We pulled out of San Diego early and headed north to visit Lara’s Mom in Santa Barbara. It was a yucky rainy day to be driving through LA on 101. Our F350 had such a short range while pulling the fifth wheel. We would be lucky to get 250 miles on a tank which was a huge pain. I did not feel comfortable pulling off in LA to get gas and waited until Goleta to fill up. We pulled in only to find the gas station closed. As I was pulling through I got distracted and let the trailer brush up against a post that was protecting the fuel pump. The post put a dent in the bunk room slideout and broke the slide’s bushing wheel. It was a stupid mistake that would end up costing two thousand dollars to fix.
Lara’s mom Lorraine was so happy to see everyone. They had a nice lunch and walked on the beach. We headed from Santa Barabara north to the KOA in Santa Cruz. It was dark and late by the time we made it in and got parked. The kids were tired and grumpy which was not fun. After everyone got a good night sleep and the sun came out the next day everyone was back to normal.
Lara’s sister Angie and her family came out to Capitola to visit. We played on the beach and had lunch in town. The kids had so much fun catching up with Angie and Dave for the afternoon.
The next leg was from Santa Cruz to the Sonoma KOA. Pulling the 5th wheel over the Santa Cruz mountains was close quarters and hairy. The road was packed with Silicon Valley commuters that rally over it everyday. We were clearly in their way.
The Sonoma KOA is nothing to write home about. We took off early the following morning to go visit and interview at Docker. Everything went well and we headed out the next morning to Yakima, Washington.
After hitting the post in Goleta we called all of the Jayco dealers we could find to see about getting in for service. The 5th wheel need a few warranty things fixed and the damage from the pole. Thankfully the dealer in Yakima had space and could do the work. We spent the night at the state park and then dropped the 5th wheel off the next day.
The six month journey had come to end which was bitter sweet for all of us. The kids were so excited to see their friends again. Lara was looking forward to getting back to crossfit. I was definitely not excited to return to an office.
