The last five years… for Bob Wells

 

Bob, use what you like.  Ask me questions.  None of this seems very remarkable to me, except for the fact that 10 years ago, I could barely walk and was shopping for a wheelchair.

You wrote I had kayaked 8 states so far in the last article.

They were:

CA, AZ, NV, OR, WA, ID, MT, UT.

In 2010, I kayak 21 more states.  They were:

WY, SD, ND, MN, WI, MI, NY, NH, ME, VT, MA, CT, RI, NJ, DE, MD/DC, VA, NC, SC, GA, and FL.  I can give you dates if you want them.

Winter of 2010 I spent at my sister’s in Florida.  She had done a round of chemo… and we had years of catching up to do.  I also scanned a bunch of family photos that she had.

In the Spring of 2011, I went to GA, and David Hair did some work on my bike hitch.  I hung around to visit with other vandwellers there.  Lots of smokers, a few dogs, a cat, too much time inside watching t.v., good meals, lots of laughs but the exposure to allergens made me sick for the first time since I hit the road, and I ended up in the hospital.  Only time since 2008 that I have been sick.  Living outside is not a choice for me, it is absolute necessity.

After getting well, I resumed  kayaking and did 11 more states.  They were:

TN, WV, PN, OH, KY, IN, IL, IO, NE, CO, NM.  Dates available.

Returned to Quartzsite in the Fall of 2011 and joined the Gem and Mineral Club becoming a rock sawyer, learning to do lapidary and becoming a Foreman in the Lapidary shop and cutting and polishing many of my own stones. I interviewed in the big tent for a job with BLM and was hired to host a campground near Rifle, CO.  

Summer of 2012, I worked for California Land Management for two campgrounds in the White River National Forest out of Rifle, CO, Meadow Ridge Campground and Meadow Lake Campground.  I was terminated before the end of the camping season due to a forest fire shutting down my forest.  I kayaked a number of times at Meadow Lake (used to be called Meadow Creek Lake).  And then…

I returned to kayaking the last 8 of the lower 48 states.  They were:

KS, OK, MO, AR, MS, AL, LA, TX.

Winter of 2012-13 I visited the Big Tent and Quartzsite and learned about a CDL training program for jobs as driver/guides in Alaska.  Since that’s the next state I plan to kayak, I thought I could save money/earn money to help with the trip, if I got that job.  Applied, Spent two months in training and realized my eyes really weren’t up to the task… and I withdrew from the program.

Short term plans call for relaxing… slowly working my way to the northwest, hugging my two little grandbabies, and getting on up to Alaska.

Only states left are:  Alaska which I will kayak in 2013.  And finally, I will kayak Hawaii on my 70th birthday, May 16, 2014.  My 50th state to kayak.  Some family and friends are going to Hawaii for the celebration.  Everyone is invited (Dutch treat of course).

Me in 2009.                                       Me in 2012.

Long term goals… I don’t have any, but I have a bucket list at

http://swankiewheels.blogspot.com/p/bucket-list.html

All I know for sure, is that I’m living life to the fullest, I’m happy, and healthier than I have ever been.

My motto is:  “It doesn’t get any better than this… until tomorrow.”

My new Facebook header is:

I painted the eagle.  Just added text to it for Facebook.

ARTWORK:

Only other change in my life is that I began sketching portraits of people and pets and recently of people with their rigs.  So far, I’m not making a lot of money at it, but have plans to make a set of note cards that I will sell in packets.  The first set will be of southwest wildlife.

http://swankiewheels.blogspot.com/p/art-work.html

UPDATES ON MY RIG:

Cargo rack, platform, solar system, batteries, 1200 watt inverter, microwave, 12v stove, all working well.  No changes made, nothing broke.

Changes:

Added shelves inside my trailer to keep things better organized.

Added a ladder rack to outside of trailer to stow my cumbersome 10’ ladder.

1st, 2nd, and 3rd States: California, Arizona and Nevada (July 2009)

Prior to kayaking Nevada, I had kayaked in CA (learned in the Monterey Bay, Monterey, CA) and Arizona.  They were my 1st and 2nd states.  Nevada was my third.  I'll try to fill in the older details.

In July 2009, I had dental surgery in Truckee, CA with a follow-up in two weeks. Having to wait around that long, I decided to circumnavigate Lake Tahoe and explore and hopefully paddle. So, I headed out, taking my time to stop around North Tahoe... where I could. Not too many places that have "Public" access. I think there is something really wrong when "rich" people possess most of the Lake Tahoe shoreline... and where the public is allowed, they have to pay to park, pay to launch a boat, pay to pee. Must be my 1/32nd Indian blood boiling up inside me. It was a stormy rainy day... and as I approached Carson City, rainbows.

