The weather has been unusual here, one minute it is a beautiful clear day and the next minute there is a storm coming. We are really enjoying the cool weather though because we know how hot and humid it is back in the southeast. At night it is in the high 40's and during the day it can be anywhere from high sixties to mid fifties. We were only a little over an hour away from Napa Valley so we drove on a scenic route through the Valley and could not believe all the wineries, hundreds of them. 
What a beautiful area this was, roses, old growth trees and grape vines everywhere! Residents even grow vines in their front yards, maybe to make their own wine or sell..not sure why but it was really quite a sight. There was also a natural hot springs spa there that looked a little ritzy. We decided not to stop to do any wine tasting that day thinking we might go back later in the week. We returned a different way, through the winding roads and mountains near Lake Berryessa, driving up to the Dam. There were areas you could park and hike the trails all along the Lake, some were steep going down. We decided we would come back one day earlier and hike some of the trails.
When we went back we walked a very steep trail that you could take the dogs on, but we had to lift them up it was so steep especially for Lucky who I had in my care. I carried him some of the way and I couldn't believe what an extra 10 pounds feels like when you are hiking like that. On the way back down we had to climb down using our hands and Lucky kept sliding down the trail on the steepest parts.
Talk about sore muscles the next few days! We put the dogs in the car and started to walk down the river trail where you weren't supposed to have dogs but we came across several hikers with their dogs and they said nobody ever gives you a hard time so Bill went back and got them. There was a sign to be aware of mountain lions and to make noise so you don't encounter them. It was a beautiful hike among the wildflowers, flowing creek, pines and oaks on the trail. I couldn't stop taking pictures of the flowers! Luckily we did not encounter any moutain lions.
Memorial Day weekend we went to a parade in Vacaville as well as the green market days. The streets were full of people, horses, car clubs, motorcycle clubs and more. It seemed everyone wanted to be in the parade but there were definitely more parade watchers on the streets. 
One day we went back to Point Reyes as the weather was perfect for it. It was close to 80 degrees in Travis but when we got to the Lighthouse it was in the high 50's and windy! Dogs were not allowed down to the lighthouse but someone decided to bring their very overweight American Bulldog and the poor thing was snorting like a pig when he got to the bottom of the steps. 
We drove around the point to Drakes Bay and the beaches. I was not impressed by the beaches but it was cool to see the pacific ocean again as the waves and rocks are pretty big. We even saw some elephant seals at the old Coast Guard house. 
On Memorial Day we met up with an old friend and colleague of Bill's, Gene, from his Elizabeth City days. We ate at Sandy's, 101 omelette cafe. The omelets were three eggs and you could have anything imaginable in them with a side. They were so huge I could not finish mine. Bill and Gene enjoyed talking about old times and others that were in their unit.
At Travis AFB, there was an elementary school next to the FamCamp and in front when we went walking one day with the dogs there must have been 30-50 ground squirrels standing on their hind legs looking like meer cats! Of course Ty was going crazy and wanted to chase them. Bill would let him go once in a while to chase the Jackrabbits but he was way too slow. We put a bird feeder out and the scrub jays would come around and eat from it. It was a nice base so we ended up staying there for 17 days until June 1st.....we will miss it.
We left and headed towards the coast, saying goodbye to Napa and Sonoma Valley and getting to the coast to drive North on Highway one. 
What a view of the ocean and the surrounding areas we had for several hours until we realized how late it was getting as the sun set at 8:30 pm. We stayed in Fort Bragg and continued on until we reached Humboldt Redwoods National Forest. It was raining but the view was awesome just the same. We drove the 33 miles on the Avenue of the Giants, stopping along the way to get pictures and just take in the amazing site of these huge trees. 
We ended up in Eureka around 4:30 pm and found RV camping at the Fairgrounds of all places! We set up in the rain and ended up staying in the RV the rest of the night and most of the next day due to the rain. In the afternoon we decided to venture out in the continuous rain and drove 10 miles to McKinleyville to a Farmers Market I found advertised on the internet but there were very few booths there. We drove by the Market and came up to the largest Totem Pole in the world, so they claim. 
It was a redwood that was 500 years old according to the sign. We then drove a few miles down the road to the Azalea Garden Reserve. There were a few dozen still in bloom, but I could just imagine how awesome it would be to see all of these trees in bloom. It was still raining but we decided to go find the maritime museum, which wasn't much of anything but next door was the Samoa Cookhouse with the Tsunami warning sign on it..the signs were all over the roads up here.
We then headed to the beach and to see the coast guard station. Of course Bill had to stand on the Jetty that the sign said not too because of sudden waves that come up over it!
We then went back towards downtown Eureka where we walked the dogs then went to a really good Irish Pub for some really good fish and chips and beer. There was a musician playing authentic music with several instruments. This was a really nice downtown area obviously revived over the years.
Tomorrow we will be leaving to head north again along the coast where we plan to visit the Coastal Redwoods and then camp in one of the National Forests in Oregon on the way to Klamath Falls.
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