The Cellar Door

Tasting at the Cellar Door

Australia has good wine, and with a week in the country, fitting in a day to taste some Aussie wine seemed a good activity. I enjoy a good full bodied red, and the Hunter Valley, an area a short way north west of Sydney and about an hour away from Regis’ cousin’s house, is renowned for its excellent reds; Shiraz, Merlots, and Cabernet Sauvignon. Shiraz is one of my favorites, and this is the grape this area really excels at, so this was a good spot to go do some Australian wine tasting. There are over 150 “Cellar Doors” (Australian for “tasting rooms”), so we had lots to choose from in Hunter Valley.

Having visited wine regions in Ontario, California, Spain and of course back home in Nova Scotia, we had some experience at how vineyards and wineries tend to take over an area,

All About The View

replacing other farms and crops, but the amount of wineries here is amazing. You can drive down section of road and find winery after winery side by side. Just the list on the Official Map and Tourist guide is slightly overwhelming . . . so many wines, so little time . . .

The up-side to so many wineries it that there is a great deal of competition, so the cellar doors offer mostly free tastings. After the $8.00 per taste fee in New Zealand this was a pleasant surprise. Some of the wineries do charge for “Superior” tastings, but the ordinary samples are free.

Cool Name, Good Wine

We left the choice of wineries up to “Cousin Wade”, our guide and designated driver, and he chose one he was particularly fond of, Audrey Wilkinson, but since he admitted that he liked this winery because of the spectacular views from the main building, I did not mind offering my method of choosing wineries with cool names, and requested visiting the “Cockfighter’s Ghost” cellar door I had seen on the way to his choice. As it happened, both were excellent, with Cockfighter’s Ghost having the most delicious Shiraz and Audrey Wilkinson having a delicious red blend I enjoyed enough to purchase a bottle for later.

Ready For The Steak!

Unfortunately, doing wine tasting when traveling far from home does not allow me to purchase much wine as my suitcase is stuffed already. I returned from Niagara-on-the-Lake with a trunk full of wine, but walked away from Hunter valley with only a bottle that will probably not survive this evening’s Aussie Barbecue.

The Details

Valve to where?

Bright Sunny Ocean View

We are on this cruise to see the full transit of the Panama Canal, but for the cruise line everyone on-board is a bonus, because they are moving the ship from a summer taking vacationers up to Alaska to a winter of cruising the warm aquamarine waters of the Caribbean. Called a repositioning cruise, it does not stop at the regular 'Cruise Ports', perhaps trying out some newer locations for future cruises. There are also more “sea days” or days where we steam all day without stopping. Some people avoid these cruises, finding them boring with all the days at sea with nothing to do (Even though the cruise directors always load on varied 'fun' activities). Having seen, done, or actively avoided these 'fun' activities, I will often take one of the sea days to really explore the ship with my camera, taking pictures of the many details that the rest of the passengers rush by on their way to the Spa for a special deal on some miraculous treatment, the daily bridge tournament, Rhumba classes, the 75% off sales on Alaska merchandise, or just to get those choice seats for the show.

Sweet Music of the Ocean

Lots of deck chairs

I look for the interesting shots, the water beading on the polished woodwork, the utilitarian hardware necessary to keep the ship running blending into the tourist glitz and glamor, the sun gleaming across the newly painted surfaces, or just the interesting shapes and patterns. You miss all these when you are rushing here and there, and taking a day just to look for them is a worthwhile endeavor. It is always easier to take your camera, as it help you focus on looking for the worthwhile photo, and the cruise ship is designed to focus your attention on the latest “Drink-of-the-day”, the latest not to miss activity, or the “too good to pass up” sale in the shops. They don't actually hide these interesting details, they just distract you from them to towards ways for you to hand someone your all purpose “cruise card” allowing you to spend some more money.

Ready for Dinner?

