Grants Pass – Page 2 – The MoHo and Other Traveling Tales

We had a fabulous July, but first a House Update

Current Location: Running Y Resort, Klamath Falls, Oregon

Mattie is completely unconcerned about thunder and lightning in Grants Pass. Alert, but totally relaxed.

As I wrote last time, we knew that July had much in store for us. Almost every single day was full, with tight schedules that made us often ask, “What are we doing next? Where are we heading next? Which house will be in on x date?” Every minute was truly wonderful, and if we breathed a sigh of relief at the end of the month, it was only to catch some air and some down time.

Checking out the house at dusk with interior construction lighting on

I decided to write about each visit and adventure individually, to give each one the full credit it deserves, but wanted to get all the house update stuff done first, to clear my mind of that ongoing process so that I can relax and enjoy the great memories we made last month.

Here is Gary Duckworth, our job foreman, always busy checking the details

July 17 It was exciting to return to Grants Pass after a week away, partially because we knew Jimmy and Nickie were coming, but also because we knew that the A Team was returning to begin putting up the siding.

The interior was a surprise as well, with all the drywall completed, and the tray ceiling at last actually recognizable.

Gary spent quite a bit of time with us working out the details for our trim choices for the windows and doors, and deciding on what kind of crown molding would look best in the tray ceiling.

It was wonderful walking around in the house and seeing it with defined spaces, feeling the rooms more clearly, and enjoying the lightness. With just the framing up, it was darker than I had imagined it would be with all the windows, but once the drywall was on, it changed everything. Light! It is so wonderfully light!

We spent a couple of days with Jimmy and Nicky, (I will be writing this post shortly) and returned to Grants Pass on Thursday to find that the A-Team really was there, and the siding was going on. Exciting to watch that happen. While they were working, the drywall contractor was completing the taping of the interior drywall.

I didn’t manage to get a photo of that guy walking around on his bucket. I remember drywall tapers using stilts, but this guy just jumped up on his bucket and managed to rock and roll it around to do the 9 foot ceilings and high places. That was rather amazing to watch.

By the end of the week, we were beginning to get a better picture of how the house will look when it is finished, with the siding and framing in place. Gary also brought some samples of baseboard styles and we weren’t thrilled with the standard OG 3.5 inch stuff that is in modern houses. We instead decided on a 5 inch flat topped baseboard that is more in keeping with the Craftsman feel of the house.

Made me really happy, reminding me of the house on Painter Street that was built in 1942 and had that same kind of baseboard.

Just for fun, here is an old photo from the Painter Street house baseboard and trim

We also made decisions on doors, deciding that a “minimal” upgrade to the Shaker doors that we originally wanted but weren’t included in the original bid was worth it. So far, our only actual change orders have been for the doors and for the upgraded baseboards.

July 26 After a week at the Running Y, where we enjoyed a visit from Jeanne (I will write this post very soon), we returned to Grants Pass again to find exciting new changes. The siding and trim were almost completed and ready for paint.

Gary did a fabulous job designing the gable treatments, and something we hadn’t even thought of were the custom attic vents. Later that day, driving around town checking out new houses, we saw several examples of store bought vents, squares, rectangles, circles, and octagons.

The custom vents under the gable treatments are a great touch, another reason we so appreciate our builders.

Gary also had a mock-up ready for us for the porch columns, and brought the box of our chosen rock facing that will cover the pillars to see how it would look with the planned column treatments. We talked about different ways to trim the front porch upper cross beams, which will be stained rather than painted.

We drew out the proposed cement walkway that will meander from the garage and driveway around toward the front porch entrance, painting the dirt with blue paint and talking about how much Gary planned to raise the ground level with solid fill so that we will have only 3 steps and 4 risers at the main entry.

Mo and I will use the garage entrance most, and there is no step there except for a small lip from garage to laundry room, perfect for us. No steps, and all one level!

We had a great time with Maryruth and Gerald (another story to get posted soon) and returned once again to the Running Y on the last day of the month. We were definitely ready for that few days of down time, especially since the temperatures in Grants Pass during that week reached 114 degrees. Klamath Falls was in the triple digits as well, highly unusual for the Klamath Basin, but we stayed cool and comfortable in the air conditioned villa, and I took daily morning walks on the pathway before it was too hot. I would check pavement in the evening, and if I couldn’t walk barefoot on it, I wouldn’t take Mattie, so mornings were the only time we could get out.

August 7 Every time we return to the house build, it gets more exciting. It was actually a little bit scary, because we knew that the interior and exterior painting was going on in earnest. We spent a long time deciding on colors, and knew we had to live with our decisions. No going back once all that paint is on!. I was really nervous driving up the road, praying that it was OK.

Surprise. We loved it. Or maybe not such a surprise because we spent a lot of time trying to match the color of the RV shed and choosing the interior paint with much reading and sample approval.

