Tag Archives: F250

A Royal Trip

Posted on by

It was time to get away again.  But where?  It is not a special weekend or anything like that but it is summer.  Many people out there doing things.  I initially looked at Lake Casitas by Ventura but thought I would look for something closer.  I was able to find a spot at Princess campground near Kings Canyon NP.  We have stayed there before but it has probably been 7 years.  I also didn't want to go very far due to my recent issues with the truck.

We left around 11 on Friday and headed to highway 180 then turned east.  This route is a very long steady climb but nothing too strenuous.  I didn't push the truck much and there wasn't a lot of traffic.  I was able to do 45-55  all the way.  I did notice some black exhaust  coming out at times but no loss of power like before.

We got to our campsite around 2pm.  This spot was adequate, but it was the last spot available to reserve.  The issue with the space was the tongue of the trailer was so high!  Only one other time has our tongue been so high and that was at Red Rock SP (look at the second photo).  But I setup the Rotochoks, the corner jacks and all seemed secure.  Here is what it looked like:

We rested a bit, then had dinner.  We were cleaning up and getting ready to go to the amphitheater show in the campground when we heard someone stating they didn't want to hear any stories of anyone falling.  It was some friends of ours, Don and Renee McDonald.  They were staying on the same loop as us with some other family members.  Very small, this world.

The 7:00 nature show that evening was about birds. It was put on by a Forest Service employee named Diane.  She actually is part of a bird rehabilitation project and has many that she takes care of at home.  She started her talk showing a Red-Tailed Hawk.  The next three birds were Owl's of various ilks.  It was very interesting and she must have had about 50 people where there was seating for 20.  Many of the visitors knew her and have probably been listening to her for years.  After that was over we drove to the amphitheater at Sunset campground where the show started at 8:30.  This was an NPS ranger that was putting on a talk about fire.  This was interesting also but the ranger had a bit of an issue with child crowd control.  We went back to the trailer and watched Soul Surfer.

Saturday the Grant Tree walk was at 10am.  A ranger leads this and talks about the trees.  We went last time also.  This ranger was much better in controlling the children.  Roxie taking a break inside a tree:

 

We stopped at the Grant Grove store but I was very surprised by the price for ice so I thought we would head down to Hume Lake for some supplies.  The prices were better.  We went back to the trailer for lunch.  After lunch we took the Indian Basin trail which is right by the campground.  About 2 miles round trip but pretty easy and a lot of it is paved.  A few of the meadow in the basin that has been logged (those are stumps in the foreground):

 

Came back to the trailer to rest a bit.

We went to Grant Grove for dinner.  We started out in the restaurant but weren't sure we wanted a large meal so we opted for the Pizza 'parlor' instead.  This started at 7pm.  An hour and 15 minutes later we got our pizza's.  This was an issue since we had reservations at 8:30 for a star gazing trip.  Ouch!  We made it on time (across the street) but barely.  The ranger that was leading the tour talked to us about sizes in the universe and they are pretty immense.  She had an example: If our entire solar system (sun and 8 planets) were the size of a quarter, the Milky Way galaxy (the one we are in) would be the size of North America. WoW!

We loaded up in our cars and drove up the hill about 2 miles to Panoramic Point.  Normally this is a location where you can see the Kings Canyon area from a high view (more on that later), but she didn't go that way.  We went down a closed road (in the dark with just a few red flashlights) to the NPS heliport.  Well, she said it was the heliport but we could not see it.  We laid down our blanket and laid down ourselves.  This way we could look up at the stars without straining our necks.  The ranger had a very powerful green laser pointer so she could point out constellations and stars.  We say many different configurations, satellites, shooting stars, planets and the milky part of the Milky Way.  It got a bit cold and Roxie started using the blanket for its original purpose.  It is amazing how much your eyes can truly see in the pitch dark.  After about 1 hour we broke it up, headed to our cars and we were back at the trailer.

Sunday started a bit slower and we thought we would take a walk around the campground.  However, when we went by the amphitheater there was a talk starting.  So we stopped and listened to a talk about bats.  Lots of questions by the kids.  We then continued our trek around the loops of the campground.  I wanted to go to Panoramic Point in the daytime so we headed there.  We stopped at the Grant Grove complex and had our lunch.  I must confess, we hung out at the Grant Grove complex for another reason.  They had WiFi there.  On our trip I found out that my Uncle Stan had passed away, he was 92.  By getting my voicemail (no cell coverage) via Google Voice I was able to find out.  I was also able to call via VOIP to get more information.

