I’m hiding out in the camper as I write this. Maybe the scent, the atmosphere, will bring me back to the fourth and final week of our California road trip. All that remains are my journal entries, some iPhone photos, and a few memories that are barely clinging on.
Sunday, 08/16/26
Another Sunday driving day! We packed up our site at Caspar Beach RV Park and drove north along the craggy coast to the redwoods. They grow right up next to the road (which has no shoulder by the way), and the farther we went the bigger they got. By the time we made it to Ancient Redwoods RV Park in Redcrest, California, my sour stomach was ready to be done with the back-and-forth roads.
On the way, we stopped at a gas station with a fruit stand off to the side where a man was selling bananas, melons, papayas, and who knows what else piled up and around him. When my sister, Avery, and I blearily stumbled over to buy a fruit cup, he pointed to me and said, “Are you the older one?” So I said “Yes.” Then he said, “You (pointing at Avery) favor your mother, and you (pointing at me) favor your father.” Favor, meaning we look like them, I think. Avery and I looked at each other like, yeah, I guess that could be true! I don’t even know if it is or not, but I prefer to believe that during our long storybook journey we came across a man possessing powers of omniscience, who was there to replenish our diminishing stores of energy, and should we ever return to that area and the fruit stand is no longer there, it’s because he was a ghost.
That fruit cup was so darn juicy too, even the sliced cucumber.
Upon our arrival at the Ancient Redwoods RV Park, we beheld what is known as The Immortal Tree and the heavenly forest behind it while Jay checked in. When I say heavenly, I mean it. As soon as I stepped off the parking lot, circled the MASSIVE trunk of The Immortal Tree, and trod into the forest of redwoods and vines and clovers the size of kiwis, I experienced a stillness that I have never felt anywhere else in my life. The road was close by, and yet it felt like the trees and the green and the life that was breathing through everything provided a shelter from the world. I almost tear up when I remember the unspeakable beauty of that place.
Monday, 08/17/26
It turns out that Mother Nature has an edge to her because Jay got poison oak rash and had to drive to Walgreens for calamine lotion!
There were only two other children in the RV park, a brother and sister, and my outgoing daughter immediately made friends with the girl, Felicity. I asked Felicity if she owns the American Girl Doll with the same name, and she said “No, I don’t really play with dolls, I prefer snakes. They’re way cuter.”
When Jay returned, we went swimming at Gould Bar, a gravel bank on the South Fork Eel River. We originally tried to go to a different spot (I can’t remember the name), but there were signs warning of toxic algae, so we went to Gould Bar instead and hoped that it was far enough away to avoid getting sick!
It was the perfect swimming spot; the water was clear, cool, and shallow for the kids, but us adults didn’t have to wade far to go chest-deep. We tried to catch the fish that flitted near our feet before laying out in the sun. At first we were the only ones around, but eventually one other family arrived and set up a ways away from us.
We tried to do another forest walk before sunset, but it wasn’t long before we were surrounded by poison oak (which I identified with my PlantNet app), so we made our way out of there.
Instead we picked blackberries off of the humongous bushes growing right in the RV park, along with some minty pennyroyal to hang in the camper.
Tuesday, 08/18/26
Sadly, our stay at Ancient Redwoods RV Park has ended! It was easy to keep an eye on my children there because it only had one loop; the sites were easy to navigate even with a big camper; there were hookups, showers, and a coin laundry; the blackberry bushes cut our grocery bill in half; and we were surrounded by arguably the best landscape on Earth.
We stayed on a middle site, which was great, but I would recommend one of the side sites (28-44). They are pull-through sites as well.
Once again we packed up and drove all day, through densely treed mountains, rocky riverbeds, farms, and the occasional vineyard, this time trying to make it to Mazama Village Campground near Crater Lake, Oregon. Key word: trying because the outdoor temperature was 100°F and the truck began overheating an hour or two from our destination. We decided to stop at Taqueria La Guacamaya in Grant’s Pass, Oregon to let the truck cool down (and because we were hot and hungry). The food was amazing.
The moon hung high in the sky when we arrived at Mazama Village Campground.
Animals we saw today:
- Long-eared goats
- Horses
- Cows
Wednesday, 08/19/26
Jay and our daughter went to get ice cream and run errands while Avery, my son, and I stayed back to rest and clean the camper.
This afternoon we checked out Crater Lake, and the first word out of my mouth was, “Wow!” A couple minutes later some more people arrived and their reaction was the same. Overlooking the volcanic caldera from above, all we could do was sit there and soak in the rich blue that was spread out before us. I so badly wanted to hike down to swim, but we found out that the Cleetwood Cove trail (the only trail that leads directly to the water) is closed for the next few years to undergo repairs! I may have to return in 2029…
We saw a small boat on the water, and I’m wondering if it was Coast Guard or park rangers of some sort.
Thursday, 08/20/26
Today was hot, so we drove 40 minutes to Spring Creek Day Use Area in the Collier Memorial State Park. The plan was to swim in the river, but it was literally as cold as Lake Superior (which, as Michiganders know, makes your feet ache from the chill as soon as you venture in). We watched the ducks and teeny tiny chipmunks and said, “Hi,” to some kayakers as we ate our p&js.
It was here that we decided to end our trip. My original itinerary had us continuing on through Boise, Idaho to Jackson Hole, Wyoming and the Tetons, then driving through the Black Hills on our way back towards our new home in Michigan, but there were some events back home we didn’t want to miss, and after 22 days of traveling and all the places we’d seen, we felt like we had camped our hearts out.
We returned to the campground, packed everything up, and drove out at 8:15 PM with the moon looking on.
There were many things we liked about Mazama Village Campground: the spacious, almost private, sites; the many loops and paths to bike around; the store at the front where we chatted with sunburned hikers replenishing their packs as they attempted to through-hike the Pacific Crest Trail; but after being spoiled at the last couple campgrounds, we were missing the water and electrical hookups and were disappointed by how few showers there were. For the campground’s 214 sites, there are about 6 showers. We never had to wait long for one, though, and the lack of hookups didn’t affect our stay much, so our overall experience was pleasant. I think we were just feeling a bit spoiled at this point.
Animals we saw today:
- Cows
- Horses
- A llama
- Ducks
- Chipmunks
Friday, 08/21/26
Jay drove until he could no longer keep his eyes open. We stopped on the side of a road to get some sleep in the camper, then we kept driving.
By suppertime, we had made it to Lima, Montana, and at my suggestion we stopped for the night at Beaverhead Inn to get some real rest. Nothing felt better than that hot shower and cozy bed. When we tried to make supper the oven smoked up our room, and during the night we could faintly hear the guy next door snoring, AND the train rattled through town at 6-something-AM blaring its horn, but the place was cute, and there were pasties at the gas station next door, and we were all showered and rested, so all was well.
Saturday, 08/22/26
We drove and drove.
Sunday, 08/23/26
Jay drove through the night and kept on driving until we arrived at my mom’s house at 4 PM. We were exhausted, but we’d made it in time for an event the following day!
Next week I will publish an overview of the trip, including the final itinerary (since it changed so much), a list of the must-see destinations, and a report on how I would plan differently next time.
Thank you for following along!
– Madelyn