Las Vegas, NV, Sunday, July 15, 2012

Cajon pass we had had a head wind all the way from Las Vegas. I don't like moving day so I contacted the office last night about putting it off one more day. No luck the site was reserved for later today and for the next three weeks.

I had dumped tanks, hooked up the Jeep and unhooked everything but power last night after knowing we couldn't stay over until Monday. Except for stowing the inside things we were almost ready to go. I usually only have to handle the outside but with Gerri pretty much out of commission I was reminded how much has to be done. We got up at eight and pulled out 10.

The 310 mile drive wasn't too bad traffic wise. We hit a rain and hail storm in the Yermo area that lasted about four miles. The other thing I discovered was that I used more fuel than usual on the trip to Oceanside. Until we went down the hill from Cajon Pass, we had had a head wind all the way from Las Vegas. The trip computer said I had enough fuel to make it home. I was leery of trusting the computer. When the computer shows 100 miles of fuel left it goes to a low fuel reading and won't show how many miles it calculates are left. Really REALLY not wanting to run out of fuel I stopped at Primm. What a mess! The normally dry lake was running over with water with water running over the roads and in the parking lots. That combined with completely stopped traffic on I-15 South, there were long lines at the truck stop, inside the convenience store and to get back on the Interstate. I put in $50.00 worth of diesel and hoped the price at Sam's was under the $3.599 they were charging at Primm.

I topped off the tanks at Sam's, diesel was $3.449 a gallon. It cost me another $300.00 to top off the tank. Considering fuel only the trip cost about 50 cents a mile.

We got home at 5:30 PM. I hooked up the power and unloaded only the things necessary for the night.

Saturday, July 14, 2012, Oceanside, CA

The morning of our last full day here started like every morning of the last two weeks in Oceanside. May Gray and June Gloom extended into mid July. I was up, fixed coffee, caught up my e-mal and words with friends games, and washed dishes before Gerri stirred.

After finishing my coffee I decided to load up my bike on the Jeep and head out to the SLRRT to see if I could pick up some easy caches. I drove to the start of the trail at Neptune and Cleveland and was at my first cache at 12:45. I met another cacher and did caches with him up to about the 3 mile mark. Because of him I bagged a couple that I wouldn't have tried. The north slope of the trail is cemented over rocks that my knees and ankles don't work well on. The other cacher is a marine stationed here, he is originally from Kentucky. Not quite a fellow hillbilly but close.

I went to the 4 mile marker before turning around at 3:50. I passed some that were down the rocky slope. I did a couple that were off the trail. On the last cache I was so tired my heart wasn't in it. I got back to the Jeep at 5 PM. I found a total of 16 and didn't hunt 4 because of the rocky slope.

Friday, July 13, 2012, Oceanside, CA

After getting up I caught up with my e-mail and Words with friends games.

At noon I took Gerri to her hair appointment. I went from there to the pier to have another look for a cache I didn't find yesterday. This morning I read all the information on the cache page and thought I had an idea where the cache was located. Either I was wrong or the cache is missing.

After picking up Gerri we decided to go to the PCH Restaurant. They had a sign claiming to have the best biscuits and gravy in Oceanside. Gerri had a chicken sandwich and I tried the biscuits and gravy. Both were very good. The biscuits were made with cheese and jalapenos.

Later I went caching. I found seven and DNFed one. Two of the finds were caches that I had looked for in past years and didn't find.

After getting back to the coach I talked for awhile with the neighbors. We had cheese and crackers, did some more computer stuff and watched TV until bedtime.

Thursday, July 12, 2012, Oceanside, CA

Rain was forecast for today. Our only plans were to meet Tim and Beth at the Wyndham and go to lunch at Ruby's on the pier. It did start sprinkling as we left the park. The drops were far apart.

Tim got us a guest pass for parking in the Wyndham's garage. Their timeshare unit was on the 5^th floor and even though it was billed as a partial ocean view, it looked out over the beach and the pier was in sight. We met their daughter Melanie and her daughter Mya. After visiting for awhile we decided to pass on walking out on the pier to Ruby's. By now the raindrops were closer together but still not a drizzle. We decided on the Breakwater Brewery which was close by. They served a variety of sandwiches and pizzas. Gerri had a Cuban Panini and I had a toasted meatball sandwich. All very good, typically the meatball sandwich was very messy. Mya is about six and I was impressed with how well she behaved, being stuck at lunch with five adults for lunch. Like most kids she was stuck by the wheelchair and wanted to help Gerri get around.