Panoramic Point was much different in the light of day.  It was a bit of a trek up the hill to the viewpoint but this is what we saw:

We had plans for one more hike.  A trip to see the Boole tree.  We made a detour to Hume Lake again (you can see it in the picture above) to get a bit more diesel.  I wanted to make sure I had enough to get home.  So off to Boole tree!  It was about 2.5 miles offroad by the Big Stump Meadow.  We drove out here one other time but this time we kept going.  Some cows were wondering what we were doing:

 

We got to the parking lot and saw only one other car and a couple getting ready for the hike.  The hike is a loop of 2.5 miles.  To the right, 1 mile away is the tree, to the left 1.5 miles is the tree.  We decided to do the 1 mile first, just in case we didn't want to do the whole loop.  Off we go!

The trail started off by climbing.  We went along a bit more and it climbed again.  Finally it started climbing some more!  It leveled out a bit and then it really climbed.  More so that the first part.  It was shady and there was a breeze.  If it wasn't so, we probably would not have made it.  But we started it so we trudged forward.  Finally we crested a hill and saw the trail split.  We were there.  There were a lot of trees around the Boole so here is a shot of Roxie in front of it:

 

It is hard to show the immensity of these trees in pictures.  Here is a try:

There were a lot of bugs messing with us so we didn't spend too much time there.  We went back to the trail split and had to make a decision.  Go back the same way or continue on the loop.  We opted for the loop because we figure we can't climb much higher.  Fortunately we were right.  We were able to see one last glimpse of the tree on the way back:

 

The trail started a descent, pretty easy and we were feeling pretty good.  We passed the couple that passed us going uphill.  We only passed them because they stopped to eat something.  About 1/4 mile down the trail we heard some birds really complaining about something in the trees ahead and to the right.  I was curious about it.  Pretty much all the way down the downhill we saw tracks in the sand.  It looked like deer and possibly a coyote.  Roxie was afraid about bears.  As we came closer to the freaking-out birds, we heard some bigger noises coming from trees.  Something was moving around in there, something big and breaking branches.

That was all Roxie needed.  I stood still and looked to see if I could see anything.  Roxie was already running down the trail leaving me there.  She wondered aloud if I was crazy staying there.  I thought she was crazy running from an unknown animal that could be a predator.  She thought bear, I though some type of deer.  She wasn't stopping, I wasn't moving.  After I could see, I decided to catch up to her.  I did so but I did not run.  We continued on a bit and found a gate through a fence of barbed wire.  Now I knew what it was.  It was a cow and there were hoof prints to prove it.  Roxie is still not convinced.  We continued down the trail.

We ran into some more cows and they were very afraid of us.  They shot down the hill, breaking through branches with the same sound that we heard earlier.  We were very happy to get off the trail and sit down.  We were beat.  We went back to the trailer to rest.  Roxie did a little stir fry and we watched Red Riding Hood outside in our lounge chairs.  At 8:30 we went to Sunset campground to see the campfire program on, ironically, bears.

As we walked to the show, Roxie had to make a detour.  I could hear the ranger asking if anyone knew how to help with the computer and projector.  I stayed back and watched who would step up.  One lady did and I was happy.  However, by the time we got down there the issue was not resolved.  I went into the booth and helped out.  Together we got it working for her.  It shows you never get away from your profession.

We retired to the trailer and knew we had to go home the next day.  Back to the heat, routine and everything else we do.  A few more shots before we left (first one proves that I do put the awning out!):

Until next time!

Going camping… with the rest of the populated world!

Posted on by

Well, it seemed that way at least.

We have been lucky in the sense that I can pretty much take time off of work for traveling whenever we would like.  Roxie's work was the same way since she worked 'per diem'.  That meant that we did NOT have to go camping during the high times of travel.  We didn't have to go during a major holiday weekend.  Well that has changed.  Roxie's new job no longer gives her that level of flexibility.  So that means we have to be like the rest of the general public and take advantage of the holidays given.

Roxie found out that she had a 4 day weekend for the 4th of July.  She wanted/needed to get away for a bit so I tried to find a spot on the coast.  We thought it would be good to get away to somewhere that is cooler.  I was able to get reservations at the Pismo Dunes Ranch RV Resort.  We have stayed here before and it is a simple RV park.  Not as crowded as Pismo Coast Village nor as noisy as the one between highway 1 and the railroad tracks.  I reserved that spot starting on Saturday as it would have been too tough to get everything going on Friday and we would be getting in there when it was dark.

