Cruising the Califorina Coast

Today was our first day in California. We pushed hard Monday to get to San Diego and stayed right near the beach. The cooler weather and nice sea air was a welcome improvement to the oppressive heat of Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. After a quiet night we turned in early, and we left the air conditioning off for the first time on our trip. In the morning we headed north to Los Angeles to Pick up Mark at Long Beach airport. The I-405 was a little rough, but as L.A. goes, not bad. After Mark was safely on board we headed for the coastal highway. The views were amazing and it was great to just sit back and enjoy the ride after almost 2,000 miles in three days. We found a nice turn off of the highway and went down to the beach to take pictures and feel the sand between our toes. California is so beautiful and it really makes you appreciate how large and varied our country really is. The driving was the most enjoyable of our trip so far and we finally meandered our way to Pismo Beach and found an RV park right on the water for tonight. Both Mike and I are really enjoying having Mark with us and we're looking forward to a great ride up the coast from here!

The campsite in San Diego right on Mission Bay

The beach right off the highway

Mike and Mason, smiling away

The two brothers

Right on the beach tonight!

It's gotten a little cold in Pismo Beach

                                                          A video Mike took of a seagull

Oops! Wrong country

After covering over 800 miles of Texas, we decided that since we were so close to the border with Mexico, we ought to at least stop for a visit. That's when the adventures began. Our first attempt was at a border crossing in the small town of Ft. Hancock to El Ponvenir. As we pulled up to the border crossing, we were duly informed that it was not a safe area as a US tourist had been kidnapped just Saturday and they found his beheaded body ealrier that day (Sunday).However, the younger of the two border patrol agents was going to let us walk out onto the bridge were there was a plague to take a picture. As we started to park the RV, the senior agent highly recommended that we try another border crossing as we would be within a pot shot range from the other side and things were very "tense" at this time. After some conversation, it was apparent that (1) this is not that unusual for the Mexico-US border stations, and (2) the problems extend all along the border and our government, nor the media care to bring the level of tension to the attention of the general public.

Well, needless to say, we decided to head for El Paso and the more civilized finery of Ciudad Juarez. Mason can now say he has been to Mexico, although we spent more time in line trying to get  back into the US than we did walking the streets of Juarez.

                                                    Can't wait to get back into El Paso

                                                 Ciudad Juarez - that's Spanish for shit hole

By the time we returned to the RV, the sun was setting and there were monstrous thunder cells in the sky, making for a beautiful sunset and interesting light show. We heard this morning that the same system casued wirdespread flooding just north of our location in New Mexico last night.

                                                     Big thunder storm in New Mexico

We both felt good after a dinner outside Deming, NM - a local diner with interesting clientele and decor you could only find in a 30 year old restaurant in the middle of the desert. We decided it was too late to find an RV park, so we headed for Tuscon. Didn't quite make it as the RV provided the first (and I hope only) surprise. Apparently the RV shop forgot to change the oil even though there was a sticker in the widshield clearly indicating an oil change was past due over 1,000 miles before we picked up the vehicle. So, we found a Walmart in Benson, AZ with a Jiffy Lube across the street.

Woke up this morning to learn the Lube shop was closed on Mondays, but, a nice man told us of the nearest alternative, just 45 miles away. Fortunately, it was on our way towards Tuscon. we passed Davis mountain AFB on the way to the lube shop. Apparantley, the base is the designated location for all retired C-130s as there had to be at least 500 of them lined up in mothball.

                                          C-130 graveyard at Davis Mtn. AFB, Tuscon, AZ

 We had our home serviced and are now heading into Yuma, AZ, Should be sitting at a tiki hut in Mission Bay just north of San Diego enjoying a cold beverage by late this afternoon.

Arizona desert

Hello from the Road!

Well we're in the middle of Texas right now about 550 miles in to an 800 mile drive. The surroundings are pretty bleak, but they are kind of beautiful to look at, as long as you're moving at least 60 mph past them. There's not really much to do so we've taken a lot of pictures of things that peaked our interest along the way.

