Boiler fitted and working

At 4 PM the British Gas fitter (Chris) left the house having completed all the work for the new boiler. The system has been fully flushed and bled. The expansion tank had very dirty water in it. The radiators all (except one) have thermostat valves and the new flue and condensation pipes are fitted and plastered in. I now have taps to drain the system (inside front door and by boiler) and also a tap on the pipe leading to the expansion tank.
There was just one problem. The electrician could not find the cable that controlled the room thermostat so could not wire this in to the new controller. To get around this a wireless controller will be fitted, but owing to the the bank holidays and Christmas break he could not get hold of one this year. It should be a quick visit in the new year to replace the old thermostat and fit the controller to the hot water tank.
All in all very pleased with the job. It was well done and resolved some underlying issues (rounded off bleed taps, corrosive water and missing drain taps) with the system. It is already noticeable that the radiators are warmer.

New Baxi boiler being fitted.

Wednesday 29th December 2010

As I type British Gas are fitting a new Baxi central heating boiler. The old boiler (also a Baxi) is working OK but with the VAT increase (17.5 to 20%) about to take effect and the low efficiency of the boiler I thought it would be worthwhile changing.

The new boiler and parts were delivered at 7:15 this morning and the two engineers (father and son, Chris and Russ) arrived at 8 A.M.

I am having thermostat valves on 8 of the 9 radiators and the whole system is being Powerflushed.

As the installation is going several bits have been found that need sorting.

• The front bedroom radiator bleed valve was rounded off but fortunately a new fitting was easily put in
• The pump was corroded, as were a lot of the brass fittings around the system.
• The (corrosive) water in the system is very black so highlights the need for a good clean out.

On the initial plan the planner thought a new hole would be needed for the boiler flue but with the boiler being a bit lower in the cupboard the same hole can be used. Once the job is finished if there is no building work then  that amount can be taken off the bill.

Ashford Camera Club - Annual Projected Image Competiton.

The annual projected image competition was held on Tuesday, 23rd November.
The categories were

• Nature
• Portrait
• General

I submitted two entries. Bluebell Swirl, taken in Stroude last spring and Sun in Trees, taken in Bala with JLPPC last year. I should have put my Bluebell picture into the general category as the nature category does not allow any manipulation if even this is done by camera movement. It should be a true representation of what was seen. Oh well I know for next time. The picture was scored however and got an 8.

The judge really liked my Sun in Trees picture and gave it a 10,  yay!

Ashford Camera Club – Annual Print Competition

Tuesday, 16th November saw me make my first entries in a print competition at the ACC annual print competition. Having only just joined the club I have missed the quarterly competitions but the format is much the same. Prints can be entered in the following categories:

• Nature
• Portrait – monochrome
• Portrait – colour
• General – monochrome
• General – colour

I put forward my picture of cottages at Cuckmere Haven from Saturday’s annual show and a print of a pigeon in shallow water taken in Nottingham a few years ago.
The independent judge took a quick preview of the pictures then went through each one, displayed in a lightbox, and gave her comments and a score for each. The maximum score was 10 and a few pictures did achieve this.
My picture of cottages only scored 7.5 owing to a lack of recession into the distance over the cliffs and too much foreground in front of the cottages.

The pigeon however did grab the judges attention owning to the reflections and unusual setting. This was awarded 9.5 and so will go forward in the club’s entries for a Surrey Photographic clubs  Association  competition in the new year.

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Ashford Camera Club – Annual Exhibition 2010

The annual exhibition of the camera club took place in the St. Matthew’s Hall in Ashford. I arrived just after 9 A.M. to find a good number of members already in the hall putting up their photos. There was a wide range of subjects from portraits to landscapes and lots in between. There were some prints for sale and I noticed a few of these had scores from previous competitions so it was useful to see some that had scored highly and to try and work out why. I had named five pictures to go up so the name labels were ready and waiting.  These were either pinned or attached using Velcro tabs to the display boards.
The pictures were:

• Jackdaw
• Swans in Black & White
• Sheepdog
• Cottages at Cuckmere Haven
• Birdman

The show opened at 10:30 but there were few visitors in the first couple of hours but around midday a few groups of twos and threes arrived. The hall is off the beaten track so despite the plentiful banners and boards in the high street it is not somewhere passersby will stumble across.
I had to leave at 12:30 to get to Croydon so will find out on Tuesday (next club night) how the exhibition went in the afternoon. It was due to close at 4 P.M.
The morning was a good opportunity to meet and chat to other members of the club and see their work. It is always beneficial to do this to learn and get ideas to try different things with photographs.
The next club night is for the annual print competition so I’ll need to sort out a print or two for that and prepare a digital image (one to display on a projector) for the following week.

Technorati Tags: ACC,Exhibition,prints,Ashford,Photography

Yay Waxwings over Bracknell

After hearing about the abundance of Wawings this autumn I headed up to a spot, near to the office, where I have seen these beautiful birds in previous years. The reports on the Berkshire Birds web site (http://www.berksbirds.co.uk) confirmed that there were birds present this week. The conditions were perfect with a bright sunny autumn day and few clouds. I had the car with me at work so drove the ten minutes or so to World's End Hill near the B3430. On arriving I saw an encouraging site as there were two people with binoculars and a telescope peering into the nearby trees. They had spotted 4 Waxwings high in the birch tree, Apparently the birds flew down to the nearby rowan tree when anyone went past and my arrival had the desired effect as right on cue they flew down and started to eat the berries. Unfortunately, I only had my Canon compact so not nearly enough reach to take any worthwhile pictures, However, the view in the binoculars was text book. Great views of the birds,  side on in full sunshine, eating berries with the deep blue autumn sky beyond.

