Life With Steven: From San Diego To Cannon Beach

We left on July 21st for our biannual trek to Oregon for the Berg family reunion.

Our first stop was Costco, to pick up the seventh Harry Potter book and audio book. We've read all the Harry Potter books as a family and I told the kids no reading ahead while I was driving so Steven read along in the book while we listened to the CD's.

The timing of the book release was perfect, we love listening to audiobooks in the car. I won't give anything away except to say that we found the ending of that long saga to be both appropriate and satisfying and as always, a thrill ride from beginning to end.

Sean and Ian asleep after the play

Our first stop was Santa Cruz, to visit Doug's sister and her two boys. We arrived 11:30 pm Saturday night, in time to catch their performance in a play (Harry Potter 6) the next morning. I videotaped the entire thing with Gannon's camera so I have no photos, but Gannon was Dumbledore and Ian played Malfoy.

Steven and Sean at Wilson Creek

We left Santa Cruz Tuesday July 24 and headed north on highway 101 toward one of my very favorite parts of California, Humboldt County and the redwoods.

Sunset at Wilson Creek

Just south of Crescent City, the northernmost city in California along highway 101, we stopped to stretch our legs and watch the sunset. We spent the night in Crescent City and headed into Oregon the next day.

Samuel H. Boardman State Park

Shortly after we crossed into Oregon, we drove along a section of highway 101 called the Samuel H. Boardman scenic corridor, like so much of the Oregon coast, it is breathtakingly beautiful. We stopped at the Arch Rock lookout and took a short hike.

Just south of Bandon in southern Oregon, we stopped at the West Coast Game Park Safari. A chimpanzee greeted us on the way in, he was hilarious, he waved at us and grunted and imitated everything I did.

Steven and the petting zoo animals

We purchased ice cream cones full of feed for the animals, mostly deer and goats of every size, donkeys and llamas. As soon as we went through the gate, the animals mobbed Steven, who threw the food to the ground and ran.

I bought Steven some more food and the only way he allowed me to take this photo was that Sean is out of the sight in the foreground distracting the animals from Steven.