Back in Newport

OK...I will admit, we absolutely love Newport, Oregon.  Beautiful beaches, exquisite eateries, fun shops, and a friendly atmosphere throughout.  It is also just 1 hour from our house making it a perfect quick weekend getaway, thanks to our friends Barb & Linda.  The other motivator this weekend is our good friend Michelle is playing Julia Child in a play at Pacific Shores where Julia Child meets Paula Deen.  Not only is this ripe for disturbing content, but Michelle takes Julia to a WHOLE new level with wine drinking, BON appetite, and her rendition of stuffing a turkey....you can imagine where that goes.  We have met a great group of owners that live over here and absolutely love coming over to say hi, catch up, and enjoy the relaxed atmosphere and fun spirit here, particularly in the summer months when the place is packed.  Most of all, we love relaxing on the deck, plowing through some chapters in a good book and just enjoy the sunshine once the fog burns off in the morning.  I hope everyone is having a great weekend...life is good!

Upgrading Dash Stereo

Although we love our 9 year old coach, we were not in love with the technology of 2004 versus today.  Our in-dash receiver (connected to our 10-disk CD changer) is just too old-school for us and we couldn't take it any longer.  We both wanted to be able to stream music (via Bluetooth) through our phones, and I was specifically looking for bluetooth so I could talk hands free as well.  Unfortunately, neither one of us possesses what I would call intuitive electronic abilities.  Yes, we can hook up a receiver and deal with a wireless router, but as soon a there are more than 6 colors of wires our heads start to spin, our faces get more and more clinched, and our language starts approaching what you would find in a truck stop brawl.  Needless to say, we had reached the point where we were willing to even take that risk to move ourselves to new technology in the coach.

Out with the Old Kenwood

We took the information on our old Kenwood received model to a local stereo store and explained our situation.  As soon as the conversation moved towards the words "wiring harness" and involved the requisite 'more than 6 colors' we knew we were screwed.  A task analogous to making toast for this shop installer was enough to raise our level of anxiety to one that was painfully obvious.  Thankfully, this shop installer saw the grimaces on our faces and pointed us to another Kenwood product that he said "may just fit" into the same bracket and wiring harness as the last one....if we were lucky.  If we were not lucky, it would mean a trip to the installation bay and 2-3 hours labor at a minimum....something we were hoping to avoid.

Our new in-dash receiver

Our new found friend connected us with the Kenwood KDC-X597 receiver which includes a USB input, bluetooth audio as well as bluetooth phone connectivity.  He said to "give it a try" with a friendly grin....one we didn't know how to interpret as "I just saved your ass" or "good luck...I will see you in the morning suckers".  It was 5 p.m. and we thought....let's give it a try!  We knew this was either one of the worst decisions of our lives, or one that would build our self-esteem to unprecedented levels.  We got to the rig, scanned the manual and then proceeded to remove the old receiver with the removal tongs that the old owner faithfully left for us.  Upon removal we found 3 inputs (wiring harness, antenna, and disk changer connector).  We unplugged all three and proceeded to see if the new receiver would fit in the bracket.  Surprise!  Not only did it fit in the bracket, but the wiring harness snapped in and brought the unit to life immediately!  It appears the friendly grin from our salesperson was one of....OK....I am going to save you guys from some serious misery.  Clearly he knew this install would be a piece of cake and was taking pity on us by steering us to the same brand.

Installed and fully operational!

The final step was to attach the bluetooth microphone, which fit perfectly under the dash and clipped right below our backup camera screen.  The bluetooth works like a charm, both with audio streaming AND via the phone.  We discovered an added bonus....as long as we are in cell coverage....no need to use radios when parking the coach as I can be on the bluetooth with hands free while Paul can direct and be on his cell phone as needed.  Awesome!

Microphone placement

LESSON:  If you are looking to replace your old dash receiver with a new one, use an expert, and stick with same brand, as you may end up, like us, with a wiring harness that simply plugs in and boom...done.  If you have a Monaco with the same old Kenwood CD-changer receiver, I would highly recommend the brand we chose....works like a charm and a piece of cake to install!

Winchester Bay - Oregon

Best laid plans right?  So our week exploring Southern Oregon has now turned into our week on the Oregon Coast thanks to a heat wave that hit the valley this week.  We decided that 4 more days with near 100 temps might just be our sign to head west.  Don't get me wrong, I of all people LOVE the heat, and if we were near a pool I would be all over it...but we aren't.  Luck dropped us at Winchester Bay in what may be one of the best sites at the campground overlooking the marina with a HUGE private grassy area just outside our door.

View out of our front window

Looking out the left side of the window

 There are three main camping areas here at Winchester Bay. (1) Dry camping on the marina $14, (2) Overnight camping with full hookups at Windy Cove A or Windy Cove B for $23, and (3) Larger sites at the Winchester Bay RV Resort with all amenities including cable and the best views of the Bay and ocean inlet for $42 a night.  The marina dry camping sites are on a first come basis, but all have nice marina views and could be a very good option for a couple of nights.  The Windy Cove campground is well...just not our type of place...full of ATV riders, flooded with kids, fires burning everywhere, and loads of random crap piled on everyone's lot.  Of course, if you are into that scene every seat has a......  Winchester Bay is a major recreational gateway to the sand dunes as well as a fishing and crabbing community.  Tourism clearly represents a large portion of the economy.  This is one of our favorite parks on the coast for just relaxing and enjoying the scenery.  We will be here for two nights and then will be heading north towards Pacific Shores in Newport where we will be spending the 4th with friends and enjoying the cooler, but still sunny weather.