 

North shore of Lake Tahoe.

 

Needed a new tire for the trailer, the new one I bought in Monterey, blew out three days later as I approached Sacramento... my first day after leaving Monterey. Really messed things up. I was riding on the rim... and never even felt anything... and also dragging the rear right corner of the trailer. Air temp was 92 F (who knows what the pavement temp was)... and no one NO ONE stopped to help an ol' silver-headed woman. Took me 2 hrs to change that danged tire... and came close to heat stroke... nausea, headache, etc. Made it to Donner Pass where I slept for the night.

 

My new tire???? Never felt a thing???

Was so rung out, all I could do was sit in the van for a hour before I could drive again. Made it to Donner Pass where I slept for the night.
Next, got to my friends' home in Tahoma and had a good long rest. Their place is a small slice of heaven... and the dog... what a dog he is... Hoss Dog.
After the dental work, I headed out to drive around Lake Tahoe... first to Carson City, NV to find a tire(s). Gas in Tahoe was $3.19 and it was 50 cents less in Carson City. Rainbow as I approached Carson City, NV.

Arriving in Carson City, it had a wonderful rainbow over it. Neat.

Carson City. Boy, do I like that town, in spite of the fact that the first 3 nights I was sick and sticking close to Wal-Mart. Then I decided to get to the Forest Service office and get maps. Then i went up Kings Canyon.... and after traversing 5 or 6 very deep ditches (trailer not in tow)... I made it to a lovely level area under large pine trees. No noise. No traffic. No one all night but me. Just me. Just me and SwankieWheels. I got out, walked around, returned to the van, found something to eat and slept.

 

Kings Canyon camping area.

The next morning I cleaned up maybe 100 lbs. or more of glass, metal cans, nails, bullet casings and other junk. A Ranger hauled out my first bag and gave me a new heavy duty bag. I spent about four hours filling the bag 1/2 up... and then couldn't lift it off the ground... so left it for the Rangers to collect. I was told this is a favorite party place for teens... and they leave all this junk. Someone should teach them better.
Back to Carson City the next day.... and after three days of eating very little, was having a protein fit... so hit KFC... and wolfed down 3 drumsticks. Then toured the town some more, found the Aquatic Center, found things I'd like to return to explore in depth (museums and such)... took care of errands. The next morning I headed to the Aquatic Center and swam 1/4 mile, first swim in about six months. Felt great. Wonderful locker rooms with privacy stalls and all.

Carson City Aquatic Center

After my swim, I shopped for tires... and got run around to 3 different Les Schabb stores before I got everything I wanted. Decided on Radials instead of the thin little tires the guy in Monterey sold me. Requested LTs instead of STs but they didn't have any. Was told I could use the old wheel (the one I drove on for... who knows how far, see pix above)... but for $44 I felt it worth the peace of mind to know the tire would be well-seated on the rim.

 

Leaving Carson Valley, horses, cattle, haying operations. My kind of stuff.

So, hauled my two new tires (wrapped tightly in plastic bags) and new wheel back to Tahoe... over the old Kingsbury Grade road (an historic marker notes the spot). While earlier called the Georgetown Trail and Dagget Pass Trail, it became known as Kingsbury Grade in honor of one of the builders of an 1860 wagon road that crossed the Sierra range here. A mile farther is modern-day Kingsbury Grade. Once I got to Lake Tahoe, I headed north looking for a place to camp, and things where full up or too expensive, so I went on to Cave Rock on the eastern shore of Lake Tahoe for another paddle... in Nevada, my 3rd state. Had to pay $12 to park and launch my kayak.

 

Cave Rock, NV

Water was very choppy... and even speed boats were getting out. It's a lot of work to unload and load my kayak... so when I do, I want to have a long leisurely paddle... and this was anything but that. All I could think was.... "It's a good thing I learned to kayak in the Ocean!" I said that to a guy I watched dive off a speed boat, swim to shore to go get their boat trailer and back it down to the ramp. He replied, "You got that right."

