The Blog be Back!!

After 18 months in Scottsdale without any type of trip, we are on the road again! Our last trip was in September/October 2019 to Depoe Bay, Oregon. Now we are heading back to Depoe Bay!

Wednesday

We started up Seamus, our 2019 Acura RDX, and headed out at 7:30 am! Today was from home to Bakersfield, California. The fun part is going that far without hitting an Interstate. We skipped the usual I-10 to I-5 route and instead took mostly one-lane roads through Wickenburg, Parker, 29 Palms, Joshua Tree, and Barstow to get to Bakersfield. We packed a picnic lunch and ate half of it in a city park in Joshua Tree, California. We saved the rest for tomorrow. We arrived in Bakersfield at about 4:30 pm after an uneventful journey and checked into the Spring Hill Marriott. Finally I can use my Marriott points again. Free night.

Last time here we found a wonderful Mexican seafood restaurant and wanted to eat their food again but were wary of dining in in these pandemic times. Fortunately Nuestro Mexico does take out. Would it be as good? We ordered on-line and drove to restaurant to pick up the order. We shared a ceviche bowl appetizer (raw fish marinated in citrus juices) and then both had the Mariscos Poblanos (Scallops, fish, and shrimp cooked in a creamy chile poblano sauce) with flour tortillas. Chips and salsa were also included. Back to the hotel to enjoy the meal with the wine we brought with us. Spring Hill Suites have microwaves, but we didn’t need one. The food was scrumptious. And then early to bed.

Thursday

We spent all day Thursday on busy I-5 in California. The only stop of interest was in a rest area to finish our packed picnic lunch. But wait!!! There in the rest area was a Mexican food truck. I had a delicious (and huge) burrito. Elaine had two delicious looking tacos. Yum! The picnic remains got dumped. Also, while in the rest area, Elaine bought some California oranges from some guy selling them out of his van.

We arrived in Redding, California and checked in at the Sheraton Sundial Inn. Sheraton is owned by Marriott, so again we stayed free with my points. We decided to have dinner on the patio at their restaurant, Mosaic. Also the patio was full, so braved eating in at a tall table in the bar area. Everyone was appropriately masked, and the tabled were well spaced. Elaine had brussels (crispy brussels tossed with lemon marmalade and spicy pecans) for an appetizer while I had a Caesar salad. We both had the house sangria. For our main, we shared a delicious pizza margherita. Excellent meal.

Before dinner we had a walk around the beautiful Sun Dial Bridge park. After dinner it was off to sleep.

Friday

Last day on the road. Still on I-5 most of the way. We had a brief stop to take a picture of Mount Shasta, and then had an important stop in Eugene, Oregon to visit Costco. We stocked up on Willamette Valley pinot noirs and some Costco prepared meals for the days ahead. Finally, we off I-5 onto US 20 (which runs all the way from Newport, OR to Waltham, MA) and then onto the Pacific Coast Highway to reach Depoe Bay. It was good to see our condo again!

Saturday

Rain, rain, rain. The Newport Farmer’s Market was rained out. We filled the condo larders with a stop at Safeway. We forgot Tillamook marionberry ice cream! Fortunately the little market near our condo had some. We saw glimpses of sun late afternoon, but too cold and windy and rainy to sit on the balcony. We had a nice home cooked meal and watched the angry seas from inside. Whales have been sighted!

Elaine tried the oranges we bought at the rest area. “Best orange I ever tasted!”

Weather will be bad on Sunday and Monday. Sun coming back on Tuesday. We hope. All is good. Next blog post on Tuesday.