7/11/17 Well....it was worth a revisit to Placerville/Auburn area but the results were the same. Although Mark is in love with trees, the surrounding area is just too closed in with tall pines. More houses with more sighs but knowledge that family was at the end of the day kept things light hearted. Sometimes you have to wonder if there is an advantage to our technology. Typing in the address of one potential home landed us in a rather 'interesting location Driving into San Francisco our hearts lifted with the knowledge that we would soon see smiles and get hugs. Home really is where family is. We're taking a short break here - fixing the sleep number bed, washing clothes, playing on the floor and processing all we've seen over the past 3.5 weeks. Baby Beluga is serving us well. Modifications are great!
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July 10, 2017 We drove away from Bishop today with regrets and hopes. Regrets because the views in Bishop are breathtaking – one after another. Hopes because we’ve now found two places that have touched our hearts and left us certain that we’re going to find a new place to call home. Driving north we investigated a few more small housing developments and even drove into Mammoth Lakes – a place with a rink that could feed my skating love if we move to Bishop. Mammoth hosts a ski mountain. Not too much further north is June Lake and another smaller ski area. Both could be of interest to visitors and friends. Next on our agenda was to investigate communities in Nevada. Two areas south of Carson City were recommended and so we drove through housing areas there too. This area was reminiscent of Flagstaff but lacked the university town feeling that was so attractive. Taking them off the list. So, we drove away toward California and are spending the night in a great campground—China Flat -in the Eldorado National Forrest. Bono loves it here and had a great swim tonight. We are currently blessed with eau de wet dog. But, he had so much fun swimming in the small river that runs through the campground that it made us smile. July 9, 2019 Early morning explorations of Bishop took us to the library, yoga studio and fitness center to check out facilities. And then, of course, a trip to the local climbing store was necessary – to purchased a much desired climbing guide. Some more house hunting ended with an eye-rollingly delicious lunch at Bishop Burger Bar – organic veggies on burgers with freshly made buns. With our house searching done for this town we decided to take a ride to the end of the road – twice. South of our campground are two beautiful Lakes, South Lake and Lake Sabrina. Both are man made as the result of dams created by the LA Dept of Water & Power that has “stolen” the water from this area for their residents. We met two Mariposa residents as we walked along the damn who told us we had to look at housing there. The resulting discussion revealed that the husband had worked on a project in Milford, CT. They mentioned the horrible summer weather today and yet we are seemingly unfazed by the 95 degree local dry heat. When we got out of the car at South Lake we saw piles of snow still unmelted from the Winter. The views were spectacular once again. Mark’s eyes were wide as he began to strategize how he could climb the surrounding peaks. There’s a boat launch there – what a fun place it would be to cruise around on the water.
July 8, 2017 Bishop, a small town, nestled in the foothills of these beautiful Sierra Mountains, is winning our hearts. We spent the day exploring neighborhoods in the area. Driving south to 3 small communities we learned that it is important for us to be closer to town. There are three nice areas outside of town where there are beautiful homes on a bit more land July 7, 2017 The is something so special about the friendliness of camping. Where else do strangers off a smile and good morning as you cross their path going to or from the facilities? It somehow gives the campground a wonderfully safe and caring feeling. The drive through Nevada was over roads that seemingly had no end. As we drew closer to our destination the bigger mountains began to appear. The near peaks were dwarfed by the magnificent Sierras. Baby Beluga chugged over several passes until we arrived at Bishop, CA. The history of this tiny town, nestled between the Sierras and the White Mountains, is one out of the Wild West. With stories of Kit Carson and gunfighters, this town has as it foundation the mining community of Aurora. Too far away from everything, it has maintained its simplicity. With only 5% of the land in the public domain, growth is almost non-existent. It draws skiers in the winter and hikers and fishermen in the summer. 104 degrees in the valley, we’ve escaped the heat by driving up into the INYO forrest to find a campground. A roaring stream is next to our campground fed by runoff from the snowmelt that it still visible on the highest peaks. . We had another talk with a couple from Lake Isabela out for a week of hiking. He is originally from Redding, CT. Small world. They spoke so highly of where they live that we’ve decided to add it to our list of possibilities.