Funniest moment was standing in front of the house and seeing that the east wall of the house wasn’t anything at all like the south wall of the adjacent RV shed. (See the apparent difference in the above photo. )“Well shoot, it doesn’t match, but I guess that is OK”. But then the next morning, with the rising sun on both eastern walls of each building, it was a perfect match! Light and angle makes all the difference. We noticed the same effect from the west side during different times of day.

Deciding on a garage door was also a process. There are only 2 colors that are standard, white and brown, otherwise the door can be overpainted with the house body color. That isn’t really a good option because the exterior paint doesn’t wear nearly as well as the baked coating that comes standard on the door. We were thrilled with the look of the door with the roof color. We also were amazed at the quietness of the door itself. You can barely hear it going up or down!

I was a bit concerned about our choice of Revere Pewter, a Benjamin Moore color, for the interior. I searched and researched, and really wanted to try a warm gray. But after years of warm earth tones in our homes, moving to gray was a big shift. When I first walked in, I loved it, then I wasn’t sure, and then I loved it again. The color is like a chameleon, shifting and changing with the different kinds of light in the different rooms.

The subs all love it too, even the ones who say they don’t like gray. Gary told of us a house they did where everything was gray, and it looked so cold and clinical. Gary loves our gray and so do we. It is soft and warm and will look great when the wood floors are in.

Another little glitch happened when the vinyl we had chosen for the bathrooms and laundry room was suddenly discontinued.

The one on the left was discontinued. The new vinyl looks a little bit like our antique tiles on the right.

We spent some time at Lipperts, the flooring provider, and found something even better. The first choice was an almost white that would have been similar to the marble surfaces that are in the bathrooms, Instead, we found a diagonally placed stone pattern that includes grays, beiges, the blue-gray-green that is in our carpet, and the brown of the wood floor. It looks much like the tiles that we are installing in the entry way, and even though it won’t be nearby, it will carry the theme throughout. It will also be great for that main laundry room entry which I expect to catch most of the outside dirt.

Because the painter bid for only one trim color and only one interior body color, Mo and I decided to paint the upper interior of the tray ceiling ourselves. We chose a shade of warm gray that is just a bit darker than the walls. The separation of the two colors with the white crown molding will emphasize the architecture of the tray well.

Gary spent a lot of time with us this week, helping with decisions, working out the details of our custom closet packages, and helping with the final decision of the exterior accent color and which gables would be painted the deep brick color that we finally chose. When we return, we will see how it all comes together.

We chose the deep brick on the left rather than the clay color on the right for the accent

Gary says we are doing great, that we are making quick choices and the build is going well and is on schedule. Still, it is hard to not get impatient as we wait for each process to complete. Cupboards are in the works, but the templates for the granite can’t be made until the cupboards are actually installed. It is all so integrated, with each step forward required many steps completed prior to that next step. We are amazed and impressed at Gary’s ability to keep everything moving forward and on track. Lots of stories about private building contractors aren’t nearly so positive.

We are on schedule for a November 1 estimated completion date. Let’s hope that everything keeps moving forward as well as it has so far.

May 15 2017 Manifesting a Dream

Current Location: Grants Pass, Oregon. Mostly cloudy, damp, and 57 degrees F

A drive on the back roads along the Oregon Coast can yield some great views

Back a few decades, when I was a bit of a New Age thinker, I believed the mantra, “You Create Your Own Reality”. I still believe it, but in a bit of a different way than I did then. Still, there is nothing quite like watching an ephemeral dream materialize into something physical.

Staking out the house location on March 22

We are watching 5 years of dreaming and planning become real. It is an incredible process. Some weeks crawl by, and others fly past us with barely time to catch our breath. Last I wrote, we watched the little red cottage disappear into a pile of sticks, and now block by block, board by board, we are watching our new home grow from the ground up.

Footings poured and foundation set by April 22

Fill added for the garage floor base

We are here every other week, for 7 or 8 days, returning to Klamath Falls for my 5 day alternate work weeks. We are here enough of the time to see progress as the weeks pass. Life has been dominated by Grants Pass house thoughts, meetings with the builder, with the foreman, with the flooring people.

I have worked at gathering all our nursery storage into small groups of plants so that we can keep them watered while we are away. Many of the plants have been with me since I lived in Idaho before 2002, many others are from Mo’s property at Rocky Point. We brought what we could manage, hoping to keep our little nursery alive until time to plant at the new house next fall or spring.

We made the final choice on our interior paint, after a trip to Benjamin Moore in Medford (no Ben Moore store in Grants Pass). I succumbed to the gray trend, deciding on a warm gray color called Revere Pewter, guaranteed to reflect nicely on the interior walls without turning blue or green or pink, to feel warm rather than cool, and to set off the White Dove woodwork. I bought a small jar of test paint for a piece of drywall and now we haul that around, along with a few of our antique tiles, while spending a considerable amount of time with the salesperson at the local Lippert’s Flooring store. Hardwood has been selected. I love the style and color, but have to say that even more exciting to me is the silky feel of the slightly distressed solid oak wide plank flooring. I stand on the sample barefoot and imagine walking into the kitchen in the early morning sunshine on the velvety solid floor.

