By Carolyn Rose and Mike Nettleton
Carolyn: Although we
both have fond memories of the days when we could toss a few things in the car
and take off, one of us is realistic enough to know those days are gone.
Mike: Boy, I
miss those days when you could find yourself in Reno, Nevada,
with 74 cents, no gas in the VW, and no clue how you’d get home.
Carolyn: So, with that
in mind, I devoted significant time to researching a new car for the trip, then
more time to making lists and gathering an assortment of warm- and cold-weather
clothing, towels, plastic bags, paper plates, dog toys, dog tranquilizers, dog
bed, books, maps, spare pillows, flashlights, and food. As it turns out, we
never needed the kitty litter (for tire traction) or the gallon of water. But
everything else came in handy.
Mike: Cue the banjo
music. She’s right, of course. Still, I could have sworn I could hear Homer and
Jethro singing “Come listen to my story 'bout a man named Jed. Poor mountaineer
barely kept his family fed,” as we rolled down the road.
Carolyn: And
pre-planning paid off. When I noticed I-84 was closed yet again and the
temperature in Ontario, Oregon, was -7 two days before we set out,
we changed our plans and headed south and west instead of east and then south.
That put us in Redding, CA,
the first day, and just outside of Bakersfield
on the second.
Mike: Bakersfield. I won't say it's ugly but-
Carolyn: Careful, bucko, we might have to go back there some day. On day 3 we
left freeway driving behind and, more by accident than design, took old Route
66 through rugged country to Oatman, AZ.
Mike: Oatman is an
old mining town up in the mountains. When we passed through, the streets were
packed with tourists and wild burros wandered around trying to cadge something
to eat.
the town does have some charm, with a river walk that meanders along its length. Across the water is Bullhead City, Arizona, a haven for the AARP set who ford the stream periodically to blow their Social Security checks. I’m somewhat chagrined (but mostly proud) to admit I relieved them of $265 by co-winning a morning poker tourney at the Colorado Belle, a casino disguised as a riverboat.
Carolyn: I bid a fond
farewell to my new favorite slot-machine game, Cops and Doughnuts,
and we headed east, stopping briefly at Walnut Canyon (no dogs allowed on the
descending trail) and then the Painted Desert. 
The day was overcast,
but occasional sunbeams lit up the hills and we enjoyed the show.
Then
it was on to Albuquerque where we stayed with a friend from my VISTA days and
turned her on to the benefits of CBD, the non-psychoactive ingredient in medical
marijuana for her arthritis pain. So far, it seems to be helping. https://www.projectcbd.org/what-cbd
Mike: I snuck in a game of golf with an old friend
before a snowstorm hit, ate red chile enchiladas with my ex-partner, and shared
an hour or two of telling lies about the good old days with another old pal. We
also broke bread with several of Carolyn’s former co-workers and a couple from our old neighborhood.
Carolyn: Timing our
departure between storms, we headed for Phoenix
to visit my aunt, then scooted for Prescott,
a wonderful city with the best of the old and new.
We’re thinking this
might be a place to spend part of next winter, so Mike checked out the golf
courses, theaters and the library and I made note of grocery stores and
walking trails. Max made note of
a dead javelina by the side of the road. He thinks it might be fun to own a wild pig of his own.
The
next day I navigated us on back roads through the desert toward Lake Havasu. At a crossroads with three houses and a single store, we met a man
walking a dog named Whiskey. I think he was named after his owner’s breath. The
little mutt was about Max’s size and wearing a torn green dog sweater. Max
isn’t much for dog clothing, so I offered Whiskey an orange sweater our Malty
dog wore exactly once. Whiskey and his owner were delighted.
Mike: I liked Lake Havasu
more than I thought I would.
It had some charm, mixed with kitsch and classic American tackiness. London Bridge crosses a canal they dug for it, and despite being a bit underwhelming was kinda cool.
We passed through the spectacular country around Boulder Dam on our way to Las Vegas.
We did pull into a viewpoint with a spectacular vista overlooking Lake Mead
Carolyn: Rain cut
short our visit to Spencer Lodge, which is not a charming vacation inn, but the name of the son of a friend and an archaeologist at the
Desert Wildlife Refuge
That afternoon, we headed for Tujunga, scooting in
before LA traffic reached gridlock. Max enjoyed being out of the car for 8 days
and roaming the terraced garden in the back yard of Michael and Mia’s home.
One
of the highlights of our stay was a visit to Descanso Gardens.
We enjoyed the less manicured and more natural arrangement of shrubs and
plants, and I especially enjoyed the huge spreading oaks.
 |
| You oughta see the other guy. |
Carolyn: Actually, he
fell down and went boom while walking Max.
Mike: Damned sprinkler
head.
Carolyn: With a
forecast for 4-7 inches of rain, we decided to leave a day earlier than planned
and head north. Along the way we saw fields filled with standing water and
rivers reaching the tops of their banks. After a stormy night in Redding when the motel
staff piled sandbags around one door, we canceled plans to take twisting and
mountainous roads to the coast and stayed with I-5.
Watching a mile-long row of big trucks chaining up, we feared we’d have to turn
back, but research paid off and our AWD Toyota was waved on when other vehicles
headed for the off ramp.
Mike: The stretch
around Lake Shasta was kinda white knuckle, but
really, not bad, all things considered. The rest of the drive was fast
and uneventful. Even with delays through the mountains it only took us 7 1/2 hours
to get home.
Luckily it didn’t look like this
when we pulled in. We timed our vacation perfectly to miss the ice and snow storm of the decade in Vancouver and everything had melted off by the time we arrived.
It was a memorable trip, gave us a chance to catch up with old friends and family, but as Max, the quivering doggy hulk will tell you.
