Westside (5)

The weekend camping trip that follows coming home from summer is probably the most important trip of the whole year. Lots of people laughed at me when they asked if we were going out again and I said, “Of course.” And we don’t go out because we are already in camping withdrawal. This is a critically important, specifically designated reassurance trip. It’s a gear change and a way to slide back into normalcy before the post vacation depression has a chance to set in. I intentionally plan the return home leaving very little time to think before school work days start. I set myself up so that I have tons of work to do right away, and am a little stressed about getting it all done. That’s the aim and it works like a charm. I’ve learned over the years that the last thing I need is time to think and reflect. That never goes well.

It’s a strange thing, when you’ve spent the past 2+ months with your spouse, intensely together, for better or for worse, in a seventeen foot trailer, to then leave for work the next morning and say, “Bye. Have a good day.” Don’t get me wrong, every summer we almost get divorced at least once. But when you’re inseparably together for that amount of time, you’re going to be working through some shit. And by the time you’ve done all that, you end up pretty tight. Or divorced. Or (as some of my colleagues speculated on how they might fare), one person down and one going to jail. So we both felt the melancholy a couple days after we got back, but then just like that, we headed out for a very normal weekend in our favorite area. We are taking a weekend off after the next one (which is also in Bodega Bay), so that we can clean out the car and give Dory a bath. It’s just important to not do that too soon.

Bodega Bay is a guaranteed mood booster. We love everything about it and could repeat the same things, going to the same places, a million times without getting tired of it. We usually even manage to find something just a little bit new too. This time, Richard rode a tried and true route up Bay Hill to get a huge, delicious scone at Wild Flour Bread. I did have work to do, but the service is great. AT&T has really stepped up their 5g game and we have found improved cell coverage where there used to be little to none.

In the afternoon, I met him in Duncans Mills where we found a nice new hike. This one is called the “Islands in the Sky Loop Trail.” It starts close to the Russian River, but then climbs steeply up to an open meadowy area where you can see the ocean fog on one side, and golden grassy hills on the other. There are many redwood groves in these parts, and most of the trail was cool and shady. It was about four miles round trip, with nine hundred feet of climbing. Nice hike.

We hit our place, La Bodeguita, for dinner. It did not disappoint. It is comforting to be in a very familiar and very beautiful place. It’s a short and easy drive from home, with very little highway time. I will plan to land here every single year, until we’re retired, to bounce back after the summer.

The official changeover has taken place. Summer travel things are getting put away, while recipes and pantry items are getting evaluated and graded based on how much they were used. For the culinary minded among you, mango chutney and sour cherry spread will be upgraded to larger containers, while Romesco, polenta, and tomato paste are getting the boot. I grilled more this summer than last, and did Blue Aprons mostly only in the beginning. Still need to figure out a solution for “I don’t want to cook” when there are no restaurants anywhere.

There’s no place like home, and our home is mighty fine. I mean, it would be nice to not be staring at small bulldozers out my window. That would be mightier and finer. But that day will come…

Total miles: 79.8, 16.9 mpg, 2 hours 29 min. Site 36 no hookups. Strong 5g for both. Good dump. Pay $7 by check or cash at kiosk. Great solar.