A great sight for any lunchtime!

RSPB Dungeness

A little over a month after visiting Dungeness Spit in Washington State, USA I made my way to (the original) Dungeness in Kent to visit the RSPB reserve there. The aim was much the same; do a bit of bird watching and try to get some photos.

The drive down was made all the more enjoyable with all the autumn colour on show to all sides. Once near Dungeness, with the power station close by, there is an unmetalled trail of about a mile to the visitor centre. A welcome refuge from the mild but fairly strong breeze.

visitor centre

The visitor’s centre is a modern building holding a gift shop, reception area and a hot drinks machine. There are large windows looking out onto the reserve and telescopes set up for anyone to use.

The reserve consists of a circular trail with hides dotted along it. All these look out onto the lagoons (mostly old gravel works) and give good protection from the elements.

birds seen

Great views of female Marsh Harrier using the wind to quarter over the reeds looking for prey.

Many, many Coots, lots of ducks including a few Pintail but no Smew, Goldeneye or Goosanders as it is a little too early for most of them to be back from the Summer holidays.

About a dozen swans on Denge Marsh and several Little Egrets dotted about the place.

Once back at the visitor centre I returned to the car for late packed lunch (well a Cornish pasty). Then drove back to the main road and into the smaller car park on the other side of the road to take a look at the lagoons here. A further two hides are located here and give good views over the water.

The light was starting to fade so I made my way along the coast to Hythe and my accommodation for the night at the Castle Inn, Saltwood. 

Technorati Tags: Birds,RSPB,Kent

Staines Moor

A beautiful sunny day in October so I went for a walk on Staines Moor. Left the bike at the Two Rivers shopping centre and walked through to the moor. Once through the gate the loud squeak alerted the nearby group of horses that came over to me assuming I had food for them. A lack of oats and apples didn’t seem to dissuade them so they followed me for a while as I made my way across the moor. Unlike my last walk here, in high summer, there were no butterflies about and fewer birds. The obligatory Green woodpecker was feeding on the grass and small groups of Starlings swirling around, near the cattle. A pair of pied wagtails were bathing in the river and several Meadow pipits where nearby too.
In the trees, near the northern edge of the moor, a group of eight Fieldfare were chirping away, another clear sign of autumn.
I made my way back along the old railway line which blocked the low sun from dazzling me. No Jays, which usually frequent these trees, but lots of wood pigeons were spooked from an early roost as I made my way along.

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Conifers

This is just a record for me and will seem incredibly dull to anyone else reading this post!

Another session in the garden, making the most of the pleasant weather. I gave the two 'smaller' conifers a haircut and they are now much tidier. Managed to fill up 8 large sacks of the clippings so took these off to the local tip, along with some other garden cuttings from the weekend.

Bulbs

Planted some bulbs in pots today

Chimney Pot = Red & Purple Tulips  (Tulip Pallada & Tulip Havran)
Large terracotta pot = Allium (Purple Sensation)
Smaller straight sided pot = Yellow Tulip (Golden Apeldorn)
Rounded pot = Snake's Head Fritillary.

Also, dwarf Iris and mixed tulips planted in pots on 20th October. A few mixed tulips in 'Chinese Lantern' bed too.

WWT Photography Competition 2010

The Wildfowl & Wetland trust are running a photography competition. The details are here http://photo.wwt.org.uk/  The public can vote for their favourite pictures.


My two submissions can be seen here:
http://photo.wwt.org.uk/gallery/single/4219
and
http://photo.wwt.org.uk/gallery/single/4220

Here I come…

After a restless night (excited about going home?) I was up at 5:20! to get ready to depart. Breakfast consisted of a wild berry smoothie I had bought and stored in the fridge. Dropped my card key off at reception, (grabbed banana for later) and drove to the airport to drop off the car. The traffic was moving well as I was heading away from the city and it was only just after 6 A.M.
It struck me that the sky looked much the same as when I arrived in San Francisco only this time it was sunrise rather than sunset.
Left the car with the National Car Hire attendant and got on the driverless AirTrain shuttle to the terminal.  Printed off copies of my boarding pass and dropped off the main bag. Then just had two and a bit hours to wait until the flight. Ate a breakfast burrito ( a wrapped pancake with scrambled egg, ham, peppers etc).
All boarded OK and by now the sun was fully up. Flight took off at just after 9:30 and we headed to Philadelphia.  The take off went over the city so I got great views of the tall buildings, Twin Peaks and the bridges. Then it was a five hour flight and the sun was setting as we landed. I am now at the International terminal waiting for my flight back to Heathrow. That is due to depart at 9:55 P.M. and, if I have my time zone changes correct, that means another couple of hours to wait here. To pass some of the wait I got chatting to a fellow passenger who is going to Wales to watch the Ryder Cup and then play some golf with some buddies; sounds like they will have fun.
There is no free Wi-Fi here during the week  - which is a surprise- but there is a power point I can use to keep the laptop charged while I write this ‘off line’.
The flight to Heathrow took off a few minutes late and in the dark. Spent the flight listening to my MP3 player, watching the fourth Shrek movie and Avatar. We had a meal (BBQ Chicken) early on and a hot Danish near the end of the flight. After all that it wasn’t too long until we started our descent to Heathrow. A short spin round the holding pattern for 10 minutes (as we had arriving at Philadelphia) and I was back in the UK. A cab from Ronia Cabs and home by 11:30.

