Day 3, Saturday, September 12 - Pancakes, Boatride, Soup

Even though we went to bed last night thoroughly satiated, everyone arrived on time to indulge in Susie's Famous Blueberry Pancakes. Have to say, they were one of the best I have ever had, so thick and plump and light and full of berries. Susie Walsh with assistance from husband, Bud, had 72 pancakes flying off the three griddles on the table outside their coach. Eighteen of us consumed them along with bacon, sausage, OJ and coffee.

Stan Jones, Linda Barron, Barb and Wayne McCray enjoying breakfast

Susie Walsh serving Geri Cederholm

Khaki and Jana hoping for a handout

Barb and Rita enjoying a laugh while waiting for pancakes

John and Rita Ham had gone off geocaching (and rejoined us later at the pier), when the rest of us left the park towards Tahoe City and our 3 1/2 hour excursion on the beautiful blue waters of Lake Tahoe. At the end of the trip I will give you a cache tally (if John tells me) of how many they successfully found during the caravan. As we boarded the Tahoe Gal on the northwest shore of the lake some clouds could be seen off in the distance. Our trip covered the western shore from Tahoe City to Emerald Bay.


After settling in various places on the boat, we pulled away and the Captain gave us a narrative which included some Lake Tahoe Facts. The Lake was formed by geologic block faulting 2 to 3 million years ago when the Sierra Nevada to the west and the Carson range to the east uplifted creating the basin between. There were also volcanoes which formed plugs. Lake Tahoe is 22 miles long and 12 miles wide and has a 72 mile shoreline. Maximum depth is 1645 feet. It is the highest lake of its size in the US (elevation 6225 feet) and is nicknamed "the lake in the sky", the second deepest alpine lake in the US and the largest alpine lake in North America. If all the water drained out of the lake at once it would cover all of California to a depth of 14.5 inches. There are 63 tributaries draining into the lake and it is filled from snow melt. The only outlet is the Truckee River. The Nevada-California State Line goes through the lake with 2/3 belonging to California and 1/3 to Nevada. As an interstate navigable waterway, Lake Tahoe is protected by the US Coastguard. For more Lake Tahoe facts see http://www.virtualtahoe.com/ and http://www.tahoe.usgs.gov/








As our tour continued along over the crystal clear blue waters (one can see clearly to a depth of approximately 70 feet) we viewed the majestic mountain peaks, the ski runs of the surrounding ski areas and the huge forests of the Tahoe and El Dorado National Forests. Everyone was having a great time and also enjoying lunch, when those ominous clouds became closer and darker and the wind began to blow. Those enjoying the ride on the outer deck, quickly sought refuge with the others inside. The big picture windows of the boat allowed us to enjoy the view until it was nice enough to go outside again.


There is a lighthouse at Sugar Pine Point State Park which has the highest elevation of all lighthouses maintained by the US Coastguard. The captain pointed out Eagle Rock which is one of the volcanic plugs. At Meeks Bay is Desolation Canyon and the Rubicon Range. First settlers in the area named it for the Rubicon River as a warning to others that only trouble awaited those who crossed to the other side. DL Bliss State Park is where scenes from the long running TV show Bonanza were filmed. There are many marinas and beaches along the shore.




Finally we reached our destination (and turn around point) in Emerald Bay which was carved by a glacier. The Tahoe Gal traveled into the bay where the waters are a green color as opposed to the blue of the main lake and circled the only island on the lake, Fanette Island. Vikingsholm Mansion is visible from the water. It is a 38 room reproduction of a ninth century Norse fortress. The summer of 1929, 200 workers built the structure as a summer home for Mrs. Lora Josephine Knight. The mansion was constructed from materials found at Lake Tahoe. On top of the little island she also built a tea house where guests were rowed for high tea.


Leaving Emerald Bay the Captain sailed a straight line back to the pier. The caravaners enjoyed snacks, visiting with each other and playing games on cell phones.



