Tuesday, April 18, 2023
The plans for the day were completely dependent on when the truck turned up to pickup our cargo destined for Belgium. The shipping company advised the truck would be there between 10am and 6pm. That is quite a big window to wait around for.
We said our goodbyes to Darrin, and Caroline said good bye to Sterlin. Probably the last time Caroline sees Sterlin, as he will have a new home in a few months. We headed to Ballard and our storage locker. Just a little last minute grocery shopping for the trip, and of course some coffee. Just before 10am, the truck rang to say he was at out locker. 10 minutes later we were there too. It took less than 15 minutes to load the pallet and finish the paperwork to close the locker.
This was a big moment. We have sold, given away or shipped pretty much all of things. After 22 years, we are leaving the United States. Of course, we will come back to visit, but we no longer live here.
We pointed Molly South, and headed off. Destination unknown (at least for the coming night). The simple plan is to head to San Francisco to catch-up with friends there. The trip will take about three days and we will take the slower but more scenic 101 Highway. We ultimately took the I-5 down to Portland and Eugene, where we turned right and headed for the coast. The drive on OR38 was very nice, as we followed the Umpqua River. It is an impressive river. It rained most of the day, so a good day to be travelling. As 7pm rolled around, we pulled into a forestry service campground. Time to reactivate Starlink.
Wednesday, April 19, 2023
The campground was a great find. Sand dunes separated us from the road noise, and there was only one other camper in the entire campground. Back on the road, but now we get to enjoy the coast and the views over the Pacific. The objective was to make it into California, which we did. Stopping for the night at a County Fairground Campsite. Nothing flash, but got the job done.
Thursday, April 20, 2023
Had to wake up very early to watch the SpaceX rocket blow-up. That was fun. It also meant we were on the road very early, well, very early for us. Today we drove through Avenue of the Giants and the Redwoods. And we made it to Gualala campground, which is a special camping spot for us. Along the way we stopped in Mendocino for a late lunch. We are getting close to San Francisco now.
Friday, April 21, 2023
Today we crossed the Golden gate bridge to arrive in San Francisco. We dropped into our good friend’s place to drop off 3 days of clothing and supplies, and parked Molly at San Francisco International Airport long term parking. The night was spent in 21st Amendment, talking about our time in San Francisco.