Mo and I spent some time this week cleaning her stash of Batchelder tile, deciding on the design for the tile area in the foyer. The tiles are from the 30’s, the height of the Craftsman era in Pasadena where they were fired, and we are excited to have places in the new home where we can use them.

All the little details that we have attended to are minor compared to watching the really big stuff happen. In mid-April, the major excavation began, and when we returned for our Grants Pass week on April 24, footings were poured, foundation blocks were set, and the footprint of the house was at last visible. By the end of the week, we could see just how high the floor would be above the ground on the western side of the house where the land drops in what seemed like a gentle slope until it was actually surveyed. The elevation of the living room will put our view above the neighbors house to the west, and give us enough height to see over the trees to the north to the mountains in the distance.

During that week as well, the septic system was hooked up and the RV dump station became operable. Very handy!

On the right, an image of the layout for the antique tiles on the foyer floor

By the time we returned on May 7 all the ditches for the utilities were filled in and the ground had been somewhat smoothed out and most of the dirt piles leveled.

We are going for a softer coastal palette in the new house, influenced a bit by Joanna Gaines I would imagine

On last Monday morning, as we were having our morning coffee around 6:30 AM, a row of pickups started lining up along the road next to the property.

We wondered who those guys were having coffee and shooting the breeze so early in the morning. Turns out it was the framing crew, getting ready to set the huge floor joists and begin getting the house ready for framing.

There were 6 of them, and according to Gary, this is his “A team” framing crew. I asked if he has a B or a C team, and he said yes, but it was worth waiting for the A team because they get things done so quickly and so well.

We watched those guys work together like a well oiled machine with every gear in synch all day long, and by 3 in the afternoon, the floor joists were all in and we could see even better how this house will look. Even though we have the MoHo, and we have a swing and chairs sitting outside, we didn’t want to bother the crew, so spent the day in the RV shed while they worked. It feels a bit strange to be at our home with all the people running around, so we lay low when they are here. The exciting time comes when the crew leaves and we get to walk around and check everything out.

Floor joists installed on May 8

There are days like that one, and then there are days when nothing happens at all. It is all about scheduling. Mo and I have been dealing with some serious hitch itch, without any MoHo travels away from home since we returned from California in January. I think that is the longest time we have spent without getting away.

If you arrive at noon on a Tuesday in May, you just might get a front row site with no reservation

This week we pulled in the slide, unplugged the rig, and headed west to Brookings for a much needed beach respite. We laughed a lot about the delight of not having to pack or unpack a single thing, a pleasure that full-timer’s know well. Just rolled down the road, landed at the park, and opened up the slide again. It was great to not have to worry about packing the right charging cords, the laptop, or food and clothes. Everything was already right here with us.

The beach cooperated with magically clear and sunny weather most of the time, even if it was a bit cool. We tried a new place down in Harbor, The Sporthaven Marina, for fish and chips. I had Baja fish tacos that were delightful, and we started our meal with fried zuchinni done in spears rather than slices. Yummy. The view of the harbor was wonderful, and the cool breeze was muted by the glass walls that protected the sunny patio. Curious, a little research on the internet showed that the lovely glass enclosed, sail covered patio where we had our great meal is a new addition to the restaurant, and a fine one for sure. Check it out the next time you are in the Brookings area.

Mattie loves to scout trails over the rocks for us

All three of us were so happy to be once again walking the beach, finding pretty rocks and enjoying the sand. Mattie loves to tear around in soft sand. She met a couple of doggie friends who actually let her play. Mattie can get a bit excited with new dogs, and even though she isn’t aggressive, she can be a bit of a pain until she settles down.

Mo built a nice campfire for us and we managed to sit outside for a time at least until the chill winds drove us indoors. What a great moon there was that night!

The next day we decided to do some exploring with the Tracker, traveling first on the road that parallels Highway 101 a couple of miles east and goes north from Brookings to Pistol River. It was a bit cool for the native rhododendrons to be in bloom, but some of the domestic plants on local homesteads were as big as trees and in full brilliant glory. Gorgeous.

We then took the road that follows the Pistol River, where most of the land is privately owned and access is limited. We drove on up the road, climbing higher into the mountains. The road was steep and narrow, and the river far below. Using the Gazetteer was helpful, but the road ended without warning with a very large no trespassing sign. The wildflowers were gorgeous in the big clear cuts, and if there is any place in the world that a clear cut is acceptable, it is the Oregon Coast range, where most of the timber has already been cut, there isn’t any old growth left, and it might as well be used for tree farming. Regeneration is natural and incredibly fast in this climate. It is also kind of nice to be able to see a bit.

A picnic in the sun sitting on the back of the Tracker was perfect, if still a bit chilly. Checking out the map, we decided to find another back road to explore, searching for Hunter Creek Road, just a couple of miles south of Gold Beach. I had to check in with the Forest Service office to be sure that we could actually drive the road. There were yellow “no trespassing” signs everywhere. The rangers assured me that it was a main forest access road and I could drive it, but the lands on either side of the road were privately owned by timber companies, and they didn’t want anyone trespassing. Again, no way to access Hunter Creek, and most importantly, they don’t want anyone picking their very valuable mushrooms.