                                    One of about a million oil wells in the Permian Basin

                         We passed a HUGE windmill farm that seemed to go on for miles.

                       It was the only cool thing we saw in Texas. We took lots of pictures.

                                      It is very easy to zone out while driving these roads.

                                                   I can't get over how flat it is!

                                           Multi-tasking: eating a snack and pumping gas!

The First Day

Well, today was the first day on the road and we did pretty well. We made it to Tyler, Texas by about 4:30 and spent the day relaxing around the RV park. The drive itself was not nearly as bad as either of us expected. There wasn't much traffic and it was pretty smooth sailing. The scenery was about what we expected, though. Louisiana and Texas are flat and dull (and that's putting it mildly). We're guessing that tomorrow is going to be more of the same and we just hope we'll make it out of Texas with our sanity. All in all, though, today has been a great day. We had a blast hanging out in the RV and grilling steaks out for dinner. It was a great start to a grand adventure, and it's only going to get better from here!

                                                                  The open road.

                                                              Our very first campsite!

And So It Begins!

The time has finally come to throw caution to the wind and set off on our whirl wind adventure! We picked up the RV today from Dandy RV Rentals and set to work packing it to the very brim. Everything fit (to Mike's surprise) with just a little room to spare. Once we finished loading the luggage we headed to the grocery store to pick up some essentials; Ramen, hot dogs, Red Bull, and beer. Mike and I are so excited to embark on our epic journey I don't think either of us are going to sleep very well tonight. Wish us luck and here we go!

                                                                            Our home!     

                                                              All the comforts of home.     

                                                                 The lush interior.

                                                                    Us on the "patio".

Seriously seeking Dad's final resting Spot

We are inside the two week window for our departure and the list of things we have to remember to bring is getting long. (Translated: the liklihood of us forgetting something is increasing exponentially).

Just to give an example, the list includes items such as:

• our passports
• change for laundry and tolls
• maps, in case we lose internet and our lifeline - Google Maps
• the camcorder - to record all those cool things we want to put on this blog
• our laptops - yea, right - like we are going to forget them
• the MI-FI for mobile internet access - ditto above
• TP -  this was actually the first and most frequently suggested item on the list
• charcoal, fire starters, paper towels, laundry detergent
• tools - for the inevitable vehicular issue
• rain gear - like the tools, if we bring it, we won't need it. If we don't ...
• lawn chairs - because we can only spend so much time in a traveling tin can
• stereo - with headphones
• hiking boots
• bug spray - lots and lots of bug spray
• Mason's stuff for school - It is the original idea for the trip, so saving on those nuisance charges from the airlines for his skis, TV, stereo, etc. should make the cost of the trip a wash.
• Oh, and Dad's ashes.

One of the trip highlights will be getting together with family in the Napa Valley to have a final memorial and put Dad's remains to rest as per his wishes. Only thing is, the Napa Valley is big and none of us know it very well. While I can tell you which vineyards have the best tours and give away the most free wine, I don't know anything about the parks and a quiet palce to say goodbye to Dad in his last physical form.

So far, my research has identified four options:

• Sonoma Valley Regional Park
• Bouverie Wildflower Preserve
• Lake Hennesey Park, and
• Bothe-Napa Valley State Park.

Does anyone out there have any knowledge of these locations and/or a suggestion for a respectfully private location for our family to have a final memorial for Frank Margotta, where spreading his ashes isn't going to cause a scene (or worse)?

So far, we have been very fortunate to get great advice from those of you who have followed our blog. We are hopeful that this magnanimous trend will continue. Look forward to hearing anyone's thoughts/ideas.

The cure to boredom

Hi guys! So one of the of the pieces of advice that we've received from our peers is to have plenty of music. Mike and I have a pretty big library, but we're always looking for new bands to listen to. Our tastes are pretty wide spread and we like everything from Pink Floyd to dubstep. Any suggestions for music would be greatly appreciated, as we have to travel all the way through Texas without losing our minds. Thanks so much for the help!