January 25 - 26, 1947

January 25, 1947

Stayed at Mill Valley, Cal.  ( 4 miles north of Golden Gate Bridge) last night.  Best cabin we have had yet and only $3.50 compared to $5.50 we have paid.   Leaving at 8:35 and it’s really foggy.  Wish we could see the ocean here in the bay but it’s impossible.  Fog either cleared or we drove out of it in a couple of hrs.

At Geyserville we took a 19 mi. side trip to see geysers.  Roads so steep and up grade we had to stop to let engine cool off.  Robins and meadowlarks singing like spring at home.  Feels like April weather.  So many trees look like they are getting ready to bloom.  People complain about lack of rain.

Near the geysers we came to Mercuryville ( a big b’l’d’g. where you could get a bite to eat and a little gas in a pinch) seems like it was at the top of the world.  The lady here showed us 1/2 pt. of mercury (they mine it in the mts. nearby)  This 1/2 pt. was a real lift, so heavy.  In talking to her she told us she had some butter from Garretson the other day! The Si Mortons were friends of hers.

Geysers were steam and you could hear them for miles.  We walked around through them.  So hot in places, our feet were uncomfortably warm.  Steam is piped to houses for heat.  Large mineral bath houses.  Roads away from this place were terrific!  Curves so sharp and narrow I’d call it a 1-way road but we did meet 1 car.  People living here and there throughout the canyon.  The geysers smelled so rotten Dwane gagged and threw up.  Saw 3 deer.  Came past the ranch, home of “Sea Biscuit” (race horse) near Willets.  Picked up a nail and lost the S. D. air in one tire.  Got a cabin at Willits, Cal. $4.50.  Started to rain about the time we stopped.

January 26, 1947

Rained all night  Roy decided to change the tires back and had just taken it off when jack twisted, and car fell down, bent the jack was all, got it bent back but it’s worth less now than it was before.  Leaving cabin at 7:50 Still raining at times.  Foggy at times, spoiling our scenery, which is beautiful, mt. curves, lots of evergreens, big and small.  Rat trap mail boxes.  (A trap on end of pole holds the mail)  Fog all gone.  

Redwoods and more redwoods.  Drove through one.  Restrooms in one.  House in one — ceiling 50 ft. high.  Saw worlds tallest known tree 364 ft.  Some places part of the trunks of trees on both sides of road had been chopped away to make road wide enough.  Thru Eureka, Cal.  most western city in U.S.  Bought a crab at Arcata —(boiled) 65¢ we enjoyed picking his meat for supper, have a cabin just a few miles east of Klamath. $4.00.

Postcard dated Jan 26 - 47

We’re still in Calif. at Willits don’t think we’ll get up to Eds tomorrow we took a side trip t’day to see some steam geysers so didn’t get too far today, hope to see some big redwoods tomorrow  has been real nice so far a little rain tonight 

Dad