This is what happens often when a state decides that it cannot manage its lands, and sells them to private interests. The lands are no longer accessible to the public, of course. It is no longer public land. Don’t get me started. States want all that federal land so they can sell it back and make money on it, and the people who eventually will own the land will shut it down, fence it, and post no trespassing signs everywhere. Keeping public land public is a particularly hot issue for me as an RVr, and a boondocker, a hiker and a lover of wild lands. OK off the soapbox.

A few miles up we found a high bridge with a gorgeous set of cliffs, waterfalls, and deep pools far below. A couple of young women and their big dog were enjoying the sunny weather. That dog smelled us way up on the bridge, and started coming our way. Scared the daylights out of me. I felt like I was being hunted by a wild animal. I got to the car quickly, as Mo talked him down. He barked, but thank goodness didn’t attack, and finally his owners called to him. I have no idea what kind of dog he was, but he was definitely scary looking! Bet those women don’t have any problems at all with people hassling them!

The day ended with another big campfire, a yummy dinner, and of course, marshmallows and chocolate. I don’t need graham crackers, just stuff little pieces of chocolate in the hot marshmallow and it gets all melty and gooey. Wish I could eat more than two! Mo doesn’t eat them at all, but we still have to buy a whole bag of marshmallows. Good thing they only cost a buck and a half, because by the time we do it again, they are all hard and dry and we have to buy more.

When we packed up and left on Thursday morning, the rain was coming in earnest, after a windy rainy night at the beach. It was perfect timing, with the drive home uneventful in spite of the rain.

It was important for us to get back on Thursday because it was “door and window day”. Gary wanted to finalize the window choices because they need to be ordered for the next phase of building. It is amazing how much scheduling is involved in this entire process, getting supplies and subcontractors set up in the right sequence. We spent a couple of hours in Gary’s office going over window and door choices and finalizing the order. Other subjects came up of course, aka how high above the bathtub should the window sill be; which direction should the tub face for the best view; when do we need to meet with the cabinet maker; what kind of rock for the Craftsman porch pillars, and so many more little details.

Once again, we awakened yesterday morning very early to a crew of guys unloading pipe for the under plumbing, the parts of the plumbing that are beneath the floor. The upper stuff will come later when the house is closer to being finished. This time a crew of 4 had all the plumbing, sewer pipes, hot and cold water pipes, all ready and finished by 2 PM. Once again Mo and I walked the property trying to see just where each toilet was placed, and trying to imagine how it was going to look. It is hard not to be impatient even when things are moving this quickly.

Under-plumbing finished on May 12

The rest of the day was quiet here, and after another meeting with the carpet people, Mo and I took off exploring the Rogue River, following some hints about where we might be able to put in our kayaks. About 7 miles from town is Whitehorse County Park, with a great boat launch into a wide part of the river. We were told it is only a 4 hour lazy kayak to Robertson Bridge, but that water looked like a bit too much for us this time of year at least. We will wait and check it out in the fall.

We drove on west to check out the park and launch at Robertson Bridge where the river looked big and wide and a bit less intimidating. Returning east along Riverbanks Road we checked out another lovely launch at Griffin Park, another county park with RV camping with hookups. Lots to check out when we get a bit of free time and when the high water of spring settles down into lower summertime flows.

This morning, at 7AM the heating and cooling truck showed up. What? Seems as though his job was to install the dryer vent, and he had that job finished in about an hour at the most. Mo and I did a few yard chores around home before taking another little break to attend the annual Rogue Valley Piecemaker’s Quilt Show at the fairgrounds. It was a lovely show, with about 150 quilts and I got to meet a few of the ladies that may eventually be cohorts if I decide to join the quilt guild here in Grants Pass.

We then took time to visit the Rogue Roasters, just south of downtown Grants Pass before the river bridge, for organic, fair trade, locally roasted coffee in a great old building that looked like it once was a tire shop. Best cappuccino I have had in a long time.

We brought the tractor back from the apartments this week, since snow plowing season is hopefully over. Mo is very happy to have her tractor back so she can work on smoothing out some of the messy piles of rock and debris scattered about.

Tomorrow is Mother’s Day. Two of my girls and their kids are coming from their homes to spend the morning with us having brunch at the Taprock Northwest Grill. We did this once before, three years ago, but at that time had no clue that the builder who built that great building was going to be the builder doing our house. I’m really looking forward to the day with my family enjoying a lovely meal overlooking the beautiful Rogue River.

Tomorrow afternoon we will once again return to Klamath Falls and the apartments on Old Fort Road. Our long weeks in Grants Pass are wonderful, except for the minor detail of laundry. We no longer have a washer and dryer here with the cottage gone, and with most of our work here being outdoors, by the end of the week we definitely have a pile of dirty stuff to haul home for washing.

