MOSTLY PICTURES

Looking west over north field from trees midway the lane

While Mike was out cycling the other day, I took the dogs for a walk. I felt a certain uncharacteristic lack of enthusiasm on the part of the dogs. It's not unusual for Nellie to hang back, but Bess is usually up for any activity. Perhaps it was a little too hot. Or maybe they thought we should wait for Mike. At any rate, once we reached the top of Plank’s Pitch, they were willing enough for an early return to the house.

 

I had the camera with me and enjoyed vistas that included neatly planted fields and puffy white clouds. 

 

I took this picture from the neighbor's. From this angle, we see the CRP at Plank's, then June's field, and then the north field on the right side of the photo.

 

Despite the heat, the scent of rodent caught Bess' attention, and Nellie joined the search.

 

   

We have a family of seven juvenile American coots living in the pond. We don’t know what happened to the parents, but the youngsters fend for themselves, living on the abundant supply of algae. It’s difficult to get pictures of them through the cattails. It’s very nice to have this activity on the pond. KW

NOT HARVEST BUT SEEDING

Looking south over barren fields toward a smoke-filled Little Canyon

Two bucks forage in the weeds

Last year (2015), I so enjoyed watching the fields ripen. They were so green in the spring and then became whiter and whiter until they turned amber as harvest time approached. This year, the fields weren’t planted in the spring and the lack of growing activity was depressing. The only good thing about it was that we were at liberty to hike across the fields. And naturally, there's no harvest here this year.

Seeding by day and by night

But things have changed anyway. Farmer Kyle arrived last Thursday (August 4) and began seeding next year’s crop, which is rape. (It's hard to say that word, but that's what they call that crop.) I don’t recall that rape has ever been grown here, and I can hardly wait until next spring to watch the fluorescent fields ripen. I look forward to new photo ops.

Mike is in the hammock

The operation was not without problems. First they lost a shank off the implement, and they searched the fields until they found it. At 7:00 p.m., Kyle came to the door and said he had a flat tire and had to go to Nezperce for a replacement. Once the flat was fixed, he would begin to work again, he said. Did we mind if he worked into the night? I said no, it wouldn’t bother us. (And it didn’t.)

There! That looks much better.

Fields are harrowed after seeding

 He didn’t get started again until 8:30. Of course, it was dark and getting darker by that time. I was fascinated as I watched that huge machine, outfitted with big lights, crawl over the rolling fields of the south 80 in the dark. I do a lot of thinking about how life has changed here over the years, and I feel close to that history. When my grandfather started farming here 120 years ago, they seeded by hand and it took a crew of men days to complete the work. The workday began at daybreak and was over when the sun began to set. By the 1930s, automation (if you can call it that) was beginning to impact the process and cut the time. When my dad farmed here (1945-1965), the work still took days – not so many days but days nevertheless – to go round and round the fields. He, too, worked only in daylight. And today, here comes Farmer Kyle with his huge machine outfitted with lights and works into the night. I heard him leave about midnight, having completed the seeding on this farm in a matter of five or six hours. I think that’s awe-inspiring. 

And now that the fields are neatly worked, I feel so much better. I'm only sorry that brother Chuck wasn't here to see it. KW

Golden State Finale – Part 4

The log

Private Flipup

After breakfasting at the Subway I headed north on Hwy 49 toward the junction with Hwy 120 which goes east through Yosemite.  This was a fun road, mountainous and twisty.  I particularly liked one cache called “Private Flipup”.  It was a “Private No Trespassing” sign with the log on the back of the sign – pretty clever.  Upon the advice of one of my motorcycling friends from California I bypassed Yosemite and took Hwy 108 which heads northeast just north of Yosemite.  It too was a fun ride and it hadn’t gotten unbearably hot yet.  I stopped for one cache where I had to hike down a steep embankment to the site of a car wreck many years ago.  A little girl that was supposed to have been in the car was never found and they say her ghost can be heard on occasion.  The cache itself was under a little doll’s wig.

Lunch in Nevada

Big rocks

Cache location

Hwy 108 intersects US 395 which heads north.  I continued up 395 into a slice of Nevada where I stopped at a casino for gas and a pleasant lunch in the shade.  I then turned back southwest eventually getting on Hwy 88.  I needed a cache for Alpine County but there was one of many road construction areas right at the cache.  However, there was another one a little ways down the road which I had hoped to avoid because it involved quite a hike up the mountain side.  As it turned out I’m glad I did because it was one of my favorites called “Big Rocks; Little Homes” as well as being my only one for that county.  I then took Hwy 89 which hugs the west side of Lake Tahoe.  I had never seen Lake Tahoe and it is very beautiful but with heavy slow traffic.  I did make one brief stop to get another cache for Eldorado County.