Emerald Bay, Lake Tahoe

Drove on around the southern end of Lake Tahoe, past Emerald Bay and on to my friends' place in Tahoma. Next day had two different dentist appointments, one with my friend Elle's boss... to fill a back tooth, repair the edge of my bridge, and fix a cracked tooth. Right after that appointment, drove back to Truckee to see my surgeon and he said things looked really good. Both these dentist told me... I might still need to have root canals of two of those teeth. Will it ever end?
Spent the rest of the day getting my two new tires on... changed them myself, and now after three tire changes in as many weeks, I think I could do it in 15 minutes, blindfolded. Also had to repair the lights/wiring of the fixtures on the wheel cover and replace the right running light. And also had to pound the corner back in place... and pull the wheel cover straighter.

Had a last supper with my friends that night and headed out the next morning.

Elle's daughter and her Hoss-Dog seeing me off from Tahoma, CA.

Smoke from Fire, taken from AFB FAMCAMP.

http://www.theunion.com/article/20090815/WEBUPDATE/908149989/1008/NONE&parentprofile=1053

The plan is to stay at Beale Air Force Base the FAMCAMP for a week or even two, just shaking it down some more, and settling in to my new home-on-wheels. I just haven't been able to do that with a "home base." I must say, the FAMCAMP is really nice. Last night as I was biking to the Lounge and the Laundry room, there was a large plume of smoke on the horizon to the north. Turned out it was... a fire north of Dobbins, CA.

Now, just relaxing and realizing... I'm home... here or anywhere. All I own is right here. Strange. Today, fixed my bed and am repacking my bed area. Tomorrow I'll do some sewing.. making nets for the doors and adjusting my bed bug net. It was 100 F inside the tent this afternoon and 90 F inside the van. The heat finally made me feel very tired and I took the computer and retreated to the air conditioned Lounge... ate lunch and am about to make my dinner in here. Watching t.v.
Looking forward to the next leg of my journey... heading north.

Beginning of the Kayaking Adventure (Dec. 2008)

Just found this page on my old digroots.com website, a site I have discontinued and so thought I would upload it here to give my back story.  In 2006, I could barely walk and had bilateral knee replacements.

December 2008

Kayaking the waterways of Central California is my way of celebrating the holidays... not exactly Midwest style but I am loving it! My sons are still in Washington State and I'm hoping they will contribute something to this holiday update. My sister, Judy, is now living back in Indiana and has given me a two car garage with overhead loft for Christmas and is trying to get me to move back there to be near her. My brother, Jim, is still in Las Vegas and still enjoying his life there. My father’s second family (my eight half-siblings) are scattered all over the country.

As for me, I have lost 60 lbs. since leaving Washington State in August 2007. I spend my days biking, kayaking, and walking and running. I am most proud of "running" since I have not been able to do so in over 30 years. Below is my most recent outing of any length... although I take many shorter trips in the Monterey area.

December 2008 Beach Combing

Dec. 4(Thurs):   Drove to Morro Bay Harbor and Estuary State Park and got a campsite for the night.

Dec. 5(Fri): Feeling great today.  Put kayak in near campground at Morro Bay State Park Marina and paddled 7 miles (out to mouth of Bay and back). That is a seal headed toward me. This is the location of the Morro Bay Blue Heron Rookery.  Standing four feet tall with a wingspan of about six feet, the great blue heron is the largest of all the long-legged birds seen on the central coast of California.  At low tide, the peak feeding time, herons can be seen standing motionless in shallow water watching for small fish. During non-breeding seasons, the Morro Bay estuary may support as many as fifty blue herons.  Other species commonly seen in the rookery are the white egret and the cormorant.

Forgot why I wanted to paddle here – to see the Indian shell middens and beach comb for sand dollars seaside of the Dunes.  So decided I’d have to stay overnight and go out again tomorrow.  This area offers magnificent views of Morro Rock and has some of the best kayak surfing in the state. 

Morro Rock is one of the “Seven Sisters,” a linear series of volcanic peaks extending from Morro Bay to San Luis Obispo.  The volcanic intrusions occurred about 22-24 million years ago and probably never reached the surface to form true volcanoes.  The soft sediment and ash that once covered the intrusion at Morro Rock have eroded leaving the 581-foot high rock we see today.  The rock was named “El Moro” by a Spanish explorer.

Dec. 6 (Sat):

The hike across the dunes to seaside was strenuous but well worth it.  I put in at Tidewater Park and had a short paddle straight across and beached the boat (or mudded it) and hiked.  Hard work but worth it the second I found the shell middens left by the Chumash Indians and soon reached the beach and began finding sand dollars.

