Millerton Lake Getaway

January 12-15, 2018: It was just 3 nights but it was nice to get away and see trees, water, and the great outdoors. Since it is only 45 minutes away, it is a quick drive up and back. Deb and Sam stayed the same amount of time we did. Sierra and Matt came up Friday night and left Sunday afternoon. Jeff and Miranda came up Saturday morning and went home Sunday afternoon. Spencer came with Deb and Sam and went home Sunday with Jeff and Miranda. It was the first time Sierra and Matt used the new tent we gave them for Christmas. They had a good time and successfully set up and took down the tent. They also hiked a little on the Pincushion Trail. One night when we were sleeping a gaze of raccoons passed through the campsites. They dumped over Deb and Sam's trash can but went on their way when Sam shined the lights on them. Jeff, Miranda, and Spencer went fishing from the shore with no luck. We enjoyed time around the campfire, Yahtzee, Rummikub, and of course delicious food. We we camped with hookups because Deb and Sam wanted to use their electric heater. Because of the electricity Deb made a wonderful breakfast casserole in the crock pot. It was simple and turned out really great. Sam did tritip on the grill along with fresh veggies consisting of squash, onion, eggplant, mushrooms. I made a couple of boxes of Rice-a-Roni, which was really pretty good as we haven't had that in a long time. We had sweet peppers to add to the veggies but we had more than enough without using those too. Since we didn't stay long and didn't pack much, it was a relatively cleanup when arriving home. We used the dump station in the park, which is much nicer than the one we have at Derrel's for no charge. 

Our Campsites

Morro Strand State Beach - 6 Nights

November 8: Today we moved to Morro Strand. We did some housekeeping and then used the new shower facility at North Beach before leaving. It is nice because each shower and toilet are private, no men or women, just one person per room. So "politically correct" for CA and the various gender issues. For me, it makes me feel safer anyway. I have never felt threatened in a campground but who knows these days. It's about a 30 minute drive north to Morro Bay/Morro Strand. Before arriving we stopped at Chapala this little Mexican restaurant where we purchased take-out food in the past. It is anything but fancy but the food is authentic and good. I think you will only find locals here on most day. After our fill up we headed to the campground and our space was open. We were in and set up before 1p in campsite #5. We have had various weather today. Mist - clouds - hot sun - then cool, layers of clothing are definitely needed! Tonight my charging cord stopped working for my laptop. I am so disappointed, my album work is done. Maybe I can find a cord in town or order one on Amazon to be delivered here. Darn. 

Mexican Food For Lunch

Arriving at Morro Strand State  Beach

Our Camp

November 9: Just to prove my theory that the weather changes quickly here - it rained last night. Too bad we left our chairs out! We tried to find a solution for my PC but at least we know it is the power cord. I ordered a new one from Amazon. I hope it is actually delivered tomorrow as promised. After checking on that we went  to the grocery store, returned our items to camp and went for lunch at Schooner's in Cayucos. Delicious as always. Back to camp, it is so warm I switched to the Hawaii dress I brought with me. Shortly thereafter, we had rain! If you don't like  the weather, just wait, it will change! Deb and Sam arrived in the dark, it wasn't too bad for them to set up, they are efficient! We were all tired after that and we went to the House of JuJu for dinner. It has more seafood than the Clovis location and loaded potatoes - WOW, not sure if Clovis has that or not?

November 10: Today was the day for other De La Peña arrivals. I think 25 more showed up, but I lost count. Everyone seemed to be getting along and except for one unruly child it was a great group. Anyway, we took Deb & Sam up to Pismo to see the various camp sites by Avila Beach and a short  visit to Avila Valley Barn to get our pie/crisp fix for this trip. We also could not resist stopping at Splash Cafe for more chowder! Our little group of 6 went out to dinner at The Dutchman's Seafood House. 

John's Crab Cakes (he had garlic fries too)

 My Steamers - Delicious!

November 11: Steven and Saira arrived at 8am! He said they would but I figured it would be later. By the time I was dressed  their tent was all set up and they were enjoying coffee by the fire! 