Driving in the US

Driving in the US was a pleasant experience on the whole. The general standard was high, the road signs were clear and plentiful and there was plenty of space! Driving an automatic made driving a simpler, easier experience. I compiled a list of bullet points during the three weeks I spent driving just over 2200 miles.

• Road signs very logical and plenty of them
• Speed limits change frequently to account for bends, exits or built up areas. There are additional signs to tell you that you are approaching a slower limit and when you leave it.
• Slip roads leave and join main roads/highways from either side
• Some exits have a dedicated lane (‘Right lane must exit’)
• Hill starts in an automatic are so easy!
• On the highway cars can overtake on either side
• Lorries do not have spray suppressors!
• Lots of road work going on. The one lane control lollipops say: Stop and Slow rather than Stop and Go
• Speed limits change near schools when children are about
• Dogs looking out car windows
• RVs with cars or even 4x4 SUVs towed behind.
• Trucks and RVs  pull over on climbs
• Generally good standard of driving

Unusual signs

• Speeding Kills Bears
• Tsunami area warnings along Pacific coast
• Coyote warning – in San Francisco
  Technorati Tags: USA,Driving

Parrots, Humming Birds, Jail birds and bagels.

Two more items to tick off the list today Alcatraz and a ride on a cable car. My boat ticket was for 9:10 A.M. and as it was about a half an hour to walk there I set off nice and early so I didn’t have to rush and had time to look around en route. First port of call was to walk down Lombard Street (have I mentioned it is claimed to be America’s ‘crookedest’ street?) Well, fortunately the pedestrian route goes straight down the sides and avoids the cars negotiating there way down. As I continued on I again heard the squawks of the ‘wild parrots of Telegraph Hill’ A population of escapee parrots much like the Ring Necked Parakeets of South West London.

San Francisco Parrots

I arrived at Pier 33 for the ferry over to Alcatraz at about 8:30 and a large queue was already in place for the boat. We boarded (the boats can hold 344 when full and they are always full!) and set off on time to make the short trip over to the island.

As we were about the first group over the place was not too crowded but the crowd management is very good so everything worked well during the trip. After the 5 minute ’ dos and don’ts’ briefing we saw a short film on the history of the island from fortress to prison to national park and bird sanctuary. Then the main cell block part of the tour with headphones and audio guide to wander round at your own pace.

Cell Block

This was very well done and gave some feeling of the prison when it was open; which wasn’t easy on a bright sunny day with tourists all around!

Alcatraz Cell

It was easy to imagine how frustrating it must have been to be able to see and hear San Francisco but with no hope of getting there; although some did try.
Once the audio tour was over the rest of the island (it is only small) can be explored at your own pace. There are some gardens which were tended by the wardens families or the prisoners themselves) which are now tended by volunteers.

Alcatraz Gardens

The protected state of the island also makes it an ideal sanctuary for sea birds to nest and raise their chicks. All these have now flown the nest but I did manage to see a couple of humming birds and several butterflies enjoying the plants.

Humming Bird

I caught the 1 P.M. boat back to the mainland and set off for a shopping centre nearby that had a good telescope store within it. I just wanted to ogle some big telescopes! I chatted to the staff and ended up buying a wide angle eyepiece for my astronomical telescope. I managed to negotiate not paying the sales tax too which was a bargain!

Then it was back on the street car to the down town for a last wander around. It was another baking hot day unlike Al Bowley I stuck the shaded side of the street as I made my way to the cable car turn around. On the way I passed a large Wells Fargo building which held a very interesting little museum on the history of the company. It was nice and cool in there too so I took my time walking round.

There are three cable car lines in the city and the one I headed for was recommended by the bus tour guide on Saturday.

Cable Car

As it starts in the financial district it is away from the main tourist routes so you do not have to queue, and so it proved. I jumped on and paid my $5 then it was off up and down California Street.

Finally, I walked back to the hotel via Polk street, now minus its Blues festival, had a cream cheese bagel with a Latte coffee then back to base to get ready for the journey home.

Up and Down in San Francisco

Sunday morning and from the hotel room I could hear the fog horns on the Golden Gatde Bridge sounding but it seemed a sunny day in the city. Still, the first order of business was to drive down ‘the crookedest street in America, Lombard Street. It just before 9 A.M. but there were a few other cars making there way down. It was quite a drive but only short and very controlled. There must be an unofficial race to get down the street? It does have some pricey houses all down this part of the street so the police probably keep a close eye on it. Apparently, some years ago a limousine tried to drive down, got stuck and had to be air lifted out! Fortunately no problems this morning so I headed on to my next destination, Christmas Tree Point Road. This is at Twin Peaks which is about the highest point in San Francisco and give great views of the bay and city. The fog was covering part of the bridge but most of the view was spectacular. 

View from Twin Peaks

This view point is very popular and a steady stream of cars and coaches arrived. Once I had my photos I headed back down to Golden Gate Park and took a wander around. This is a big park and so I only saw a small part of it. It was now getting pretty hot so I headed for the fog and Fort Point (where Kim Novak jumped into the sea in Vertigo). The fog was still lingering and keeping the temperature down. Fort Point is open to the public although most of the cannon have been removed. It purpose was to defend San Francisco against attack during the 19th century. It is situated right beneath the superstructure for the bridge so gives a good opportunity for close up photos. I just hope they never hit the bridge with the cannons ;-)

Beneath the Bridge

It was quite a different day to yesterday as the sea, where the dolphins were swimming yesterday, was quite rough.

