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Winter 1997-1998 6/7/76 to 6/28/76 We left Glendale at 7:40 A.M., June 7, 1976. We arrived in Wheeling, West Va. at 4:00 P.M. We stayed there last year. The next morning we headed out again. We had the C.B. hooked up and had fun with it. Our handles were Slick Willie and Auntie Mame. We stayed in Casey,Ill. that night. On June the ninth we left Casey and went to St. Louis where I met Mrs. Port, another genealogy correspondent. We went from there to Fulton, Mo. too see Judge Williamson who took us out to the old Berry Cemetery. I'd like to think that Richard Berry was my ancestor. Not much chance of proving it though. The Judge was very hospitable and took us to the Fulton Country Club for dinner. He advised us not to miss Westminster College where Winston Churchill made his famous speech about the Iron Curtain. Of course we took his advice. Very interesting indeed. Back to Kansas City again. We spent time in the K.C. Library looking for records of my ancestors. They were there but I already had them and some were records that I had sent! We drove on to Abilene,Kansas where the Eisenhower Monument is located. At that time General Eisenhower and one son were interred there. Very impressive. We spent the night in Salina,Kansas. The next morning we put the show on the road and drove straight through to Denver braving head winds the whole way. The mid west is windy! We stayed in Aurora,Co. June 13th was an eventful day as far as I was concerned. First of all we were impressed by the beautiful mountain scenery. But now we have to get over those mountains. The only way for us was the Ridge Trail. The first part was gradual and we did well. But the higher and steeper the road became the slower and more labored was our progress. It was low gear the whole way and as we neared the top I thought for sure the car was going to give up but I guess Eddie's entreaties of "come on old buddy" and my silent prayers did the trick. We made it! My nerves and the high altitude provided me with a thumping head ache. We finally pulled into Steamboat Springs late in the afternoon. The campground was crappy and we were fagged so we just went to bed. The next morning Eddie got up and I heard him exclaim "Oh(bleep) snow! There was about 7 inches and very cold. In the 20s. Once we got the trailer dug out and hit the road it was a beautiful ride; the scenery was gorgeous. We stopped to see Dinosaur National Monument at Jensen, Utah. It was great. We enjoyed seeing all that antiquity. Our last stop of the day the Wasatch State Park in Heber City, Utah way up in the mountains overlooking Salt Lake City. The next day we went into Salt Lake City. We loved everything about it. Everyone was pleasant and courteous and there was no hornblowing. The Mormons are wonderful people. We saw the temple, Brigham Young's homes, the pioneer exhibits and the visitor's center where they gave us the history of the Mormans. It was great. Of course we went to the library with all those genealogical records an family histories. I could have spent two weeks there! June 16th and now in Mountain Time. As we left town we went by Great Salt Lake and the salt flats. Beyond belief! The poor pioneers. Poor miserable country. Not a sign of life. We made it to Winnemucka, Nev. prairie land and windy and dusty. Our next campground was in Sparks, Nev. It was very nice but the planes and trains were noisy. No matter, it was an interesting area and we did a lot of sightseeing. We enjoyed the old pioneer town of Virginia City and the old gold mines. Then we drove all around Lake Tahoe. It was beautiful. We went on to Reno, Nev. and spent the night there. Now we are in the Pacific Time Zone and in the state of California. It didn't take us long to get to the Golden Gate Campground in San Rafael in Marin Co,. across from San Francisco. We could see San Quentin Federal Prison in the distance. We unhitched the trailer and went sightseeing big time. There is so much to see in that area. We walked through Muir Woods and drove over the Golden Gate Bridge to San Francisco to see Eileen and to see the town although we had been there before. We also went across the Bay Bridge to see the Roneys in Lafayette and then to Oakland to see Aunt Ida. The next morning we started up the coast on Rt.1 .We were close to the Pacific Ocean all the way. The road was twisty and it was very windy. The wild flowers along the road were terrific. We stayed in the town of Fort Bragg. From there we had a slow drive through the redwood forests and took pictures of the tall trees. We stopped in Eureka for the night. We enjoyed the California coast but as the saying goes, "we ain't seen nothing yet". The Oregon coast was fantastic especially around Brookings. We took a lot of pictures! We took our time taking in the beautiful sights. Bandon, Oregon was our final destination of the day. We spent two nights there. It was such a nice spot. On June 26th we drove on up the coast stopping many times to admire the rhododendron and other wild flowers. We couldn't get over the huge sand dunes in Honeyman State Park. Of course we had to climb to the top which was not easy! We finally made it and then had to roll down. We spent the night in Nehalem Bay and the next day stopped at Cannon Beach. Both places had beautiful beaches. They are so different from the Atlantic Ocean beaches. At Cannon beach there was a huge rock just off shore and we waded out and climbed up as far as we dared. The water was frigid.
The next morning we stopped in Tillamook, famous for their cheese. From there we went on to Astoria and to Ft. Clatsop National Monument, the end of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. We are now on the Olympic Peninsula. We loved it and were fascinated by the scenery and the rain forest. We found a wonderful campground in Quinault. It was right on a rushing stream and not far from The Quinault Lodge. We walked around the area and then to the lodge for dinner. I could have stayed there for days but we were getting anxious to see the kids so we reluctantly left the next morning. We went down on Ruby Beach which was great. Such driftwood and smooth rocks an stones! Of course I had to collect some. We went up to Hurricane Ridge on Mt.Olympus overlooking the Strait of Juan de Fuca. We could even see Orcas Island from there. We stayed in Heart of the Hills our last night on the Olympic Peninsula. We enjoyed the ferry ride getting to Orcas Island and Mt. Baker is always beautiful in the distance. So on June 28th we arrived in Eastsound and were delighted to see the kids. Then we went down to West Beach where we unhitched the trailer and settled in for a fun visit with friends that we had met before and of course, our family. next: Home Again |