(Our view)

We left around 10am, naturally, on Saturday.  We stopped in Hanford to get a replacement tire on the trailer.  I always find it easier to get a tire on the road since the trailer is already hooked up.  We got some groceries, had a bite of lunch and headed off.  It is only about 150 miles from us and a very familiar drive.  What could go wrong?  Don't ever say that.

The temperature was about 100-106 during the drive in the valley.  We left Kettleman City and there is a small hill to negotiate.  Near the top I noticed puffs of diesel exhaust coming out of the truck.  Each time there was a drop in power and eventually a puffing sound was emanating from under the hood at the same time.  We crested the hill and descended.  Now the mind games start.  What is wrong with the truck, is it damaging it more by driving, how can I fix it, can AAA tow us home if needed, etc.  I know we had two more grades to cover on the trip. 

Hill number 2.  This time I opted to try it without the A/C on.  It might have been hot for a bit but it will help the diagnosis.  Luckily I got behind a slow truck.  This kept our speed down but it still was doing it puffing pattern for a bit but not the whole hill.  Hill number 3.  Left the A/C on and it puffed a bit near the top but we were over the last hill.  Yes, we did have the Cuesta grade by San Luis Obispo but we were going downhill on it this time.

We got to the campground around 3 and setup.  Boy, my mind was churning.  We went out to eat at F. McLintock's in Arroyo Grande.  We have gone to the one in Pismo before but this one was more local and a much different ambiance.  It was good.  However, we got back to the trailer and my mind was going again.  I got on the internet to research the truck problem.  I found a lot of doom and gloom, stories of replacing turbos, EGR valves, repairs over $3000, ouch!!  I tried to analyze what was going one.

Over the last many months I had noticed the truck getting a bit more sluggish.  I used to be able to take off very quickly getting on to a freeway, etc.  That was not happening anymore.  I attributed it to the truck getting old.  But 104K miles should be a drop in the bucket for a diesel.  Drawing an analogy to the human body, it seemed like there might be a blockage somewhere.  I heard someone mention on the 'net that their solution was a fuel filter.  It made logical sense to me.  It could have been starving for fuel when it really needed it.  Around town it did not need high volumes of fuel but under hard acceleration or heavy load (towing on a hill) it could not get what it needed.  Also, I could not remember the last time I changed both filters (yes, there are two).  So I thought $100 would be a good investment to see if it helped.

I found a JiffyLube in Oceano that was open on Sunday on a holiday weekend.  They replaced the filters.  Immediately I could feel the difference in acceleration.  I was cautiously optimistic about the solution.  It also helped put my mind at rest.  We made a picnic lunch and tried to go downtown Pismo. Our son Aaron and granddaughter Paige were there in his truck.  No way!  Too much traffic.  We would have a hard time finding one spot let alone two.  We thought we might try Avila Beach but it seemed even worse.  Everyone, including us, wanted to go to the beach.  Aaron suggested going to Oceano beach, where you can actually drive on the beach.  He has a lifted F250 with large wide tires.  I have the stock narrow tires.  We had been on the beach before with our friends the Chen's earlier in the year, so I didn't think too much about it.  Although I did bring my tow strap.

We needed the strap right off the bat.  We were looking for a place to park where Paige could play in the water and on the beach.  Aaron turned one way and I followed and instantly got stuck in the soft sand.  We attached the tow strap and Aaron pulled me out.  We went the other way on the beach and drove down to find a spot.  We pulled in and settled in.  Aaron was a bit concerned with the tide as it looked like it was getting higher.  I check the tide schedule and we were already 30 minutes past high tide so we were OK.

We let Paige play and get completely soaked for about 1 1/2 hours.  We all got burned which was surprising since we never saw direct sunlight due to the fog bank that was there.  I forgot to mention that the temperature was 65 for most of the time we were here.  A far cry from 100+ degrees.  Aaron had to head back home after the beach but he had to pull us out of the sand two more times for good measure.

Roxie and I thought we would go down to Pismo for the night to get something to eat.  The parking was abysmal.  This is where I thought the rest of the populated world was since it was so crowded.  Since we were eating a bit early we were able to walk right in to the Pierside restaurant.  Roxie wanted to do Splash Cafe but it had a line around its' corner (not surprising).  Dinner was OK, nothing special.

