Friday, December 29, 2017

PARTAY IN THE HOOD.

Day 110 – 34 degrees this morning, very foggy. At 10 a.m. a large travel trailer arrived and with all the empty sites in this campground, guess which one they chose to camp in? Yep, right next to us. The man who was driving the truck parked nearby, got out & walked all around the sites in the area, scoping them out (including ours), and booked the site next to us. He closely resembled the late James Gandolfini during his role in “The Sopranos”. He did not just talk to his wife, he yelled.  Every conversation was at full pitch. Uh-oh, This did not bode well. Then we saw his wife filling out the payment envelopes reserving other sites around us. They were holding campsites for other people who’d be arriving later. Oh, goody.

We left to go into the town of Rio Vista to pick up some supplies. When we got back, we saw that a camper truck had arrived & taken one of the sites reserved by their friends. That campsite was close to us & across from them. They had teenage children and a large, loud, unruly dog.

We left at 11:15 to take a drive to explore the Delta and do some more birdwatching. There’s something called the “Delta Loop” and we’d seen signs for it. We checked it out and suddenly felt transported to the south – part Mississippi and part Louisiana. The river was higher than the surrounding countryside there, so it had to be confined within dikes just to allow it to continue flowing within the raised dikes.  The land was situated lower than the river because so much water has been pumped out of the underground aquifer for agriculture and other uses, causing the land to sink. The Central Valley is a huge, flat valley. Very green. It appears everything grows here.  Orchards of fruit trees. Olive trees lined up for miles surrounding vineyards.  Old-growth vines of grapes. Wineries.  Farm stands, farmer’s markets. Vegetables. Even sod for suburban lawns. EVERYTHING. Oh, and cows, and horses, and sheep, and goats, etc. The Sacramento River goes through with its many tributaries, flowing into the San Francisco Bay. The River was much bigger than we’d realized. Very large ships go through. The Delta Loop is where you can drive along the tops of the dikes on a small road and view all of this from the viewpoint of being high up with the river and waterways being almost level with the road and the farmlands far below (totally flood-prone). There are many marinas & resorts along the dikes. Mixed in with farms & farmlands. And older houses & trailer parks that are basically falling apart. Very different. You feel like you’ve crossed into another country.

Delta Loop Drive, Rio Vista, CA

Delta Loop Drive, Rio Vista, CA

Boats on the left and RV park below on the right. Delta Loop Drive, Rio Vista, CA

Boats on the right and farmland below to the left, Delta Loop Drive, Rio Vista, CA

Houses on stilts, just Like Louisiana. Delta Loop Drive, Rio Vista, CA

Banana trees! Delta Loop Drive, Rio Vista, CA

Boating resort, Delta Loop Drive, Rio Vista, CA

Delta Loop Drive, Rio Vista, CA

Delta Loop Drive, Rio Vista, CA

Huge number of Snow Geese in the distance, Delta Loop Drive, Rio Vista, CA

We drove into Lodi for gas – it was cheaper there – and to a health store to get some protein powder. The city was much bigger than we thought it would be. Old town Lodi was charming, a blast from the past.

Nice old town section, Lodi, CA

Nice old town section, Lodi, CA

We took small country roads from Lodi north through wine country. We had no idea that the Lodi area was like Napa or Sonoma. Miles and miles of vineyards, winery routes, wine tasting, and even some grapes still on the vines.

Grapes on the vine, Lodi, CA

We stopped at the Cosumnes River Preserve. The parking lot was full & we were lucky to be able to get a spot. We ate our lunch and went to the visitor’s center. There, we picked up a guide to all the hiking trails & decided to go on the Wetlands Walk. This place is a birder’s paradise. Lots of people hiking the miles of trails. Kayaking and canoeing, too, but the launch was the step-from-a-dock kind of launch which doesn’t work for us. Everywhere we stopped people were looking at birds through scopes, cameras or binoculars. Some of these people were experienced birders who could identify even the most obscure birds. We walked for a couple of hours, lots of pictures, and a good amount of scenery. The high was 59 degrees, partly sunny.

Killdeer, Cosumnes River Preserve, Galt, CA

To see lots more pictures of the Cosumnes River Preserve,
Click Here

Then we drove back to Staten Island Road and the Land Conservancy Preserve where we’d driven and seen so many migrating birds a couple of days ago. We wanted to do sunset again & experience many thousands of birds flying overhead & settling in for the evening.

Sandhill Crane, Staten Island Preserve, Staten Island, CA

To see lots more pictures of the Staten Island Preserve,
Click Here

It had just gotten dark when we arrived back at the RV. The party was in full swing. A third campsite near us had been filled with a large 5th-wheel trailer & truck. That, and a car and a big tent, all joined in the revelry. There was the boom-box with the vibrating base, yelling and shouting, barking dogs, smaller and older children.  And it really did look like the Sopranos revisited, coming out to play for the New Year’s Eve weekend.  Hey, it’s a free country & they’ve got a right, but what had started for us as an excellent campground, turned into a potential weekend nightmare. We closed the shades and ceiling vents and windows, and at bedtime put in the earplugs. All was quiet again for us.