Inn at Truckee

I continued on Hwy 50 to Truckee where I stayed at the Inn at Truckee.  It was one of the most beautiful motels I’ve seen, set back amongst shade trees and everything first class except their breakfast.  I was a little suspect when the starting time was 6:15 rather than the usual 6:00.  It was late even so and they had just frozen muffins and frozen bagels.  My back was sore and I hoped I could get a good rest for my next day which would be a long one.  I had dinner that night at a pizza place in a nearby shopping center.  Truckee is a beautiful town which for some reason is not what I was expecting.

 

The next morning I began a long hot day going through northeast California going through Sierra, Plumas, Lassen and Modoc counties. The first two were in forests and cool and pleasant riding but Lassen and Modoc was open rather desolate country.  I was impressed at how much Lake Alamor, Eagle Lake, Goose Lake and Lake Abert north of Lakeview, OR, appeared to have shrunk.  At places where the map showed the road hugging the shore the lake must have been a mile away with alkali flats in between.

I stopped at Lakeview for gas and a Sobe which I took to a cache in a shady spot in the cemetery and took a break.  I had decided to go all the way to Burns this day in order to make my last one shorter.

I got into Burns in the late afternoon having traveled 422 miles.  I stayed at “America’s Best Value Inn” which lived up to its name.  It was probably the nicest and least expensive place I stayed.  They had an indoor pool with a whirlpool which really made my back feel better.  The room was clean and pre-cooled, they had a house computer and the manager was very accommodating.  After supper at the Dairy Queen I picked up a couple of caches in town.

After a decent breakfast at the motel I headed northeast toward home.  This part of Oregon has some fantastic motorcycle roads and I was enjoying the ride.  I only stopped for a couple of caches and one was a DNF.  The only strange incident was on Hwy 12 in Garfield County, WA.  There were two motorcycles parked on the highway with a biker babe complete with fringed leather outfit in front waving her arms.  I assumed there was a problem so I screeched to a halt and left the highway in some loose deep gravel.  Then she said, “Oh, I didn’t mean for you to stop.  I just wanted to make sure you saw us”.  I very carefully extricated myself from the gravel and left the scene without even asking why the hell she was parked on a busy highway.

I arrived home a little before 2:00 pm and was grateful for the short day.  My total mileage for this trip was 2,614 miles, over 1,000 less than my first trip but it seemed like every bit as much and I did hit more counties.  California is a beautiful and diverse state but I picked the wrong times to make my tours.  I have now logged geocaches by motorcycle in 10 western states comprising a single area of over a million square miles.  M/W

Golden State Finale – Part 3

The watch dog watches me

I left Stockton on Hwy going west.  My first cache was before leaving the city proper at some kind of storage facility.  It was called “Turk Lost His Remote” and was an old TV remote hidden under a lamp skirt.  The log was in the battery compartment.  This storage area was a huge compound surrounded by a chain link fence.  Staked out at about 40 yard intervals were big dogs on a chain with a canvas lean to and a 5 gallon bucket of water.  The one nearest me was a Doberman that was really raising a ruckus.  Now I may not be the Dog Whisperer but I usually have a pretty good rapport with dogs.  So when I approach this dog in a friendly manner he turns tail and runs and as you can see in the picture hides behind his shelter.  Some watch dog, huh.  I’m surprised the SPCA isn’t on those folks.

I stopped for a couple of caches for Contra Costa and Alameda Counties on a county road near Stockton.  I continued southeast on those roads until I turned southwest in Alameda County on The Mines Road.  This is about as much as a back road that you will find that is paved.  It was twisty and hilly with virtually no traffic.  At times there were no lines on the road and a portion was even single lane.  Eventually I reached the top of Mt. Hamilton where Lick Observatory is located.  Then I began a very twisty and steep descent on what was called the San Antonio Valley Road

Santa Clara County cache

Valley near Grant Park

into Santa Clara County and Joseph D. Grant County Park.

Just past the park headquarters I missed a turn so I had to turn off onto a sloping gravel field entrance to turn around.  As I was climbing back up the incline to the road I killed the engine and down I went.  I was barely moving so again no damage done but there was no way I could get my bike back up given the slope and the condition of my back.  There was almost no traffic but just then a pickup approaches.  When I try to flag it down for help he/she totally ignores me not even slowing down. And there I was waving on the shoulder of the road with my bike lying on the ground!  About that time I see a hay truck approaching from out in the field by the road.  As it turns out it was a couple of the park rangers who were more than happy to help me.  Battered but not beaten I continued.

