Low Expectations, however . . . and Kayaking to Ahjumawi Lava Springs State Park

This day was full of activities for which we didn't have high expectations, however, they all turned out to be good experiences in their own way. We were staying at a privately owned campground in northern California, and we were disappointed with the noisy campers and crowds of people jammed into this small space. We found out that part of the crowd was a church group that was cooking all their meals together under the pavilion. They were also having a church service on Sunday morning before they left. We asked if we could join them because we hadn't found many churches in our neighborhood. We had low expectations, however, it was good to see it turned out to be a fine Sunday service in the campground.

Likewise, we had low expectations for our kayaking trip for the day. We were heading to Ahjumawi Lava Springs State Park--the only park we had ever heard of that you can't drive into. There were no roads in the park, and the only way to get there was via boat. The local ranger at Old Station, California, hadn't gone there for many years. Her only suggestion was to bring bug spray--lots of bug spray. She even used the term "vicious" when describing the mosquitoes at Ahjumawi State Park. So we had low expectations, however, the wind was blowing enough to put ripples on the water, and that kept the bugs at bay.

It was a long dirt road to the boat entry point, and google maps labeled this area, "rat farm." A name that like that would give us some more low expectations. But we aired up the boat and started paddling against the wind towards Ahjumawi State Park.

We had read that migrating birds love this little waterway, because it is so protected from people and boat traffic. So in the spring and fall this can be a great place to go bird watching. But we had low expectations for seeing birds in the middle of the summer. However, some of the local birds showed up to give us a good show.

We're not sure of the name of this pointy-beaked-red-eyed-diving-water bird. But they continued swimming just far enough in front of us to tease Denisa to try to get them in focus.

Straight ahead of us was the state park that we had read about--Ahjumawi Lava Springs State Park. It was named after the tribe that once lived here, and Ahjumawi means "river people."

The only wildlife we found were a couple of curiously-shaped turtles sunning on the bank.

When we paddled out of the entry cove, we had to make a decision between going east towards the big lake, or west to Horr Pond. We chose west in expectation of going all the way to Tule River, with views of Lassen Peak ahead of us. But after a couple miles of paddling against the wind, we decided it was time to turn around.

Another local bird showed up for lunch. We had read about the unique crayfish that were found only in this area, and were on the protected list.

We watched as the gull caught and then quickly gulped down one of those endangered crayfish.

The clouds were building, and it was interesting to see their effect on the water. We had blue water under the blue skies, and brown water under the clouds.

As we turned towards the state park, we saw that a gaggle of geese were also flying in towards the park.

We docked the boat and walked into this unusual state park. While they had some primitive camp sites to rent for $15, we wouldn't be able to bring our trailer here. All of your camping supplies must be loaded onto your boat to stay at Ahjumawi state park! We saw another kayaker unloading all his supplies for an overnight stay. That's the only human we saw in this state park visit. A number of trails start near the campground, and this looked like a great place for campers that love solitude. We can guess that they won't be kept awake by noisy campers like we experienced last night at our campground. 

After stretching our legs at the state park, we paddled back to "Rat Farm" to load up our boat. We had come with low expectations, but we had a good time at this unusual state park. We had worked up an appetite, and we were ready for dinner. We had low expectations for a good meal considering that we were in a very remote part of Northern California and most of the restaurants were closed on Sunday and Monday. In fact, we had only one choice, however, our Mexican food meal was very good.

Our last stop of the day was the Great Shasta Rail Trail. That's a rail-to-trail bike trail that we had struggled to find information about, so we had low expectations. When we finally found it, we discovered that it was still a work in progress. While some of the red cinder surfacing was in place, there were no signs and we were pretty lost. Then we found Peter, who was walking the Great Shasta Trail with his dogs. Peter loved to talk about all his philosophies concerning logging, California's economy, and raising a family. But he liked to talk mostly about this trail that had given him a reason to endure the cancer treatments that had taken over his life for the last three years. So even though we had low expectations, he explained that he worked to get out of the hospital each time to get strong enough to return to this trail. While we had low expectations, this was a good trail for Peter! He gave us directions and we continued our drive through this forested area. Now we had more information about the logging industry, this state of California, and turning low expectations into good times.

