutUiZiqo9KFcQ15be0dW4k3cikB7r_IvujD6CKJh6TGuGY0GSpUtvL_ZqR0mWGeBRfCf5sfQFUwt820LE/s400/DSC_0051.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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We started the post with a video clip of the jet boat coming to the dock. Lets end it with a clip of the running of the lower canyon.<br />
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Video clip....click arrow to "launch"</div>
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And here is a link to the rest of the photos from the trip if you'd like to see them. Despite my best efforts and those of my friends at <a href="http://www.geeksontour.com/" target="_blank">Geeks ON Tour,</a> the slide shows are still remaining elusive.<br />
<a href="https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/107726454583328066448/albums/5874248746951818849?hl=en" target="_blank">Hellgate Canyon album</a>:<br />
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AH HAH! Think I figured out the puzzle with a little help (actually lots of help) from my friends. I'll leave the link up, but let's try the slide show again......Cross your fingers!!!<br />
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<embed flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&hl=en_US&feat=flashalbum&RGB=0x000000&feed=https%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2F107726454583328066448%2Falbumid%2F5874248746951818849%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26hl%3Den_US" height="400" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" src="https://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="600"></embed><br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-87452207155725954572013-05-02T20:45:00.002-05:002013-05-02T20:45:42.050-05:00Visiting Sutter's Mill SiteA couple days were set aside to visit the old site of Sutter's Mill near Coloma, CA en route to Gold Beach Oregon for a two month gig. This site was a logging mill but they unexpectedly found gold pieces of gold in their mill chute which in turn led to the California gold rush. Discovered in 1848, created a boom town by late in the year 1848. In less than a year the easy gold was found and by "49" there was still a tremendous draw for miners but the actual gold at the Mill was on a down hill slide. So "The 49ers" spread out and found gold all over California....and you probably know the rest of the story.<br />
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On the day we visited the site which is now a state park, there were hundreds of school kids traipsing all over the place but the town sites were mostly closed. A few of the kids got a "panning experience" at one of the original sites but many were relegated to the stream that fed the mill. The former was "salted" with gold. The latter was pretty much void of gold in the surface layers that were allowed to be panned in the "hands and pans" rules of the river. Since we were there with our pans in hand we joined in the fun and helped some of the kids learn some panning skills. A good time was had by all.<br />
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The slide show feature still has not been returned to Blogger so selected still shots is all ya get. Sorry about that!<br />
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<span id="goog_1335390596"></span><span id="goog_1335390597"></span><br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-11574353153059202932013-04-27T22:22:00.000-05:002013-04-27T22:22:08.189-05:00Do These Pictures Make Our Asses Look Big?We made a side trip from Needles, California, back into Oatman, Arizona- only about 30 minutes away from our campsite on the Colorado River. This was a trip to see the wild burros: asses if you will! But it turns out it was also Biker's Week so we got a bit more in the way of asses than we had planned on. At first we thought the 6 pounds of carrots we bought to take for feeding the asses might go to waste, what with all the noise and hullabaloo. But nope. Not a problem. Have to learn to be flexible. Turns out one good ass deserves another and so the day was a big success.<br />
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When we got home from the day's outing we took our fav beverages and walked down to the beach at the river and watched the boats go floating and/or zooming by. It was HOT but there was a nice breeze blowing down river and it felt great. I took a bunch of videos with my phone but they were all sideways. Huh? Anyway, I probably should have walked back to the coach and gotten my camera, but hey, my ass was too tired! (get it???)<br /><br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-7257333520333603892013-04-27T21:02:00.002-05:002013-04-27T21:02:47.400-05:00Brenda: Season 2013 Wrap UpWell, sir, just now getting around to wrapping up the posts from Brenda for this season. It was a fairly cool winter but not like the rest of the country and I think we probably had the best weather anywhere in comparison to the rest of the country. can't complain, although we may do so from time to time just to keep it real. For the garden it was a great year. The cactus had a tremendous bloom and the veggie garden produced non stop and without a hint of pests like aphids and the like. The cactus garden is now on weekly watering with our helper, Ellie, and the veggie garden is all closed up for now but ready to begin again in the late fall.<br />
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Everyone got together for a final bite to eat before leaving camp including but not limited to our resident chuck-walla seen here checking out the apple a day scenario.<br />