Frankly, I’m not sure where I went next because I think my GPS was jerking me around.  I did go east toward Merced County but I’m not sure on what road.  It began on the same kind of mountain road I had been riding and eventually I hit I-5 and probably exited at Sullivan Rd to Hwy 140 to try for my first Merced County cache which turned out to be a DNF.  However, I found another one in a beautiful little park nearby to take care of that county.

It was getting really HOT now.  My ambient air temperature soon read 111 degrees, the highest of the trip.  I made a couple of quick stops getting caches for Mariposa County and another one for Merced County before arriving at Mariposa about 4:30, my shortest day so far.

The Mother Lode Inn in Mariposa is an old but well maintained motel.  In fact, the office part is in the remodeling process now.  It’s a small motel with most of the rooms down a steep incline from the street.  They did have a nice pool which was very welcome given the heat.  After getting unpacked and taking a swim I had dinner at the Subway just across the street.  After dinner I rode around the town a bit and picked up a couple more caches.  I guess I’m kind of addicted.  To be continued.  M/W

Golden State Finale – Part 2

Tuesday had to be a better day, right?  I had stopped at an O’Reilly’s in Clearlake the previous evening and picked up some Gorilla Super Glue to repair my boot but it has to cure for 24 hours so I was wearing my street shoes today.  They’re okay for riding but no so great for tramping around after geocaches.

On the way out of Clearlake I stopped at a shopping center, picked up a cache in the Walmart parking lot and got breakfast at McDonald’s.  It was a nice morning and Hwy 29 heading south out of Clearlake is a motorcyclist dream.  It was twisty beyond belief, heavily wooded and little traffic in the beginning.

Lake Hennessey

I picked up a couple of caches for Napa County.  The second one was at a lake that reminded me of the South.  There were what looked like miniature Live Oak trees with what looked like Spanish moss except upon closer inspection was much finer.

It was now getting much hotter with temperatures ranging from 104 to 108 degrees with considerable road construction requiring waits in the heat.  I was making a lot of stops eventually picking up caches for a dozen counties in this one day plus several DNF stops.  I carry an insulated bladder in my tail bag filled with ice water but I ran out late in the afternoon.  That was really bad but perhaps worse was yet to come.

Spanish moss?

I pulled off on a side road to get a cache along a field entrance that was graveled.  I put my kick stand down and was getting off my bike not realizing that it was on a slight forward slope. As I got off the bike rolled forward collapsing the kick stand and down went the bike.  I had installed crash bars so the bike wasn’t damaged but the problem was getting it back up.  With my luggage I’m sure it weighed 500 pounds.  I squatted and put my back against the bike the way you’re supposed to lift it but I didn’t keep my back straight enough and really hurt my already damaged back.  I learned too late a valuable lesson: Always put your bike in gear when you park on uncertain terrain.

Approaching my destination of Stockton, dying of thirst and with an aching back, I still needed a cache for San Joaquin County.  It was getting late and as I was heading west into the sun it was so bad I had to steer with one hand and shade my eyes with the other.  I made a detour on the outskirts of Stockton and found the cache I needed only after an unsuccessful try for another one foiled by road construction.

I finally arrived at the Day’s Inn around 7:30 pm after 13 hours on the road.  It was a so-so place but did have a lobby computer that allowed me to upload all the caches I had logged to date that I worked at until they ran me out at 10:00 pm.  Earlier I crossed the busy boulevard to a McDonald’s and got their two cheeseburger deal keeping one for lunch the following day.  To be continued. M/W

Golden State Finale – Part 1

My May Motocaching trip to California was fraught with GPS problems, a lot of cold and wet weather, considerable high traffic areas and the usual logistics problems.  This trip was different but, unfortunately, no less pleasant.

The old and the new

Grass Lake Rest Area

I left early Sunday, July 24^th.  This was basically just a travel day and it was a long and hot one.  However, in retrospect I guess it wasn’t so hot because it was the only day of my trip where the temperature did not exceed 100 degrees (just 96).  Only stopping for 5 geocaches, mainly for breaks, I made the 525 miles to Klamath Falls, OR, around 5:30 pm after being on the road for eleven hours.  The Maverick Motel where I stayed was in the old downtown section of Klamath Falls.  Streets go every which way making it difficult to find your way around.
Coincidentally there was an old Triumph Bonneville parked next to mine at the motel. I used my Subway app to find one downtown less than a half mile away so I just hiked down for my dinner.

