The Great American Road Trip: Day 2

We started our Sunday trying to find coffee - no in-room coffee in our hotel room, and no coffee place open in oldtown Sonora! Finally we found a drive-through kiosk, and I got my caffeine and Stace got a cup of tea.

We then drove to Columbia State Historic Park, a Gold Rush town that is like a living history museum, with shops, museums and cafes.

Violet was most excited about the deer on the outskirts of town, which was in the foothills.

Cora enjoyed dipping a candle to color it. Because of Covid, masks were required indoors, and indoor dining and the indoor museum were closed. But plenty of places were open to experience.

We then continued north, stopping briefly in Angels Camp, the town where Stace got his MGB seven years ago. The town is known for being the setting of a Mark Twain short story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County," and the main street takes full advantage of its literary fame. Here is one of the plaques celebrating the first "winner" of the jumping contest written about in the story.

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That morning, before packing up, I had the family listen to a recording of the story, so they knew what it was about.

As we continued driving, we went through other tiny old towns. Going around one bend, we saw this old car, fitting in with the old buildings and old barns.

It was a very hot day, pushing 100. When we saw a sign promising river access, we made a quick right turn and found a little parking lot for the Mokelumne River. This was apparently a popular drop-off spot for river rafting and tubing. 

The water was very cold, but that didn't stop Cora and Stace from jumping in, in their clothes!

These are great memories we'll keep forever - just pulling over, and going for a swim.

After a bit more driving, we pulled into Sutter Creek, our home for the night at Hotel Sutter on the right.

Such a lovely big room! Very fancy. This was another historic hotel, and it had a lovely restaurant, which we went downstairs to enjoy.

 

Great American Road Trip, Day One

With our plans for a trip to England and Belgium ruined by covid-19, we switched gears and got on the road.

I've always wanted to go to California's Gold Country, and our friends invited us to join them in June Lake for a weekend. And then, Aunt Patty and Uncle Bill invited us to come see them, since we couldn't go to the UK.

We decided to combine all of the above and do a giant, 2,700-mile looping road trip, starting in Gold Country and ending in the Eastern Sierra.

Our first good stop (besides gas stations and fast food lunches) was in Jamestown, one of many cute mid-19th Century towns that sprung up in the era of "gold in them thar hills."

When the antiques store sign said coffee and Tillamook ice cream, we were sold! The girls actually had a lot of fun looking around this huge store, and Cora spent some of her spending money on an old cigarette box.

The green-trimmed Emporium is the antique store I mentioned above...

Jamestown

We then drove a few more miles to Sonora, our stop for the night. The town's entrance features this old train.

We stayed at the historic Gunn House Motel, which was built in 1850.

 I loved the old-fashioned details, like the window in the door, above, and the old doorknob and lock on the bathroom door.

We walked up to Sonora's main drag and found a place to eat; all indoor dining is banned because of Covid, so restaurants are making do with outdoor seating in parking lots and alleys.

The food was good, and we were fortunate the sun was going down because it had been a HOT day.

We took a walk after dinner - cute town!

Summer Slippin' and Slidin'

Grandma bought the girls a slip 'n slide last summer, and we broke it out of the box Sunday. Thankfully, Cora's not too old to have fun with water!

 

Tidbits

After finding two dead birds in two days, I wasn't really feeling "proud" when Spencer ran up to the house with this little guy in his mouth. I picked up the baby bird, which was still alive, but with a big blood drop under its wing. 

I wasn't expecting it to live, but it was alive, and squawking as Spence hit pawed at it gently before I took it high and away. 

Violet set it up in a little home, and we fed it banana after reading a recommendation online. In the morning, it was still alive! We kept feeding it periodically, and read up on how to care for baby mockingbirds. After weighing it, we determined it was five days old.

But, after a trip to the orthodontist, in the afternoon we found it deceased. Farewell, sweet birdie.