When we return toward the end of May, it will be time for framing. Once again the A team will take over and we will watch the full form of our home take shape. Shortly after that will come the roof trusses, and then the bones of the house will be set.

02-03-2014 Home again, Gone again, and Shifting Weather

Current Location: The Cottage in Grants Pass, Oregon at 51 F and raining

For those who pay attention to this kind of thing, Mo and I have been off the road for two weeks after traveling in the SoCal area for a month. Our winter trips are usually longer than this last trip, but life is calling, things are shifting, decisions need to be made and once again, boxes packed. I wonder when we will ever be fully finished with moving.

Frost along Lakeshore Drive near Moore Park in Klamath Falls

Our 961 mile journey back to the apartments in Klamath Falls was accomplished without any major drama, in just 3 days, with an overnight at Orange Grove in Bakersfield, Flag City in Lodi, and a night at our very own Cottage in Grants Pass. In spite of the major storms crashing into the Pacific Northwest during that time, we somehow slipped into perfect weather windows between storms, and sailed over all the passes between our desert respite and home.

Trying to shoot into the light to capture those icy diamonds. Almost got it, but not quite

Most of the time, we chose to travel I-5 between Bakersfield and Lodi, but after that last extremely bumpy and very crowded trip south, we decided to take Route 99 from Bakersfield back north. When we left Bakersfield, on a quiet Monday morning, we had not a lick of traffic all the way north to Lodi. Most of the highway was resurfaced and smooth, albeit a bit narrow in places. Turned out to be a great choice. Checking google maps shows a difference of less than 10 miles between the two routes.

Once back in Klamath Falls, We had a day to unload, an evening to enjoy my grandson’s opening night of “Superman, the Musical”, a weekend to catch up on laundry and get things put away, and it was time for me to head to the office for a week of soil survey work. I have no idea where the days go. As soon as I signed off on Friday afternoon and turned in my timesheet, we started loading up for another drive to Grants Pass.

Mountain Lakes Wilderness and Harriman Peak on the far side of Klamath Lake

We knew we might be in for another storm over the mountains, but last Saturday morning when we left Klamath Falls we were treated to one of the delights of living in snow country. The skies were crystal clear, the snow covered hills were sparkling with diamond dust, and the hoarfrost coated every tree and shrub along our route beside Klamath Lake.

Of course, I had to stop and take photos. I knew from the weather forecasts that we were leaving behind the snow and ice and traveling west over the mountain into warmer but cloudy and foggy weather. I need light, I need sunshine, but I also need to be able to walk, and ice isn’t my favorite thing. I talked myself into being ready for the cold, wet fog that blankets the Rogue Valley during this time of year. I soaked up that sunshine, running around shooting photos and trying to somehow capture that diamond dust sparkle. I still have no idea how a photographer might do that.

From all that blue and crystal to this, but at least there isn’t snow on the ground in Grants Pass

During the week, we had a few more conversations with our builder and his foreman. Little details were ironed out, and at last a price was agreed upon. There was some touch and go for a bit, with Mo and I spending a few sleepless nights wondering if the project was going to actually happen, if we would have to start all over again from scratch, and how in the world that might look. Thankfully, that isn’t going to happen, and the build is now officially on the schedule.

Still chilly at 37 F, but that didn’t keep these two from working long hours every day

March 20th is the big day, when the bulldozer and loader will arrive to knock down the sweet little cottage. We still have quite a bit to do before that day, including Mo’s big project of getting the oldest part of her workshop down. The people who lived on this place since the early 60’s believed in salvage building, and just added and added more and more stuff to the existing buildings. Mo wanted the main part of the building, but not all those extra roofs and sheds and walls that were a crazy mess.

I wasn’t quick enough to catch the crash after they pulled the framing down with a rope

Mo did a lot of that demolition herself, with a bit a help from me, but I was incredibly grateful that her brother, Dan, once again offered to come and help with the hardest part, getting that roof off. Dan showed up on Sunday, and spent 3 days here helping, and the two of them managed to get it all undone. There was a bit of a scary moment, when Mo fell through the ladder, scraping up her legs and banging her chin, but thank goodness she was OK. We all know ladders are scary things. She knows better than to do ladder work with no one around, at least.

These two (Mo and Dan) are quite the team when they work together FYI, we have no idea how we are going to get the debris off the top of the MoHo shed behind the little shop. No ladder big enough around here

After Dan left, Mo and I spent a few more days hauling all the wood debris to the dump, and metal to the salvage yard. Thank goodness once again for trailers and a truck to haul them. In between rain storms, I even managed to get some of the fall leaves from the lower part of the acre raked into piles, ready to load into the trailers, once the debris was dumped.

