Most of us neglect the practicality of a rock.
It was fun to stay in a $5 car park on the Sausalito marina while million dollar boats gently rocked in chorus overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge. We packed up early and made our way North on the 101, our aim today was to move past some of the larger Northern Californian fires. We snuck into another Starbucks for a quick coffee and to review the fire updates online. Pleased with our route, we aimed for Eureka.
There was a mixture of fog and smoke in the air, while plenty of fire trucks moved along the highway. The closest we came was to a fire already 100% contained near Ukiah, from the highway we could see the hills blackened. The towns had temporary evacuation zones set up which meant plenty of army style tents and various equipment well organised.
That evening we made our way into a secluded place just off the 101 that had a nice view of the surrounding hills. We set up camp, hung out the washing and researched what to do if we encounter a bear. Google informed us to speak slow and deeply to the bear, not to run if it sprints at us and most certainly do not climb a tree. We should also identify what type of bear it is, for when it begins eating you, if it is a Grizzly, you need to lay flat on the ground and play dead. While if a Black Bear, you should fight aggressively at the eating stage. These were all things Jamie and I enjoyed discussing over our meal.
The following day after a slow sleep in we cut in land to a town called Willow Creek. Our aim was to find some information about a possible trail work we could do before jumping back on the road to head further North. As luck would have it as we entered the small town the old school signs pointed out Tourist Information ahead and on the left. So we pulled into a small car park while a stumpish old lady raised the American flag out front. We walked to the small hut and noticed 'technically' it wasn't open for another 5 minutes, looking to the lady raising the flag we figured we would give her some peace and make our way to the public toilets for our daily routine.
If you recall from the beginning, the practicality of a rock is often overlooked. We each had our own gender defined toilet to enter. Jamie knocked for her entry, while mine was easier to see as the door was well ajar. I can only speak on my behalf, but the lack of lock, hinge or door handle suggested to me this single porcelain loo could be similar to one of my earlier experiences. Fortunately, others before me had left a decent sized rock placed on the inside, which purpose had become a character in a story, and a useful weight to pin the wooden plank of a door shut. I chose to record a picture of this rocket as it meant a lot to me at the time. After completing the important task, I relocated the rock to it's holding position, ready for it's next visitor. Outside, Jamie was waiting, only to remark that her toilet had no lock. I asked if it had a rock, to which she advised it had not. So for courtesy and protection, as a rock can provide, I waited outside ensuring no stranger came knocking.
By this time, the 'Tourist Information' booth at Willow Creek was well and truly open. We walked across a little lighter and approached our flag raising attendant. We enquired about possible hiking paths in the nearby hills to which we were informed there were none. A little saddened by this news, we asked if there was a local map we could possibly use. We were handed the only map that was available to tourists, 'The Legend of Bigfoot Sightings'. While we did find this interesting, other than offering four suggestions for the greatest likelihood of spotting the Legend of Bigfoot, the maps did not provide an entry or exit path through the beautiful woods we were hoping to hike. When we rudely requested a second time if there happened to be an offering of a suggestion for a possible place to walk in this area, the response was, "Do you want to see Bigfoot or not?" Neither of us had an answer to this, so we exited the Willow Creek Tourist Information Booth.
Requiring a top up of fuel, we ducked into a nearby petrol station and confident with the fuel delivery mechanisms had no issue entering a random US zip code to ensure we had swift fuel extraction. A collection of water and we were off to the United States Postal Office to mail our one Post Card to a special lady in Australia. For only $1.15 you can post a card around the world. We were impressed with that. While exiting the Post Office, our brief story here ends with an alarming sound coming from our vehicle. All lights flashing and a mighty horn blaring in the small town. Confused we didn't know what our Big Bird was suffering as we tried to unlock the vehicle to cease it's outburst. Turns out for the first time we realised the key while not only having a lock and unlock button, also had a 'distress' button, between the two!! Surely we were not the only ones to ever accidentally press this. A lesson learnt.