It is a beautiful wide beach. No one was out there… but me.  You can’t walk there.  Some surfers had surfed across and hiked in (3) but left when I arrived.  I had miles of pristine beach just to myself.  Made a couple mistakes though… not clearly marking my trail through the dunes and not sitting down to rest and eat before heading back to kayak.  I was very exhausted before reaching the boat, sat, drank the rest of my water and ate a couple bites of a snack bar. 

After resting, I pushed off, had an easy paddle back only to find someone had parked so close to my van, I couldn't load up.  I pulled the boat out, moved the van – pulled the kayak along side and then had to rest before loading up.  The Estuary is amazing and is 2300 acres of mud flats, eelgrass, tidal wetlands and open water channels.  Over two dozen threatened and endangered species live in the watershed, including: peregrine falcon, brown pelican, sea otters, black rail, snowy plover, steelhead trout, etc.

Decided to drive to Morro Rock – surfers abound there and that beach is heavily visited – surfers, walkers, runners, pooping dogs, etc.  I took a long nap only to awake to one of the most amazing sunsets I’d ever seen. 

Decided on a hot meal and walked through town and along the docks and noticed crowds of people lining the shoreline and docks with blankets and chairs, etc.  I asked an elderly lady if this many people was normal or what?  Well it was the annual Christmas flotilla of decorated boats.  Took some pics with my phone, but have yet to figure out how to download them to my computer.  There was a live band playing at the end of one dock. I watched part of the parade, then found a Thai place and got hot food.  What a treat.  I slept really well.

Dec. 7 (Sun.): Drove to Spooners Cove. 

Did some beach combing and was finding what looked like Jade, Jasper, agates, etc.  A man stopped to chat and said he grew up there and had been gone 20 years but nothing had changed a bit.  He was a diver and going out into the Cove and so I took my kayak out.  Bad idea… not a spot for a rookie.  We joked about saving each other and turns out he probably saved me. 

This was taken from the mouth of the bay, looking back towards the beach... and swells were lifting me up about 12-15'. Exciting to say the least. I had a rough surf landing, boat got caught in an undertow and the next wave flipped it over on top of me, pinning me down.  The diver grabbed the boat as I struggled to get up on my feet again, the whole while the undertow trying to suck me down.  Everything turned out all right… no injuries, but lost a bottle of water… and my waterproof camera case IS waterproof.   (11/2013 - This is a very dangerous location for boating or swimming.  People have died here.)

Decided to stay at this campground Sunday and Monday night – and get in my fill of beach combing the next day. 

Dec. 8(Mon): So quiet last night – the only sound was that of my digestive juices.  Not even the surf sounds made it back to the campground area. Slept until 11am.  I spent the entire day beach combing.  Lots of others doing the same and taught me what to look for.  There was even a wedding there in the afternoon.

Dec. 9(Tues) High Tide was at 6:25am. I was there at 6:45am… I was alone. Had the place to myself for hours.  About 10:30am cars began to arrive.  Low tide will be at 1:42pm.  I’m going to check out of the campground and come spend a little more time on the beach and checking out the tidal pools. Found abalone shells, other seashells, lots of Jade, amber, jasper, and even an arrowhead (believed to be 12,000 years old). 

I’m hooked on this place.  Gorgeous.    Drove back through town and got Thai spring rolls for lunch and Salt water taffy for xmas gifts.

This place is awesome.  I didn’t see ½ of Morro Bay.  It’s good there for kayaking all winter.  The Beach is a dream… this Spooners Cove is a beachcombers dream and the campground here is only lightly used.  In the late 1800s, coastal steamers stopped in Spooner's Cove to load and unload supplies for the Spooner family, early ranchers in the area. On the south bluff overlooking the cove, a warehouse was built with a long wooden chute to deliver goods to the waiting ships. The ranch house is now an interpretive center for the park.

I think I’ll be spending a lot of time here in the future.  (11/2013 - I wrote that five years ago and am still drawn back to that area whenever I get to the West Coast.  This trip, this year, I kept thinking… this is where I would like to retire-retire.)

(11/2013 – I’ll be back! )  Update:  Aug. 20, 2013, I kayaked the Holgate Glacier in Alaska... only amazing considering it was the 49th state I have kayaked in four years and that in 2006, I was shopping for a wheelchair. I now have new knees, better health and a kayak. Thank you for following along and won't you join me in May 2014 to kayak Hawaii, my 50th state, and celebrate my 70th Birthday, the finale to the wonderful adventure of Kayaking America? Next up... Hiking the Arizona Trail, 820 miles in 2015.