There has been a crazy amount of rain in WA and OR since we left Port Angeles on the 3rd. Hoped to get to California and get sun and warmer weather quickly, but now the Siskiyou Pass has a winter storm warning! Even a little snow at an I5 rest area near Eugene today, so we decided to play it safe and head to the coast for a bit Lucky, we don't plan much ahead, so we can change on the fly.

Made it to the Oregon Coast yesterday and got a chance to dry everything out and enjoy some sunshine. Not overly warm at 10C, but I will take it. Camped at Salmon Harbor Marina in Winchester Bay. $180 per week dry camping but a nice spot, no one around this time of year, basically have a whole jetty to ourselves and lots of marina bird life to watch.

Enjoyed a peaceful day on the Oregon coast with no rain and calm winds. Dry camped at Salmon Harbor Marina, Winchester Bay.

This video is my first update for our 2022/23 RV Snowbird trip. We are only about a week into it, but it has already been an adventure, mainly due to the weather.



The Black Ball Ferry crossing from Victoria to Port Angeles went smoothly with sunny weather and low winds. We arrived in PA at about 6 pm, so we just headed to the local Walmart to overnight in the parking lot and stock up on supplies.

Since then, we have made four other stops, including a pair of Harvest Hosts member museums called Veterans Memorial (Chehalis, WA) and Evergreen Aviation & Space (McMinnville, OR), plus an I5 highway rest area. We've endured much rain and wind as some large weather systems moved through the Pacific Northwest.

I5 highway through the Siskiyou Pass down to California looked dicey due to a winter storm warning, so we headed out to the Oregon coast. We are at the Salmon Harbor marina near Winchester Bay, enjoying some sunny skies. Gonna stay a while and decide o continue down the coast or retry the Siskiyou route. Mother nature will be our guide. :)

*Related Video Links*
Past Snowbird Trips Archive - https://www.loveyourrv.com/tag/snowbirds/
Winchester Bay Video - https://www.loveyourrv.com/rv-camping-at-winchester-bay-on-the-oregon-coast/
Harvest Hosts Affiliate Link - https://www.harvest-hosts.com/NZB2XK/2CTPL/
Boondocking Power System https://www.loveyourrv.com/our-rv-boondocking-power-systems-current-state-of-things-2022/
Boondocking Waste & Water System - https://www.loveyourrv.com/how-i-handle-our-rv-boondocking-fresh-water-and-waste/
Thinkware Dashcam Reviews - https://www.loveyourrv.com/?s=thinkware

Anne is all bundled up but happy to spend some time on the Oregon coast near the ocean and so many boats!

It's an adventure for sure. Oregon coast is beautiful, wet or dry. Enjoy and safe travels.

Did Anne get Snoopy out this summer? Did not see any videos showing the boat out. Enjoy your travels!

We stayed a few days at Salmon Harbour, Winchester Bay in April after seeing Ray and Anne's video's. Except for a pretty good storm one night we really enjoyed the spot. Also we were the only campers there also. They were building the sewer dumps while we were there. Happy trails!

No, she sold it during the Covid boat frenzy. Got pretty well the same price she paid for it new in 2006. She is looking at getting a bigger boat when the prices drop again. :)

Tons of Seagulls In Thunder Valley Casino Parking Lot Guess they followed us from the coast!

https://youtube.com/shorts/Vg1T6gk4cLE

Passed by this RV on I5 in California today. Had to take a double take. Scary! Are the Clampetts heading to Beverly Hills?! :)

Overnighted last night at the Harris Ranch Inn on I5 in SoCal down by Bakersfield. Good free stopover! Warning they have changed things around since last year. The truck parking area is way smaller as they added a ton of Tesla charge stations. So, we asked at the hotel desk and were told we could overnight in their parking area. Nice! They are also building an RV park. Anne loves this stopover for sweet bakery items. This time though, we got Eclairs and Cream Horns. Thumbs UP!

Oregon Coast to California Desert Route & Stops - RV Snowbird Trip - November 2022 Update

4 Free overnight RV stopovers along this year's route south from Winchester Bay, Oregon, to the California desert.



Seven Feathers Casino, OR - https://sevenfeathers.com/
Camping World Redding, CA - https://rv.campingworld.com/dealer/redding-california-anderson
Thunder Valley Casino, CA - https://thundervalleyresort.com/home
Harris Ranch Inn and Restaurants, CA - https://www.harrisranch.com/

Good solar power harvesting today in the high California desert. Dove Springs BLM

Happy hour in the California Desert. We are in the higher elevation desert, so the Outland bowl fire pit comes on once the sun drops. I got it for my birthday a few years back, but Anne is the biggest fan. ;)
https://www.loveyourrv.com/demo-and-review-of-our-outland-fire-bowl-portable-propane-gas-fire-pit/

After an enjoyable week of boondocking, sunny skies, and low wind up at Dove Springs BLM, we packed up yesterday and split the scene. With the approaching holiday weekend and this being a big OHV area, the number of fellow campers was swelling! :)
Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends!

The first doozy of a desert sunset from this trip. Salton Sea, California. Often there is dust in the air here, so you get some vivid reds and oranges.

Glad you made it back safely.

Thanks so much for all of this! I'm envious.

Happy Hour on the Salton Sea. One of Anne's happy places. The desert boondocking gods have been good to us so far. A couple of weeks in and not much wind, just a few days otherwise calm. Fingers crossed, that will be the norm this season. :)

We have enjoyed our time once again at the Salton Sea, CA. Love the peacefulness, birds, sunsets, and desolation vibe. But time to move on. A hatch of annoying houseflies is driving us nuts during the warm daytime hours.
Next stop Arizona!

New campsite view at Kofa National Wildlife Refuge, Arizona

pretty view

I can see for miles and miles and miles and miles...
Looking out from Palm Canyon in the KOFA National Wildlife Refuge, Arizona. That spec is our RV camp.

Hi Ray and Anne,

I'm bouncing between Picacho BLM and Olgilby Rd. BLM. Olgilby is getting busier but, to date, not too many noisy ATVs. 2 weeks ago Olgilby was pretty much empty. Your "spot" is still open with no one else close. Hope we can catch each other like we did last year.

Cheers,
Steve

Spent the last week over at Saddle Mountain. I met up with a buddy that lives near there to help him install 4 lithium batteries. Not many campers, and very peaceful, but likely because the house flies from the chicken farm manure piles are really bad again.



We bailed today and headed down to Ajo. One of our favs. Found a great spot on the Ajo Scenic Loop. Not many people here either! Likely going to stay in these parts till at least the end of January when the big Quartzsite events are over and the crowds disperse then maybe head back that way.

and Evergreen Aviation & Space (McMinnville, OR) — Ray

We left Saturday morning after a great tour of the museum on Friday. Wish it was open Saturday because its a large place with lots to see. They celebrated Spruce Goose 75th Anniversary earlier that week.

Cool!

Saddle Mountain and Ajo; two of my favorites... when those pesky flies behave. I'll probably hit Saddle Mountain as I start to head home. After New Year's I head to the central coast of California and then back to the Quartzsite area (after the January madness is over). I found there were more RVs at Ajo back in November when I was there.

Cheers,
Steve

Warming up down here in Ajp, AZ. Looks like maybe short pants for Christmas Day



Soaking up the desert sun, I think Anne is part gecko! :cool: