2022 Road Trip #2
Statistics
- Duration: 28 days
- Distance Driven: 3,866 km
- Countries: 2
- Province / States: 4
- Photos Taken: ~790
- Videos Taken: 16
Main goals:
- See the entire Oregon Coast;
- See the northern part of California Coast;
- Visit the Goldwasser family;
- Build camping gears for The Beast; and
- A couple of snow adventures.
If I had stopped at every spot along the coast, I would not have made it in time for the first snow adventure.
Due to a storm and respiratory illness, I had to skip the second snow adventure and cut the trip short.
Day 1
Drove to Kelso, WA
US Border agent was being difficult because I am a freelancer.
Didn’t get too far because I went to Sedor-Woolley, WA to chat with a vendor that makes camping gears for vehicles.
Sorry, no photos.
Day 2
Drove to Nehalem Bay State Park, OR
Took State Highway 4 to Astoria, OR.
Astoria, OR.
The northern most point of the Oregon Coast, Fort Stevens State Park.
Arch Cape, OR.
Spending the night at Nehalem Bay State Park Campground.
Day 3
Drove to Cape Lookout State Park, OR
A short stroll at Nehalem Bay State Park before leaving the campground.
Nehalem, OR.
Rockaway Beach, OR.
Lunch at Pirate’s Cove Restaurant in Garibaldi, OR.
Cape Meares National Wildlife Refuge.
Symons State Scenic Viewpoint.
Spending the night at Cape Lookout State Park.
Day 4
Drove to Umpqua Lighthouse State Park, OR
Unintentionally drove onto McPhillips Beach, Cloverdale, OR.
Pacific City Beach, Pacific City, OR.
D River State Recreation Site, Lincoln City, OR.
Siletz Bay Vista Point, Lincoln City, OR.
Rocky Creek State Park.
Devils Punchbowl State Natural Area.
Little Creek Cove Scenic Point, Seal Rock, OR.
Cape Perpetua, Yachats, OR.
Devil’s Churn, Siuslaw National Forest.
Cape Perpetua Scenic Area, Siuslaw National Forest.
Siuslaw National Forest.
A short hike at Umpqua Lighthouse State Park before settling in for the night.
Day 5
Drove to Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, CA
Breakfast at Coos Bay, OR.
Brandon, OR.
Cape Blanco State Park.
Battle Rock City Park, Port Orford, OR.
Meyers Beach, Gold Beach, OR.
Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor.
Lone Ranch Beach, Brookings, OR.
Dinner at Crescent City Harbor District, Crescent City, CA.
Rain started, got lost, no wireless service, and had a hard time finding a place to spend the night. Finally ran into Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park in California.
Day 6
Drove to Fort Bragg, CA
Redwood Creek Picnic Area, Orick, CA
Harry A. Merlo State Recreation Area.
A hike at Arcata Community Forest, Arcata, CA.
A detour from the California Coast to drive through Humboldt Redwoods State Park.
Westport, CA.
Spending the night at Fort Bragg, CA.
Sorry, no photos.
Day 7
Drove to San Jose, CA
Hotel’s automated pancake machine.
Along US Highway 101 in Northern California.
Petaluma, CA.
Daly City, CA.
San Gregorio State Beach.
Pigeon Point Light Station State Historic Park.
Santa Cruz, CA
San Jose, CA. This will be home base for the next few weeks.
Day 8
San Jose, CA
A trail run in Santa Cruz while my friend mountain bike.
Day 9
Drove to Kirkwood, CA
A walk before heading out.
Heading into a snowstorm (Kirkwood, CA) on purpose. We stopped and warmed up leftovers for dinner at Lockeford, CA. Then tried to find butane for the stove along the way. No luck.
Wind and snow started as we got close to Kirkwood, CA.
Made it to Carson Pass Sno-Park shortly after midnight. The wind was so strong it shook the camper van like one of those old school baby rocking bed.
Sorry, no photos.
Day 10
Kirkwood Mountain Resort, Kirkwood, CA
The windy snowstorm continued. Didn’t get to ski / snowboard today because of high wind.
Day 11
Kirkwood Mountain Resort, Kirkwood, CA
The windy snowstorm continued.
Photos by Eliad Goldwasser
Due to high wind and avalanche control, we didn’t get to ski / snowboard until 1:00 pm today.
Photo by Eliad Goldwasser
After a hard day of skiing.
Slowmotion Video
Day 12
Kirkwood Mountain Resort, Kirkwood, CA and Drove to San Jose, CA.
Snowed in. Roads were closed due to a 48+ hour snowstorm. What to do when you’re stuck at a ski resort? More skiing / snowboarding of course.
Photos by Eliad Goldwasser
Roads finally opened up in the afternoon. Time to go back to San Jose, CA.
Day 13
San Jose, CA.
Did a walk.
Sorry, no photos.
Day 14
San Jose, CA.
Did a short run.
Day 15
San Jose, CA.
Went for a walk.
Day 16
San Jose and Campbell, CA.
The morning temperature in San Jose, CA was colder than Vancouver, BC. Didn’t think that’s possible.
Did a long run. Got a little lost along the way.
Day 17
San Jose and Campbell, CA.
Bought supplies to build camping gears for the belly of The Beast. Then went to lunch at an authentic Cambodian restaurant.
Day 18
San Jose and Los Gatos, CA.
Did a hike in Los Gatos, CA.
Supplies for The Beast’s camping gears.
Day 19
San Jose, CA.
Started building out the camping gears.
Day 20
San Jose, CA.
Continue building out the camping gears.
Tracking the next incoming storm.
Day 21
San Jose, CA.
Continue building out the camping gears.
Homemade Sufganiyah made by Virginia.
Day 22
San Jose, CA.
Camping gears for The Beast completed!
Day 23
San Jose and Campbell, CA.
A prototype of one of the camping gears my friend Eliad and I built for The Beast. The finished version of this cabinet became two separate pieces but the basic concept remained.
Day 24
Campbell and San Jose, CA.
Did some walks and participated in the lighting of the Menorah at a friend’s house.
Day 25
Campbell and San Jose, CA.
Did a walk and had Christmas dinner at a friend’s house.
Day 26
Drove to Medford, OR.
The goal is to get to southern Oregon before the storm lands on top of Interstate Highway 5. Wanted to avoid snow at higher elevations.
Sorry, no photos.
Day 27
Drove to Kent, WA.
A very nerve-wracking drive. Super windy with periods of heavy rain.
Sorry, no photos.
Day 28
Last Leg of the Drive.
The worse of the storm has passed. The sky even cleared up by the time I got to Bellingham, WA.