As this story is waffling we will pick it up in a new post :)
It was fun to stay in a $5 car park on the Sausalito marina while million dollar boats gently rocked in chorus overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge. We packed up early and made our way North on the 101, our aim today was to move past some of the larger Northern Californian fires. We snuck into another Starbucks for a quick coffee and to review the fire updates online. Pleased with our route, we aimed for Eureka.
There was a mixture of fog and smoke in the air, while plenty of fire trucks moved along the highway. The closest we came was to a fire already 100% contained near Ukiah, from the highway we could see the hills blackened. The towns had temporary evacuation zones set up which meant plenty of army style tents and various equipment well organised.
That evening we made our way into a secluded place just off the 101 that had a nice view of the surrounding hills. We set up camp, hung out the washing and researched what to do if we encounter a bear. Google informed us to speak slow and deeply to the bear, not to run if it sprints at us and most certainly do not climb a tree. We should also identify what type of bear it is, for when it begins eating you, if it is a Grizzly, you need to lay flat on the ground and play dead. While if a Black Bear, you should fight aggressively at the eating stage. These were all things Jamie and I enjoyed discussing over our meal.
The following day after a slow sleep in we cut in land to a town called Willow Creek. Our aim was to find some information about a possible trail work we could do before jumping back on the road to head further North. As luck would have it as we entered the small town the old school signs pointed out Tourist Information ahead and on the left. So we pulled into a small car park while a stumpish old lady raised the American flag out front. We walked to the small hut and noticed 'technically' it wasn't open for another 5 minutes, looking to the lady raising the flag we figured we would give her some peace and make our way to the public toilets for our daily routine.
If you recall from the beginning, the practicality of a rock is often overlooked. We each had our own gender defined toilet to enter. Jamie knocked for her entry, while mine was easier to see as the door was well ajar. I can only speak on my behalf, but the lack of lock, hinge or door handle suggested to me this single porcelain loo could be similar to one of my earlier experiences. Fortunately, others before me had left a decent sized rock placed on the inside, which purpose had become a character in a story, and a useful weight to pin the wooden plank of a door shut. I chose to record a picture of this rocket as it meant a lot to me at the time. After completing the important task, I relocated the rock to it's holding position, ready for it's next visitor. Outside, Jamie was waiting, only to remark that her toilet had no lock. I asked if it had a rock, to which she advised it had not. So for courtesy and protection, as a rock can provide, I waited outside ensuring no stranger came knocking.
By this time, the 'Tourist Information' booth at Willow Creek was well and truly open. We walked across a little lighter and approached our flag raising attendant. We enquired about possible hiking paths in the nearby hills to which we were informed there were none. A little saddened by this news, we asked if there was a local map we could possibly use. We were handed the only map that was available to tourists, 'The Legend of Bigfoot Sightings'. While we did find this interesting, other than offering four suggestions for the greatest likelihood of spotting the Legend of Bigfoot, the maps did not provide an entry or exit path through the beautiful woods we were hoping to hike. When we rudely requested a second time if there happened to be an offering of a suggestion for a possible place to walk in this area, the response was, "Do you want to see Bigfoot or not?" Neither of us had an answer to this, so we exited the Willow Creek Tourist Information Booth.
Requiring a top up of fuel, we ducked into a nearby petrol station and confident with the fuel delivery mechanisms had no issue entering a random US zip code to ensure we had swift fuel extraction. A collection of water and we were off to the United States Postal Office to mail our one Post Card to a special lady in Australia. For only $1.15 you can post a card around the world. We were impressed with that. While exiting the Post Office, our brief story here ends with an alarming sound coming from our vehicle. All lights flashing and a mighty horn blaring in the small town. Confused we didn't know what our Big Bird was suffering as we tried to unlock the vehicle to cease it's outburst. Turns out for the first time we realised the key while not only having a lock and unlock button, also had a 'distress' button, between the two!! Surely we were not the only ones to ever accidentally press this. A lesson learnt.
As this story is waffling we will pick it up in a new post :)
obviously Willow Creek is not a tourist mecca!! Great report thanks guys.
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