Monday, July 10, 2017

Take A Hike!!

Not far from the Elks RV Park is Munson Falls.  It’s not your ordinary tourist destination, mostly because no one knows it’s there.  It’s a short hike.  You can do it!!!  
Don’t turn back when the road narrows and turns to gravel.  DO go slow however.  It’s a two lane road squashed down into one lane.  The dappled shadows and sunlight make it absolutely impossible to see all those 12" deep holes in the road.  5-10 miles per hour will keep your teeth in tact.  

Once at the parking lot, put all your valuables away, lock the car and start the quarter mile walk to the falls.  Along the way, watch out for banana slugs.  There's nothing worse than trying to clean THAT off your shoes.  
It’s a nice trail as far as you can see, but wear tennis shoes.  Sandals may not be a good idea.  There are a couple of rather steep gravel spots where tennis shoes would be more comfortable.
In no time, you will see a steep hill … keep going … and hang on to the rail fence like I did.  Finally at the top, you will head down a few stairs to the stream you can hear babbling in the quiet morning.  Really, there's nothing like the sound of a small stream and birds.
At last, the falls come into view.  The trail used to go up to the base of the falls, but a Closed Sign now stops your forward progression.  Well mostly any way.  With no one in sight, I crossed over to the dark side and headed further up the trail.  I didn’t get far.  It’s blocked by WAY too much foliage and downed trees to get through.  
Who would have thought there would be this beautiful setting with cascading water this close to the ocean?
Take a picnic with you if you wish, and upon return to the car, walk around the parking lot until you find the tables hidden in the forest just for that purpose.  It will give you time to appreciate the tiny flowers here.  Tiny is an understatement.  I think these were only a quarter inch long.  
These were not even the size of my thumbnail.  There was also lots of Queen Annes lace.  
Hanging moss is everywhere, giving you the feel of old Southern plantations.  Fallen logs don't last long before they are covered and begin to dissolve into the forest floor.  Take a hike to a beautiful spot most people never see.
Back at the rig, it's time to go see Jane.  After a stop at the grocery store for dog bones, I hit Janes Fabric shop.  I’m being very conservative since my Arizona purchase, so I made sure the fabric was on sale!!  HA!!  If you have ever wanted a new pattern for a quilt, they have them.  More than any store I've ever seen, an entire room is filled to the ceiling with LOTS of unique quilts to create.

I finished off the last of the quart of chowder for dinner.  I've had LOTS of clam chowder all along the California coast, but this from the Fish Peddler beats all of them hands down.  Try it ....  you'll like it!!

One more day of travel and I can settle down for a week.  Maybe I'll even get in some kite flying, after cleaning this rig and getting some laundry done.  Oh what fun!!!  Don't worry, a Tsunami Pastrami is at the top of the list!!

Just a quick note ... yesterday Garth from the South Beach Fish Market asked if they were the second best, who had the BEST fish and chips on the coast.  Let me be clear ... they BOTH have amazing fish and chips.  Every time I'm near Newport, I stop in several times for the halibut and chips at South Beach Grocery/Fish Market.  The only thing that gives Bandon Fish Market the edge is the larger pieces of halibut and the cranberry cole slaw, but that also makes the price higher ... $20.  If you are anywhere near either of these places, stop in and enjoy the best food on the entire West Coast!!  I promise you won't be sorry!!







6 comments:

  1. If you're ever in Seattle, make sure you stop by Red Mill Totem House in Ballard, an old fishing neighborhood. We have great fish and chips!

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    1. I will definitely do that!! I'm always on the lookout for GREAT fish and chips!

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  2. The subject is transmissions,
    On you your Allison six,, if you are in drive mode.
    If you're on I 5 coming out of Mount Shasta northbound towards grants Pass.
    That's one nice long grade, what would your transmission do.
    Will the automatic transmission pull down gears for you.(to the appropriate rpm and temps)
    Or would YOU automatically select a down gear (And if so to what)
    Now you're at the top of the grade coming down into grants pass you're going downhill now.
    Would you go to manual select
    I would assume you are in a lower (4/5 ) gear.. is your coach equipped with an exhaust brake or a. 1 2 or 3 stage engine brake ?
    The reason from my questions
    I have a friend that is Spec, out a coach they want to equip it with an Allison 6
    I'm kind of nudging him towards the ZF 10 or the ZF 12
    I have no experience on a Allison six
    Although I do have limited experience on 12 speed eaton ultra shift and the smart shift.. both similar to the ZF line of transmissions
    You can't go kite flying because theres hundred mile an hour winds, and Snow is predicted for the rest of the month of July, or maybe longer.




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    1. The automatic transmission will change gears going uphill and down, but NOT based on temperature. I keep a close eye on the gauges. If it's getting too hot, I gear down manually to keep it from overheating, which sometimes means slower speeds.

      Downhill, I have an exhaust brake that works really well, but you have to watch that too. Your RPM's can get too high, in which case you use your brakes to slow yourself at least 5 mph before letting the exhaust brake take over again. On most hills, I don't use the brakes, but long steep ones require some help. Sometimes gearing down to 5 just before the downgrade lets you use the exhaust brake the entire way without braking. LOVE this transmission, but you still have to keep an eagle eye on your gauges. It even has a MODE switch you can use for increased fuel mileage ... it won't shift going up slight hills or overpasses. I just learned that one from blog reader Jim.

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  3. You're probably not in the area right now but I was going to suggest raspberries free raspberries
    On the Southside of Tillamook on 101 Take airport rd into the airports RV park on the Southside,,, are hedgerows after hedgerows of raspberries
    What made them so good was there's a creek running parallel to it
    But then again almost any interior side road you're probably fine raspberries free for the Pickin

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    1. Oh I'm in the area, but it's been way too cold to have berries. I picked some last year right in the Thousand Trails park. This year they have just begun to bloom, so the berries will be very late. Maybe on my way back!!

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