Finally, the last segment of this 100-day journey into retirement. Or, more accurately, semi-retirement as the reward for this odyssey through America is to find a place where we can settle in for a few months and (dare I say it?) work. We have to earn some serious money in 2013, to delay dipping into Social Security. And by “serious money” I mean “half of what we earn now.” If we can earn half as much in 2013 as we earn in 2012 we will be fine. Better than fine.
So the hardest part of planning this last trip was deciding where we would end up. It has to be someplace with jobs, meaning a relatively large city. We would prefer to be near the coast, but I would consider other places. And the plan was to winter in California simply because that sounds cool. Jett has never been to California. But she hasn’t been to Nevada or Arizona, either, so I couldn’t rule them out.
It is too early to actually apply for jobs, so we have to pick a place and, as 2013 approaches, start making contacts. We will probably both sign up with temp agencies and will probably do that just before we hit the road. But we need to have some idea of where we will be in January. So after looking at the jobs listed in Craigslist and on a few temp agency sites, the choice is… drum roll please… San Diego. It has a great climate, some good RV parks and a fairly rich pool of jobs. We should be able to find something.
We have details to work out before we take jobs, transportation and dog care being foremost, but this page is about the trip, not about the problems we will face when it ends.
So here is Segment 5:
Segment 5 - 25 Nights and 1,225 Miles
This is a trip along the Pacific coast, but not entirely on coastal highways. While the scenery is probably spectacular most of the way, the idea of hauling a 40-foot trailer over a thousand miles of narrow, winding roads just didn’t appeal to me. So we will catch much of the Oregon Coast Highway when we leave Tillamook and will catch some of the PCH north of LA, but will move inland to make some time on the longer segments. The stops along the way:
B – Coos Bay, OR (173 miles, 2 nights). This will be a tough 173 miles, so I didn’t want to push it. Coos Bay will be a scenic rest and the RV park is right on the beach.
C – Arcata/Eureka, CA (208 miles, 2 nights). This will be more coastal driving and another RV park near the water. We may meet up with some new Escapees friends there, if the timing works out.
D – Napa, CA (257 miles, 3 nights). We move inland for this portion of the trip and end up in the heart of California wine country. I planned an extra night here because there are so many vineyards and so little time.
E – San Francisco, CA (58 miles, 7 nights). This will be an easy trip that will include the Golden Gate Bridge. I am not exactly sure where we will park the coach as San Francisco doesn’t have a lot of options and the closest ones are expensive (big surprise, eh?). It is possible we could end up east of the bay and take BART into town for sightseeing. In any case I have planned for a whole week in the bay area because there is so much to see and do. I am very much looking forward to riding the cable cars again. I think Jett will just about pee her pants when she sees how steep those hills are!
F – Marina, CA (97 miles, 2 nights). This will be a stop near Monterrey. Of course we will do 17-Mile Drive and will window shop in Carmel, but we will also check out Santa Cruz which is one of the cities in which I would consider wintering.
G – Morro Bay, CA (144 miles, 2 nights). This will be more coastal driving with 2 nights in another coastal town. I don’t know what to expect here, but I’m sure we will find something of interest.
H – Anaheim/LA, CA (240 miles, 7 nights). This will be some tough driving as there is just no way to avoid LA freeway traffic. I am not looking forward to this driving experience, but by this point I should be pretty comfortable with the rig. The payoff is 7 days in LA, parked next to Disneyland. Yes, we will spend a day in the Magic Kingdom, but I also want to hit Beverly Hills, Rodeo Drive, Venice Beach, Santa Monica, the La Brea tarpits, Hollywood and Universal Studios. Maybe we can even get out to Catalina Island. Seven days in LA is not enough, but it is a start. And we will be close enough to return for more day trips over the next few months.
We end up somewhere in or near San Diego. We will book a month at an RV park and will decide if we want to stay there longer or move somewhere else for the second, third and fourth months (if we stay through April). I have a list of 7 or 8 RV parks that look promising and Jett is reviewing them.
If all goes according to plan – have you noticed how often I have said that? – we will arrive in San Diego on December 23. That gives us a full day to decorate the coach for Christmas.
Do people do that?