Oregon for Christmas and New Year's !

Arizona to Oregon then to the California coast 2018/2019

We celebrated Christmas and New Year's with a road trip to family in Oregon. We took the 'back way' route through Nevada from AZ to Oregon and then returned by coming down the northern California coast.  Highlighted below are just some of  the special moments and beautiful scenery we enjoyed.

Tonopah, NV, 'halfway point' - We stayed in the Mizpah Hotel. It was selected as the #1 Haunted Hotel by USA Today Reader's Choice Award in 2018. So we couldn't pass up an opportunity to experience this first hand.  This Hotel is beautifully restored to the grandeur of the 1907 era when it was built. 

Mizpah Hotel

The small town of Tonopah, NV with the Mizpah Hotel taking over the skyline.

Our room was Room # 514 the George Nixon Room. George Nixon was a Nevada State Senator and investor in the construction of the Mizpah.  The 5th floor is supposedly the most haunted floor of the hotel according to staff and writings in the comment book located in the lobby.  It was very comfortable and had a view of the north part of town and surrounding mountains. 

Room 514

We are sad to report that we had a quiet and comfortable nights sleep.  No sightings or strange sounds of the paranormal.  More history and information about this hotel can be read at www.themizpahhotel.com. 

We made it to Oregon where we had a great time with family celebrating the holiday season. Their house was beautifully decorated and the weather was cold and felt a lot like Christmas for us 'Zonies'.

 Great view from our bedroom window!

 

One of about 7 Christmas trees in the house. Beautiful !

Tiny figurines on the Village tree. Amazing.

We enjoyed a couple of day-outings for beautiful scenery and history around Southern Oregon. 



One of many hiking trails along Lost Creek Lake at the Stewart State Park.
 

What is this stuff growing all over the trees. We don't have this in AZ.

Historic McKee Bridge. The 4th oldest covered bridge in Oregon built in 1917.

 

What trip is complete without touring around in an old Jeep.

 

1965 FC150 Jeep truck.

 



After celebrating New Year's, we decided to head back to AZ via the California coastal roads.  We travelled south along Highway 101 and Highway 1 most of the way until Bodega Bay where we cut across to the Fairfield area for more family visits and Reno to visit a store we had never been to.

Started the coastal adventure at Crescent City, CA.  Beautiful sunny day at the coast.  It was a welcomed change since it had been mostly cloudy or rainy in Oregon for the holidays.

If you look closely you can spot the Saint George Lighthouse near Crescent City, CA

We slowly made our way hugging the shoreline towards Eureka and then ventured inland through the Avenue of the Giants Ancient Redwoods. Dotted along this route were massive Redwood trees, beautiful ferns and historic town sites from the of days of logging and pioneer hardships to save the giant redwoods.

Sea Lion gathering to sun on the beach.

Just one of many beautiful beaches.

Walking through the dense forest there was so much moss and so many ferns. 
A nice change from desert cactus

I think we could have driven through this tree. It's huge!

This beautiful Redwood had been burnt out in the middle but continues to live.

Dyerville Giant fell in 1991. This massive Redwood is 17 feet in diameter, 52 feet in circumference, stood 370 feet ( 200 feet taller than Niagara Falls) and probably weighs over 1,000,000 pounds. 
Do you think you could hear this tree when it fell?

Big, beautiful and gnarly.

After touring the Redwoods we once again made our way back to the coast along Highway 1 to Westport, Fort Bragg and numerous beautiful beaches.

Westport, CA coastline. The waves were very active and made loud booming sounds as it crashed on the rocks.

 

Westport, CA. This town is a cute, quiet town that deserves another visit.

Point Cabrillo Light Station State Historic Park near Mendocino, CA. The lighthouse is a rehabilitated 1909 structure and the grounds include 11 other structures, including the lightkeepers' homes which now are available for overnight stays.





Goat Rock Beach in Sonoma State Park near Jenner, CA

After a great dinner outing with family, we headed east out of the bay area to our last notable stop on our road trip, Reno, NV, to a huge sporting goods store called Scheels.  Scheels began as a hardware and general merchandise store in Sabin, Minnesota in 1902. Frederick A. Scheel, a German immigrant used the $300 he earned from his first harvest of potatoes as the down payment on the first Scheels, which was a hardware store. Scheels started adding a small selection of sporting goods to its stores in 1954 and it has grown into one the largest stores for all the sporting good needs.  I must say that they had great customer service and a wide range of every kind of sports from hunting and fishing to athletic team and outdoor sports.  The building was so large it housed a Ferris wheel, arched fish tanks, plane replica, big tire Jeep and a number of animated U.S President displays talking  about history during their time as President. It was a fun stop and we are glad we did it.

We are now back home in Arizona until our next adventure which might be in our own home state. We'll keep you posted.  Thanks for coming along with us on our road trip.

Happy Travels !