Tomorrow we’ll meet with a realtor to see what might exist for us here July 6, 2017 We finished our exploration of Utah cities this am with a drive up to Salt Lake City. We drove through some of the surrounding towns to get a feel. This city is huge and research has shown it is 95% Mormon. So, we concluded our visit and headed west into the mountains for a day of rest from finding the “perfect place to live.” lShopping for groceries and Mark couldn't pass up the Dallas Donut.....Glazed perfect aka sugar overload. We’re back at Great Basin National Park, home of the bristlecone pines. At 7700 feet the temperatures are more bearable. People seem more relaxed and we’re camped next to a beautiful creek. Bono had a swim and so is now even more dirty – if that’s possible. Next thing we knew he was standing at attention having spotted the wild turkey passing through our site We set up our screen tarp for the first time tonight and have spent the afternoon making plans for the next week. Dinner tonight will be leftover Chinese and fresh fruit. Yum.
July 5, 2107 Sunrise at the lake this morning was beautiful. The red sand is as fine as the Jersey Shore but with it’s darker color really holds the heat. Time to move north. The view has opened up and the mountains have gotten bigger as we’ve driven north to Provo, Utah. Home of Brigham Young University and a town that is 95% Mormon, the town is the biggest we’ve seen on our trip. It’s a hot one again today. Camping tonight on Lake Utah just south of town. Really glad I figured out how to fix the screens on the van so we can have ventilation tonight. July 4, 2017 We left Arizona this morning with more than a little regret. This is a wonderful part of our country. The route took us past Lake Powell and the Glen Canyon Dam. Jaw dropping beautiful Continuing north to Zion National Park – from the Southeast Entrance – we were treated by one spectacular view after the other as the road wound its way through the canyon. The power of the rivers is unfathomable ’m longing for the cool Flagstaff evenings as I sit in front of the van inside the van. It’s 108 outside and our campsite has no shade so we’ve escaped inside where it is only 101 degrees. We’ve stopped at a State Park just outside of St. George Utah for the night. It’s on a beautiful lake surrounded by a view that is gorgeous.
July 3, 2017 We decided to roam to the West today and visit the town of Williams, 30 miles from Flag. Here the train to the Grand Canyon originates. An old town filled with tourist opportunities - bars, tiny shops, restaurants - had some lovely homes outside of town. If we were to return we would definitely consider a home here. After all, they do have a DQ We one last look at the Northwest side of town - more beautiful places that tug us here We ended the day with a stop at the laundromat. I'd forgotten what a joy it is to waste, I mean spend, an hour and a half watching the clothes spin. Grateful for all that we have
July 2, 2017 We listened to a fun ranger talk last night on Coyotes. If you ever camp in the national parks or national forrest be sure to take advantage of the nighttime naturalist talks. There were great facts about coyotes as well as entertaining clips of our dear friend Wylie. Today's adventure took us to the town of Prescott, AZ. Our Sprinter GPS took us on forrest roads and allowed us to add another layer of dust to -- well to everything. This town, slightly smaller than Flagstaff, provided a very open atmosphere. It was a bit warmer and had LOTS of opportunities for shopping. About 2 hours away, the community lacks many of the things that we love in Flagstaff -- university, hospital, REI, Baskin Robbins, Cold Stone Creamery.... There were some nice homes but this place just didn't grab our hearts so it is off the list. Back in Flagstaff we attended another ranger talk. This time given by a young art teacher (she needs to channel you, Louise) who was enchanted by the Katchina Dolls that are given to Hopi children to help them learn the stories and mores of their people. Pepper with stories, she did a great job of grabbing the attention of the young members of the audience. How fun!
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