I won’t say how old she is, but my oldest daughter Deborah was born in 1963

The weekend was also a time for me to catch up with my daughter Deborah, who had a birthday last week while I was working in Klamath. Deb came over to the cottage and we spent the afternoon shopping for crafts, visiting, drinking coffee and talking some more before we picked up her son Matthew to join us for a birthday dinner at the Horny Goat. Daughter Deb and Grandson Matthew

The food was fun, rather crazy pub food, with lots of creativity. I couldn’t make up the sandwich the kids had, with some kind of mile high French toast smothered with cheese and ham, and drowned in maple syrup that was filled with bacon and serrano chilies. My Dragon Breath chicken was a bit more traditional, but incredibly tasty and also nice and spicy.

During our first few days here at the cottage, the skies were cold, foggy, and gray. The forecast called for 50 degree temperatures, but with the foggy inversion, the temps never got above 37. I was very happy to be working inside the cottage, packing up the few things we have used here during the last four years.

Then one afternoon, the skies opened up, and the sun burst forth in all her glory. January was miserable, and on February 1st, it was like a huge shift. The colors brightened, the grass seemed greener, and the 50 degree temperatures felt like tee shirt weather, at least for a couple of hours.

That night it poured all night, and the morning dawned rainy and drizzly again, but the foggy inversion was gone. I think those inversions are my least favorite kind of weather, but I keep reminding myself that it may be foggy, but I can walk without crashing on some icy walkway. At home at the apartments I can’t even manage to get across the road to the mailbox!

The skies can change in minutes from sunshine to rain this time of year

In between packing, raking and hauling, I have enjoyed some quiet moments reading my favorite blogs. Erin is on a Round the World Tour, and it is a kick reading about her adventures without having to endure the wild seas of the Pacific Ocean. It also has been great reading all about Nicki’s trip to Australia and New Zealand without having to get on 13 different flights. Armchair travel leaves a lot to be desired, but on cold foggy days, it is pretty darn nice.

A mystery: why haven’t the roses that I moved to Grants Pass from Klamath Falls not lost their leaves?

The primroses I moved from Rocky Point think it must be spring already

Our life is very focused right now. I am working alternate weeks, and will be at the apartments while working. We will spend the alternate weeks at the cottage, finalizing the clearing out of the cottage, taking what we can salvage before the demolition, and making sure all is ready to go. So it will be a week at home, working soil survey, and a week at the cottage, working at whatever. At least for the next few weeks. After that….and on forward, it will be a week at home working and a week at the property, minus the Cottage, and staying in the MoHo, making sure the house build is progressing as planned!

If the daffodils are emerging, it must be spring, right?!

The MoHo will have to come out of her home in the big RV shed for a time, while we store all our “stuff” inside during the building process. I am going to miss our cozy little cottage getaway, but it is all for a good purpose, and eventually our new home on a similar but larger footprint should still have some of that cozy cottage energy that we have enjoyed so much for the last 4 years.

A Treat in Grants Pass, Cathedral Hills and a Skunk

Current Location: Rocky Point Oregon, 34 degrees F with a 50 percent chance of snow

The cottage in Grants Pass is a great stopover spot when we are returning from our coast travels. Daughter Deborah is living there now, so we camp in the MoHo when we are there. During the winter months we pull the MoHo inside the big RV shed for protection, and sometimes we decide to camp inside as well when we are there.

day at the cottage Reminds me of those RV storage shed campsites that were developed in North Dakota for the oil workers. Although the shed has all around windows at the top, the interior is rather dim. Wouldn’t want to live there indefinitely, but it is great protection from weather and falling tree limbs in a windstorm. Yes, we do have some very large, very old white oak trees on the cottage property.

There are always chores associated with staying at the cottage. Mo is still working on the bathroom drywall and taping project after we put in a new bathtub, and now there is finally a shower as well. Deb is quite happy with that project since she has had to settle for baths in the morning before work until now when she can jump in for a quick shower.

This time of year there is always leaf burning, and leaf raking, but Deb has kept on top of most of the raking, so Mo had a big pile to burn this time. Of course, inversions are common in the Rogue Valley of Grants Pass, and Josephine County is judicious about allowing burn days. The first day was a no burn day, but on the second misty rainy morning the 6am phone call yielded good results. OK to burn!

day at the cottage Funny thing, though, those big sloppy leaves didn’t want to burn, in spite of the big tarp that was protecting the pile. Mo burned most of the day and only managed about 1/3 of the pile. I raked a bit, and then retreated to the cozy house to finish the binding on some kids quilts I have been making for Christmas. kid quilts (2 of 7)

The house was cozy because we finally managed to get the new gas stove heater installed and running. When the Avista guy came last month to light the pilot, he refused to approve the old stove, which had seen better days. It heated great all last winter, but was no longer safe. Time for a new stove.

That whole process was a bit of a kerfuffle, because no one in several towns had any gas stoves in stock. After much research, we finally found a great little Williams stove with a bit of a fire view for several hundred dollars less than anything we could find in town. The town shops said they could special order something, but even so the big delay was finding someone to do the installation.