Then at about midday the fog cleared so I drove on and went down the coast to see the Pacific waves rolling in. To top and tail the holiday I went back to a Denny’s to eat, as I had done in Seattle. The Cranberry Apple Chicken salad looked good so I went for that. It was good too!

After lunch I drove back to the city and the traffic was pretty busy so dropped off the car at the hotel and walked up to the blues festival on Polk Street. This was going well with two bands playing and plenty of stalls selling food and crafts.

Polk Street Blues Festival

After about an hour back to the hotel the a walk the other way down to the bay to try and capture the sunset.

Sunset

Two wheels good.

The day to mount up and cycle the bridge. Headed down to Blazing Saddles and hired a bike for the day. The staff were very helpful sorting out a bike and giving a briefing on the routes available, once you get over the bridge. It was going to be another hot day so should be good for cycling and I was on my way just after 9 A.M. The initial route follows the bay round to Fort Point which is just below the bridge and good for photos. It is also where Kim Novak jumped into the sea in the film, Vertigo. 

Golden Gate Bridge from Fort Point

As I was looking at the view a passer by pointed out that there were dolphins in the bay. There must have been about a dozen of them 'playing' in the water and they put on a good show.

Dolphins

Then it was over the bridge and into Marin County. The bridge is everything you expect it to be; big, orange, busy and spectacular. Once over the bridge I headed west to Hawk Hill.  This is aptly named at this time of year as many raptors are migrating south. I chatted to a couple of helpers who were pointing out the birds to those admiring the view. There were plenty of turkey vultures and a few types of hawk. The only problem with the steep climb on the bike up to Hawk Hill was that it did not lead onto anywhere else so I whizzed back down and headed out to a light house on the next headland along the coast. 

Point Bonita Lighthouse

This involved a few decent climbs and a long tunnel. The tunnel is alternating one way only for cars but bikes have no restriction, there is even a button to press at the start of the tunnel which turns on flashing amber lights to warn drivers there are cyclists in the tunnel. 

Then it was onto Saulsilito which is the main destination for most bikers on the route. This was a pretty town but packed with cyclists so I headed on to the further destination of Tiburon. The day was really hot by now so I took breaks in any shade I could find! I have noticed in my travels that there are always plenty of drinking fountains available so it was very handy to fill up my water bottle and keep hydrated. I arrived at Tiburon just after 3 P.M. and aimed to get the 4:10 ferry. It was a pleasant view looking out over the bay watching the sailing boats waiting for the ferry. Once it arrived it swallowed up an amazing number of cyclists and pedestrians, there must have been over 200 loaded on and most of them had bikes. It was quite a packing job to get the bikes in but they must be used to it. The crossing took about 40 minutes then back to the hire shop.

Bike Route

On the way back to the hotel I popped in to the Ghiradelli Chocolate shop for a free sample of Pumpkin Spice Caramel then back to the hotel. Once back there I stopped to chat to the couple in the next door room and one topic was that there was a 'blues festival' going on two blocks away on Polk Street. Once I had washed and changed I headed up there to investigate. Unfortunately, it was all packed up! What kind of blues festival closes down by 6 P.M?  I'll try again tomorrow.

Downtown San Francisco.

Decided to explore the city today so set off from the hotel and walked towards Fisherman’s Wharf, the acknowledged tourist trap in San Francisco. On the way went past the part of Lombard Street which is billed as the “crookedest street”. 

Top of Lombard Street

Then saw one of the famous cable cars climbing up the hill. I had not realised until recently that the cars attach to a moving cable beneath the street so there is a constant whirring noise from the roads that have cable car routes.

Once at the waterside I looked around the maritime museum exhibits, from a large square rigger, through various tugs and the rowing boat that crossed the Pacific (rowed by two Brits).

Then discovered a City Sightseeing trip about to depart around the downtown area. This was a 90 minute trip which took in all the main areas in downtown San Francisco: the financial district, China town, Union Square, Tenderloin, the Embacardo and Fisherman’s wharf. I took the whole tour rather than hop on or off then walked along the various piers. Pier 39 has been rebuilt to look like a 19th century street but filled with all sorts of eateries and fun shops . This is also the location of the Sea lion colony, which appeared after the 1989 earthquake. The animals were initially unpopular but have now become such an attraction that anniversary parties are held for them.

Sea Lions at Pier 39

I then went on to enquire about tickets for the Alcatraz trip. There was quite a queue but I soon had a ticket booked for Monday morning. An early boat out so it shouldn’t be too crowed on the island (to start with at least).

Next it was onto one of the old Street Cars (not a cable car) back down to the financial district to explore. I had a useful chat with a local lady on the street car and she gave me some useful tips about the area. Once back downtown I spent the rest of the day exploring on foot and taking photographs.

I had thought about taking a cable car back towards the hotel but as I was nearing a convenient stop it appeared there had been a major problem as all the cables had stopped running, As I walked along there were stricken cable cars all along their routes. All the passengers had to seek alternative transport so not sure what happened to their $5 fares?

Cable Car, stopped!

Head west, stop at the coast.

An early start to get to then Ansel Adams Gallery in Yosemite village for the 08:30 walk. The road was very quiet and I arrived in plenty of time having left Westgate Yosemite just before 7:00.

Once at the gallery met up with the other walkers and our guide, Christine. The walk went through to Cook’s Meadow to take advantage of the good light. We spent about 90 minutes hearing about the history of the park, Ansel Adams and getting some general advice on taking pictures and using cameras. It was kept quite simple but interesting and it was useful to have some expert knowledge about how to capture pictures of the park. 

