It has been so long, but I’m finally back with a recap of what Mr. Forager & I were up to these past few weeks.  It was a roller coaster ride, for sure!  The Friday before we were to leave WA, Mr. F thought he had a job in Ellensburg, WA sealed up, just waiting on the contract to be sent over.  We waited and waited and finally got fed up and called the facility who’d wanted to hire him only to find out they’d changed their minds!  So now we were leaving WA on a Saturday morning with no idea whether he would have a new contract at the end of our road trip.  Stress!!  But we decided to make the most of our trip anyway, taking a leisurely drive down the Oregon Coast. *Note: The Coast is beautiful anytime of year, but would have been much more enjoyable in summer.  Brrr!

canon beach, oregon

We got in a cold but enjoyable walk along Canon Beach and made it to our car seconds before the downpour began.  Trying to be budget minded on this trip, we tent camped the first night– we survived ( our sleeping bags are rated to 23 degrees ) but the wind ensured that Mr. F’s side of the tent, which is a bit more suited to backpacking in summer, got wet.  That, combined with my whining, put the kibosh on the tent camping!  We kept making our way down the Coast at a leisurely pace, stopping in Manzanita, Pacific City, Florence and a few other coastal towns I can’t recall at the moment!

view from a coastal town i can’t remember the name of!

So much beauty to behold, you really need more like a month to make this trip, not the week that we gave ourselves.  Despite the cold and rain, we loved every minute of it.  We discovered the joys of yurt camping ( totally the way to go in Oregon ) and chatting with locals.  Once we hit California, we figured out that we’d perhaps been a bit too leisurely going through Oregon, so had to make up some time.  Mr. F also was able to secure another contract to begin in Idaho after Thanksgiving.  I was a little bummed, not that Mr. F got a job because yay! but because I’d already been looking at rental prospects for the area and well, they were bleak.  So some stress was added back into our fun.

We drove through stands of giant redwoods and inhaled the scent of eucalyptus through much of the Northern California coast.  We spent the night in a hostel at Pt. Reyes, arriving at dusk and leaving just after dawn, so all we were able to see of Pt. Reyes itself was through a thick layer of fog.  Bummer.  But the little town of Pt. Reyes Station was a sweet little artsy spot, definitely worth a stop if you find yourself in the area.  We continued our journey over the Golden Gate Bridge, heading for our next destination, Big Sur.

golden gate through the rain

But before we hit Big Sur, I had always wanted to see Carmel, so we stopped for a bite of lunch and a good leg stretching.  I’d read about the architecture and charm of Carmel years ago and had always longed to see it.  Let me assure you, it did not disappoint!  Such a lovely little spot filled with fairy tale cottages.

carmel by the sea

And then came Big Sur.  This place totally enchanted us.  The friends we were headed to visit told us it was their favorite place and now we understand why.  It is the most “Northwest” feeling of all the places we’ve been in California so far.  We camped in a tent cabin along the banks of the Big Sur River and drove along Highway 1 with our mouths agape.

The clouds continued until we hit Santa Barbara and then it was like BOOM you are now in Southern California where the sun is always shining!  After nearly a week of cold rain, it was a welcome change!  Thanks to stopping in at the SB Visitors Center, we scored a nice deal on a sweet little boutique hotel for the night.  Off we went in search of dinner and stumbled upon the Santa Barbara Funk Zone, a fun change after the more touristy center of town.  But the best part was knowing that after a few hours of driving the next day, we would reach our friends in San Diego and be able to settle in for a nice long visit.

santa barbara mission

I’ve written before about our friends the Jameses and their boys.  Any visit we have with them is sure to be filled with lots of food, fun and laughter.  And always way too short.  We began our trip back up to Idaho the morning after an over indulgent Thanksgiving!

 

afternoon at the park

The whole time we were in San Diego, we were still trying to secure a rental in Idaho.  And no dice.  It became increasingly frustrating, especially after we arrived in the area and saw one rental that was, well, lets just say the Craigslist photos were very deceiving!  After three more hotel nights, we were finally able to move into our little apartment here in Moscow, ID.    We’ve been so busy looking for a rental and moving in that we’ve barely been able to explore town.  Hopefully I’ll have more to share from Moscow next week!  Have a fabulous weekend, Artsies!

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All images by Artsy Forager.