Friday, May 17th, 2013. I had a restless night as the couple next door had great endurance and were very vocal about it. When I awakened, I was anxious to skedaddle from Eureka. I got out of the motel shortly after 7 and pulled into Arcata about 7:30. Sigh of relief. This is an adorable, happening little town with old homes well cared for, coffee shops and bistros, a quaint theatre from yesteryear playing old movies, all sorts of programs for children, health food stores, flowers everywhere. You get the idea. Like the opposite of Eureka. People on the streets were smiling and friendly and courteous. No one yelling or cursing. Even the vagabond was happy and shouted out a friendly hello from his perch under the eaves of some building.
I did meet a nice traveler in Eureka--Pat. She is a recently retired school counselor, working in Oregon. She has made a decision, however, to move back to the east coast where siblings and childhood friends are living. Pat loves to travel and see and learn and spend time with friends and loved ones. She likes to read and garden and I believe, if I recall correctly, that she likes to sew. Pat--correct me if I’m wrong!
To give Eureka credit---the working people in the motel: Target, Subway, Starbucks, and the Mexican restaurant about 3 blocks away---were all very nice and friendly. The staff at the Mexican restaurant made me a “dinner to go” right at closing time. The young man at the Super 8 was helpful and had the dysfunctional TV repaired straight away so that, when I got back with my takeout dinner from the Mexican restaurant, it was working just fine.
It took awhile to exit Arcata and its neighbor, McKinleyville, as my route took me meandering through streets and some rough roads to get to a hiking/biking trail. This trail extended several miles and people were out walking their dogs, pushing strollers, and jogging along the coastal trail. At a park in McKinleyville, I met Sigano, a friendly woman who purchased a recumbent trike a few years ago for $1000 and then gave it away a year later---it was rusty and somewhat flimsy, according to Sigano. Not only that, but she had sustained some injuries, unrelated to the cycle, but after 2 shoulder fractures, she just stopped riding. Her dream has been to hike or bike the English speaking countries. After putting it off for many years, she now has airfare and a hiking tour booked for July in Scotland! She is very, very excited. Her kids are all behind her and even helped finance a part of the trip.
Sigano, rhyming appropriately with gitano, is a gypsy name. And Sigano has traveling genes. She walks 5-10 miles each day and was a spry lady of seven decades. She had many questions about Henry David and admired his sturdy frame. I, for one, have been very grateful that HD is tough. He’s been getting quite a workout, that’s for sure.
I cycled for quite awhile along Patrick Point Rd, out of Trinidad. At the northern end of this scenic route is the Patrick Point State Campground. It’s really quite an extensive campground and has many walking paths down the cliffs and embankments to the ocean below. I entered the campground just so I could take such a walk. After walking down, and then back up, a trail to the ocean, I entered the parking lot at the trailhead and met George and Bernadette, two retirees who camp extensively in the spring and fall. They were camping at a private campground just up the road, but hiked through the state campground to see the views. George has been an avid cyclist and was pretty excited about HD. In fact, the two of them bring their bikes on their camping trips so they can take at least day rides around the area.
George has a passion for old cars and has a few that he has restored and takes to car shows in the summer. He is an experienced skiier who taught his children how to snow ski when they were very young. One son has even become an instructor in the sport. The grandkids also know how to ski. George loves to garden and says the neighbors close their doors and windows should he and Bernadette walk down the street with bags of produce in their arms. They don’t sell the produce, but try to give most of it away. Apparently, the garden is quite productive because they can’t find enough takers!
George---you might want to consider taking the produce to a soup kitchen in town. I bet they will open their arms in a warm welcome!!
They both love camping, hiking, biking, and just being out doors and together. George has merry eyes that twinkle and a delightful laugh. Bernadette is a beauty with high cheek bones and a heart shaped face, tanned skin, and big brown eyes. What a nice couple!
After leaving the campground area, I got back on hwy 101 for several miles. The Humbolt lagoon area is really cool, with a huge, quiet lagoon, well preserved wetlands, and water on both sides of the highway for a short length of it. I passed through Orick, an adorable town that uses the opportunity to sell camping supplies and groceries to campers, but looks like it also is a small farming community. For the redwoods as a backdrop, it is quite picturesque. Heading out of town, I passed an area with over a dozen elk. Signs are posted everywhere to keep an eye out for the elk. Apparently, there is a large preserved elk population here. The likelihood of seeing elk AND enjoying the redwoods are a big draw here.
I am camping tonight at the Elk Prairie State Campground. I’ve seen elk in the meadow and huge elk pies in the cleared area where my tent is pitched. The ranger said there are bears in the area. Each campsite is fitted with huge metal bear-proof food storage bins. So, when I pitched the tent, I ate my fill so I could store all my food in the bin. Then I took a walk around the campground and met Danny and Debrah, two musicians from Austin. Yesterday was Deb’s birthday, so they flew in and celebrated with friends and then drove and hiked today and ended up at this campground. Tomorrow they will hike some more. This is one of their favorite campgrounds and they come almost every year. I met them as I was walking around the campground, because they were playing their instruments. Danny was mastering the strings on a “rover” or a traveling guitar. I had never seen one. The neck, strings, frets, spaces between the strings---are all standard size. But the guitar body is very small. His fingers flew over the strings with great skill and precision. Debbie was playing the bass guitar. Apparently, when they perform on stage and in clubs, he uses a 12 string and she plays electric bass. Danny sang a few songs while he played. Their repertoire usually includes a combination of songs they have written themselves as well as some standard popular favorites. I was treated to some homespun tunes. They were very talented and I could easily have sat down and stayed. But that would have been quite rude, so I moved along.
The days are getting longer and I am very grateful for that. It is not as cold, but I wouldn’t classify the weather here in the pacific northwest as “warm” in mid May. I am going to close the flap now on the tent as it is getting dark. I have a few exercises left to do, then I will crawl inside this sleeping bag and see if I can catch a few winks. Tomorrow includes some steep climbs. I am not sure how far I will go; this time I will let my body dictate that one.
Good night!
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