Signs in California can really spoil your day

We left our Boondockers Welcome site in Reno, Nevada, around 9:30 a.m. and bid adieu to Scott, our host. Very soon we crossed the border into our sixth state of this journey--California. We took a picture of the sign welcoming us to this state. But we have to say that we saw a few other signs that weren't as welcoming.

One of the signs read, "Gusty winds next 56 miles." Another said, "Wind Warning Area--Reduce Speed when Flashing." We were relieved this morning that the lights weren't flashing, because pulling a trailer in gusty winds would be no picnic.

Speaking of food and picnics, we had forgotten about California's inspection stations until we saw that sign. The inspection station sign reminded us that "all vehicles stop ahead". Because they grow so much fruit, this state doesn't want visitors bringing in fruit infested with pests that could harm their harvest. Denisa was counting the apples and nectarines and fresh peas in the refrigerator, wondering if we should pull over and eat them all before we had to give them up at the inspection station. But the inspector didn't ask any questions, and motioned us through with a pleasant, "Have a good day!"

Another unique California sign was "All vehicles when towing--max 55 mph." We didn't remember being in a state that mandated a slower towing speed. 

We had to laugh at another set of signs warning drivers to "turn on headlights next __ miles." They had a sign EVERY mile! We saw one of those signs counting down the number of miles remaining for over twenty miles. Really?!?

But the most painful California signs were found at gas stations. We really didn't like seeing gas prices that started with a $5! A sign like that can really spoil your day! It's a sad day when you get excited and fill up early because it's such a bargain when you find gas for ONLY $4.69 per gallon.

Another sign of California was the fire-scarred hills. While we were lucky to be traveling in a summer that we hadn't seen any smoke, wildfires are a fact of life in this area. Some trees have been planted among the burnt stumps that rise up to the top of the mountain.

After so many miles of traveling across the deserts of Nevada, we were delighted when California suddenly turned into a tunnel of evergreens. It was sprinkling, and we were enjoying temperatures in the 50's around noon in the month of July. We rolled down the windows to take in the fresh air. We tried to name this smell as if it could be packaged into a candle scent. How about "Forest Fresh" or "Pine Showers"?

When we saw a brown pull-out sign, we stopped in at the Hat Creek Overlook to get views of the surrounding area. Mark was pointing to the snow-covered Lassen Peak in the distance.

A closer look showed its commanding presence in this area, and all the snow on this peak at the end of July. We would visit Lassen Volcanic National Park soon, so we would be seeing that mountain up close.

We got checked in and set up the trailer at Hat Creek Hereford Ranch Campground--our home for the next four nights. It was the weekend, and the place was filled with noisy groups enjoying the pond and each other.  That's what we get for booking a full-hook-up private campground on a summer weekend. We had been camping at primitive sites with no hookups for 10 of the last 11 nights. Our solar had worked great, and without electrical hookups there had been no loud music playing and few large groups. 

This campground was so crowded that we decided to escape the mayhem and take a little drive around our neighborhood. We stopped in at the Forest Service visitor center in Old Station, California, for advice. One of their recommendations was to go to Burney Falls State Park late in the day to avoid the crowds. So at 6:00 p.m. we drove the 18 miles to the state park entrance--only to find they weren't letting people enter. Someone had fallen at the falls, and they were keeping the entrance road open for the emergency vehicles that had just arrived. Fine, we can walk instead of driving in. So we found a nice wide parking area a half-mile away and well off the road. You can see that we were not a hazard to the traffic. It was also well past another of California's signs that said "no parking."

When we hiked into the state park, we were trying to get information about what had happened. We asked another visitor if she knew what was going on. She explained that a woman had fallen and hit her head on the rocks at the base of the waterfall. The ambulance had arrived to take her to the hospital. Then she asked us, "You're not from California are you?" We assumed it was our accent that had given us away. Then she explained, "No, it's because someone from California would never approach a stranger and ask questions." Interesting!

Because they were moving the woman up the closest ramp area of the falls, we hiked the long way around to get our first glimpse of Burney Falls.

The long way around was peaceful, with a bridge over the river that feeds the waterfall.