Gerri's foot is still swelling after a few hours hanging down, so we went back to the coach after lunch. By now the rain had worked its way up to a fine misty drizzle. I chatted with our neighbor in space two for awhile and then decided to try for a cache on the Oceanside Pier. I still had the guest pass for parking at the Wyndham, but decided to try to get closer to the pier even if it meant putting money in a meter. I found a pay lot on North Strand and was pleasantly surprised that with the handicapped tag I could park for free. I parked by a ramp that goes up the pier. The cache wasn't all the way to the end of the pier. I looked around for it until I got too cold and damp and gave up.

I hunted and found three other caches and by then it was getting pretty late so I headed back. Gerri wasn't hungry after the big lunch. I heated up the leftovers from our dinner at Sonny's and finished off the evening watching a few old Gunsmoke episodes.

Wednesday, July 11, 2012, Oceanside, CA

The nice thing about the gray overcast days is that it's not 110° like home. The AC is set on 80° and came on early in the afternoon.

Tim and Beth came over at 11am, so before that we spent some time sprucing up the coach. We went to Norte in Carlsbad for lunch. What a great meal, especially enjoyed with such good friends. We sat outside and enjoyed the cool air.

Gerri's foot is still swelling after a couple of hours without elevating it. Back at the coach she kept her foot up.

I did six geocaches. They are getting further away and I have to use the Jeep instead of riding my bike.

At six there was a "block party" at space 1, sponsored by the park. It was potluck and there was a good crowd. I talked to a few of the neighbors. Most of the people I have talked to have been coming here for many years. Our neighbor in space 4 is a fireman from Las Vegas. Others I have talked with are from closer cities in southern California, such as Hemet and Temecula.

 

Tuesday, July 10, 2012, Oceanside, CA

The sun tried to come out at 8:30 and didn't make it long. It was mostly an overcast day.
Gerri asked me not to go caching on my bike. So, I went out in the Jeep and found six, including three on the San Luis Rey River Trail.
Gerri made plans to have supper at Sonny's in San Clemente with her cousin, Arlene and her husband Bill. Bill is from Bluefield, WV, who is a fellow hillbilly. Also included in the party were Tim and Beth Burton, our friends from Scottsdale. We met Tim and Beth on our South Seas cruise last year.

Sonny's is our favorite Italian Restaurant in the area. We try to go there whenever we spend time in northern San Diego or southern Orange Counties. We had a great meal and caught up on news from all the friends and family present.
After supper it was back to the park for computer and TV time. We got new neighbors in space 2 on our east. We will probably meet them tomorrow. When we got back to the coach there was a flyer on the door about a block party on Wednesday evening at space 1. We plan to go to Norte's with Tim and Beth for lunch.

Monday, July 9, 2012, Oceanside, CA

The sun was out by 9:30. I caught up with my Words with Friends games and created a new query for Oceanside on geocaching.com. Yesterday when we went caching along the San Lois Rey River Trail, many of the caches didn't show on my GPSR. I found out I had checked caches available to all users and many of the caches (the ones that didn't show) were for premium members only. I went out on my bike to find a few caches. The closest one to the park was one I hadn't found on two occasions. Armed with gloves and determination I headed out. I found the cache after some time hunting. It was about 20' from where I thought the hint and GPSR indicated. It was in the ivy that I love to search, but I spotted it. There is now one less cache on my DNF list. I did find two others before heading back to the park. One was a micro very cleverly concealed in a coax cable, the piece that connected the two ends was hollowed out and the log inserted. The cable looked like it belonged there and it took me a few minutes to figure it out.

Gerri got dressed and out of the coach for awhile. We sat by the pool for a couple of hours. I napped a little.

Later back at the coach I fried up some sausages and made a casserole with the sausage, eggs, cheese and tortillas.

We watched some old westerns and episodes of Pawn Stars before turning in.