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We put out dinner of smoked pork butt and the trimmings for the neighbors and had a good odds and ends session in the big tent with the Happy Tuesday gang.<br />
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We were afriad that the Argentinian Giant wouldn't bloom before we had to leave but it hurried up and did just that. It's really a pretty special cactus flower to be sure.<br />
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Marilyn kept trying to have one last fire in the chiminea and our local dove couple kept trying to lay an egg in the top of it every time the fire went out. The battle was declared a draw when the egg got laid but didn't get cooked...<br />
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When we left camp we first headed east to get an oil leak that was persisting fixed up in Mesa. That completed, we returned to spend one more night in camp before heading west into Needles,California on old Route 66. That is where we are as I write this, parked on the Colorado River with all types of boats buzzing by as we sat on the beach at day's end. Earlier in the day, we made a side trip back into Oatman, Arizona, to stalk the wild burros that frequent the town regularly. We got more than we bargained for as you will see in the next post!Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-16066384011095495262013-03-30T03:06:00.000-05:002013-03-30T03:06:56.211-05:00This Week In The DesertWell I had decided how to approach this post and how I wanted to present the slide show.....that was about 5 hours ago when I realized that Picasa Web Albums which I have used to manage both my photo edits as well as select html code for embedding slide show is currently transitioning to the all new (but not as good if you ask me) Google Plus. I might have had some choice in the matter but as they often do, they trick you into something like an update to your profile which automatically "enrolls" you in something new and unfamiliar. To say that annoys me would be an understatement. Slide shows no longer work- at least not yet and not right now. Bummer. Because now I either post a hundred individual slides and take up a lot of space to do it, or lose some of the photos that I thought to be important to the story at hand. Annoyed. Yes, that pretty much says it, especially after 5 hours of trying to figure out how to do something that thus far has not been implemented by Google. Rats!<br />
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Any way, the point of the post was to be this: Our garden and our plants are all blooming beautifully. The cactus is starting its annual parade of color in the campground and out on the desert, especially at some elevations, the flowers are out in full force and magnificent to behold. That doesn't mean that life here is easy though and on our last ride we came across the carcass of a cow that had succumbed to the elements out on the open range and was posing as the classic western image of cow skull and loose bones laying in the dust under a hot sun. Then too there were some very unique beetles found- no idea what it was, so if you know please write in. <br />
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The slide show which will NOT be seen today as explained was fully captioned so as to provide some info of what you were seeing. Don't know if I will go to the mat on redoing all that or not- maybe just here and there. Pictures R US:<br />
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Beaver tails cactus: <br />
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Cow's Tongue: <br />
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Santa Rita:<br />
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Squash plants: <br />
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yard plants: <br />
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salad patch: <br />
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summer squash: <br />
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desert toll: <br />
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stretching our legs on a 90 mile ride:<br />
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Hedgehog in bloom: <br />
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Ocotillo in bloom: <br />
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red barrels on the rocks:<br />
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the perfect desert still life:<br />
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out by "Gene Autrey's Hideout": <br />
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so bright it looked like night: <br />
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The Flintstones Cabin- a "cave" in the boulders:<br />
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Wandering Garter Snake's tail end! <br />
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Guzzler- wildlife water collection station:<br />
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Tank Pass- 1000 ft drop over a quarter mile, then big boulders to climb at the bottom... <br />
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Canal pumping station: <br />
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Single barrel blooming on a hilltop:<br />
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the geocache champion of the world: <br />
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caliche collapse:<br />
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soil particles cemented by natural lime and pressure- CALICHE LAYER<br />
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mule deer:<br />