View from our site #109 - nobody to the right

Another ocean view lot

Windy Cove Campground B - Popular ATV spot

View of bay from end of dry camping area

Dry Camping Area - Great views!

Ocean facing lot at Winchester Bay RV Resort

Dry Camping spot facing marina

View from Ocean facing lot

Emigrant Lake - Ashland, Oregon

In celebration of the end of the academic year and the 4th of July, Paul and I are taking the week for more Oregon exploration...first stop...Emigrant Lake County Park in Ashland, Oregon.

We absolutely love the arid, picturesque beauty of Southern Oregon...and of all of the cities in the region Ashland is by far our favorite.  It is a hotspot for people watching, gourmet dining, unique shops, and abundant outdoor exploration, as well as the home of two very good friends Carl and Annette.

The choices in campground right near Ashland are pretty limited, but we certainly did not sacrifice at The Point RV park located at Emigrant Lake, a park with over 1400 acres and 12 miles of lakefront.  A hotspot for fishing, water activities, and escaping the heat, Emigrant Lake is popular for residents of Ashland and Medford, particularly when the weather is in the high 90's like we are experiencing!  The Point has 32 RV sites and there is a nearby tenting location that has 42 sites.  There is an upper level and a lower level to the campground.  The lower level has several sites with perfect views of the lake...#19 and #21 being the highly coveted.  The upper level sites all have tremendous views of the lake, mountains, and the valley.  Site reservations are essential here in the Summer, particularly if you want one of the prime spots.  We reserved #29 which had a sweeping lake view from our living/dining room.  Each of the sites has a fire pit and picnic table along with full hookups.  The shower rooms are private and locking and the restrooms were very clean, although with limited sink and counter space.

There is no shade at the campground, so plan accordingly.  We are happy our 2 A/C units are pumping out enough to keep us comfortable, but have watched several campers without A/C scoot out early.  The rates are $30 a night and in our opinion, for the views, well worth it.  Check it out....

Restrooms

View from Upper Level Sites

One of the coveted sites #19 - teasing us

Cluster on the Point - #21 pull through at end

View from our picnic table

Our site #29 on Upper Level

View of campground from Emigrant Lake Park

Gambling Escape

Busy schedules have left us with one night to get away this weekend...which is ALWAYS better than no nights, but definitely does limit the options.  We have been craving breakfast at Spirit Mountain Casino for a few weeks now, so decided to pack it up and make that our overnight for this weekend.  There is no official RV park attached to this casino, but there is a large lot where dry camping is allowed and if you time it right you can get one of the 3 spaces facing the wetlands next door.  Lady luck must be traveling with us as were able to snag the best spot in the lot...literally 5 minutes before a herd of Class A's came into the lot.  Could this mean that those loose slots are ready to fill out pockets? We'll see...

Of course parking here is free, but if our normal gambling luck holds true, this night will probably cost us much more than even a fancy RV park....but who knows...right?  If our next post contains the words "new coach" you will know the answer.

Our coveted "view" space

The 3 "view" dry camping spots

Our view on the living side

Back to the Oregon Coast

We have not fallen off the face of the earth, been kidnapped by pirates, or anything of the like.  I have been trudging through the final months and weeks of a doctoral dissertation and just have not had the energy to update the blog.  Now that I am on the tail end of THAT project, blogging AND weekend travel updates will return!

This weekend, thanks to our generous friends Barb and Linda, we are back on the Oregon coast at Pacific Shores in Newport.  The HOA is clearly getting the place ready for the summer season with the landscaping crew working at full speed.  The weather on Friday was rainy and stormy, but today brought bright sunshine and a visit from friends in the valley....Margaret and Melissa.  We took a quick beach walk and sat around enjoying the afternoon sunshine and spring weather.  It is this type of weather that gives us Oregonians hope for summer!

Melissa, Margaret and Paul

Favorite new route from I-5 to Palm Springs, CA

In our quest to find the most pleasurable way to make it from I-5 South to Palm Springs we happened upon a route we had never tried before that has now now hit our "favorite" list.  Our friend Garmin always wants to take us through the grapevine and over on the 210/10 combo.  Not only is the traffic unpredictable, but the road quality is marginal as well...certainly not relaxing in any way.  Last trip we tried Hwy 58 East, connecting to the 395 south and then the 215 down to the 10.  The traffic was better than I-5 but the 395 was a bit of a two-lane nightmare with impatient truckers, RV's, and cars all trying to pass each other.  The road quality was also just as bad if not worse than the 10.  This time we took Hwy 58 East all the way to Barstow where we connected to the 247 South and then to the 62 South.  Other than the 58 it was primarily 2-lane roads with very little traffic.  Best of all it only took 20 minutes longer than the route our friend Garmin loves.  The only hair on your knuckles portion is an 8% grade right before connecting to the 62...nothing a strong foot and exhaust or compression brake can't handle and certainly beats the downhill drama of the 215.