Total Home Supply on the internet provided excellent service, with free shipping, and we had the stove at our door within two days. It took another month to get the installation completed, but now the cottage is again warm and cozy, and safe! Deborah hung in there as the month got colder, staying in front of her little electric heater most of the time. Now she has heat AND a shower. All that is needed is some kind of way to figure out the crazy electrical problems.

Remember, this little cottage wasn’t really something that we needed. Our only wish was for a place to store the MoHo. When Mo was trying to trouble shoot the electrical situation in a house built in 1926, she shook her head and wondered whether it was worth it or not. Someday we will get it all figured out, and it is still great to have a warmer climate for storing the MoHo in the winter. No winterizing, and we can head north or south without worrying about deep snows in the Klamath Basin. That was the plan.

The cottage is in a rural neighborhood, with rather narrow roads and deep ditches on either side of the pavement. The amount of passing traffic is a bit surprising, but I thought I would have enough room and warning to manage it for walking. What I didn’t expect was the number of big dogs, although why I wouldn’t expect that in a rural Oregon neighborhood, I have no idea. Big barking dogs, even behind fences, scare me. Adding to that fear is the sight of a big barking dog that has managed to get outside his fence. I have to remember to get some pepper spray.

After one day of walking Summit Loop for a few miles, I decided I needed another alternative for my walking project when we are at the cottage. Enter Cathedral Hills County Park.

Just a mile west of the cottage lies the hidden treasure of 400 acres of BLM protected wild land with more than 12 miles of trails for hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding. Douglas-fir and ponderosa pine dominate the forested portions of the park, with madrone, manzanita, and yes, poison oak on the warmer southern slopes.

I drove to the Walker trail head, with a small parking lot for just a few cars and found it completely empty. I also found a nice notification of a black bear seen in the area just a few days prior to my visit. I wasn’t concerned, however, black bears usually stay well hidden and run when approached. I was worried that there might be loose dogs or crazy people wandering about, but turned out I had the entire trail to myself.

It was a great hike, accompanied by a large flock of turkeys, I walked up the steep eastern flank of the hills toward the ridge, enjoying the switchbacks. Unlike Humbug Mountain, these switchbacks actually have level areas in addition to the steeper parts. Good knee resting sections for the trip back down!

I was appreciative of the trail signs, and once on the ridge hiked south to get some amazing views of the Applegate Valley and the coast range mountains to the southwest. It is easy to forget just how mountainous this part of Oregon is when driving around in lower parts of the Rogue Valley and Grants Pass.

The cottage in on the terrace mid photo toward the east

I had the iPhone tracking my route, and as I continued on the ridge trail, was having a big of difficulty figuring out how that route fit with what I was seeing on the trail. Turns out I was completely turned around in my head, and thought I was looking west toward the valley, and instead, with closer inspection realized that I was looking directly at the terrace below where the cottage was barely visible toward the east. Sheesh. I don’t think you could actually get lost in the hills, but you can definitely get turned around and end up somewhere you might not want to be.

I am so happy that there is this amazing resource for me to explore so close to home. I only walked a few miles, and later, looking at the park map, realized just how much there is left to discover through the seasons at this hidden gem.

Our last adventure at the cottage was a bit less fun, but no less exciting. Deb had been hearing activity under the house, and there was a large excavated hole indicating that some creature really liked living there. She bought a trap and set it, with no results. However, a bigger trap did the trick, and when Mo and I got up on our last morning, we saw the cute little black and white visitor curled up in the back of the trap, watching us with her twinkling eyes.

Skunks are really cute critters. Really. Deb had to go to work, and couldn’t wait around to deal with it. Oh dear. Too Bad. Mo and I said not to worry, we would handle it. We not only had the pickup, but had the trailer with us for hauling the lawn mower, so figured the skunk could be relocated without much damage.

Mo threw a blue tarp over her, but she didn’t spray until Mo actually picked up the trap and put it in the far back part of the trailer, covering the tarp with the wheel chocks so the tarp wouldn’t blow away as we drove down the highway. Critter control had told Deborah that at least 20 miles away was required for release to keep the animals from returning.

We settled for about 15 miles, where we found a nice area near the Merlin dump, with no houses around, lots of brush and a ravine with a small stream. Ms Skunk should have been delighted to jump out of her cage. Instead she hung back, and when Mo upended the trap, she managed to stick to the back of the cage and refused to come out! Finally with a bit of pushing and shaking and some more spraying (did you know a skunk can spray straight up?!), she fell out of the trap and ambled off into the brush.

Mission accomplished. I do hope she doesn’t try to find her way home. So far there has been no activity under the house, but we saved the stinky blue tarp just in case, and will know what to do next time. Even though Mo didn’t get sprayed directly, we had skunk smell everywhere, especially on her shoes and clothes and in the truck and in the baby car. That smell is just amazing. I found out that hydrogen peroxide and baking soda works better than tomato juice, but in the absence of a quart of peroxide around the house, I learned that ammonia works almost as well.

Mo’s shoes are still on the porch here at home airing out, and the truck still smells faintly skunky. Ah well…at least we didn’t get hit directly and Deb’s cats didn’t get sprayed either. Life can be fun if you let it.