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Tell me what it is- I can't find it anywhere....??? Pretty and ugly at the same time.<br />
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<br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08947436453581681709noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-20763452882141308352013-03-26T13:43:00.001-05:002013-03-26T13:43:44.201-05:00Get The Lead Out!This time we use the "Dutch Oven" with Donnie, not to make dinner, but rather to melt down some lead in order to facilitate part of the "reload and make your own bullets" process. It was fascinating and fun and we were amazed at the process and the color variation of the metal as the melting and skimming and pouring processes take place. Donnie is a treasure trove of information for shooters at all levels and for us pistol packing newbies this was a real eye-opener and learning opportunity. And as it gets harder and harder to get ammunition as our government scarfs it all off the shelves for God knows what reason, this is a skill that will certainly come in handy.<br />
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In the first shot here, the bullets of lead and copper covered lead jackets have been crushed so as to "crack" the jacket so the lead can melt out. They are just staring to heat in the pot over a propane burner.<br />
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We started out with 52 pounds of "bullets" that Marilyn and I picked up from the back berm at the rifle range. When the process was completed we wound up with 38 pounds of good clean usable lead. Recycling at its finest! Green shooters we are!<br />
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If you look closely, you will see that many of the jackets are now empty, the lead is melting out and "floating" the jackets and other non-lead materials so they can be skimmed off. You might be able to see what looks like melted gold in the pot. Trust me- it isn't. No alchemy here.<br />
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As most of the copper was removed from the surface, the lead took on its characteristic blue or purple color for a short while as the impurities burned off. <br />
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Donnie demonstrates the safe technique for ladling molten lead into molds for cooling. From there, they will be re melted in a different machine to be molded into projectiles for the ammunition.<br />
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<embed flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&captions=1&hl=en_US&feat=flashalbum&RGB=0x000000&feed=https%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2F107726454583328066448%2Falbumid%2F5857658847411778801%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26hl%3Den_US" height="400" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" src="https://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="600"></embed><br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-27745400324898943932013-03-26T13:14:00.000-05:002013-03-26T13:14:20.967-05:00Observatory TrailI've been busy! This post and these photos have been sitting on the computer just begging for a little attention. What can I say? Too much fun for a writer to pay attention to the craft!<br />
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This was another Brenda Gang outing to Harquahala Mountain to "scale" the mountain with our quads and other 4WD vehicles to reach the summit with an amazing view from the spot where the Smithsonian once monitored climatic events from the highest spot in SW Arizona. Remnants of the equipment can still be seen, but rather than being used to "observe" the universe according to the state of Arizona, it now has had its equipment modified so that it controls the extensive canal system that delivers water to various parts of the desert. That in and of itself is pretty interesting, but the views from up there are just magnifico, and the ride up is quite exhilarating as the "road" we travel (more appropriately called a trail- especially in places) rises 4000 feet over the 10 mile length of the trail. It is one of the few rides where going up is actually easier than coming down, as low gears and brakes are the order of the day. Focus! No guard rails up here.<br />
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As is often the case AND also the reason we travel in the desert as a group, we had a breakdown three quarters of the way up. Randy's bike started leaking fuel and the carburetor, although the mechanics in the group attempted a "field rebuild" decided that it would agree to go down the hill later but not up the hill now. Shift riders. Up and onward. We'll pick it up on the way down.<br />
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Below, Randy owned the breakdown of the week: <br />