Back at the campground a slight squall interrupted "happy hour" but the double rainbow that appeared was taken as a good sign. We were treated to a soup, salad and leftover brisket dinner. Joann and Bill brought their new wireless Bose speaker system and played music from Joann's ipod. The menu consisted of John Elways favorite soup prepared by Barbara McCray, Lentil-Barley soup prepared by Linda Barron and Chili prepared by Dee Irwin all accompanied by Texas Toast. While gobbling up leftover Apple Crisp with vanilla ice cream, Key Lime and Banana Cream Pie, the lovely dinner music was changed to Rock and Roll of the 50's and 60's which led to conversations about the music and what we were all doing during those years. Gene Barron furnished doo wop music.


Bedtime arrived and our thoughts turned to tomorrow's itinerary which will be a drive around the lake and visits from the land side of many of the sights we viewed from the lake waters.

Day 3, Tahoe Gal Boat Ride

Before the ride

Front Row, kneeling: Linda Barron & Bud Walsh
1st Standing Row: John Ham, Rita Ham, Geri Cederholm, Clare Law, Barbara Jones, Joann Bush, Susie Walsh
2nd Row: George Cederholm, Jim Law, Barbara McCray, Stan Jones, Tom Irwin, Bill Beckley, Dee Irwin
Back Row: Gene Barron, Wayne McCray

Day 2, Friday, September 11, 2009 Truckee, Donner Memorial State Park, and Moody's

As we received our morning announcements and were looking forward to a day of new experiences, we paused to remember the 9/11 attack on our country, those who lost their lives, those who are serving our country, and give thanks for the freedom we have to pursue our dreams and travel throughout this magnificent land.

Carpooling into town, we assembled at the Old Jail in downtown truckee where a local historian gave us a 2 1/2 hour tour of the town.


Stones from Masonic Building that blew up were used to build the arch in the Memorial Garden behind the museum




Truckee California has always been a place of connecting the east to the west. The original settlement was a way station providing provisions for freight wagons and later grew when the railroad came through. There were other names for the town, but it eventually became Truckee named for a friendly, honest and helpful Paiute Indian guide named Trokay (the white men thought is sounded like Truckee and that's what they called him). In 1844 he assisted thousands of emigrants migrating west through the Sierras. It was once a lawless lumber and railroad town that still has much of its Old West Charm remaining. Many events caused Truckee to grow including the discovery of gold in California and silver in Nevada,

Bill Beckley in Jail and looking at extensive exhibits


The Old Jail was built in 1875 and was in continuous use until 1964. Built from native stone, the building is one of the few remaining original structures. Most of the town burned down several times before they began to use stone and brick for rebuilding. The Jail now houses a museum with an impressive collection of artifacts and photographs which tell the wonderful stories of this town's past. Besides the railroad other important industries included logging and lumber mills, box manufacturing, ice harvesting, the film industry of the 1920's, gambling and bootlegging.

By 1868 there were two churches, 10 stores, 11 restaurants, three hotels, a school, a newspaper, 2 theathers, a red light district and 25 saloons. If you are interested in learning more about the colorful history of the area which includes opium dens, vigilantes, tar and feathering, the second largest chinatown where thousands once lived, gunfights in the streets as well as the people who made the town what it became, go to http://www.truckeehistory.org/.

From the Jail we walked up Jibboom Street which used to be the main street until the highway came through. There we saw the Gray House and learned about one of the first families who built the first mill. Our guide pointed out other building that were restored originals and explained how many of them were moved from different parts of town, some more than once.

Following our walk down Jibboom and onto Bridge Street, we had a tour of the Truckee Hotel. It is a restored Class A Historical Hotel that has been in operation for 125 years. The proud manager guided us through the four stories showing us the various types of rooms available with their quaint furnishings,


A mill worker lived in this room for 37 years

We particularly found the toilets in the hallway bathrooms of interest as there were no sinks and the top of the commode serves as a hand washing station.

Enjoying Coffee at the Hotel

As we walked down Donner Pass Road (now the main drag) our guide told us many stories and showed us photographs of what the original buildings looked like, what types business were housed there and the people who lived and worked in them. Now the street is lined with many shops and restaurants. After the 1920's there was a period of little growth and development in Truckee until the Winter Olympics in 1960 at Squaw Valley 10 miles from Truckee which put the Truckee-Tahoe area on the map as a major destination resort for year round recreation. Tourism has become the area's lead industry.