We were taking our time walking through this forest trail, knowing that the main viewing area would still be closed if they hadn't moved the fall victim yet.

This was a down-hill hike as we followed the river down-stream and over a bridge.

It was very wet in the canyon, where the rocks were all wearing green velvet moss.

By the time we finished the 1.2-mile trail, the area was cleared of emergency personnel. We got a picture together because there were still plenty of people here this evening.

One of the guys we talked to had taken the spur trail off the Continental Divide Trail just to see the falls.

Burney Falls was just a common California state park until someone posted a video that went viral. Now people from all over the world were flocking to Burney Falls State Park. You can see that even in the evening, it was impossible to take a picture without lots of people in it.

But if you hike down those steep rocks and take the right angle, you can make it look like you were there all by yourself. We were walking very carefully on those rocks, knowing that you can fall and hit your head.

It was lovely, but we're not sure it was worth the parking ticket we found on our front windshield when we got back to our pickup. It said that we were parked in a no-parking area and we would need to submit $71 to the California state court. That kind of news can really spoil your day!

Since we were already out exploring, we continued with another spot on the tourist map. As we crossed the highway bridge, we looked out our passenger window to see another bridge that Hollywood had made famous.

We haven't seen it (yet), but this old bridge was featured in the movie, "Stand By Me."

The barricades kept us from walking on the bridge, but it looked pretty sturdy from the top . . .

and the side. We guess we need to put this movie on our "to do" list once we get home.

Still feeling a bit glum after getting that parking ticket, we made the 20 mile drive back towards home and made a stop in the tiny town of Burney, California.  We found some bargain gas for only $3.99 per gallon and filled up our tank. The little grocery store was having a special on nectarines for only 35 cents per pound and $1 per pound for cosmic crisp apples. Maybe California isn't so bad after all?!? But our crowded campground was still hopping this evening when we tried to go to bed. Our next door neighbors were up playing games and laughing until well past 11:00 p.m. We would be glad when this California weekend was over!

P.S. Mark appealed the parking ticket. His appeal mentioned that we were well off the highway in an area outlined with logs that certainly looked like a parking area with the five other vehicles. He had the picture we took to prove that. He told them that we tried to park inside the state park, but weren't allowed in because of the emergency vehicles. He also mentioned that we were old and not familiar with this area, and asked for forgiveness. Several weeks later we found out that forgiveness had been granted and it had been dismissed as "a one-time courtesy." Maybe California wasn't so bad after all.

Lake Tahoe - Have we mentioned how blessed we are to wander another of God's wonders?

We left the casinos of Reno behind today, for a refreshing trip to the country's largest alpine lake. Based on the advice from our Boondockers Welcome host, we knew we had to get to Lake Tahoe early just to get a parking spot. So we were up at 6:00 a.m. and on the road at 6:30. It was an hour drive to the lake from our neighborhood in Reno, Nevada.

There's no such thing as an easy parking space right by the water. The best we could do was a parking spot almost a mile away high above the lake. We wanted to put our kayak on that beautiful blue water. So that meant we had to carry everything with us--that's the 40 pound kayak and the seats and the pump and the oars and life jackets and water shoes and snacks and water and . . . Mark carried most of it on his back for the 0.8-mile hike down to the water.

Our research said that most parking around the lake costs $5 per hour. But the parking lot above Secret Cove was free! We were lucky enough--and early enough--to get one of those free spots in the parking lot that was filling up fast. From there, dirt trails led through the forest down to the water. So we walked onto the trail for Secret Cove. It was a little unnerving to see the sign on the tree, "Clothing Optional may be present on beaches below."

Yes, you understood that right. Secret Cove is a nude beach! But we had read that the nudes don't usually show up until it warms up in the afternoon. It was a little too chilly to be stripping down this morning.

We were the only ones on the secret cove beach at 7:30 a.m., and we were wearing long pants and long sleeves!

This was the second trip for our new kayak. It was getting spoiled to hanging out at beautiful lakes in its short career.

Depending on the direction of the camera and the shadows, the water can change colors from turquoise . . .

to a lovely teal green.

But it was always perfectly clear, and always surrounded by rocks or sand.

Mark likes to climb on rocks, even when they're on the water.

