September 12, 2012

Well, our blog is coming to a close. We arrived back in Bismarck yesterday about 5:00.  I must say it is wonderful to be home.  Now it is to unpack, do laundry, yard ... well you get the picture.  We are so thankful that all went well with no problems.  We saw an enormous amount of beautiful scenery, museums, and the good old outdoors.  We are going to enjoy that king salmon and halibut soon. Will have to find some great recipes.  God Bless. Gerry and Kathy

Friday, September 7, 2012
Day 31

Well, our adventure is almost to an end.We have toured the Redwoods and have also had a great time in the Napa/Sonoma wine valley and San Francisco.  We were able to see some great wineries and the beautiful vineyards.

Hugging the Redwoods.

I got a chance to experience the breadth of these giant trees.

We spent an afternoon touring the Benziger winery.  Took a tram through the vineyards.

Inside the cave where the barrels are stored. It is 63 degrees. Some of the barrels cost $1700 a piece.  They are solid oak barrels.  I can understand why bottles of good wine are so expensive.

Going across the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco.

I made sure we went to Ghirardeli square.  Had some great chocolate.

At the center for Performing Arts in San Francisco.

Nephew, Sean, drove down this winding road in San Francsico.  Lombard Road.

Nephew Sean and his girlfriend, Monica. We are at Twin Peaks overlooking San Francisco. Sean was our tour guide. He did a great job.

We had a great dinner at a Portuguese restaurant with Sean and Monica. Monica speaks Portuguese and is from Peru so she knew exactly what to order.  It was fun and a great meal.

Tomorrow (Saturday) we head to Reno and then will begin our journey back to Bismarck. It has been a great trip but are ready to return to the quiet life in Bismarck.  Gerry and Kathy

Monday, September 4, 2012
Day 27

We have spent the past two days traveling the Oregon coastline. Very scenic.  The fellow at the information center told us about a scenic drive one could take to a neat town called Oceanside.  Well, he forgot to tell us about the hairpin turns and the fact that when you arrived you couldn't drive through most of it pulling an RV.  So, we had to try and turn our vehicle around.  Gerry was not too happy about this.  I guess he thought I had directed him to go this way. hmmm ???  Anyway, we have taken our time. Spent a half day at Astoria. Took a trolley ride and spent some time at a craft outdoor fair with lots of fruits and vegetables and good food.

The trolley we rode in Astoria.

All of the garbage cans were decorated with fish that can be caught in Astoria.  I thought they were cool.

This is at a lookout on the Oregon coastline.  Quite windy at this location.

We stayed in Pacific City last night.  We saw all these kids carrying these small boards.  We were at the beach this morning and realized they were boarding on the sand dunes.  We saw lots of sand dunes and some were huge. Thought of Kendra and Marni as they both snowboard. They would have had a great time here.

Pacific City is known for the dory boats. When they come in from fishing they run the boats right up onto the beach.  There were many out in the water.  Then they just drive their pickup to the boat and load them.

Gerry enjoying a view of the Pacific.

A view of a giant spruce.
We stopped at a fish market and bought scallops and shrimp.  Gerry grilled them for dinner with fresh corn on the cob. We are heading for the Redwoods, wine valley, and then to San Francisco to spend a day with nephew Sean and his girlfriend Monica.  We look forward to these next days.  Gerry and Kathy