Chapter Nine The Last Sights of Klamath
The next few days Vince and Marsha spend sight-seeing around Klamath.
Of course they drove to Crescent City to check on the truck. Locals in the service department directed them to drive through a neighborhood into a state park called Stout Grove.
“There’s a lot of traffic here for such an out-of-the-way place,” Vince commented.
Marsha wanted to jump out and take pictures in spite of the traffic. Everyone was doing the same thing, so they just traded places in line.
“This goes on for a long time. I hope they have restrooms somewhere,” Marsha wasn’t ready to dive into the big trees, but it was a concern.
They finally got to the end of the road. No parking places, but there was a restroom at the top of a little knoll. Someone pulled out of a spot, and Vince slid in, and headed for the restroom. Marsha took the dog for a little hike near the signs that said, no dogs on the trails.
“You’re not going to take your dog down there on the trail are you?” a stranger asked her.
“No, I read the signs.”
“I think you are the only one.”
Marsha imagined all kinds of reason that she wouldn’t want to take her dog on the trail that said, ”No dogs on the trails.” There might be bears. There might be mountain lions. There might be ticks. The other dogs on the trails looked big. Marsha and Puppy Girl got back in the car. Vince joined them, and said, “Let’s go. You don’t want to go up there.”
It was amazing how quickly they got out of the Stout Trees.
They even found the lost Concrete Bear Bridge to nowhere. It had flooded out many years before. Looking at how low the water was, Marsha couldn’t imagine how it would ever have reached the height of the bridge, but there really was nothing left of the bridge but a barrier and a sign telling the history of the flood.
Later, they drove through the construction zone over the Hwy 101 Golden Bear Bridge going south then turned right and went on the opposite side of mouth of the Klamath River.
Looking at it from another direction, they realized that the river forked around a little island just before it reached the ocean, or at least that’s what it looked like.
Another day they drove through a single tree – a must do if you have six days to spend in Klamath.
By Friday, they had all their laundry done, and by 12:00 they had their truck, they loaded up their trailer and took off for home.
“I wonder if I could drive all the way home,” Vince mused
It started raining little spatters in Orick, where they had seen the elk lunging beside the road. By Eureka, it was a downpour. Lunch at Applebees while the rain had time to stop sounded like a good idea. Besides everyone else was stopping there, too.
“If I can drive through that, I can drive through anything, right? Windy, narrow roads, rain, big trees, fast trucks, I am the champion, right?” Vince hesitated as he bragged.
“Do you want to stop in Willits or drive 195 miles to Clearlake?” Marsha asked him.
So what do you think he did? Did Vince drive home, 133 miles to Willits, or to Clearlake? What would you have done?
Marsha Ingrao - Always Write 
30 responses to “The Accidental Vacation Chapter Nine”
Greetings-been drowning in OT on the job and been blogless for weeks! Breather right now, so am back to the blogosphere. It was bad indeed. I don’t think her parents found out about it, the girl that owned the car took care of it somehow.
LikeLike
Glad u r back! I miss you guys when u r both so busy!!! 😃
LikeLike
My bet is Vince tried to drive the 500 miles home in one shot.
We tried this with 1300 miles from IL to FL, but at about 2:30AM that night our great adventure came to an end when a backwoods Southern Georgian Sheriff broke up the driving party. Autumn was driving, of course and decided to take an exit to switch drivers, an exit completely black in middle of nowhere. This attracted our bubble-lit friend. Soon we were ordered out of the car; I flunked my walking the line and touching my nose. It looked grim, but then suddenly he ordered us to go to a motel and then left! We think it was just not worth all the hassle and paperwork to run us in. Autumn drove to the hotel as I could not walk in a straight line without taking a spill.
So I hope Vince stopped overnight to avoid such calamities.
LikeLike
How funny! Why did you fall on your nose? Too much sitting and being sleepy, or something else? Sounds mysterious! I think your officer friend did you both a great service. I drove with a friend once when I was about 19 – a joy ride to escape a boring party. We drove from Portland to Salem, and on the way back I got sleepy, so I pulled off to the side of the road. She was blind in one eye, so she didn’t drive at night. I saw a little drive going off the highway, so I drove up it to get off the highway a bit. I got my mom’s VW stuck in the mud, bumper deep. Did I ever tell you guys that story?
