Yesterday was a great day with not much of a plan. Our RV park was in South Lake Tahoe and we knew there was a flea market on our way into town. Stop number 1. Let's just say that the $4 we paid for admittance was $3 too many. Highlight of the stop was the homemade strawberry fritter we all shared.
The kids really love to swim and play in the sand. We stopped at 2 places which both allowed swimming but were not beaches. One had grass and one was rocky so we worked our way back to Pope Beach along with about 5000 other weekend beach-goers. Yikes! That is one of the things which is great about this sabbatical. Monday thru Friday adventures are really lovely and pleasant without big crowds. On the weekends we are reminded that the rest of the world needs some time to play as well.
We were back to the RV in time for some relaxing and hanging out. Our KOA is managed by a Christian and the staff has worked very consciously to make the campsite their mission field. I am sure not everyone appreciates this detail, but I liked it very much. When we checked in we were each given fortune cookies, but no fortune inside, bible verses. The signage on the walls pointed to their faith, the notice about Sunday morning worship on property and the all Christian library of DVDs for rent for a dollar. We checked out 4 during our stay. Three the kids had seen before (God's Not Dead, God's Not Dead 2, and Soul Surfer). All enjoyed again. The fourth movie was I Can Only Imagine. Maggie's review was that it was really sad. I didn't watch it but I will take her word for it and skip that one next time. That was enough screen time for a while.
The kids and I had a very delicious dinner prepared entirely by Magnolia. We had a quiet night except for the late night bear hazing and air horns. Meanwhile, Dave played some cards which he likes very much.
This morning was great! We scout out our Sunday worship in advance and this morning we couldn't pass up the opportunity to roll out of our RV at 8:30 for pool-side non-denominational worship led by the KOA staff. The McLains on the Road have witnessed a lot of interesting faith traditions and worship services but this one was one of the best. The lady who greeted us provided us with our song sheets. Song one, What a Friend We Have in Jesus. Check. The second song, You Are My King. Nope, didn't know it. 50/50 is about my average on worship songs. The gentleman who led worship did a really great job. I don't suspect he is a minister or attended seminary but his message was from the heart and scripture based. Besides the 6 McLains there were 8 others in attendance. I suspect his largest crowd in weeks. I give it two thumbs up for a humble leader (note the trashcan as his pulpit), lounge chairs for pews, and the chance to work on my tan while worshiping. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!
Not unlike a normal Sunday in Denver we found a yummy breakfast stop after church. We keep repeating, eat where the people eat. That is another great gift of sabbatical. We have time to wait, we don't have to rush onto our next appointment. This mornings wait and breakfast were totally worth it. We did our normal breakdown of camp; think unhook power, water, sewer, put away camp chairs, hook up Honda on the dolly, slide in slides, stow all loose items on the inside and secure all cabinets, bunk ladder, etc. Girls work on the inside and the boys work on the outside. Safe to say the jobs are not equitable. Thanks fellas.
I am not a good navigator. I always have the address of our next destination but usually Dave plugs it into the GPS. Today, he asked me to do it. Which I did. We got on our way and drove for about 45 minutes before the road started to get a little curvy. We kept driving as the curves increased as did the elevation. Hmmm. I tried to do a little research on our location but no cell service. Not awesome but we pressed ahead. The road lost its center line and most of its shoulders as well. For at least an hour Dave navigated switchbacks to the top of Ebbets Pass Scenic Byway. What? That can't be good. Everyone knows you don't drive a 32 foot RV towing a minivan on a scenic byway. Did I mention the motorcycle rally taking place with motorcycles whizzing toward us part of the way? Dave drove about another hour down the back side of the pass when we took a closer look at the GPS. I had requested walking directions. Clearly that would have been the best route and it really was beautiful. We are able to chuckle about it because we didn't encounter any other big rigs along the way but it was a stressful two hours. Thanks to Dave for keeping us all safe.
Description from Scenic4.org:
- Jll
We were back to the RV in time for some relaxing and hanging out. Our KOA is managed by a Christian and the staff has worked very consciously to make the campsite their mission field. I am sure not everyone appreciates this detail, but I liked it very much. When we checked in we were each given fortune cookies, but no fortune inside, bible verses. The signage on the walls pointed to their faith, the notice about Sunday morning worship on property and the all Christian library of DVDs for rent for a dollar. We checked out 4 during our stay. Three the kids had seen before (God's Not Dead, God's Not Dead 2, and Soul Surfer). All enjoyed again. The fourth movie was I Can Only Imagine. Maggie's review was that it was really sad. I didn't watch it but I will take her word for it and skip that one next time. That was enough screen time for a while.