Tonight was the shrimp boil. We got expensive crabs from Giovanni's as well. Not sure why we do that because we have so much food leftover! In the evening we had the grilled oysters - the best ever! I made garlic butter for them with a little green onion chopped up too. The smaller oysters had a better flavor - We all agreed on that. 

November 12: The extended DLP family left this morning. Deb and Sam didn't fix breakfast but we took everyone to Chapala for an early lunch. Another favorite is the ceviche in the form of a tostada - SO GOOD! It is Saira's BD. BUT we will take the two of them to a nice place next weekend in town. After lunch Steven and Saira headed home. He has to work tomorrow. 

November 13: Deb and Sam packed up and left today. We went to lunch at Schooner's and spent the rest of the day relaxing. We did a few things to prep for departure tomorrow, but  not much. 

November 14: All packed up and departed the campsite at 9:30a. My power cord never came - so disappointed. I took it up with Amazon and it will all work out. We got home at 12:30 even after a stop for lunch. We cleaned the trailer really well and had it all done, back in storage, and the gas tank full again by 4:30p - Exhausted but THANKFUL for another trip. 

North Beach Pismo State Beach - 3 Nights

November 5: Happy to be here at Pismo Beach. NB18 is our campsite for 3 days. Our drive over was uneventful. We had In N' Out for lunch. It was sunny and cool when we arrived. After the sun went down it was chilly but actually seemed warmer in the night, even though our heater clicked on at one point. We ate leftovers, played cards, and I fell asleep watching NCIS DVDs. John turned everything out and was sound asleep when I next woke at 2:30a.

Just Backed in 3p

November 6: What a lovely morning. It says it is says it is only 60 degrees but with the bright sun shining on us it almost feels hot! No sweatshirt needed when I took Tony for his morning walk over the dunes, that's for sure. It is SO beautiful here. After we were back from the walk I set up my "work station" as I plan to do a good bit of digital scrapbooking while here for three day. We gave our first Casita tour before 10a. For lunch we went to one of our favorite places, Old Juan's Cantina in Oceano. It was delicious as always. We ate so much it feels like we need a nap now!  

Our Morning View

November 7: Today was another lovely day. After we were up and around we decided to walk over to the Monarch Butterfly Grove. You can access this grove from the campground, though most people park on Hwy 1 and enter that way. The parking is premium so it is nice to just walk into the back section from the campground. After all the years we have come over here, we have never gone to see this. Maybe we never came to Pismo from Nov-Feb, but I think we have. Anyway, we are seeing it now. Once was just a path and a brochure has been expanded to an entrance with a lovely sign, a gift shop, tons of brochures and various reading materials, informational signs, and a fenced walkway with at least 6 telescopes trained on the pretty little insects. Volunteers man the telescopes, answer questions, and give little lectures a few times a day. 

By now we worked up an appetite so we drove into town to go to Splash Cafe. To our astonishment, there was no line! For a split second I was concerned they were closed or worse yet, went out of business. Nope, we hit it just right I guess. We had a delicious bread bowl of chowder with seafood topping (crab and shrimp). To walk off that lunch we headed to the pier only to find it was closed for repairs. It was a minor disappointment but we are happy to see the city of Pismo Beach takes pride in their pier and they are making these upgrades to be sure it is nice for future generations. 

The rest of our day was spent playing cards, reading, and relaxing. I have gotten a LOT done on my albums. As of today I am caught up on the 2017 Eash Family album!

Heading to the Coast Soon

Reservations are made and we are ready for some R&R! We have been working on our new place daily. It is a big job to get things in place just the way we want them. 

Part of this camping trip was put in place some time back. We will be staying at Morro Strand State Beach with the family in attendance for part of the time. However, we are going early to spend three extra days at North Beach Pismo. We are looking forward to some great walks on the beach!

Outta The Heat

It has been triple digits at home for days. We decided to head up to the mountains, specifically Kings Canyon's Azalea Campground, to escape the heat. It is now one of the few campgrounds that are first come-first served. It is difficult to find out if Sunset is open because the website just says "Next availability in August" right now. We were relieved that there were at least a few campsites to choose from in Azalea. It is surprising how full it is even mid week. I guess because this and the small Crystal Creek are the only first come-first served in this area. Anyway, we got a beautiful campsite number 72. It might be one of the best campsites here! How did we miss this before? It is very spacious. I think it's about 75 degrees with a slight breeze. Very, very nice... Where else could you stay in a place like this for $63 a week? Of course that's the perk, one of the few, of being a senior!

