California has great state parks, one of my favorites is Moro Canyon which is nestled between Laguna Beach and Newport Beach. This campsite is perched about 200ft above the road and beach with all of the sites on a step formation giving every campsite an amazing view of the ocean. The park also had full hook ups so I could really relax and explore and that I did getting on my bike and touring through laguna beach and seeing everything it had to offer. 

From there I headed to Long Beach staying at a small RV resort right by the ocean. this was a great location especially with my bike since I was less then a mile from downtown and close to so many things. That being said, it had been so long since I had been in a truly urban area I was not ready for the night to be as bright as the day! That being said it was a lot of fun, I got to a farmer market, hit up another Drag Show (the most expensive and probably the worst of all I saw) and just explored as much as I could for free.  Probably the best thing I did was go to the laugh factory which was a half mile from where I was staying. I realized that it had been probably 7 or 8 years since I last saw a standup show. While it was surprisingly inexpensive, it was really great with two of the writer of "the Neighborhood."  Granted, I already think that show is one of the best written shows and listening to these two I can understand why.

I also learned that Dodger fans really like politics and its time to think about Christmas!

We made our way to San Diego, about a mile out side the beach Joy perked up and slowly started to go crazy. One of Joys favorite things in the world is to run and play on the beach and as soon as we checked in at the RV site was went to the Dog beach. It was hard to contain her excitement when we parked and sure enough the moment I could free her from the leash she was in the water with the biggest smile like she was saying "I'm Home!" of course we stayed for the next hour until her limp started to come back.  It was so fun to watch her!

But my time in San Diego was not about getting Joy to the beach I had work to do! So I met up with Ross, the Finance Chair at my church who is stuck down there caring for his mother. It was great to see him and be able to work through a few things. 

I also wanted to meet up with my Uncle's Husband. As many of you know the week before COVID hit I was down in San Diego sitting with my uncle in his last days. He died the Thursday before everything shut down and that marked the beginning of the most intense part of my adult life, so much so I had not had the chance to get back down or even see the grave. So I met up with Joe for lunch at the stone brewery across form his house and we drove up to the cemetery.  It was good to see the grave and really good to catch up with Joe.

While in San Diego I could not skip going to the Hillcrest neighborhood. I also got to catch a drag brunch which was a lot of fun!!!

After leaving the north rim I headed from the beautiful 50-70 degree temps I had been enjoying since the middle of August to the 110 degree temps of Camp Verde. which would have been OK had my AC not decided to fall apart! thankfully I was able to get it fixed and enjoy the couple days I was spending there.  

On my way to Camp Verde we stopped at an old mormon settlement that is thought of as the "start"  the Grand Canyon, Lee's Ferry. it was interesting to see the ruins of the old settlement but what really struck me was the Colorado and watching this river that I had seen so many times on this trip and thinking about its impact and importance to so many people and to nature itself.  This river has changed the world around itself and literally carved its path to move life through so much of our country not only for human use but for the habitats it touches,

By Lee's Ferry you have the bridge that crosses the Colorado and the Navaho's have an interpretation center and walking bridge.  I went about a quarter of the way across the bridge, but I am a big wimp when it comes to heights so I turned back giving me a little time to read the interpretive information about the Navaho in that area. My drive to camp verde took me through Sedona where I got one more chance to enjoy those beautiful red rocks and Verde Ranch (the RV park in Camp Verde)was exactly what I needed t regroup before heading back to California for the last leg of my trip.   I have to say this was also the cheapest and nicest park I stayed at for $32 per night they had an amazing clubhouse with two hot tubs a giant pool, weight room and so much more, such a col place.. 

Back in January, I realized that I better book out the holidays so that Id have a place to land so I figured that the north rim of the Grand Canyon would be fun and being that it is not close to anywhere who knows when I'd have the chance to get to it again. Am I glad I went there. The other times I had been to the Grand Canyon (South Rim) I have always been awestruck with the beauty and expanse of the canyon but with so many people it was always hard to really enjoy. The North Rim was like being in a completely different park. While it was still full, both the campground, cabins, and lodges it was not that bad being able to get to the most scenic places without fighting crowds or jostling to get a view. In fact, there were times I forgot other people were there especially when sitting in the many quiet overlooks. I even got to see a lot of wild life and was able to go to their evening star gazing program and listened to a presentation from a guy who spends months out of the year touring the western part of the canyon which is inaccessible to most people. his photos were amazing! It wa an interesting place to think and begin to start planning for what will come next.