Tree Trunk, Cook Meadow

Yosemite Reflections

It was a beautiful day so I spent some more time taking photos and enjoying the scenery before grabbing a cheeseburger for lunch then heading west to San Francisco.

It was an hour’s drive to get back to Buck Meadows (Pop. 50) where I had been staying but then I could carry on down the mountain road and across California. It was a hot day the scenery was quite arid. It was at this point I noticed I was getting very low on fuel, but fortunately I arrived at a town with the fuel gauge just entering the red. Once on the road again more and more cars joined the roads. I stopped off for a break at Hayward then again at the Redwood Regional Park just outside San Francisco. This second break was to see some more Redwoods and also to let the traffic die down on the Bay bridge. The park has some second and third generation Redwoods i.e. trees that have grown up from the trees cut down in the mid nineteenth century as San Francisco was being built. The shade from the trees was quite welcome from the hot sun of the day.  It also meant I would be able to get the off peak toll and save $2!

The drive into San Francisco was spectacular as the sun was just setting and the downtown skyscrapers and the Golden Gate bridge were silhouetted against the western sky. Once in the city it seemed to have become quite dark very quickly but using the GPS I made my way to the Pacific Heights Inn.

Big Trees and Big Views

I drove back into Yosemite and went in search of the Giant Sequoias at Tuolumne Grove. Unlike the hike yesterday this one takes you down 400 feet to get to the grove. Here you can see lots of of these giant trees towering over the standard size pines. There are plenty of information boards dotted along the trail to explain about the trees and how new knowledge is helping to protect them. No one is allowed to hug them anymore as frequent foot steps around the base lead to damage of the roots. Also, in past years fires were put out to ‘protect’ the trees but now it is known that fires are a vital part of the lifecycle of the trees (clearing forest litter to allow the seeds to grow).  Having descended 400’ to get to the grove it was then necessary to ascend those same 400’ but it was well worth the effort.

Giant Sequoia

After my homemade sandwich I headed further in to the park to go to Glacier point. This is not far from Yosemite village but is much higher – 1000s of feet higher and so it takes a while to drive there. The final few bends of the road provide another wow moment as the view opens right up just as you negotiate a hairpin and arrive in the car park. Once out of the car it is a fairly short (level) walk to the view point, and what a view point! This does deserve the word awesome. In the words of the National Park Service “some would say[Glacier Point], is the most spectacular viewpoint anywhere. Most people agree that its views of the high country and breathtaking views of Yosemite Valley, including Half Dome and three waterfalls, are the most spectacular in the park”

View from Glacier Point

Considering the height (over 7000' feet) it was a really pleasant afternoon so I spent an hour trying to capture the scene and take it all in. It was quite a shock to see, way down below, the top of the Vernal Falls I had climbed up to the previous day. I indulged in a hot chocolate at the cafe then headed back to the lodge. I ate in the restaurant next door and had Chicken Noodle soup and spiced chicken breast washed down with a pint of draught Coors beer served in an unfeasibly large glass.

Tomorrow, I have a camera walk with a guide from the Ansel Adams gallery at 8:30 and as it is an hours drive to get there I have an early start. Then, it is goodbye Yosemite and onwards to the city by the Bay, San Francisco.

A long day ‘at the office’

Today I made it to Yosemite. After a ‘small’ breakfast of two scrambled eggs, two rashers of bacon and two buttermilk (large)  pancakes with maple syrup and waddled back to the car feeling very full (good job I didn’t go for a big breakfast) and made the hour drive into Yosemite. The scenery remains fairly typical until you are within a few miles of the main park centre then wham! Huge cliffs and valleys appear on the right hand side of the road.

You can tell it is dramatic by the cars pulled over at the convenient vista points. Then the most famous of them all, El Capitan (The Captain) just appears in front of you.

3000' of Granite

Over 3000 feet of granite straight up into the air. I pulled over to take the obligatory pictures and take a walk to the nearby bridal falls water fall. Most of the water falls in Yosemite are fed by snow melt so by this time of year they are much less spectacular than in the spring. A lot of them dry up completely.
Once done with the Captain I drove into the main Yosemite Village. This is a large area with accommodations from camp sites to hotels, shops and tourist information points. The Ansel Adams shop is also here. A hybrid powered shuttle bus fleet constantly ferries people around the village. I jumped on this for a free tour and to get my bearings. It was nearing midday and the light was pretty difficult for photography as the contrast between light and shadows was very marked.

Once I had completed the circuit I took a look in the shops then took the shuttle out to the start of a hike to the top of Vernal Falls. This is described as ‘strenuous’ as although it is only 3 mile round trip you climb (and then descend) 1000 feet to get to the top of the falls.

Vernal Falls

The last quarter consists mostly of steps made of granite blocks which greatly help the climb but they did remind me of the part of the ‘Lord of the Rings’ where Gollum leads Frodo and Sam into Mordor. Fortunately there was no giant spider at the top but a rather welcome shaded area with the gently flowing stream; that has no idea it is about to plunge over the edge of a vertical drop 100’s of feet high. There were also a lot of squirrels and Stellar’s Jays eager to share sandwiches.