Jim Law and Wayne McCray checking out antique gas pumps.

When our tour was over we all spent our free time exploring the town, having lunch in the various types of eateries and shopping.

After lunch we reconvened our carpool to travel a few miles down the road to Donner Memorial State Park on the site where the ill-fated Donner party was stranded trying to cross the Sierra Nevada Mountains during the severe winter of 1846-47. In the visitors center we watched a movie telling the sad tale of the 89 person party that began the journey. Only 47 were rescued and they had to resort to cannibalism as some of the others died in order to survive.


George, Gene and Jim on the Nature Trail in Donner Park

The Emigrant Trail Museum has exhibits about the railroad, natural history, and the people who decided to travel west for a better life. There is a Pioneer Monument near the museum, the natural stone base of which is 22 feet high depicting the height of the snow that fateful winter,

Many of us took a ride to beautiful Donner Lake which is lined by a beach area, docks for boating and homes.

Evening came and back into town we went for our first "gourmet dinner" which took place at Moody's adjacent to the Truckee Hotel.

Owner Mark Estee explained the philosophy of the restaurant is to celebrate local, fresh and seasonality of the foods used to develop their menus.

(Moody's General Manager and our leaders Tom and Dee Irwin)

They use local and nearby farmers and ranchers to provide everything prepared and design the menus around the available produce of the season. The four course dinner paired with wines was excellent. From a specially prepared menu for us we chose an appetizer, a main dish and a dessert. Each course was delivered first to the ladies all at once and then to the gentlemen. Everyone agreed that everything was "heavenly" as we waddled home for a good nights sleep.

Jim Law and his Gourmet Meal


On very full tummies we went to sleep thinking about what was to come tomorrow.

Day 1, September 10, 2009 Orientation, First Wine Tasting and BBQ

With great anticipation, our Monacos In Motion group gathered for an orientation meeting at the outdoor group pavilian of United Trails Campground in Truckee, CA. Leaders Tom and Dee Irwin reviewed the excellent notebooks they prepared for us containing an outline of the caravan activities. After each participant gave a short introduction of themselves, they were presented with a very appropriate caravan gift: a wine duffle with two glasses, napkins and a corkscrew.



For our first activity we carpooled to the Bacchus and Venus wine shop in Truckee where Marcie Roth gave us Wine 101. This shop specializes in California Boutique Wines. We tasted four wines (2 whites and 2 reds) with some delicious cheeses and fruit. This was our first excursion into town and it made us look forward to learning more about the area tomorrow. Several people purchased wine which they then brought to our BBQ picnic prepared by Smokey's back at the campground. While enjoying ourselves with salad, beans, brisket, chicken, corn bread (wow it was good) and apple crisps, we all got to know each other better.

It was announced that the space station would be making a pass over the campground at 8:36 for two minutes and some of us ventured out to watch the heavens and see the brightly lit object cross the sky. The area is very dark as we are far from town and stars shone brightly highlighting the Big Dipper and the Milky way.

Weather conditions for the next few days call for sunny skies with temperatures in the 80's but at night some of us had to turn on the heaters when it went down to the high 30's and low 40's.

Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here!

This afternoon, the final coach arrived carrying Barbara and Stan Jones. With everyone now here, the fun begins.

Wednesday, 9/9/09: Three More Arrivals

More attendees arrived today. Susie and Bud Walsh, Clare and Jim Law, Joann Bush and Bill Beckley. Final two couples due tomorrow and then the tour begins.

More Arrivals

Linda and Gene Barron and Geri and George Cederholm have now joined us at United Trails Campground in Truckee. Rita and John Ham are staying at a Thousand Trails Campground nearby until the tour officially begins on September 10.

Sally and Sonny Richardson had to drop out due to business problems at home, so we will have 9 couples on the tour.

Barrons











Cederholms


Hams