Day 19

I’m gaining a true appreciation for modern conveniences on this trip. Last night, after the kids were in bed, I did two loads of laundry in large buckets. I had to heat up three big pots of water, and once I got everything washed, I started on the daunting task of wringing out twelve pairs of jeans, four shirts, and a jacket by hand. Holy cow, that is hard. Jeff came back when I had about half of them clothespinned to a line; he had gone on a walk looking for the bathrooms, and found that there was a tiny laundry building hidden among the cabins at the front. UGH! Oh well, it was a learning experience anyway. We finished hanging the clothes on the clothesline, and took everything to the dryers in the morning.

Drove north again to Redwoods National Park. Oh. My. Gosh. Big trees! And banana slugs. We walked around a little bit, had a picnic, and back on the road south towards Napa. It’s about five hours of driving, plus an hour or two for dinner, so we won’t get there until probably 10pm or later.

We drove through some construction up in the mountains and saw the oddest orange sign: KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE ROAD. Jeff and I looked at each other and said, “Well, duh!” A mile later, though, we saw the reason for the sign. The road runs along the edge of a 200-foot cliff, and in the middle of the valley is a bridge that’s being constructed. It looks like it rises out of the middle of nowhere and it towers over the river below. It’s quite a sight! (This is another topic that’s much more effective with a picture. Sigh—someday I’ll get to upload!

It’s almost dark now, and for the last thirty minutes or so we’ve been mostly out of the mountains and driving through wine country. It’s quite pretty here, zipping past acres and acres of vineyards as far as you can see. Levi keeps yelling, “I wanna stop and eat da grapes!” The concept that these grapes are not for eating is one that he can’t quite grasp.

Total miles today: 357