Monthly Archives: March 2017
The bachelors: Roosevelt Elk at Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park
We call them the bachelors, the young male Roosevelt Elk that hang out at the prairie by the Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park Visitors Center, where Tom and I are volunteers.
We call them the bachelors, the four young Roosevelt Elk that inhabit the open prairie by the Visitors Center at Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. The young males are old enough to be threatening to a bull elk with a harem, and so have been cast out to wander on their own.
Obamacare wobbles but works for us and millions – Tax credits under Republican plan won’t cover high cost of insurance
Tom, Judy and cat, Pippi, as we headed out on our adventure in The Epic Van.
By Tom Nichols
Paying for health insurance for our family of three was my biggest worry after Judy and I quit our middle-class jobs, gave up our employer-subsidized coverage, and hit the road in The Epic Van.
Thanks to Obamacare, health care has been affordable during our first three years of early retirement.
Toasting success: A 10-mile hike, one of my longest
Ferns and lichen along the trailside.
Well, give me a high-five.
Yesterday, I hiked nearly 10 miles, one of the longest hikes I’ve ever done, and although my feet and legs hurt last night, I’m still standing this morning.
Drifting off in the drippy rainforest
California's coastal redwoods are the tallest and among the oldest living things on earth.
I want to know. Have you ever seen the rain comin’ down on a sunny day? – Creedence Clearwater Revival
I love the sound of rain. Especially on the roof of The Epic Van. And in our current spot in California’s redwood forest, I’m getting to listen to lots of it.
Our latest home sweet home
Tom next to one of the big redwoods in Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, our latest home sweet home.
We have arrived at our new “home” for the next three months. We will be volunteering at Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park in northern California. It has the largest remaining expanse of ancient redwoods in the world, a canyon with walls of fern, a pristine wild beach and herds of elk.
We are beginning to explore the 75 miles of trails and to learn about the park’s flora and fauna. In addition to the elk, there are black bears, mountain lions, bobcats and black-tailed deer. I am happy to report I have only seen the deer and elk, which graze on the prairie outside our window.
With more than 70 inches of rain and wind this winter, there are an unusual number of massive trees down. One registered 2.0 on the Richter scale at a nearby cabin and damaged the road on the scenic bypass, off of U.S. 101. Crews are working to repair the road this week, and hope to have all the trails cleared by the end of the month.
Earlier this week, we took The Epic Van down the bumpy road to Gold Bluffs Beach, an amazing wild stretch of the Pacific Ocean, white with foam, just like in the song. Epic even got to do some stream fording along the beach road.
Anyone planning to be in our area should stop in for a visit and a walk among the oldest living things on the planet, the trees, not me and Tom.