Patterns in the Teak

It is also interesting to watch people watch me taking pictures of interesting things. More times I have seen people look at me crouched down focusing a picture, and go back when I move on to see what I was taking a picture of. On one ship I found a wonderful picture of the setting sun glistening on a newly varnished deck chair, and as I left I saw a number of people look and then take a similar shot to be added to their vacation album. I know that one fellow never did understand why I was taking a picture of a pipe and control valve. I don't think he saw the same interesting contrast between the brilliant newly painted white wall on the green tint of the copper pipe and yellow rubber handle.

Morning Rain

Take time on you next vacation to try this. It works anywhere; just go for a walk looking for the details you do not have time to see when you are busy. It is one of the great things about retirement; you have time to spend a day on the details.

Beer

I have made it one of my “travel mandates”, to find and taste as many locally brewed beers as possible. This was especially fun while on the canal boat in England, and I found over 25 interesting local brews in our two weeks there. A positive side affect of sampling the local brews, is that when you ask for something “local”, you usually get a positive response from the servers, who seem to have a degree of pride in their local breweries, and are often very willing to give opinions on which local beers are best. One server in Bangor, Maine, was so interested in my opinion of the local ales, that after sampling one, he insisted on me trying the second at no charge.

The brews in America, do not have the variety or the flavor of the beers in England, but what can you expect from the land where “Bud Light” is usually the beer of choice. By ordering the local “craft” beers, you can get a brew with some taste and personality.

A partial list of the brews I have sampled on this trip so far follows. Most are from the later part of the trip, because I forgot to write the names down from the East Coast where I found some good ones, and had difficulty in the Central States finding “local” beer. A waitress in Ohio, had no idea what I meant when I asked for a “craft” beer.

Grand Canyon Amber Ale - Grand Canyon Brewing Co.

Ugly Pug Black Lagar - Rahr & Son’s Brewing, Fort Worth, Texas

Laguritas I P A - Laguritas Brewing Company, Petaluma, California

Moonlight ’Reality Czeck Pilsner’ - Santa Rosa, California

Downtown Brown - Lost Coast Brewery & Cafe, Eureka, California

I had a nice beer with my lunch during a stop in Death Valley, that the server said was “local”, but I’m not sure how they get enough water to make beer on the hottest driest spot in North America.

I see that I have an email from Alisha (daughter), asking when we will be arriving in Vancouver. She is visiting a friend there, who has worked in the brewing industry, and has a great local brew he wants me to try. That’s what happens when you develop a reputation for enjoying good local beer. I think I’ve said it before . . . . But. . . .life is tough!

Automobiles in America

Nice old Hudson

I like cars. In fact I like anything mechanical. I enjoy motorcycles, trains, trucks, airplanes, and even farm machinery. When I travel, I am constantly on the lookout for interesting cars sharing the road with me. For my car-nut friends, here are some of the vehicles I have encountered so far.

We saw a nice variety of porsches while driving across Texas. Everything from a nice 356 to new boxers and other new models to a very rusty 914, all heading in the opposite direction; I’m assuming to a local Porsche gathering.

We passed Denny Hamlin’s Sprint Cup car on the way to Kentucky Speedway, and one of his show cars parked next to us at a rest stop.

Through New Mexico I saw four nice professional off-road racing buggies on their way to an event, and there was an NHRA drag race the weekend after we left San Francisco, so I saw a lot of dragsters on their way to the event.

On the bus in Las Vegas, we followed a nice red ferrari down the “Strip”.

Did you know that BMW’s little convertible two seated sports car is exactly the same length as the width of an 18 wheeler? I know this from coming across an accident on a long bridge where a little white BMW was neatly stuck to the front bumper of a big truck. It had just happened, and the driver who didn’t look badly hurt was still in the car. Imagine getting into a situation where you are being pushed down the road sideways by an 18 wheeler on your drivers door. The car fit so nicely on the front of the semi, that I doubt that either driver could see the other - very scary for both drivers!