Stellar's Jay

Once back in the village I had another look round the shops then thought about heading home, it was about 6:00 by then. Just by the car I noticed a small stream so went for a look and saw it gave a great view of Half Dome peak, lit up by the late sunshine. Took a few photos then as I was packing up a fellow photographer mentioned he thought the moon would be rising behind the dome soon. After a while there were 8 photographers set up waiting for the moon. Unfortunately, it had not appeared by 7 P.M. so I decided to head off as the light was failing and various compasses and PDAs indicated the moon would not be in the place we thought anyway. I thought that I might get a view on the way back out of the village. Which I did, just a  mile or so down the road. Stopped again, got the camera and tripod out and snapped away.

Moon and Half Dome

Finished up by 7:30 and drove back in the darkness of the countryside.

Finally made it.

Finally made it to Yosemite, well that’s not strictly true as I am staying in the Yosemite Westgate lodge which is about as near as you can stay without going to the accommodation offerings in the park itself. 

Left Reno in bright sunshine and very warm weather. I planned to cash a couple of traveller’s cheques in Reno before ending up in the more remote area tonight. The Wells Fargo cashier and supervisor couldn’t help (which was totally different to the very helpful one in Seattle last week) as they claimed they couldn’t cash them! I then tried a branch of US Bank and they could do so but with  a $5 charge and a lot of data entry on their part! Maybe it is a regulation in Nevada? The Wells Fargo supervisor suggested I tried cashing them in a casino, but I declined that idea.

Once on the road it was back up into the mountains and onto to Lake Tahoe. This is a huge lake high in the Sierra Nevada mountains and straddles the border between Nevada and California.

Lake Tahoe

Stopped off to take some shots of the blue water and sky then drove along the east shore and stopped as South Tahoe to stock up at Safeway for some food to keep in the fridge at the lodge. I also bought a made to order sandwich (so many questions for one sandwich!) to eat by the road later on.
The roads went ever higher and past a lot of the facilities used by skiers and snowboarders in the winter. The markers along the road side, to show the route in heavy snow, were a good twelve feet high in places.

I forgot to mention in yesterday's entry that on the long straight roads into Reno there was a strong wind blowing across the road and bringing with it real life tumble weed! At first I thought it was an animal running across but no, it was bona fide tumble weed.

I stopped at a quiet spot above a fast flowing river to eat my sandwich and take in the view then pushed on to my final destination.

Lunchtime view

It was a bit of a concern that on one of the hairpin bends a little earlier there was a warning of an accident and a tow truck with a taut cable stretching over the edge, presumably to retrieve a stricken car. The road was quite narrow in places and there were very few barriers - concentration was required.

I filled up the car in a small gas station well before Yosemite as there was not likely to be much in the vicinity of the park. I chatted with the cashier and asked whether they would have accepted traveller’s cheques and she replied “sure, no problem” so maybe it was a Nevada state thing that caused the issue this morning.
The last stretch had another tortuous ascent before levelling out and running into Buck Meadows which is where I am based for the next three nights. It is quite a relief to be able to settle in for a few days after the one night stops I have been doing since last Wednesday.

The Westgate lodge  consists of six two storey buildings each with about 10 rooms apart from the reception building. They all look into a central area that houses a pool and hot tub plus a children’s play area. All very peaceful apart from the insects singing in the trees! There should be a good clear sky too as there is very little else around here.

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To (Bumpass) Hell and back.

Checked out of the hotel in Redding and having decided my car was really dirty took it into the nearby car wash. I had noticed how clean most cars were and my nice bright red one stood out with all the dirt from the road on it; and it made my hands dirty when I closed the trunk! Anyway 10 minutes later I had a really shiny red car again (towel dried) and was on my way to Lassen Volcanic National Park. As the name suggests this showcases the volcanic geology and geography of the area. There is also lots of wildlife in the park. The squirrels seem to like playing chicken running across the road in front of the car; or maybe they have spoken to the chicken and know there is a good reason to cross the road?

Squirrel in a tree!

One particular trail leads into the fumaroles and hot springs known as Bumpass Hell. This was named after the unfortunate Mr. Kendall Bumpass who lost a leg after falling through the thin surface crust and into a boiling pool.

Bumpass Hell 

Today there are wooden walkways which provide a safe route into the basin. It is about a mile and a half hike to get there but the smells and sounds let you know you are getting close. This part of the park is about the highest area, over 8000 feet, and the air is noticeably thinner. There was a lot of low cloud on the way out keeping the temperature and visibility low.  The sights and smells (sulphur dioxide)  was impressive with sink holes pushing out steam at quite a rate and sounding like a nearby motorway.

Bumpass Hell Walkways

On the way back the clouds had cleared and there were spectacular views of the volcanic caldera formed 1000s of years ago when the main volcano blew its top. The most recent significant eruption in the park was in 1914, so not that long ago!
The drive back down was impressive with good views of the surrounding mountains and valleys.
To get to my accommodation for the night I had to drive “All the way to Reno” as R.E.M. would say. This was about 180 miles and another change in scenery from high mountains to semi arid, wide open spaces with isolated farms and very little else. The highway went straight across the wide open spaces and was a complete contrast to the winding roller coasters from yesterday. The sun was shining brightly and the flat plains and distant mountains of Nevada made quite a sight.

Nevada scenery

As I approached Reno there was a sudden hold up in traffic (as I suspect there is into every city at about 6 P.M. on a Sunday evening) but I was soon moving on the main route through the city and into the Comfort Inn, Reno.

What a difference a mountain makes.

Today I was going to see one of the main items on my to do list - The Redwood trees in the Redwood National park.

Had a good breakfast of porridge (called oatmeal here) with brown sugar and sultanas followed by an English muffin, orange juice and coffee. This was served in the Flying Gull restaurant where I had eaten last night – some of the same waitresses were working again.

