Marble Springs Road

One of two sandhill cranes we spotted grazing near the wetlands.


Swallows darted between the rafters of this old bridge built in 1908.


The Marble Springs bridge over the marshes.

As we turned off the pavement of the county road, the sign read, "No Snow Removal Beyond This Point." This would not be a good place to be in the dead of winter. But this morning the sun was just rising and the marshlands on both sides of Marble Springs Road were filled with waterfowl, swallows and raptors.

The lady at the tourist information office in Portola, CA, (elev. 4500') gave us directions to the bird sanctuary on Marble Springs Road. She pointed out a pond where she had last seen two ruddy ducks, and they were still there, blue beaks and all. Out in the middle of "nowhere", these ponds and marshes are home to ibis, ducks, Canada geese, marsh wrens and lots of birds I probably didn't see. In the center of a beautiful valley, cattle graze on its higher ground.

She didn't mention the old bridge that we would have to cross as we made our way eastward on the gravel road. Built in 1908, today farmers use it to move equipment between their fields and swallows nest in its iron rafters.

A Step Back in Time

Gene's told me this story a few times. When he was a young teenager, his family delivered him to Berry Creek and Lake Madrone for a summer of fun. He fished, swam in the lake and enjoyed the cool pines. One morning, standing on the back porch of the local grocery, he watched a man drop salmon eggs into the water one by one. Each time a big fish swallowed the salmon egg, but when the man dropped his hook with a salmon egg, the fish ignored it. The man finally dropped the about five eggs and the hook with an egg at the same time. Bam! The fish took the bait and the man reeled in breakfast. When he cut open the fish to clean it, he found the sacrified fish eggs and put them back in his bait bottle.

Gene's always wanted to return to Madrone Lake, and 64 years later, he made it. We drove past Lake Oroville, a large reservoir which didn't exist back in the 40's. Lake Madrone was still there and so was the grocery store. Lily pads and flowers hug the shore near the road and the water cascades gently over a spillway into Berry Creek. Gene was thrilled! A summer of beautiful memories came flooding back.


Gene in front of what was once a grocery store at Lake Madrone. It's now a private residence and is "for sale".


The old grocery story still sits on the lake. Gene caught a fish from the very same porch over 64 years ago!


Snow capped peaks of the Sierras surround beautiful little lakes and pine forests.


We drove to Mill Point near the fire lookout tower for a view of the valley below.

The Sierras

View of the switchback highway and reservoir on our white-knuckle drive.

Terri and Nanaette left Sequoia after five fun-filled days, and we left the following morning for what we thought would be a short driving day. After grocery shopping and filling up with gas in Fresno, we headed toward Yosemite. Our final destination was Angels Camp. This is the area of California where gold was discovered in 1849.

We'd been to Yosemite a few years back and remembered grass covered, oak tree studded rolling hills and thought the drive would be an easy one. Not so! Highway 49 turned into a mountainous, curvy, up and down nightmare. We'd planned on a 2-1/2 hour drive . . . but it took five! We arrived hot (temperatures in the mid 90's), tired and white-knuckled.

Angels Camp and the surrounding towns are quite unique, with lots of California mining history. On a walk early one morning around the fairgrounds behind our RV park, I spotted what I first thought was a coyote (I had just seen a coyote as I started my walk). An animal was sunning itself on a grassy hillside near a rodeo arena. Through my binoculars, I saw it stand up and turn around. Not a coyote at all, but a cat! Larger than a bobcat, sandy in color, and with a long, curved up tail. A mountain lion? I have a hard time estimating sizes when looking through my binoculars, but I can't imagine it was anything else. I watched it for a while until it slowly sauntered off.

Our drive to Clio, California, north of Lake Tahoe, was less harrowing. Saw wild turkey and one deer along the way. We plan to stay here eight nights and will probably end up near Mount Shasta next.

Bear Alert!

Our trip to Sequoia National Park with Gene's daughter, Terri, and granddaughter, Nanaette, was quite exciting. Every night black bears came into the campground looking for food. We were warned to take all food, gum, car deodorizer, toiletries (anything with an odor) out of our car and put it in the bear-proof box. Since the park's opening two weeks before our arrival, there had been eight car break-ins by bears. They simple smash in the windows and search for food.

As soon as it would get dark, you could hear people shouting, clapping their hands and chasing off the bears. Because the bears are black and there was no moon, we never saw the bears. Glad we were not in a tent. We even brought our step in at night! One can't be too safe.


Nanaette is now a Junior Ranger and promised to pick up litter and care for Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks.


This waterfall in Kings Canyon feeds into the Kings River. The canyon was discovered on the Feast of the Three Kings, thus its name. Nanaette loved wading in the creek below the falls.


Nanaette stands inside a big log in the Giant Forest at Sequoia National Park.


The General Sherman giant Sequoia is the largest living thing on this planet! It is estimated to be 2300-2700 years old, is 274' tall, over 100' around at the base and absolutely magnifient. The tallest tree in the world is a coastal redwood approx. 100' taller than General Sherman. The oldest tree is a Calif. bristlecone pine at about 4900 years old.


I told Nanaette, "If you walk up very quietly, maybe you can get a better look." I had to stop her before she got TOO close.


There were sugar pine cones scattered all about our campsite. These are the largest pine cones in the world. They are about half as long as Nanaette is tall.

Tortoises of Fallbrook

Araby joined us when we visited our friends, Ellie and Dennis Knight, in Fallbrook, California. Their neighbors have tortoises and invited us to feed and pet them. They like celery, cactus pads, lettuce and other vegetables.

I'm 4 Years Old!!!!

Nanaette Careccia turned four years old on June 21. We celebrated at the Jolly Roger Restaurant in Oceanside with Mom (Terri), Becky, and Courtney. Nanaette and Terri will join us in Sequoia National Park on July 9th.


Blowing out the candles.


Time to celebrate!

Summer Off to a Great Start!

We headed out in the RV with granddaughter Araby aboard . . . first stop: Fiddler's Cove on the Silver Strand south of Coronado, CA. Araby and grandma had fun shopping, getting pedicures, spending the day at Sea World, boating with Glen, and seeing the San Diego sights.

Here are a few photos of Araby having fun:

Visit with the MacBrides

The MacBrides have a beautiful garden in their backyard where their pool used to be.

Today we are visiting Phil and Amy MacBride in San Juan Capistrano, CA. Amy wants to start a blog, so I'm giving her a quick lesson.