Golden Shores RV Resort

On September 29 we arrived here in Long Beach, Ca. for two nights specifically to visit the Queen Mary.  The sites are a little tight, but are level and have full hookups including 50 amp electric, sewer, and water.  The utilities were very convenient and close for hooking up water, sewer, and electric without adding any extensions.  A little traffic noise from the highway as this is located at the end of the 710 freeway and it seemed that most residents in the park were month to month occupants.  We paid $50 per night with Good Sam discount which is in line with surrounding area parks.  There was a fenced dog run 30 X 60 feet, pool, spa, clubhouse, and grocery store.  They also maintain the landscaping and grass in excellent condition.  I rate this park P****. 

This park is located directly in downtown Long Beach on the water and within walking distance to many restaurants, the Pike, and shops.  There is also a FREE bus service which arrives every 15 minutes just outside the park and takes you all around Long Beach including the Queen Mary.  I am not very fond of public transportation, but the price was right, convenient and it saved us $15 parking fee at the Queen Mary. 

The city of Long Beach purchased the Queen Mary in 1967 and has several different tours available on board.  There is also a separate tour of a Russian submarine.  Aggie was interested in the ghost tour, as this ship has had sightings in the past.  The ship operates like a hotel; they rent rooms and do catering for seminars and weddings.  I feel that the tours are way too pricey at about $29.95 per person. 

We did treat ourselves to a great clambake at Gladstone's 4 Fish.  It included a 1.5 pound Maine lobster, 2 king crab legs, shrimp, steamed little neck clams, corn on the cob, boiled potatoes, and a fresh loaf of bread.  It was cooked to perfection, and there was plenty for us to share.  We had great service and had a view of the water. 

Avila Beach

What a way to close out this trip.  We pulled into this parking area at 2:30 PM and was lucky to get one of the last 2 waterfront sites.  All sites are first come first served with the exception of special events.  The views of the beach and harbor are awesome.  You notice that I did not call this a campground, as it is more like paying for a parking space.  There are full hookup sites across the street, however.  We paid $40 per night

 for dry camping, no water, no electric, no sewer, no table, no fire pit.  Basically, the Port San Luis Harbor District which operates this park charges this fee for parking off the city street.  The full hookup sites go for $60.  There are pay showers near the pier and you can buy water and you may use the dump station with reservation for an additional $20.  That said, I rate this park P****. (location, location,location)

There are seafood restaurants and markets on the pier within a short walk and Buddy enjoyed a long 25 minute swim in the ocean.  He darn near got caught up in the seaweed chasing a duck.  I thought he would never come back to shore.  This is a protected area and the waves are small, but we can hear them crashing upon the shore.  It was very breezy when we arrived, but has calmed down this evening.  We will drive a few miles south into Pismo Beach tomorrow and sample some more seafood. 

Working Hard

Aggie took this while I was updating this blog in my mobile office in the motorhome. 

Carmel

We spent one day in Carmel, Ca.  We could spend a week in this town and not see all it's art galleries.  We paraded through a good sampling of them and also hit my favorite, Gallery 21 which specializes in Eyvind Earle paintings (my favorite artist).  Afterward, we visited this beach in Carmel before going out for a seafood dinner.  We dined on shrimp, scollops, and clam chowder, yummy. 

Old Fisherman's Wharf - Monterey

After our 17 mile drive, we headed north to the Old Fisherman's Wharf in Monterey.  We paid $3 for parking which gave us two hours, plenty of time as Buddy was with us.  There were many seafood restaurants along the wharf which were very tempting, but very difficult with Buddy tagging along.  We finally found a full service car wash for the extremely dirty Tahoe and searched for a large grocery store.  We asked several locals for the nearest Safeway or Von's and they had no idea; they shop at Whole Foods and Trader Joe's.  We finally found one the next day in Carmel, just a few miles south.  Here is a good close-up of a seal gliding on the water.

Pebble Beach - 17 Mile Drive

We took this 17 mile ride through curvy roads which meander through pricey residential forested areas.  Many with views of the renown Pebble Beach Golf Course and it's majestic shoreline.  There is a $9.75 fee to drive your automobile through this private community.  Buddy was very excited to run along the beach and chase birds and surf the waves of the pacific ocean.  The few people in the water were wearing wet suits due to the cold water.  The last picture is of Bird Rock which is loaded with seals and sea lions.

Laguna Seca Campground

We arrived here after 6 PM on August 18 for a four day stay to tour Carmel and Monterey, Ca.  This county campground is located adjacent to the Laguna Seca Speedway.  I can see the cars whizzing by as I write this blog.  The county leases this whole park to the Speedway when they have racing events.  We arrived on Sunday and a racing event was winding down.  Our reserved site was occupied by racing fans when we arrived, so we selected another (better site) as there was no management on site to be found.  The campground was emptying out quickly and the racing crowd all seemed to have 40 foot plus motorhomes.  This is a very hilly area and loaded with pine and oak trees along with browned out grass, typical with summer mountain terrain in California.  We are located in one of the two campgrounds which provide water and 30 amp electric.  There is a central sewer dump which campers can use.  Our site was relatively level, but I did use my jacks.  Some sites were more level than others.  There is also a campground for tents and RV's with no hookups.  Many sites have a view of the raceway.  The water here has excessive arsenic in it and they don't recommend drinking it, so I would recommend bringing plenty of bottled water.  I rate this park P***.  Racing fans may rate this park higher.