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<embed flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&captions=1&hl=en_US&feat=flashalbum&RGB=0x000000&feed=https%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2F107726454583328066448%2Falbumid%2F5857657016458075569%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26hl%3Den_US" height="533" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" src="https://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="800"></embed><br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-14144671453720029032013-03-14T01:30:00.000-05:002013-03-14T01:32:44.950-05:00Pinzgauer ParadingWhat, pray tell, is a PINZGAUER? A pinzgauer is to military style all wheel drive vehicles what the Swiss army knife is to jackknives. It is Swiss. You can take it absolutely anywhere. It will do whatever you need it to do whenever you need to do it. We paraded around the desert with our Happy Tuesday gang and a host of others in three pinzgauers. We went cross country. We went off road. We went up hills. We went down hills. We climbed over rocks. We laughed. We cried. We screamed every so often just to keep it real. And, like on the Big Boy Ride, a story much earlier in the blog from the Yuma area, I think it may have been appropriate to check the under-drawers for the occasional skid mark. Because frankly my dear, we went some places that I didn't think those vehicles could go, should go, and after we went there I may have pondered whether or not I would get back to where the trip started- at least in the condition in which I set out. The scenery was sensational. The experience was not to be missed no matter what questions may have arisen while climbing or descending a rock wall on a trail that was basically less wide on occasion than the vehicle in which we were riding...or so it may have seemed to some at the time. But as you can tell since I am writing this little tale, we all made it back and no, I am not wearing a cast on any of my limbs.<br />
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The day long excursion is FREE to campers- one expedition per month during season. Each month explores a different trip and venue, This trip known as one of the most scenic and the most challenging was all it was cracked up to be and then some. Three vehicles, three drivers and we rode with Travis, the owner of our campground. Travis is a really nice guy and a damn fine driver, otherwise I just might be wearing that cast right about now. I say Travis is a good driver....and now I will follow that by telling you that his passion is for racing these incredible machines at BAJA. So if you think he is a timid driver, that would not be correct. And if you think he can't make you feel like you are about to roll over even though HE knows full well you will not- why then you would be correct about that. If you think there is a more invigorating ride, maybe a roller coaster, in some amusement park somewhere then by all means give that a go. otherwise you should plan a trip to Desert Gold RV in the winter season just for this experience if not for any other. I am so glad I went on the ride. Not as happy as I was to get back alive, but happy none-the-less!!!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj48gZa_f_FQ0yKYmXEepY0LwZpuOGwtJKZ_xUIBEqKxYGKsE6S7lQrZZrJENULYc-2rwE_-VL7bjQrI4_JQxnIZq4TTjlfEoicyicDtsK3qaHxAkQOAFBHzHmtePDM5KBihj903FsmcFo/s1600/DSC_0070.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>This trip by name, should you decide to put it on your bucket list is: Vampire Mine. The mine was cool, but getting up there and back down the other side of the mountain- well that is just something you have to experience to believe. You will see in pictures one of the vehicles actually lay over on its side in a dry wash gulley and then right itself and continue on. And one of our drivers went down the steepest hill of the day- stopped in the middle and then backed up the hill in reverse before "coming back to earth." I was not in that vehicle. I will tell you I am glad of that so that I could take the pictures from the vehicle in front. While I did like taking the pictures for sure, that may or may not be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help me clean underwear!<br />
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Slide Show of the Pinzgauer Parade:<br />
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<br />Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-70810513396482738502013-03-12T01:18:00.001-05:002013-03-12T01:28:33.673-05:00Sheep Walking<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx_sNEhRKbM_IlpqUE4ayrXYS-HCffVqdrQXk3TrDM96ukaiSC-6JFXM_g6Q9eFwwHD-a_1Ewg820ImwLwAA1agqwPmoprdAhwW46fiwamiZ0cIHCcQdQoJGPYOrZqr8pTwX3okIyWbA0/s1600/DSC_0053.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>News of the Week: A Sunday ride on the ATVs to Sheep Canyon proved fruitful and made it clear why the canyon is named what it is. We traveled all the way into the canyon as far as we could go before spotting the sheep but there were two large groups of them at the base of the canyon wall and we sat up our lunch as watched in amazement as the sheep made their way right on up the sheer wall of the canyon and in and out of a series of canyon wall caves. It was most fascinating to take it all in while we ate, like a real live dinner theater.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx_sNEhRKbM_IlpqUE4ayrXYS-HCffVqdrQXk3TrDM96ukaiSC-6JFXM_g6Q9eFwwHD-a_1Ewg820ImwLwAA1agqwPmoprdAhwW46fiwamiZ0cIHCcQdQoJGPYOrZqr8pTwX3okIyWbA0/s1600/DSC_0053.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx_sNEhRKbM_IlpqUE4ayrXYS-HCffVqdrQXk3TrDM96ukaiSC-6JFXM_g6Q9eFwwHD-a_1Ewg820ImwLwAA1agqwPmoprdAhwW46fiwamiZ0cIHCcQdQoJGPYOrZqr8pTwX3okIyWbA0/s640/DSC_0053.JPG" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"> Then too, the ongoing moving of sheds from one site to another was in full swing again this week and this two story jobbie rolled down the street and moving in a couple slips down the road from us. Tight fit. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">And here are the slide shows of all the activity:</div><br />