About ten minutes along the road I had to stop at a checkpoint. This was the state line into California where I was asked how much fruit and vegetables I was carrying (not even a banana today), given a map of California and was on my way again. Filled up at a pre-pay petrol station (once the attendant had told it was pre-pay!)

On the road and heading along the coast, there was lots of similar scenery but you cannot be bored with such interesting topography. This would be a great place for a school geography trip! The visitor centre I had picked out was inaccessible as the access road was closed so I went on to the smaller Elk camping site visitor centre and took a short hike from there.

Redwoods

It is only when you walk among these trees that you really get a good sense of their size; photographs don’t do them justice. It is hard to estimate how tall they are but they just seem to go on forever. The forest (like the Hoh Rain forest) is very old so there a lots of fallen trees. One in particular did not seem a truly massive tree compared to those standing but I could barely reach the top of the fallen trunk when on tip toe. See picture below .

Taller than me

The trail I took lead back to the visitor centre after about 40 minutes so I took a final look around then headed off as there was still some 170 miles to go. Carried on down Highway 101, as I had been doing since Wednesday, but then had to turn inland onto Highway 299. This cuts right through, or rather over, the Cascade mountains and is a remote, winding, roller coaster of a road. It rises to 3000 feet at its highest. At about 3 P.M. the rain actually stopped for a while and the scenery was dramatically different as I was now in the valley of the Trinity river.

Trinity River

The final descent out of the mountains was even more fun as the bends and dips just kept coming at me. Then it was just a few more miles into my stop for the night at Redding. The Shasta mountains were dramatically in view in the distance (it was nice to have a distant view) and the temperature was really warm as I got out of the car. A very different climate to the one I had left at the coast.

Tomorrow, Nevada (briefly).

Does it always rain in Oregon?

Ever since I left Washington state and entered Oregon it seems to have been raining. I left the hotel in Florence ( my room didn’t have a great view other than trees) and made the short drive down to the old town. This is about the only original part of town that survived a massive fire in 1936. The area is dominated by craft and gift shops as well as plenty of places to eat. This is also where the fishing boats and private boats moor up. 

Fishing Boat at Florence

Florence’s other claim to fame is that it was the site where, in 1970,  the state highway division decided to get rid of a beached sperm whale by blowing it up, but it seems they used too much explosive as the explosion threw guts and chunks of dead whale over 800 ft away.

When looking up places in America you have to be careful to get the right place as there are many palces with the same name. It is worth checking you have typed the correct place into the GPS before heading off in to the unknown. This is illustrated by a sign in Florence old town that gives distances to other places called Florence in the USA. They don't seem to worry about the one in Italy!

Florences in USA

After a short trip around the shops I got back onto Highway 101 and headed down the coast. There was plenty of dramatic scenery, albeit limited by the fog and mists. After a couple of hours I took a detour to the Cape Arago State Park which overlooks the ocean and has a large colony of seals on the small islands just off shore. I braved the rain and made the short walk to the viewing area where the seals could be seen and heard.

On the way back to the Highway the GPS took me along the 7 Devils road, a great rolling, twisting road with very little traffic on it. The rest of the journey to Brookings was a mixture of roads through forest or along the coast, all very dramatic.

Dramatic Coastline Scenery. 

The rock formations along the beaches are quite surreal at times, especially those that have pines trees growing on unfeasibly small spaces.

Once at Brookings checked into the motel (Brookings Inn Resort) then went for a meal next door in the Flying Gull restaurant. Having skipped lunch I went for their seafood platter which should keep me full for a while!
Tomorrow should see me enter California and the Redwood National Park.

Well the forecast was right.

The weather channel predicted rain in the morning a brightening later in the day with more rain in the evening – and that is pretty much what happened. The sea lions/seals were in good voice in the harbour but I couldn't get close for a decent photograph.

It was raining when I left Astoria and visibility was so poor it really wasn’t worth hanging about. Once on the road refuelled the car with the help of Phil (great name for a pump attendant! Phil/fill?) then headed down Highway 101 and got my first views of the Pacific Ocean. Rain eased at times but it was falling most of the time. Stopped off at Tillamook Air Museum after a couple of hours (yes another aeroplane museum) which is housed in a WWII airship hanger,so it was all under cover.

These hangers were built in response to the bombing of Pearl Harbour and the need to protect ships supplying Britain. There were 19 hangers in total dotted along the east and west coasts. The huge structures were made from wood, which was readily available from the Washington and Oregon forests, and avoided using metals that were needed for war time equipment and weapons. One of the bigger exhibits is one of the guppys built to ship the Saturn 5 rocket engines across the USA. The plane here carried the first space craft to leave the Solar System,  Pioneer 10, to Florida for it's launch.

Guppy that carried Pioneer 10.

A lot of the planes are privately owned and still fly on a regular basis. Planes include a Stearman trainer, Spanish built Messerschmitt ME109 (which used a RR Merlin engine!), Catalina, Corsair and many others. There was also a F14 Tomcat but this is not airworthy.  Had lunch here and then back on the road. The scenery was giving brief glimpses of what the coast has to offer but the weather remained lousy.

Had another stop at Yaquina Head light house but the wind here was pretty ferocious and any toupees would have been in serious trouble.

Yaquina Head Lighthouse.

A final quick stop at the impressive Devil’s churn, a narrow inlet gradually being made wider by the force of the Pacific waves, then on into Florence, Oregon.

Devil's Churn

The rain had eased off by now but a tiring journey of fog, heavy rain, sunshine and drizzle.