While Driving through Oakland, California, a member of the famous (or infamous) Oakland chapter of the Hells Angles passed us on his Harley.

Peugeot Pickup?

Outside the nice little lunch spot I blogged about previously, was parked a Peugeot pickup truck. It was probably from the early sixties, and I suspect a home-made pickup, since I was not aware Peugeot even made a pickup, especially for export to the states.

I have read articles stating that the days of finding classic American automobiles sitting beside the road, in old barns, or in wrecking yards was long over. I can report that this is definitely not so, especially through the South-West. I suspect you will not find many two door 1957 Chevys waiting for you to restore, but I saw lots of interesting vehicles from the 50s, 60s & 70s sitting wanting loving restoration.

Being Towed to a better life

We pulled into a rest stop in Arizona, and a road beside the access ramp were were six pickups from the  50 all parked in a row, quietly rusting away, but mostly intact, and still on inflated tires. In Nevada, I saw three old sedans from the 50s sitting abandoned beside the road, looking like they had failed on a trip out old route 66, and have remained there ever since. We passed a junk yard off to one side of the road where I saw about four Corvairs sitting in a row, all looking restorable.

I would have loved to stop and add some of these “Sleeping Beauties” to my collection of photographs of old abandoned vehicles, but this is difficult when pulling a trailer. I had a difficult time just finding a picture for the blog posting, and was lucky to get the one old car you see here. If I was driving a car I would have been able to stop and explore some of these old cars. I guess it’s just another excuse to come back another time.

A Bit Rustic . . .

A "Rustic Park"

Ok now, you already read my rant about the different campgrounds we have run into, but tonight's campground is worth a few words.

A year or so ago, we discovered Passport America, a discount RV service that gives you 50% off the regular rate on campgrounds. Of course not all campgrounds are on their list. It is mostly campgrounds a little off the beaten track, or newly opened ones wanting to increase their clientele. If you can find one on your route, it is definitely worth while.

When we left San Francisco, we had no set destination in mind, because we did not know how long it would take me to install the two new springs, and we had no clear idea how far we would get. Once we were on the road and the trailer seemed to be bouncing along just fine, we started figuring out where we could get, and where we might stop for the night. It looked like Redding California was a workable destination.

I decided to give the “Travel Planner” a break, and since dad was driving and Regis was navigating, I took the campground directories, and tried to find a campground for the night. The Passport America directory listed a campground just past Redding. It was called “Trail In” and it listed lots of sites, full service and was only a mile off the I-5 Interstate which we were following. I looked in Woodall's and found a number of other places, but nothing that was that much better than this one. Now as we drove by Redding we did see a place called “Durango Resort” with fountains, paved sites and lots of BIG expensive rigs, but we decided it was probably in the $75.00 range so we ignored it and kept going.

Yum, fresh blackberries

The instruction in the directory, agreed with the GPS, and when we were told to “Enter on the Right”, the sign and entry were actually on the right. The hand lettered signs directed us to the office, and we parked and Regis and I went it. Two young men sitting on the front deck said “hello” and tipped a beer to me as I walked in. Behind the counter was another young man with a pony-tail who said “You planning to stay with us tonight?”.

I told him we would like to stay, and he said it was $25.00. Regis pulled out her Passport America Card and I plunked a couple of locally brewed beer I found in the cooler on the counter, and he changed the price to $20.00 all in.

Normally when you enter a campground you get a map, code for the washrooms & laundry, location of the various amenities, and “Rules”. Here he said if you want a pull-through, just drive around the office, follow the road and pick a site you like the looks of. No rules, no instructions, no nothing. Regis reluctantly asked about WiFi Internet, not expecting much. He looked at her and replied “Oh, you want internet, no problem, I'll watch where you park and I'll point the router in your direction so you get a good signal. Enjoy your stay!”