We saw some beautiful pink sunsets, ate some tasty meals, took nice walks in the cool air, I worked on my digital scrap-booking, read books, played cards, watched videos before bed, and just generally enjoyed the cooler days and cool evenings. 

We also drove down the hill one day, looked at a house that our Real Estate Agent Tamera says was perfect for us, and put in an offer! We loved the house and especially the small yard. It had all the things we had on our "need AND want list." 3 Bedrooms, 2 baths, open concept kitchen-dining-living room, inside laundry, fireplace, lots of storage, 2 car garage, and amazingly it even has a doggie door for Tony! We got back up here about 3:30-4p and by 5p we got a call from Tamera that we got the house!!! Let the packing begin (again)!

About that new "Instant" Sun Shelter we bought... The struggle: It was anything but "instant" - First off, it seems to weigh more than the 35 lbs stated in the description. Second, it says it requires 2 people to put it up (I didn't notice that when buying it!). Third, it did not go up like an "Instant" tent that is so simple to put up and take down. Without the help of our neighbors we might still be struggling. It would seem that it really needs 4 people to stretch it out before the task of raising it up because right when you start pulling 2 sides to stretch it out, the other two sides go in. Once we got the four corners stretched out getting the corners up was another story. The bottom part worked well enough but the top part took some muscle to push up and click into place. Perhaps putting the upper portion in place first would be a better idea IF we use it again. Of course to use it again we must be able to get it down! Maybe our neighbors will still be here? Now for the good part: It is sturdy and we did not need to use the tie downs. It is providing sun but even better we are not getting bonked in the head with the large and multiple pine cones falling from the trees. The size fits nicely up against our awning for the trailer. I hope it will loosen up with use and we can have this as part of our equipment. 

The Best and the Worst of Humanity

I've always found that camping you find the best and the worst of humanity, this time was no different. On one side we have 2 campsites of the nicest family you could find. Smiling and friendly. When they saw John and I trying move our table they ran over and moved it for us, later when we were struggling to put up our "instant" sun cover (more on that later) they also ran over to help. It is so nice to see families enjoying nature with several generations and being such NICE families. It restores faith in human nature.

Then... There are the other people, I think 2 campsites as well on our east side. I am all for having fun but after 10p it is supposed to be quite time. Hooting and hollering near midnight is really not being quiet. I can understand hearing a baby crying (which we did in the distance) but this loud activity at night is just not considerate. John and one other man asked them to be quieter just after 11p, nothing changed. Shortly after midnight they apparently went to bed, though their bright light was on until after 1a. Thankfully, they packed up and left this morning. One of the 20ish young men kept glaring at us and I just stared right back. 

As long as I live I cannot understand how some people think they are better than others? I don't care who you are, these parks are for everyone and anyone here should abide by the rules and make it comfortable for everyone visiting. Okay, off my soapbox for the day! 

Sad, but true!

Morro Strand State Beach Campground

We came over on Thursday, June 15, to enjoy a week here in the cool weather. Some of the kids came that same day and more joined on Friday and Saturday. We had a nice time celebrating Sam's birthday and Father's Day. Jeff caught some fish, we ate good food, had nice campfires, grilled oysters, walked on the beach, went on a  little bay tour, and generally enjoyed ourselves. We made trips into Cayucos and the City of Morro Bay. Deb, Saira, and I drove down to Avila Valley Barn to get pies for Sam's BD. Neither of them had been there before so it was fun to show them such a great place. We even had some roasted corn! Dread heading home to the heat tomorrow, but it must be done.  

Deb & Saira having corn

 The Boys catch!

 Cooking Filet Mignon for Sam's BD

 Happy BD Sam

Steven and Saira off to the beach

 All the De La Pena's

Oysters

Sub Sea Tours