Heading South.

Time to leave Seattle and head south. A misty start to the day and the forecast is for some sun but showers later in the day. Left the hotel just after nine and headed for NorthWest Trek

“Northwest Trek Wildlife Park is a treasure for wildlife enthusiasts.
This 725-acre park has a little bit of everything: lakes, trails, meadows and plenty of animals. Northwest Trek is home to more than 200 North American animals.”


I am not a great fan of zoos or wildlife parks but his was a great chance to see some of the wild animals of the area so I thought I would give it a go. The drive down went through Seattle on Interstate 5 past the Space Needle, the skyscrapers and SeaTac International airport. There were reasonable views of Mount Rainier through the hazy sunshine and clouds.

Once at Northwest Trek, the next available tram ride (which gives a conducted tour of the big herbivores in the park) was 50 minutes away so I had a chance to go around the walking tour which looks in on enclosures with bears, cats and dogs, BIG cats and dogs.

Wolf

There were wolves, coyotes, lynx, cougar, bobcats as well as black and grizzly bears.  There are smaller enclosures with skunk, beaver, river otter, racoon and wolverine. The animals are very well cared for but seeing the cougars pacing round their enclosure waiting to be fed was a little sad to see.

Grizzly, snoozing

Badger (apparently!)

On the tram there were great views of bison, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, deer and elk. The tour lasted about an hour after which I had another look around the walking tour until it started to rain so had some lunch and set off on the road.

Big Horn sheep, female.

The rain fell and fell. It was mostly light but with occasional heavier bursts. One noticeable difference with the lorries (or rather trucks) in America is that they do not have spray suppressors on the wheels as we do in Europe consequently on the Interstate (motorway) and highway (trunk road) visibility is not great(!) when passing or being overtaken. Couple that with the fact that vehicles can overtake on both sides and it leads to exciting travelling in heavy rain. Fortunately, all went well and the last hour or so of the journey was on quieter roads so spray was less of a problem. The visibility away from the roads was still poor so what I expect was spectacular scenery was completely out of sight. If the weather continues like this the journey down the Oregon coast might be less than spectacular. The forecast is for bright spells and showers so it should be okay some of the time – fingers crossed!

So where am I tonight? Well a place called Astoria, Oregon on the mouth of the Columbia river. Unfortunately, it was pouring with rain and getting dark (at 6P.M.) when I arrived so I can’t comment further today other than to say it sounds like I’ll be serenaded to sleep by sea lions or seals as I can hear them calling not far from my window - you don’t get that in Seattle!

Boeing Tour

A foggy start to the day but as the Wells Fargo clerk told me, as I cashed a Travellers Cheque after breakfast, the fog is usually a good sign for better weather later. As planned, I drove up to the town of Everett (about 25 mins) to go on the Boeing plant tour. (http://www.futureofflight.org/) There was about 40 minutes to wait for the next tour so had time to look around the exhibits in the visitor centre. This had displays on the history of jet airliners and the principles of flight. To be fair to Boeing they gave plenty of space to the Airbus airliners and the developments they had made as well as featuring the Boeing line up.
The tour itself goes through the assembly lines for the 747, 777 and 787 planes. All going on in one building – the largest building in the world, by volume. As a result of the great access to the assembly lines there are no cameras, cell phones or electrical devices allowed on the tour. The guide gave lots of information about the plant and planes. He was proud of Boeing and finished with a recommendation to check which aircraft our future flight bookings use; “if it ain’t Boeing, I ain’t going”.
The development is quite striking as the assembly time for the new 787 will be three days, once fully up to speed, compared to over 5 weeks for a 747. This is mainly due to collaboration with partner companies that make parts of the 787 and fly them in on specially made cargo planes.
Had lunch at the visitor centre then on for a walk at Spencer Island Park, a nature reserve a little further North of Everett. Not much about during the afternoon apart from a couple of osprey’s and an eagle!
And the Wells Fargo clerk was right, the weather had picked up the afternoon was really warm and sunny.

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Fishy Business

Took advantage of the complementary breakfast, a DIY continental one with choice of cereals, toast, waffles, fruit and pastries – a welcome change from the usual offer of multiple egg omelettes or meals from the griddle!
I had done some homework on how to get to the downtown area of Seattle but confirmed my plans with the helpful clerk on the hotel front desk. Got the bus (358 Express) to Pike Place, which took about half an hour for a flat fee of $2.
Wandered around the Pike Place market and saw the great displays of fresh fish, fruit  and cut flowers for sale. Most of the other shops were selling craft items such as jewellery, cosmetics.
Took a quick break for coffee and then went to the Seattle Aquarium. A good display of the marine creatures from the North West Pacific. Everything from octopus to sea otter. Incidentally, most of the larger animals were either rescued and couldn’t be returned to the wild or were bred in captivity. Had lunch at the aquarium, fittingly, I had clam chowder which was served in a hollowed out loaf of bread.
Then onto to the Seattle centre, via Monorail, to go up the 605 foot Space Needle.

Space Needle

This, along with the monorail and other buildings, was put up for the World’s Fair in 1962. The weather was now perfect with warm sunny conditions. The outside observation deck was a pleasant place to be, if you didn’t mind the big drop off the edge. Thankfully, it was not too hairy up there and the views were fantastic.

Downtown Seattle

Once back at ground level I had a quick spin around the museum of Science fiction, which was next door, then took the bus back to the hotel. Loaded up with some snacks at K-Mart and then used the in-house washing facility to clear the back log of dirty laundry!