The kids and I had a very delicious dinner prepared entirely by Magnolia. We had a quiet night except for the late night bear hazing and air horns. Meanwhile, Dave played some cards which he likes very much.
Not unlike a normal Sunday in Denver we found a yummy breakfast stop after church. We keep repeating, eat where the people eat. That is another great gift of sabbatical. We have time to wait, we don't have to rush onto our next appointment. This mornings wait and breakfast were totally worth it. We did our normal breakdown of camp; think unhook power, water, sewer, put away camp chairs, hook up Honda on the dolly, slide in slides, stow all loose items on the inside and secure all cabinets, bunk ladder, etc. Girls work on the inside and the boys work on the outside. Safe to say the jobs are not equitable. Thanks fellas.
I am not a good navigator. I always have the address of our next destination but usually Dave plugs it into the GPS. Today, he asked me to do it. Which I did. We got on our way and drove for about 45 minutes before the road started to get a little curvy. We kept driving as the curves increased as did the elevation. Hmmm. I tried to do a little research on our location but no cell service. Not awesome but we pressed ahead. The road lost its center line and most of its shoulders as well. For at least an hour Dave navigated switchbacks to the top of Ebbets Pass Scenic Byway. What? That can't be good. Everyone knows you don't drive a 32 foot RV towing a minivan on a scenic byway. Did I mention the motorcycle rally taking place with motorcycles whizzing toward us part of the way? Dave drove about another hour down the back side of the pass when we took a closer look at the GPS. I had requested walking directions. Clearly that would have been the best route and it really was beautiful. We are able to chuckle about it because we didn't encounter any other big rigs along the way but it was a stressful two hours. Thanks to Dave for keeping us all safe.Description from Scenic4.org:
Compared to the high-speed trans-Sierra routes such as Highways 50 and 80, driving the Ebbetts Pass is a truly unique and unparalleled experience. At both ends of the byway (between Arnold and Lake Alpine to the west and between Markleeville and Silver Creek to the east), the road is a modern, full-width, two-lane State Highway that is maintained for year-round travel, with a double yellow center line, shoulders and passing lanes. Visitors travel through seemingly endless miles of pristine scenery, interjected only occasionally by welcoming communities. However, in the middle portion between Lake Alpine and Silver Creek, the road and the travel experience changes dramatically, becoming a narrow two-lane road with no center line and no shoulders as it slowly winds its way up and over the Sierra crest.
This part of the byway contains some steep, narrow and curvy portions with a few precipitous drop-offs. The route is recommended for cars and motorcycles, but is not accessible to tractor-trailers, buses or large recreational vehicles (RV’s).
Description from dangerousroads.org:
An extensive section of the highway includes some steep sections, without market central lines, is very narrow, scarcely wide enough for two cars to pass at the same time [editor's note: we decided to go with the extra large car dolly, which may or may not exceed the allowed width by 6"-12" - Not a wise choice to take it on this road] and there are no protections or guard rails along some parts of the route. It has very steep sections with hairpin corners. It is rarely used by commercial traffic and is not recommended for vehicles towing long trailers.
This infamous road is tightly hairpinned and bumped, an exquisite winding mountain drive with sharp and blind curves and hairpin switchbacks leading the traveler over the mountains. The eastern slope is particularly difficult, as many of the hairpin corners are blind, and steepen suddenly at the apex, making it necessary to shift to first gear in most vehicles.We arrived in Groveland, CA which is our launching point for Yosemite National Park. We are surprised by the heat which has finally caught up to our family. We had dinner in town at the Iron Door Saloon and we have pulled out a few toys which were buried in the far corner of a cabinet. Tonight Alastair strung up our hammock, Dagny is working very hard on a metal 3D puzzle, Magnolia is doing Dot-to-Dot for grownups and Adelaide is now caught up on her scrap book. Dave is exhausted from his long day behind the wheel and I am just so very thankful for God's journey mercies for my crew. Amen.
- Jll
Hi Mags! Its Marlow. I got your letter in the mail and I wish you were here. I miss you so much. I am so exited to see you when your back!
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