So back to the present, Vince didn’t fall over, but then no one was checking! I actually did no driving on this trip. Vince hates to ride, so when I’m with him, I never drive. Now, with my brother, I’m doing all the driving. So far, so good!
LikeLike
It was 3 in the morning, sure didn’t help. No, you did not tell us guys that story. Sounds most convoluted and twisty turney. Jodi my late wife had a similar adventure, but I think worse! Left a bar with girl friends, one threw her lit ciggy out the window and it blew back into back seat. The car got extremely warm so they went to gas station. Back seat was ablaze!! Ripped out seat and soaked with a hose. What was said to friend’s parents, I know not. Same car, another time, they were out near horses, and an equine came up and bit a huge hole out of the car’s roof! This after the fire!
LikeLike
That is much, much worse! My mom would have disowned me, I think!!
LikeLike
Hi Marsha!! I’m trying to make a dent in my reader tonight. It’s been a long time since I’ve made the rounds, and here you have a Chapter Nine of a vacation story! I’ll catch up with the other chapters one day, but I enjoyed this part of the trip. 🙂 I’m guessing Vince drove all the way home. Unless a road was washed out somewhere …
LikeLike
Hmmm a washed out road- in the mountains! That would have been scary. Actually there was an area blocked off because of that!
LikeLike
I would have opted for an overnight stopover in Willits, but the big question is Willit or won’t it happen in the next chapter? 🙂
Love the drive through tree. 🙂
LikeLike
As soon as I get to a place I can write! 😉
LikeLike
Kelvin would definitely drive home!
LikeLike
That’s another for driving! 😉
LikeLike
I bet he drove home MVBFM. Ralph xox 😀
LikeLike
Good choice, Ralph. I’ll have to write Chapter 10 now!
LikeLike
Go for it 😀
LikeLike
🙂
LikeLike
MVBFM, does this mean My Very Best Friend Marsha? Inquiring minds here wish to know!
LikeLike
It does! and MFR, my pet name for Ralph, means My Favorite Ralph.
LikeLike
Acronym Heavenly Day.
LikeLike
I’m lost, Ralph is heavenly???
LikeLike
Spot on Steve. It’s the way that Marsha likes it 😉 And you know Marsha !!
I hope you both are well and full of life Ralph 😀
LikeLike
???? I do like being your very best friend, MFR, but didn’t you name me that? Did I miss something here? This sounds like second grade again.
“I thought WE were best friends?”
“No, that’s just because YOU said we were very best friends. I didn’t mean we were VERY best friends.”
“You did, too. You told me that I was your VERY best friend, remember?”
No, now I’m very very best friends with Autty, and you’re my second best friend, Marsha.”
“But Ralph, can’t we both be your very best friends?”
NO, Autty is my very best friend now. You are number 2.”
“Then I quit. If I can’t be your very best friend, then I don’t want to be very best friends any more. I can’t be number 2.”
Is that what you meant, Ralph? Trust me I can be your second best friend or third or fourth, if you’d rather. It just means more letters. RVB2NDBFM. 🙂
LikeLike
Whoa !! Hold your horses MVBFM !! Hitch them up to the rail outside the saloon pard’ner and let’s go in and have a drink …. and put your six gun away !!
I am English and very rarely use abbreviations, most commonly IOU and RSVP, whereas Americans use abbreviations all the time and I spend half my time Googling what they mean. My reply to Steve was made late last night when I was tired and I should have expanded my explanation. It didn’t mean friendship. It meant abbreviations. xox 😀
LikeLike
oooooooooh. OK I did get a little riled, huh? What’s up with that anyway? Sorry! 🙂 sheepish 🙂
LikeLike
Well. A little bit 😀
LikeLike
Justified? 😉
LikeLike
Big river, big tree…you’ve seen it all. I would have stopped at the nearest caravan park if there was no rush to get home.
LikeLike
You would have, and I’m sure we missed something, but we didn’t miss much! 🙂 It was well worth the 6 day delay! 🙂
LikeLike
Lots of nice views. The trees are gigantic!
Cool tree tunnel!
Hmmmm…in answer to your question…I think Willits or Clearlake.
I were already on an accidental vacation I would think – why not?
If the weather was bad for driving & home was closer – I would have gone home though.
LikeLike
It was an amazing accidental vacation, Rosy. It was bad driving, and home was 507 miles away at that point.
LikeLike