RATING: ♦♦♦♦♦
The route for the Spring 2019 season was our longest so far at 1,400 miles. We started in Southern California and ended in Central Oregon, traveling mostly along US-395.
It was also our most expensive season in terms of repairs. We spent $2,400 for the brakes at Redlands Truck and RV in Redlands CA, $1,400 for the radiator at Freightliner Northwest in Coburg OR, and $3,500 for the leveling jacks at the Winnebago Service Center in Junction City OR. And the jacks repair is not yet done.
But all in all, it was a memorable season. The drive along the Eastern Sierra on US-395 was spectacular. We got to see the super bloom at the California Poppy Reserve in Antelope Valley CA, and to test our boondocking/dry camping skills on government land at Sawtooth Canyon, in Lucerne Valley CA, Alabama Hills in Lone Pine, and Pleasant Valley in Bishop CA.
It was also our first time moochdocking on a driveway (at our friends’ summer cabin at the Shack in Walker CA) and boondocking on a casino parking lot (at the Kla-Mo-Ya Casino in Chiloquin OR). Both experiences were quite nice.
We only used our Thousand Trails membership twice, two weeks at Bend-Sunriver in Bend OR and one week at South Jetty in Florence OR. Normally we try to use Thousand Trails about four to six weeks a season to keep the camping costs low. But the dry camping, which was mostly free, helped a lot.
And frankly, in many ways we preferred the experience of dry camping over staying in a commercial campground. It’s hard to overstate the beauty of a place like Sawtooth Canyon or the Alabama Hills, despite the lack of hookups. And the two weeks we stayed at Bend we didn’t have a sewer connection, which is nearly as inconvenient as having no hookups at all.
This probably ranks as one of our most scenic seasons ever. The majestic Eastern Sierra of California and the rugged Oregon Coast are world class. We were also pleasantly surprised by the abundance of volcanoes we encountered, many under the protection of the National Park Service. The Lava Beds National Monument in Northern California along with the famous Crater Lake National Park and the less famous Newberry National Volcanic Monument in Oregon stand out.
If it hadn’t been for the multiple repairs, it would have been a perfect season. But we keep reminding ourselves that repairs are all part of the lifestyle and we are grateful for the opportunity to see our beautiful country.