It took a total of 9 days to get Marcel’s new radiator, hoses, and water pump – the very costly remedy for a single can of STOP LEAK from the previous owners – shipped and installed by a local shop. Six nights waiting in a RV park, and two nights were spent in hotels later and we were rewarded with an entirely new cooling system for Marcel’s big block engine. I admit that I was concerned that the repairs were not done well, mostly just because of our experience with AAMCO in our last trip in Big Blue, but the fears appear to be unwarranted.
Back on the road now, but due to the delay we were now extremely crunched for time. We had only a single day and night before we had to be up in Trinidad, California to visit with Kerri’s Aunt (who made dinner reservations). Kerri got straight to finding us a place to camp that night, well off the beaten path and beside a river. It was the first time bringing Marcel off-asphalt with many miles of dirt road (easy as pie) and the rocky river bank (bouncy but easy enough). There was a single instance of the rear tires beginning to sink into the gravel, but a quick shift into four wheel drive cured that catastrophe before it really began. Just before sunset we had placed Marcel within the serene viewscape [not really a word] and called it a night with the wind howling outside.
For the first time in years, the wind had no effect on our sleep, even though the wind was strong enough to make Marcel wobble back and forth at times. So is one of the major differences between sailing-life and van-life… you can always get a good night’ sleep in a land based lifestyle. Definitely not guaranteed on the water.
With the sun rise – oh who am I kidding, it was late morning by the tie we got Marcel moving again – we reconnected to Highway 101 and continued North. Trinidad, CA was our destination for a visit with Aunt Claudia. Here we parked in the driveway, just inches between Marcel’s roof top and the house’s power line (whew!) and set in for a visit which included a few hours of catching up and an amazing meal at a local restaurant together.
Again, by late morning, we were on the move. We had just a few days to go from California to Washington state where we had yet another scheduled family visit. Before we could even get out of California, we were stopped once again. This time at the 8th wonder of the world, All Star Liquors, where Kerri popped in for a few bottles of necessities before entering the significantly higher booze-tax regions of Oregon, Washington, and Canada.
A short hop later and I heard those magic words from our navigation, “Welcome to Oregon”. Just before passing through the town of Brookings we turned off and headed for a dirt road in the mountains for yet another night camped on a rocky river bank. Although we had other campers at the same location this time, we tucked ourselves at the very corner of the camp-able area for some faux solitude.
Once again, a late morning departure got us back on the dirt road leading to Highway 101 to continue out northern progression. It was around this time that I began to notice an annoying little hiccup in Marcel’s engine at low speed. A ill up on the gas seemed to remedy it, so my mind began to focus on the fuel filter and gas tank cleanliness. I planned to stop at a future parts store to grab a few things to hopefully sort it out.
As we reached Gold Beach, Oregon, we turned for the mountains again. This time up into the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest as there was a particular road that caught my attention when perusing the maps the day before. Although mostly paved, it was filled with potholes and twists as we followed the Rogue River to the East. We tried a couple places that looked like we could boondock, but they turned out to be flops. But, that nagging little hiccup was now very frequent and was very concerning. Especially now that we were an hour-plus from the nearest parts store. We tried a paid campground but were uninspired by it. Instead we chose to continue traveling up the mountain – now on gravel road – and came to a tiny (and free) little campground at the top.
We had started the campground loop to decide which site would be our home for a couple days when a actual wizard stepped out from behind a tree. Yes, a wizard with a long gray beard, dark robe and floppy hat, dangling jewelry around his neck, and a huge staff in his right hand. It was amazing! He beckoned us to stop, so we did of course, and discussed the beauty of the camp sites a little before parting ways. He walked up the path while we took up a spot and was never seen again. He was not camped in the campground… just poof, he was gone!
We had hoped to stay two nights here, as we had yet to stay two nights anywhere but that RV park in Fort Bragg. We both desperately wanted to relax a day before restarting the grind. Fate would not allow this of course as even though we had a nice night, and following day, by 3pm Kerri was feeling that UTI thing coming on. By night fall it would be unbearable if previous experience has taught me anything, so I begged her to get a prescription via tele-health filled at the nearest pharmacy to our north – 90 minutes away.
Long story short, we arrived to the pharmacy 20 minutes before they closed so Kerri did not have to suffer through a night with a UTI. On the bonus side, just a half block away was an auto parts store, so I spent some time picking up a box full of parts for the fuel system as well as a full set of plugs, wires, cap-n-rotor, and a handful of misc hoses and vacuum lines. These I could work on the next time we stopped driving for something more than just a few hours. We then drove to a city parking lot in Coos Bay that allows overnight parking… until 7am at which time city police came knocking to shoo all overnighters away.
There were still a whole lot of miles to go before we reach my family’s house in Washington, and it was looking like it would be three more days of driving and single-night camping to get there. That is, unless we did something drastic. We chose drastic; a 6 hour drive to get us to the Astoria area where we could stay at Fort Stevens State Park (one of our favorites in the area) for two nights followed by a 3 hour drive on the day we needed to arrive in Washington. Said 6 hour drive took 10 hours (so is the way of traveling in a large vehicle while also trying to work) and by the time we arrived at Fort Stevens at 6pm, there were no sites available. Ugh!
I was grumpy as an old ox, but we ended up driving another hour to a dirt road that we had explored back in 2018 but had never stayed. Kerri took notes back then, complete with photos, so we were confident we had a place to stay that night. Luckily the sun seems to never set this far north in June, so we were able to get there in the light and take up a nice secluded spot about a mile up a dirt road. Here we finally spent two whole nights, leaving late morning again to arrive at my family’s place by early afternoon. Here we could finally shower, do some laundry, and do my sonly duty of Mom-sitting while my sister and brother-in-law head out for a much deserved weekend vacation.
Kerri and I both hate – loathe – schedules, and we have been on this schedule since a month before we left New Zealand. It was all about getting to this spot on the globe by this date, and even though it took preparing and storing the boat, a 12-hour flight, building out a new to us van, a nine day breakdown, 1100+ miles of driving, and visits to two parents, an aunt, and two brothers, we have finally made it.
