Bye Bye Beaches, Hello Arizona

One of the great things about having a camera in your phone is that you can take pictures wherever you go.  So many things would be forgotten without those pictures. 

We loved being in Monterey.  That is such a perfect place to hang out for a while.  There are so many things to do and see.  Best of all, it’s right on the ocean!  It’s also a place to sit back, relax and get laundry done.

On Monday we visited Fisherman’s Wharf.  Half the fun of the Wharf is tasting all the free samples of clam chowder as you walk from one end to another.   Then, eating someplace else.  We picked the place with the outside tables and the view, of course.  My treat was a crab and shrimp Louie … nummy !

We also enjoyed checking out the water critters and kayakers in the bay.  What a gorgeous place for sure!  We spent four nights in Monterey before it was time to move on again.

This time we were heading farther down the coast.  Our new destination took us through Oxnard and into the town of Port Hueneme.  That was a tough one to figure out how to say until I checked out the phonetics online – who would have thought (why-nee-mee). 

We were surprised that this was an area with so much farming.  Huge crops were everywhere.  I had expected it to be more industrial because it was just north of Los Angeles except on the ocean.  Crops and fruit stands were everywhere.  We loved the area and the plan was to return someday.  This time we had reservations for only 3 nights. 

Of course, there was another marina and we had to check it out along with finding a place on the water to eat.  This place was a regular restaurant but outside seating was just sand.  It was kinda fun and kinda not.

Point Mugu was about 9 miles south (34 miles north of Malibu) so  we headed in that direction.   We stopped at the Point Mugu Missile Park.  Here you can see a wide variety of the missiles and airplanes that have been tested at the Point Mugu base since World War II. 

While in the area we visited the Point Mugu RV park and decided on our next trip this is where we’d like to stay.  The RVs are right on a gorgeous beach.  Even Buck enjoyed that beach and especially loved the water and surf.

One thing that was really fun was being introduced to Milly and her parents!   Milly was a 5 1/2 month old English Bulldog, her mom a retired airline employee and her dad an ex-Navy Seal.  Boy, did we have a lot to chat about and hope to meet up again down the road.  Milly and Buck got along great.

Then, it was time to head farther south.  This meant we had Los Angeles and its traffic ahead of us!  Whee !  It was just as bad as we thought it would be.  It took a couple of hours longer than before we finally pulled into our new RV site in San Diego.

Sandi was in San Diego.  The Navy had her there for additional training.  It was great that she’d be there when we would be.  The hard part for us was getting reservations over the weekend.  Eventually, there were cancellations and we were able to slip in.

 

She was so excited we were here and spent two nights with us before heading back to her hotel.  She was also our chauffer for those days.  Isn’t it nice when you have a grandchild that really wants to spend time with you?  That’s our Sandi!

The first place we toured was Hotel Del Coronado, of course. 

We also had to visit Seaport Village so we checked out the classic car show and had lunch.











Again, it was another spot for lunch with a great view.  This time we had a view of the pier and of the Midway.

Then, there was a stop at the huge NEX.  Actually, we had to go back there twice.  We thought we might have missed something the first time.




Walking down Orange Avenue in Coronado is very entertaining.  Lots of touristy shops are open and available to take some money.  We tasted olive oils, vinegars, ice cream, had lunch and spent very little of that money.  What a fun time.  We also moved on down the road and visited the NEX at the Seal training base on Coronado.  Sandi would have liked to take a Seal with her but we contained her. 


No visit to Coronado is complete without a stop at the Silver Strand beach.  Even though the fog had rolled in overnight and net yet cleared,  it was still gorgeous.  However, Buck wasn’t allowed on the beach to chase those waves so we didn’t stay too long.






Too soon our time on the California coast and with Sandi was up.  It was time for us to head inland and almost time for her to fly back to her base in Washington state.   Our first stop on this continuing journey was in Yuma where friends had recently purchased an RV lot.



What started with a small get together for dinner with six turned out to be a gathering for 14.  That’s definitely the RV way of life and what keeps folks connected!  We’ve known some of these folks almost ten years!








We’ll hang around Yuma for a few days, have a great time and then head on down the road where we’re also purchasing an RV lot …..  I’m sure there will be more fun times ahead this winter!


‘Tis life on the road.