Hot August nights.

Location, Tehachapi, CA

Hot August Nights is over. After 5 days of fun and sun, we have moved on to visit Budd and Brenda in Tehachapi before going home.

Last Sunday we left Dunnigan fairly early to avoid traffic on I-80 and I-680 on our way to the Elks Club at Walnut Creek. I-80 was BAD. The lanes are being resurfaced but only the 2 inside lanes are done. That leaves the 2 slow lanes a bumpy chopped up mess. At times 45 MPH was too fast as the truck and trailer were all over the road. I-680 is not much better as it has lots of dips and broken cement and makes for a bad ride. We were really glad to get off the road.

The Elks club has only one RV site which was occupied when we got there. We were offered a site across the parking lot with no hookups for $10 a night. That’s not a problem as the solar panels will keep the batteries charged and the refer runs on propane. We packed what we needed for 5 days and drove to our friends Cindy and Gary’s house.

The temperature had increased to the upper 90’s so Cindy and Gary were already in the pool when we arrived. Needless to say, we soon joined them . Don and Bev arrived later to complete the group for this year. Budd and Brenda couldn’t make it this year.

We spent the next 4 days lounging around, drinking, and eating with an occasional dip in the pool. At night we would take a dip and end up in the spa before going to bed.

On Monday morning we drove to Oakland and took the ferry across the bay to San Francisco and walked through the old ferry building which now houses shops and eateries. We had lunch at The Slanted Door a Vietnamese restaurant which normally requires reservations well in advance even for lunch. However, due to the slow economy, we were seated immediately. We tried several dishes and the food was good for a lite lunch. We returned to the pool by early afternoon.

Waiting for the ferry.

Snacks, anyone?

On Tuesday we drove to Treasure Island which was created from mud dredged from the bay and checked out the old terminal building which was built for an exposition in 1939. Later it became the headquarters for the Navy and only recently was turned over to the city of San Francisco. We drove around the island which eventually will be host to some high rise buildings, shopping and housing.

San Francisco skyline from Treasure Island.

A little chilly on Treasure Island.


On leaving the island we drove to Golden Gate Park and parked under the De Young Museum where we went to the ninth story observation deck. It is a great place to get spectacular views of San Francisco for free. We had a bite of lunch next door at the Academy of Sciences building before heading back for more pool time.

On Wednesday the ladies shopped and the guys went to Costco and Fry’s. Pool time followed.

After breakfast out on Thursday, Don and Bev left for home. The rest of us laid around the pool most of the day and played games on the Wii.

Friday morning after breakfast, Clyda and I went back to the Elks Club and picked up the RV. We drove south on I-680 to I-580 and eventually to I-5. We traveled south to Hwy 46 which took us to Hwy 99 and Bakersfield and to Hwy 58 to Tehachapi. We arrived about 4 PM at Budd and Brenda’s. Their daughter Kori is with them since she had baby Jessica and their daughter Julie from Mesa, AZ was visiting for the week. We had not seen either girls in about 9 years.

Saturday the ladies and baby Jessica drove Julie to Burbank to catch a flight home. Budd and I checked out the Mountain Festival in Tehachapi which we will visit again tomorrow. Our mutual friends Ron and Becky will arrive tomorrow for one night on their way to Mammoth for a few weeks. We will drive home on Sunday.

Now for all those readers who wondered why there was no blog, I hope this explains what we have been doing.