Mallard Creek Golf and RV Resort

Mallard Creek is one of our favorite RV parks.  It is located 7 miles outside of the small city of Lebanon, Oregon.  The views from the park are pastoral and serene.  We always enjoy our stays there.  This time we were there from Thursday until today, Monday.  The first night there were only four rigs at the park, including us.  By Saturday and Sunday, there were still only ten rigs.  The rainy weather forecast probably had something to do with the lack of RVs. 

The view from our site at Mallard Creek

Site #19

Our frustrations with our motorhome don't seem quite as dire as they did Saturday night.  We have some things to fix, but it's nothing we can't handle.  We are committed to this lifestyle and hope to continue to be part-time RVers for as long as we can manage.

While Dave was playing golf on Friday and Saturday, I went for a bike ride each day.  One of my favorite areas to ride around is Waterloo County Park.  It's one of Linn County's excellent parks.  The park has partial hookups, not full hookups, but it doesn't stop the people that camp there.  The rates are $24 for partial hookups, with a discount price for seniors 62 and over of $17 per night.  The Santiam River runs along the east side of the park.

The Santiam River on a dark, cloudy morning

I recently bought a new bicycle from Camping World.  It's a full-size folding cruiser (1 speed) bike.  I was having trouble with the hand brakes on my old bike, and determined that they contributed to my carpal tunnel problems.  My new bike has old-fashioned coaster brakes, and so far, I've had no carpal tunnel pain. 

My new bicycle parked at Waterloo County Park, OR

On Sunday afternoon, Dave and I drove to Albany, OR, parked at Grand Prairie Park, and rode our bicycles on the bike path along Periwinkle Creek and around the surrounding neighborhood. 

Periwinkle Creek 

We saw this sign at a house in the neighborhood.  Clever, huh?

Tonight we are at Champoeg State Park, southwest of Wilsonville, OR.  We have reservations here for the next three nights. 

Exploring

Dave was quick with his blog yesterday and wrote about our exploring trip to Los Alamos and Los Olivos.  After visiting those towns, we ended up driving a few more miles and having lunch in Solvang. 

Los Alamos, CA was a very small, tired-looking town.  It's current claim-to-fame seemed to be several antique shops.  We were impressed with the county park, there, though, and since the town was flat, we think it would  be a good place to go for a bicycle ride.

Los Alamos County Park

The old Union Hotel in Los Alamos.

A Victorian Bed and Breakfast that looked like it was closed since all the window shades were down.

These two palm trees were located behind the Los Alamos post office.  Notice that most of my photos taken in this town contained pictures of power lines.  No underground utilities here!

Los Olivos was a pretty town which contained many winery-related shops. 

A picturesque scene in Los Olivos.

Also in Los Olivos was this huge Episcopal Church.  It was built in the 1990s, and the pipe organ was donated by the Pea Soup Andersen family after the deaths of the father, mother, and 21-year-old daughter in a plane crash.

Interior of St. Marks in the Valley Episcopal Church.

We saw WWI memorials in all three towns.  in Los Alamos and Los Olivos the memorials and flags were placed in the middle of a street, and in Solvang the memorial was in Hans Christian Andersen Park.

Hans Christian Andersen bust in Solvang.

Los Alamos, CA

Los Olivos, CA

Solvang, CA

Dave and I ate lunch at The Mustard Seed Restaurant in Solvang.

We enjoyed our day of exploration and wandering!

Turkeys and Other Friends

As Dave posted yesterday, we made a day trip to Lopez Lake, a reservoir in Arroyo Grande.  This park charged us $9 for day use which was rather steep and, as you might expect, the park was almost empty.  The summer is their high season for camping, fishing, and the water slide.

The park was very quiet except for the sounds of the ducks and birds.

We were surprised to see a flock of turkeys in the park.

Near the turkeys, we also saw a group of deer.

The park contained many camping sites and a nice lakeview playground for children.

I always like to look at the trees.

Lopez Lake has a small marina.

I am continuing to learn how to work my new e-reader, the Nook Color.  It also has a web browser, Pandora for music, and a few games, and a spot for pictures, all for no monthly fee.  The main reason that I chose to buy a Nook is so that I can download library books for free.  We've figured that part out, with a little help from a post on the technical forum. 

This afternoon we bought our first e-book, the One Year Bible.  Dave had to call technical support for help, but we finally got it downloaded.  I hope future purchases will work a little more easily. 

Economy?

Yesterday I wrote about Dave Ramsey and his common sense advice that started Dave and me on a path of debt-free living.  It’s been in the news lately that due to the recession, Americans have been reducing their personal debt.  I think this is a good thing!  “Experts” disagree with me.

Robert J. Samuelson wrote an article in the Washington Post Monday entitled “The Saving Mentality is Hurting the Economy’s Recovery”.  If you want to read the entire article, click here.

From the article:

“ “Consumers are deleveraging (reducing debt) . . . and rebuilding saving faster than expected,’ writes economist Richard Berner of Morgan Stanley. In 2007, the personal savings rate (the share of after-tax income devoted to saving) was 2 percent. Now it’s about 6 percent. Temporarily, this hurts buying...”

Well, you be the judge, but if spending is going to save the economy, then let’s do that spending only when we can afford it!

Today’s picnic spot at the Port of Camas, WA, along the Columbia River

Flowers, Bees. and Thorns

When I visited the Rose Garden last Friday, I tried to take pictures of some of the bees buzzing around the roses.

 

Along with beautiful roses (and bees) come thorns!

And that is a good summary of life, I think—flowers, bees, and thorns—all part of the process!

Washington Park, Portland, OR

The International Rose Garden is just one small part of Washington Park in Portland.  The zoo is there, along with a children’s museum, the World Forestry Center, an arboretum, and many other places of interest.  

Visitors to Washington Park can visit the Japanese Gardens, or play a round of tennis.

Concerts are held in the outdoor amphitheater during the evenings in August.   

The entrance to the amphitheater and the Rose Garden offers an enticing glimpse of downtown Portland.  This is one of my favorite views of the city!

Portland’s International Rose Garden

Yesterday Dave and three other guys drove to Yakima for a golf tournament.  Since I had the day free, I decided to practice my photography skills.  What better place to take pictures than the International Rose Garden at Washington Park in Portland, Oregon?

Everyone seemed to be out on the road yesterday.  I had traffic both going and coming back.  But the road stress was worth it because the rose garden was beautiful.  I wish I could load the smell of the roses into my blog.  Oops, better not, someone might be allergic. ;-)

I had trouble choosing just a few photos for this blog, so you may be seeing more pictures in the future!