Monday.  4th of July!  Roxie has started a walking regimen at home and we brought our bikes here.  I thought we could take a ride out to the ocean and back for a bit of exercise.  I had looked it all over on Google Maps and I know Roxie had ridden horses (with Hannah) from the campground.  We started off.  It was a good dirt road.  Some parts said no vehicles but that would mean cars, etc.  The wide road turned into a narrow path.  The dirt turned into sand.  We were riding but had to start walking.  The plants were over growing the route.  Mosquitos were flying around everywhere.  We were pushing on.  We got to the sand dunes and stopped for a bit.  I saw about 20 mosquitos on Roxie's back biting the heck out of her!

I checked Google Maps and we were off in the weeds somewhere.  Well duh!  I went up a dune to survey the situation.  I noticed the creek we were near turned in front of us and headed south (we were heading west).  The only options were to turn around back through the mosquito nest or cross the creek.  We chose the latter and found a shallow place.  Took our shoes and socks off and crossed.  It was only about 8 inches deep.  Put our shoes back on and walked the bikes to the beach.  On the way we had to go under a 'fence' and noticed there was a sign on it to stay out since it is a bird preserve.  Great.  We were also violating the law.  We headed north on the beach, riding, to the entrance.  We were then able to get on city streets and make a loop  About 4 miles total.  Roxie now calls this the bike ride from Hell!  I thought parts of it were fun.

We thought we would head downtown for lunch and see how things were.  Mistake!  The traffic was really bad so we bugged out of there.  I wanted Roxie to get her Splash cafe fix and we know there is one in SLO so we went 15 miles up the road.  The plan was we go by Mo's BBQ and I would get what I want and take it to Splash Cafe so Roxie can eat there.  Interestingly she found something at Mo's and she really enjoyed it.  Now what?  We still went to Splash and got some frozen clam chowder and two bread bowls for her to bring home.  We went back to the trailer and took a short nap since we knew we might be up a bit later than normal.

We know that Pismo Beach sets off fireworks from their pier and we figured that it would be VERY crowded.  It was.  We didn't even try to park within 5 blocks of the downtown area.  We parked about 8 blocks away, grabbed our aluminum chairs and headed out.  We needed to eat dinner and were looking for somewhere.  We found it about 3 blocks into the walk.  We found Giuseppe's Italian Restaurant.  We know there is a Rosa's in Pismo, like in Visalia but that was a bit down the road.  We went in a side entrance so we did not do a "Beverly Hillbillies" on them with our casual attire and chairs.  The food was good, but Roxie really liked the dipping sauce they put with the bread.  It was balsamic vinegar, olive oil, garlic and grated parmesan cheese.  I admit it was very good also.

Down to the beach!  We made our way through the throng of people and ended up on the beach to the north of the pier.  There were more people than I have ever seen during the DAY on this beach.  We had to wait about 30 minutes for the show to begin.  This was the first time I have ever watched 4th of July fireworks wearing a coat!  Roxie was freezing since she was not as prepared.  The fireworks show was impressive because they had SO many in the display.

After it was over Roxie said we should go up a set of stairs and through a gate.  I saw it said No Trespassing but a lot of other people were doing so also.  We ended up in a gated condo community.  All the gates were locked.  We could not get out, as about 30 others could not either.  Luckily a resident was leaving in his car so that opened up the flood gates, so to speak.  We made it to our truck and then more fun was to be had.  The police department decided not to let us, or anyone else, go south.  We had to go north about 2 miles before we could get on 101 southbound.  From the time the fireworks were over until we got on the freeway, we had used about 1 hour.  We slept good that night.

Tuesday the 5th, time to go home.  We packed it up, hooked it up and cleaned it up.  The big test was ahead.  How would the truck work up the Cuesta.  I had trepidation coming up the grade.  I gained as much speed as I could in the run up and tried not to push it too much up the hill.  Normally I would do 65 up the hill with the trailer.  This time I kept it at 55.  The truck did just fine.  What a relief.

We pulled into Paso Robles and thought we would stop for lunch.  They have a very nice downtown with some interesting restaurants.  The drawback was the temperature was over 90 and climbing there.  We decided on Basil Thai.  It was good and odd at the same time.  The soup was the odd part.  This was the first time we had a soup based on coconut milk.  Not my cup of tea but the main course, a variation of drunken noodles was good.

The hill climbs on the way home were uneventful and I hoped they would be.  We always hate going home but it is a necessary evil.  It doesn't help a 40+ degree temperature increase.  All in all, it was nice to get away.