In the Dark

The undecided at last decided. We're camping!

We both managed to sneak out of the office a little early and were on our way to Bullwinkle around 4PM. We had the Jeep hooked to the moose by 5:15. A word to the wise: Driving anywhere in the Bay Area after that time on a Friday afternoon is not advised, especially in a motorhome. But, we took our chances that we'd arrive at our destination, which was a mere 24 miles away, before dark.

We can dream, can't we?

Just about the time we'd convinced ourselves traffic wasn't really that bad, it became really that bad. An hour or so later we were within 3 miles of our campground. Sure, you can do the math if you want. Bottom line: We were crawling. And, by this time, it was dark.

We've never driven our motorhome in the dark. Actually, we had hopes of never having to. After all, as fulltimers, our plan is to be settled in to our destination by 2PM on travel days - 3PM at the latest. On that program, darkness is never problem. But, when you head out after 5PM in the middle of winter - even if you're only going 24 miles - chances are you'll be driving in the dark. We weren't terribly concerned. We've visited three other campgrounds in the area, and knew the roads well. Well, most of them, anyway.

When we made the turn off the familiar highway, the unchartered road became a narrow, buckled two-lane with no shoulders. One sign stated there was no outlet. Another warned us that we were on a winding levee road. And, according to mapquest, we had three miles of this to look forward to. (Yes, we have a GPS with us, but who turns those things on when you know where you're going?) We crawled slowly along in the darkness, with Boris making note when we passed the first mile, then the second. Then, we missed the one and only turn into the RV park.

Mapquest missed the place by a mile. And, we were facing the prospect of finding a place on a narrow, winding levee road to unhook our Jeep and turn our motorhome around in the dark.

A mile or so later, we found a spot to pull up and unhook. But, a turnaround was out of the question. With the help of a good samaritan fisherman with a good flashlight and knowledge of a wide spot a mile down the road, Boris unhooked the Jeep in a flash. With that, I hopped in the Jeep and led the way down the unknown road. Eventually, we made our way to the turnaround spot. A classic 3-point turn it wasn't, but Boris met the challenge of getting Bullwinkle facing the way we came. Nearly 45 minutes after we passed it the first time, we made the turn into the park.

After a good night, it's a new day. The sun is shining, and the forecast calls for warm temps and no wind for this dependably breezy place. Boris has already taken a stroll and checked out this place. Now that we can see it, it's lovely. But, we have one comment for the suggestion box.

This place needs a well-lighted sign!