Cora's friend came over, and they walked to Granary Square for Starbucks and snacks to consume while watching movies.

Liana came over, too, and the girls set up the Calico Critters.

 

The four girls were watching Guardians of the Galaxy II when they shouted that a roadrunner was in our yard! That's something new. Vi said she could see red and blue on its head, like the cartoon version. I looked it up, and sure enough, it's a breeding season thing! I hurried over and just managed to see its feathers as it climbed over the wall.

Sunny, Surf-y Sunday

While the girls and I have been to the beach, Stace hadn't been this summer. We fixed that Sunday (and escaped the 105-degree heat at home).

We ended up in Uncle Bill and Aunt Patty's old neighborhood, and hung out at the beach at Marina Park.

Besides boogie boarding, we brought a frisbee for fun and frolicking. After the beach, we got frozen yogurt at Surf N Yogurt, before heading back home.

Castaic Camping

We had a great time Friday night at a first-ever event at Castaic Lake - a family campout, complete with a movie on a big screen, an animal show, and night fishing. Violet was particularly excited about the last one - she hadn't been fishing since Yosemite two years ago.

We were allowed to put our tents where we wanted, and we chose this gorgeous spot. It was a long walk to the car, but worth it for the view.

Ranger Frank from Placerita was there, with reptiles and a beautiful barn owl.

Tying knots, getting ready. Violet had fun fishing before we went down to the movie when it got dark. They did a little more fishing after the movie, too. No catching, but fun nonetheless.

Moana with s'mores, provided by the county staffers. For $10 per adult, this was a great value!

The sunrise was gorgeous! 

Breakfast making...

We packed up and went to the other side of the lake to continue fishing...er...casting. Friends who fish often later told us that it's a tough lake.

But, as we were about to leave, this guy got a bite, and brought in this huge carp! It was really exciting to watch. 

Oh, and you might have noticed that Cora isn't pictured - she didn't feel like camping or fishing, so she stayed with Grandma and Grandpa for the night. It was nice to have the time with Violet. 

Summer Fun

We continue to be thankful for our pool! While some HOAs have kept theirs closed because of Covid, ours has been open, with a few extra county rules.

I took Vi and Vic to the beach Tuesday. It was nice getting out of the July heat.

We had Kell, Yass and Char over for dinner Tuesday night, and Char came back for more pool fun on Wednesday. He and Cora had fun practicing back flips into the pool. It's not as easy as it looks, but Char eventually nailed it.

Week in Review

We tried a new tropical fruit, a spiny ball called rambutan. I found them at the 99 Cent Store, a trusty provider of interesting fruits over the years that sell for four times the price at Ralphs. 

Cora cut through the spiky skin and found white flesh around a pit. It tasted a bit like a grape. Fun experience!

This week, I refinished my two bottom drawers, because a cat who shall remain nameless peed on them numerous times and destroyed the finish. You can see the one on the left after I sanded it, and the one on the right, before sanding. They're back in place now and look good again.

I was working in the yard and moved a pot, and found a blue-tailed skink underneath! I've never seen one before. Violet thought it was cool.

Friday was a holiday for Stace, since Independence Day fell on a Saturday this year. JT and Jim and the kids came out to visit. We barbecued, played in the pool, and had a fabulous dessert. JT brought homemade apple and chocolate cream pies. YUM. She is a gifted baker!

This was a Fourth of July like no other. No parade, no pancake breakfast, no fireworks. Santa Clarita was actually planning to be one of the few cities to hold a fireworks show, but planned to shut all the nearby parking lots and encouraged people to watch from home. But, because of covid, the county banned fireworks shows, and ours was cancelled.

We went to my Mom and Dad's house, and had a nice time together. We even did sparklers, and watched illegal fireworks light up the sky.

The footage from all over L.A. was hilarious - fireworks everywhere! You can ban the real shows, and the people will do what they want! The Fourth of July without fireworks, come on!?