Christmas soon and then we are outta here!

Rocky Point Oregon high today was 36 and some of the snow is melting

In the midst of doing all the Christmasy things, I am packing for three months on the road. I am feeling just a little bit schizo, since my two deep desires are warring with each other. I want to do Christmas up well, but on the other hand, with our departure day looming so close, I am ready to get rolling, to leave the everydayness behind. I actually dreamed about eating juicy sweet oranges from the Orange Grove RV Park in Bakersfield and I could taste them as if it were real.

I also dreamed about being in turquoise water swimming and watching turtles floating beneath me. Must be sunlight deprived I guess, and ready for some light and some warmth. Christmas lights are great, and at this time of year I have a LOT of lights on all the time everywhere, but nothing beats the real thing.

Still, in the mean time, I have been doing the traditions. I once again did a table for the annual Rocky Point Ladies Luncheon and enjoyed the wine and good food and laughter with local friends. The local men cook and serve and pour wine and the ladies eat and enjoy. It is a sweet community tradition, and though we don’t even have a post office out here in Rocky Point, we do have a great community. See Deb there in the middle of the group photo? It was a real treat to have her living close enough to join us at the luncheon.

Our only real snowfall this season was early in the month so Mo and I haven’t had to spend a lot of time plowing and shoveling. Instead, I have been tied to the sewing machine, and actually managed to get Deanna’s quilt bound and shipped, and finished some Christmas presents for my other daughters.

Mo and I traveled over to Grants Pass a couple of times, just a bit nervous about the 6 degree temperatures that Deb reported to us, but the MoHo was just fine with the small heater we left running. Deb didn’t have cold water in the cottage kitchen for a few days, but those kinds of temperatures are almost unheard of in Grants Pass, so hopefully that won’t be happening again very soon. The MoHo shed is big and built well, but still, without any heat, it is amazing how warm it stays inside.

With each trip we take a bit of “stuff” over for the big trip. The bikes and kayaks are there, and our single cruise suitcase that will have to be hauled around in the Tracker until we reach New Orleans. I keep wishing I could pick Erin’s brain about how they packed for their three months of travel in all sorts of conditions, but I guess that will have to wait till I am in Port Aransas and actually visiting with her in person. It feels a bit like being a full timer, but in a much smaller rig. I really don’t need three months of clothes. Mo reminds me that of course there will be laundry facilities along the way. I am laughing at myself here a lot, at how silly it is to try to pack for three months. People pack for a lifetime of full-timing with much less angst, I am sure. Hard to believe that Mo and I fit a week’s worth of cruising stuff in one suitcase….minus the snorkels however, they are in a mesh bag tied to the suitcase. No airplanes to restrict us this time.

We drove over the mountain to the cottage again last Saturday to spend an afternoon attending to travel preparations and details and to spend some time with Daughter Deb. Grants Pass is such a lovely small town, and it actually has a really cute “downtown”. I am glad that we settled on property there rather than over in Brookings where we looked originally. Brookings has the ocean, but it doesn’t have any kind of real downtown. Deb treated Mo and I to dinner at a well known established restaurant, overlooking the Rogue River, called Rivers Edge. It was a lovely experience in a lovely place and we all had a great time. After dinner we went downtown to view the charming musical lighted panels that line the streets. They are a different take on town Christmas lights and are so much fun.

The weather cooperated with no rain and temperatures in the low 30’s rather than single digits. Nice for walking, but also nice to have the car close by to warm up. We then went down to the park to check out more lights and then home to the cozy MoHo.

Jeremy was in full old-cat-mode and we got a taste of how this next three months will be a bit challenging. Fun, but challenging. I wouldn’t have it any other way. I can’t imagine how I thought I could leave him behind. Although at 4am when he gets all talkative and needy I wonder at my sanity. Anyone who thinks cats are independent hasn’t lived with a cat for 17 years. Old cats are needy, needy, needy!

Tomorrow Deb will be here for Christmas Eve cooking time together, and on Christmas Day Melody and the kids will show up early enough in the morning to have our traditional eggs benedict Christmas breakfast. I am planning on a classic pork roast, bone in, with a sweet salty crusty rub. I love my Cooks Illustrated magazine recipes. Something as simple as a pork roast has a four page fine print article on the science and chemistry of making a truly tender, tasty roast. I did it once before so I know it works! Downtown Grants Pass at Christmas

On Thursday morning I will start putting away the Christmas decorations and packing up the last of the clothes and food for our trip. Back up the computer, back up quicken, make sure we have ALL the cords and chargers for all the electronics, the batteries and chargers and cases for the cameras, so much stuff to remember! Sheesh! I did remember recently that I will not be in the wilderness for the entire three months. I can buy something if I forget it, right? Still….I am making way too many lists and then trying to remember where I put them. I think that is why I am so ready to be gone. Once we leave, all the details slip into place and a sort of peace settles in.

I can’t wait.