I left K Falls early Monday morning on Hwy 97.  Let the fun begin.  It was a nice pleasant morning.  My first stop was just over the CA line at the “Tallest Flagpole”.  Unbeknownst to me, this cache had been archived and was no longer there.  The flag pole was really tall but I had arrived before they had raised the flag which I would like to have seen.  I next stopped at a very pleasant rest area and almost had another DNF (did not find) but one of the employees helped me as the cache had been moved.  That took care of Siskiyou County.

 I got on I-5 briefly at Weed before turning east on Hwy 89 at Azalea. I stayed on Hwy 89 all the way through Lassen Volcanic National Park.  The park was beautiful but slow going as you can imagine.  I made only one stop to see a bubbling mud pot.

Lassen mud pot

Lassen Volcanic Natl Park

My new Triumph Tiger XRx gets better mileage than my other travelers did and also has a larger gas tank.  I figured 250 miles per tank would not be a problem.  I remember noting I had traveled 125 miles before reaching Lassen.  From then until Lassen there were no gas stations and, of course, there were none in the park.  I was getting concerned by the time I exited the park.  My concern grew as I turned south toward Chico and noted there were only two small places before I got to Chico which was a long way.  After passing Campbellville which had no gas I stopped at Deer Creek Falls to get a cache for Tehama County.  Another family was there and thought there might be gas at Forest Ranch which was the only other place before Chico.

Deer Creek Falls

I did stop for one more cache as I needed one for Butte County.  I had to hike up a steep hill to get this one and I think it may have been sabotaged because the baggie containing the log was soaked in tree sap.  Now I had sap all over my hands as well as anything I touched.  All I could do was rub my hands in dirt to lessen the transfer damage.

My motorcycle instruments indicate how many miles left to empty and by the time I reached Forest Ranch the indicator had blanked out and the fuel gauge was showing empty.  And there was no longer a gas station in Forest Ranch.  I was desperate because I didn’t think I could make the 12 more miles to Chico.  All I could do was to begin begging for gas in this small hamlet.  Finally, an old gentleman leaving the post office said he had a place about a mile back in the woods and if I could follow him back he could give me a little gas (I was asking for only a quart).  He warned me that he would be driving slow.  That was the understatement of the year.  We began winding along this maze of dirt roads at a top speed of 8 mph until we finally got to his place at the end of one of the roads.  After pouring about a quart of his lawnmower gas in my tank I headed back to the highway with the aid of my GPS.  I don’t think I would have been able to negotiate the maze otherwise.  It was over 100 degrees when I reached Chico just after midday.  I had traveled 266 miles on that tank but as it turned out I put only 4.7 gallons in my 5.3 gallon tank.  At least now I know I have a little leeway beyond the empty indication.  I took this opportunity to clean my hands and bike with gas to remove some of the tree sap I had acquired as well as eat my sardine lunch in a spot of shade.

Not well heeled

One of the caches on my list was a challenge cache requiring you to log certain counties in CA and OR and it was off my direct route up toward the little town of Paradise on Hwy 2 or Skyway Drive.  I wanted to get this one since I had met the requirements.  However, my GPS showed a street leading near the cache that turned out to be a gated driveway.  I was within ¼ mile and thought I might just hike over there through some thick woods but then I encountered a fence and I was already behind schedule.  So I took another street in that direction and ran into road construction so after wasting a good hour I had to give it up.  In the meantime the heel of my left boot had come loose and was flopping with every step I took.

Not so well maintained

It was 103 degrees now so I took off my jacket and hung it over my tail bag.  Soon afterward a bee hit me in the shoulder and gave me a good sting.  It didn’t hurt all that bad at the time but for the next several days it itched like crazy.

I picked up caches in Glenn, Coulsa and Lake counties before arriving at my destination at the Lamplighter Motel in Clearlake about 7 pm.  This was the worst place I’ve stayed in all my Motocaching travels.  The only redeeming feature was a nice swimming pool which I utilized.  My room was hot, stunk, had poor internet service and the whole place was rundown except the before mentioned pool.  It was expensive too as were all the dumps in Clearlake.  Needless to say Clearlake is a tourist place and otherwise beautiful.  The motel was on the lake which did not appear to be aptly named. To be continued.  M/W