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Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5335881212416303337.post-45388920391735535982013-02-20T14:12:00.000-05:002013-02-20T14:12:11.649-05:00Home, Home On The RangeValentines Day is over. The Happy Tuesday Group staged its first ever (that I know of) game-fest after a game-day feast. Washer toss (like horseshoes only on a much smaller scale) and golf toss tournaments were set up after the assignment of teams. The competition was fierce. Well, as fierce as it could be when you are full from your "Happy Meal." And while the finals had to be rescheduled due to contestants preferring to go take naps than to play well into the dark night of the desert SW, I can tell you that Gayle and Greg were kicking butt just before things broke up for the day. We SHOULD brag it up now in case we get taken out behind the big tent when the games resume.<br />
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But never a bunch to slack off, a Sunday at the shooting range was scheduled next. Me and my friends and my now rootin tootin shootin wife traveled to the open range at Bouse for some fun in the sun and the dirt. Those that owned guns brought them out for target practice. For Marilyn, it was her first time even to be around guns let alone to learn about them and fire them, so some instruction was in order, and Don and Linda who pretty much sponsored the activity were first and foremost in that regard, as were others who gave info and guidance on their respective firearms. In short order, I watched with amazement as Marilyn progressed from total newbie to gung ho Annie get your gun and is-it-my-turn-again shooting enthusiast. And she did well, what with all the expert help of our group of friends many of whom shoot regularly and are pretty much sharp shooters truth be told. We all shot at coins on a tire, some metal flip targets, some clay pigeons, some paper ring targets and a few other interesting contraptions made by Don. It was a hoot, which I guess makes it a rootin tootin shootin hoot of a day. After we picked up at the range, we headed back to camp for "snacks." I use the term "snacks" loosely. More like heavy Hors D'oeuvres. Actually, more like dinner. Whatever. All of the gang are great and creative cooks so any "bite" is a good bite with this crew<b>. </b>Marilyn engaged Donnie in a conversation of re-loading while they had their snacks. Go figure!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDCk6mIiTGZ1DJyFOBELBi9l3OqJHVd_CA8Jyi4LBauTEz0b8Pq0ok6mo2dqUV42NKacvtSdQABGM74tMWXSek9xPozx2eo3EyGK3ppMjzI-s_WXC6fY7OxTpePlQy_Nuf-T2UHEXZI6M/s1600/DSC_0010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDCk6mIiTGZ1DJyFOBELBi9l3OqJHVd_CA8Jyi4LBauTEz0b8Pq0ok6mo2dqUV42NKacvtSdQABGM74tMWXSek9xPozx2eo3EyGK3ppMjzI-s_WXC6fY7OxTpePlQy_Nuf-T2UHEXZI6M/s640/DSC_0010.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD-m2X3aRlOhNUr8v4CdrQY6ARa9gkgBFK55_siFNIThUMAdJu6SAReNPj-r6uPPOZd3vuGqWVbevFDjztrB5hm7ntNfi-ofQUY39e0QZ77Wd2bmvNyLPKbZS8td3Hh1Hdx9p9H66RT8A/s1600/DSC_0045.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD-m2X3aRlOhNUr8v4CdrQY6ARa9gkgBFK55_siFNIThUMAdJu6SAReNPj-r6uPPOZd3vuGqWVbevFDjztrB5hm7ntNfi-ofQUY39e0QZ77Wd2bmvNyLPKbZS8td3Hh1Hdx9p9H66RT8A/s400/DSC_0045.JPG" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix8AJMlBusRa8kuW4PwGaikB0owT8OXNTXAMEpGRPOQj9WyHF33CYDdiX70vEEVxHxjrwQuch6cK8Fr1PBrf3UhXZ3Bp4VOrnfR9BpaUOqtqs7Br7VbjxC8geNfIA4ZgK9wOViW37NSro/s1600/DSC_0035.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="347" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix8AJMlBusRa8kuW4PwGaikB0owT8OXNTXAMEpGRPOQj9WyHF33CYDdiX70vEEVxHxjrwQuch6cK8Fr1PBrf3UhXZ3Bp4VOrnfR9BpaUOqtqs7Br7VbjxC8geNfIA4ZgK9wOViW37NSro/s640/DSC_0035.JPG" width="640" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix8AJMlBusRa8kuW4PwGaikB0owT8OXNTXAMEpGRPOQj9WyHF33CYDdiX70vEEVxHxjrwQuch6cK8Fr1PBrf3UhXZ3Bp4VOrnfR9BpaUOqtqs7Br7VbjxC8geNfIA4ZgK9wOViW37NSro/s1600/DSC_0035.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
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Now I am certain you would think after all this FUN<b> </b>that we would be tired and need another nap.<b> </b>Nah! I was only kidding about that. Nope. Instead we staged, again through the graciousness of <b>Johnson Down On The Farm Enterprises</b>, a pig race the likes of which have never before been seen in these here parts of the country. We placed our bets, we rolled our dice, and our little pigs raced around the track just as fast as their little legs could carry them. The hooting and hollering from each race attracted more and more passers by to see what all the commotion was about. Why pig racing of course. What were you thinking? It was the morning volleyball tournament down by the pool? No. No. No. It is senior citizens with guns and racing pigs, and what could be more fun than that, I ask you????<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsivUOXg6xSesUm3KHa6pQJTHH76vSlz9CktqYwIpHMOdTqpdTfawyS-VcUWeniXnRbjKN3xZ-mx1DTzVvJKrTXdzBz8dsVkKDCHGnVybfiQlLLm5RoOTIBspp-c_m8cAfVS99hVLgzkQ/s1600/DSC_0050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsivUOXg6xSesUm3KHa6pQJTHH76vSlz9CktqYwIpHMOdTqpdTfawyS-VcUWeniXnRbjKN3xZ-mx1DTzVvJKrTXdzBz8dsVkKDCHGnVybfiQlLLm5RoOTIBspp-c_m8cAfVS99hVLgzkQ/s400/DSC_0050.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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We have actually been so darn busy having fun of late that I am just happy to come home and watch the cheese wheel we made age!<br />
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Rootin Tootin Hootin Gun Shootin, Pig Racin Slide Show:<br />
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PS Yes. There is a post script to this posted script! Marilyn and Jude would like all of our readers to know that each of them "plugged" their coin targets from a distance approximating 100 yards or so. (More like "or so" but whatever!!!!)Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01391305805031311404noreply@blogger.com0