San Francisco...What a Treat!

O.K.  I am true to Boston as my all time favorite city, but San Francisco makes that conviction difficult.  Colorful, walkable, clean enough, sandy beaches, big surf, great consignment shops and tons of amazing food options.  We gave ourselves two full days to explore.  On the first day we took the ferry into town.  Fast and affordable with great views of the city, Alcatraz and San Quentin (a seriously badass prison).  Scott (having been stationed in CA for two years with the Coast Guard, and working in San Francisco harbor years later) was a handsome and affordable tour guide.  So much walking.  We went to Pier 39 to see the sea-lions, walked up streets that had a near 90 degree grade, looked down the famously curvy Lombard Street and ended in Chinatown.  My eyes were constantly feasting on color and people.  Chinatown was definitely the grand finale for that excursion!  We ducked into the tiny herb shops and live fish markets.  There were tea houses, underground gambling rings, millions of tiny restaurants with no more than three tables each.  Red...so much red.  My favorite color was a part of everything.
On day two of the city we parked near Golden Gate Park and took to town on our bikes.  The park was so vast.  Full of trees I had never before seen and flowers, including a show stopping rose garden.  We found a great sandwich shop and enjoyed people watching while eating.  All of us agree that San Francisco is one of our favorite cities we have been to. 
As of one hour ago we are now calling Las Vegas home.  The RV park is huge...like 936 sites huge!  Tomorrow we explore sin city.  I better rest my eyes for some of the best people watching (or as Elisabeth/A.K.A. the "Go Astros" blurter-outer reminds me, "people judging") of my life.  Can't wait!

Pleasant little ferry ride.

Who can pass up a merry-go-round ride?

Certainly not this big kid in black.

Look at all those sea-lions!  All that space and they crowd together!

Seriously steep streets.

Mmmmm.  Bloody halved fish.  Are the flies free with purchase?

Oh, God!  Fiona, close your eyes!  These bullfrogs are going to be someones dinner!  The giant turtles (live of course) were around the corner.

Chinatown, I love you.  Almost as much as a Redwood...

Look at these city kids.  

I'll take the moon pie and the cockroach on the side.

Spectacular murals abound!

Goldmine!  Vegetarian Buddhist cuisine!

Eric (the owners brother) sat with us and was fascinated by our kids.  He was double interested when he learned we homeschooled.  It was hard to say goodbye.

Golden Gate in the fog.

Hangin' Ten!

Remember Gertie?  She was hanging out too.

Can you smell that?

Biking in the park.

Last chance to touch the Pacific!

This was our last RV park.  We were in an orange grove!!!

THE REDWOODS!!!!!!!

Unbelievable.  Inconceivable.  Regal.  Mystical.  All words that almost describe the feeling you get when standing in the presence of the tallest living thing on earth. I was so happy to finally see and feel the giant Redwoods.  Fiona and Ethan were equally moved.  I can't imagine trying to take something so amazing in at their age...  (We'll see what they think of the Grand Canyon!)  On our first day in the park we were fortunate enough to stumble in in time for a ranger lead hike.  Brad had such a passion for this forest!  He was able to answer all our questions, and with his information I gained an even stronger love for these tress!  I was also proud of the kids for completing a junior ranger program.  (They had to fill out a workbook and say a pledge in front of a ranger in order to earn a badge.)
     Currently we are just outside of San Fransisco...and we are loving it!  What a city!  But that's another story.....

Receiving their badge from ranger Brad.

Honest to God.  How enormous?  Just look at the dead log we are standing on!

Oh tree.  I love you!

Bye Bye green.  Welcome to CA.

We have been using the CA fire map a lot this leg of the journey.

Northern CA beach.  Scott and kids spent the afternoon creating.

I watched while catching up with my parents and wishing my aunt a happy birthday.  I actually had two bars of reception on the beach!

A little art left behind by the Jasons.

And yes.  We know the dangers of these fires.  Here is one we went through in Oregon.  Yup.  Rolling Thunder went right thru those mountains.

We have been using the fishing reels so generously donated by Uncle Jason.  No luck yet though...

OMG!  Just had to throw in a throw back!

My sweet sweet babies at Seaside in Nahant.  Fiona 4, Ethan 3.

Ahhhhh!  I love these boys!

This one was hiding out in Scott's phone.  Better late than never!

Bahhhh...Humbug (Mountain, that is)

As I write, we are finally in California!  We just rolled in from a ranger guided hike through an old growth Redwood forest.  My mind is officially blown.  I have a thing for trees, and this was one of the ones I was looking forward to meeting.  They definitely do not disappoint.  Not just the size and girth...but what they are able to survive.  Redwoods can survive forest fires!  Forest fires!  They also link roots to gain stability...and like ALL trees communicate through the roots of mushrooms.  Google that one if you don't believe me.  You can throw ice ages at them, tsunamis, drought, floods...on they go.  The acid in them that gives them their red color, also keeps bugs from eating them.  So what kills them?  Humans cutting them down, lightning strikes, and heavy wind.  BUT, allow me to back up. 
There have been two amazing Oregon state parks prior to today.  One was located about two miles in from the ocean in the midst of ancient sand dunes.  These dunes were insanely tall, and difficult to climb.  What is amazing is that it's the dunes that have created a bunch of small fresh water lakes just in from the ocean.  The sand slowly slid and cut off the water  flowing to the ocean, leaving great sandy beach, fresh water swimming lakes!  We spent a grand total of six nights playing in this "duney" state park (longest stay so-far).  Then it was onto Humbug State Park.  Humbug is the name of the mountain that overshadows the campground.  I was so thrilled that we all made it to the top with mild effort.  The hike was one of the longer ones we have taken with the kids that had any elevation to it.  Fiona and Ethan seemed to enjoy it top to bottom.  This campground was also located right on the beach...so the ocean walks were glorious.  We enjoyed our first family sunset together here.  Tangerine and powder blue that reflected in the ocean and on the wet sand...  I am sure the next entry will be full of tree pictures...or parts of trees.  Haven't figured out how to get a whole huge Redwood into one good shot.

How could I resist this photo moment?

I LOVE this picture!  I just kept walking toward him(with my finger on the shutter) until he decided I was too close.

One of many lighthouses we have seen on the drives to and from campsites.  All beautiful.  If you're into that sort of thing.

Can you see Fiona and Ethan crawling up the dune?

Serious dune jumping.

I'm not kidding.  It is seriously exhausting climbing these things.

O.K.  If you look closely you can see Scott and the kids as VERY tiny specs on the top of the dune.  Do you see how huge these are?

Fiona sewed me a handy bag for my crochet materials.

I got a kick out of the remnants of Scott's high/low tide lesson. (That's Fiona fishing off the pier.) 

No grizzlies to worry about...but now we have cougars.

This was at the base of Mt. Humbug.

There were great ocean look-outs.

The kids carved some acorn people at the top to leave behind for others who make the journey.

Fiona was here!

This is a view of Humbug from a distance.

Here is a great ocean image from a short hike we took in Port Orford.

Oregon, we will miss you.  Fiona promises to return.  Scott and I may retire here...Ethan says it's too far from family!