Now it's no KOA, but we have 30 amp, Cable TV, and full hookup. Dad reports that the washrooms and showers are the “Shower-Shoes” variety, but not really that bad. It is a nice quiet campground right in the mountains, and just fine for the night. I even found a patch of California blackberries down the drive that were just ripening – just perfect to add to Sharon's fruit salad she was preparing for dessert.

Between a Rock & a Hard Place

Note trees & big rock . . . . .

When traveling with an RV, you need to find a place to park every night. With a 28 foot trailer, you need plenty of room to maneuver,  so a site that you can simply pull into (a “pull-through”) is easiest. The compromise with these however is that they tend to be open sites with no shade.  In 30 - 40 degree heat, a bit of shade is appreciated, but although I’m getting better a backing the trailer into tight spots, we usually ask for the easier pull-through sites.

After driving through Death Valley, we started looking for a campsite. We were headed towards Yosemite National Park, and although there were lots of RVs and big trailers on the roads with us, the trend seemed to be towards smaller unserviced sites for tents or small trailers. There were lots of sites in Yosemite, and the various state parks, and forests, but after a long hot drive through Death Valley, we wanted water, electricity, and a hot shower. Regis found a place called “Pine Cliff Resort”, that had over 300 sites, and plenty had services, so we headed there.

The first indication of trouble was when we couldn’t see the sign for the park. After going by, and taking a scenic tour to the nearby town, we were pointed back where we came from. This time we saw a little sign peeking out of the weeds on the left side of the road - the instructions in the book said “enter on right” - no wonder we didn't see it. At least we had found the park.

While waiting for Dad & Sharon to register, Jasper and I observed that this park was going to have plenty of shade, built into the side of the mountain, and full of huge tall pine trees.

Dad come back with rather sketchy instruction to our site. “Go around that big rock, either side is OK, between those trees, and back in there. Just getting there was interesting, having to judge where to turn the truck to keep the trailer from clipping the trees and huge rocks. When we got there the site looked pretty tight, and there was not much room to maneuver. The fellow parked behind the site, stood up from his table and came over, "You gonna try to put that trailer in there? My Buddy took eight tries to get in there and his was smaller than yours. The guy across the road chimed in "I'll move my truck; you'll need all the room you can get!"

With Dad, Regis and Sharon guiding me, and with a few suggestions from the neighbors, I started backing in. There was a large pine tree on either side of the entrance to the site, and a large rock on one side. There was a concrete pad on the other side, and the power and water stuck up beside the rock. I almost got it in, but got too close to the tree with the truck. Even with tucking the mirror in, it was not going to work. I pulled out and tried again, no, still too close to the tree. I got out and looked everything over. I pulled out and tried to start further up the road, pulling almost into the site across the road - good thing he moved his truck. This time I got the trailer in, but we realized that it had to be over so the tires were almost touching the concrete pad in order for the slideout to come out without hitting the power and water. Another try and I got it in pretty well - Check level? No, . . .  got to pull forward to block one side. This time everything looked good, and both neighbors congratulated us for getting it in. I felt good since it took his "buddy" eight tries.

In the morning we had to get back out. Dad had gone for a walk to scope out the best way to exit the night before with Jasper the RV Dog, and they thought they had it cased.

Dad pulled out of the site fine. Up the road, and around the Fish cleaning house (Yup - they had a fish cleaning house), and out between two trees. The trees were close, so we asked the fellow across the road to move his truck. He said "No problem, but you should know that the last guy who tried to come out this way got himself wedged in tight." We got out and it was pretty close, but we were committed by now. Dad inched the trailer forward, but there was no way it would fit. The awning was going to catch on the tree. He had to back up and try again. The fellow on the other side came out of his trailer and added "Watch the slope by the tree on the left - if you come too close to that one, it will tip your trailer into the other tree. Dad backed it up again, moving a bit to the left but not so much to tip the trailer. He inched it forward and I guided him, the awning just touched, chipping the bark, but not anything serious. We had made it out.

Dad suggested that it looked quite a bit wider last night.

I think we will look for a pull-through tomorrow.