Lake Tahoe divides two states. We were on the forested Nevada side of the lake. But we could look west into California to see taller mountains still wearing their snow caps.

Some rocks sticking out of the water were as big as houses.

Other rocks were barely sticking out of the water, but we could look down through the clear water to see that they were actually huge boulders.

Have we mentioned how blessed we are with blue skies and beautiful weather as we got to wander another of God's wonders?!?

With all the things we had to carry this morning, we forgot to bring the good camera. So when we saw families of ducks resting on the rocks, we were limited with blurry pictures on our cell phone.

We had been paddling about a mile when we got to a shallow, rocky beach.

This is Chimney Beach--named for the last remnant of an old house that once had a commanding view of Lake Tahoe.

Look at the color of that water! Have we mentioned how blessed we were to wander God's wonders?

It was so delightful to be kayaking in this beautiful place on such a beautiful morning. Mark couldn't wipe that grin off his face!

And we had all this beauty to ourselves. We hadn't yet seen another boat on this whole lake this morning.

We had only seen a few birds, sunning themselves on the rocks . . .

or doing duck aerobics stretches as we slid by silently in our kayak.

Wow! Have we mentioned how blessed we were to wander another of God's wonders?

Mark might have been smiling because this rock-lined cove was so lovely. . . or he might have been laughing at Denisa's fumbling attempts at taking his picture from the front of the boat.

After another mile along the shore, we paddled past Thunderbolt Lodge, situated right on the lake.

It looks like they have several rentals besides the lodge. We guessed that this cool old rock house with a watery front porch charges a hefty rental fee.

The Thunderbolt Lodge ducks didn't even acknowledge our kayak as we toured their home space.

Doesn't this large rock look like a great white whale coming out of the water to look around?

It was another 1.7 miles before we finally arrived at Sand Harbor State Park's beach. Our original plan was to park in their lot and start paddling from here. But they charged a $15 reservation fee, plus a $10 day-use fee, and their parking lots had no reservations left. We were glad our original plan hadn't worked, and we continued our search until we found our free parking area further around the lake. While we had found so few people on the lake this morning, we saw that the sandy beach at Sand Harbor State Park was already crowded.

The state park had a nice long sandy beach, public restrooms, parking lots, and then a very neat rocky beach area.

We walked all the way to the rocky beach, and you won't be surprised that Mark climbed on the boulders.

That's a nice state park beach, but it was so crowded with umbrellas and tents! They rent kayaks here, and the water close to the rental area was also full of boats.  This area was not nearly as serene as what we had experienced this morning.

Sandy Harbor State Park also hosts the Shakespeare Festival during the summer. One section of the park had an amphitheater that had nightly Shakespeare plays.

While we saw plenty of kayaks here, we saw very few people swimming in these clear waters. That was because that water was chilly! Denisa got in up to her knees and decided that was enough time in the water.

After a blue-sky morning, we noticed that the clouds were beginning to build. We were a very long ways from our pickup, so it was obviously time to start paddling towards home.

Have we mentioned how blessed we feel to be wandering one of God's beautiful wonders?

We put all of our supplies in the kayak with us, so we didn't have to go all the way back to Secret Cove beach. Besides, we didn't know if the "clothing optional" folks had arrived for their no-lines sun bathing this afternoon. We opted to get out of the water at Chimney Beach, hoping that the walk up the hill from there would be easier. It was not! We got the boat dried off and packed up and started that tough trip hiking uphill through the sand. It wasn't easier, and that 40+ pound pack was hard to get up the steep parts. The clouds were turning an angry gray color, and we were lucky to get back to the pickup before it started raining.

As we left our free spot in a parking lot off the highway, we passed a line of cars parked precariously close to the highway. This line continued for over a half-mile, when the road shoulders disappeared and they couldn't park. This was a week day. What would it be like on the weekend?

The traffic was crazy, and crowds were everywhere! We had thought about biking on the new East Shore Trail along the lake. But the thought of trying to find a parking place in the middle of the afternoon seemed impossible. When it started sprinkling, we decided that we were ready to leave this beautiful place. We were so glad that we got here early to enjoy the beauty and serenity before we had to share it with so many others!