Our Excellent Adventures

Too hot to drive right now with Spare the Air and all that so, I’ll opt for a place where I have been and recommended by others. Sufficient parking, trails to hike if you bring family, easy on and off the freeway, and hopefully fairy centrally located (except for the North Bay :^(.

The Baylands, 2775 Embarcadero Road, in Palo Alto, http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/depts/csd/parks_and_open_space/preserves_and_open_spaces/the_baylands.asp  will be the spot. Here is a map of the area http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civica/filebank/blobdload.asp?BlobID=6117 and we’ll plan on parking in the area outlined in red on the photo.

Questions? You can email me: keithmessinger@comcast.net or call me 925-997-9289 (cell) but don’t call during cocktail time!

This is a totally non-official, off-the-cuff, ill-planned chance to put some names with faces. If you want something to drink bring it. Same with food.

I’ll be there about 11:00 with a metallic silver Sprinter. It is a SMB but pretty stealth.

I have invited all bay area Sprinters, don’t have to be a SMB and all area SMB, don’t have to be a Sprinter. If you know someone who would be interested please invite them. Families are ok, what ever you want is ok.

If you are coming, please post here and tell us what you will be driving.

We spent this weekend at New Brighton Campground which is at New Brighton Beach. It was China Beach long ago when Chinese workers lived there. The address for gps is 1500 Park Ave., Hwy 1, Capitola, CA 95010.

It is a large campground with over 100 sites, some with hookups and some overlooking the beach (considered premium sites). A visitor center, firewood and 4 dump stations, with lots of trees and brush, it makes for a great place to weekend.

All of the sites are paved but some are more level than others. Another advantage of having a shorter vehicle. I watched one guy spend a good hour trying to back his 500 foot long 5th wheel into a spot. He never lost his temper but I think he was real happy when he finally got the job done.

The weather was cool with a marine layer each morning burning off about noon. The beach early morning is almost deserted and you can walk for miles to the south. There are a few homes and some condos right on the beach. Must be exciting during winter storms. When the sun comes out, you can see Monterey and the beach becomes much more active. It has fire rings on the beach and people do swim . . . they must be part polar bear. The waters in Northern California are much too cold for us!

Great weekend. Listened to the Giants beat the Phillies on the radio while basking in the sun. Great fire in the evening and too much good food.

We used these little cadie Ice Cube Bags for the first time and they are really cool. Fill them up, freeze and you have ice cubes without any spill or mess.

Checked out the heater and the hot water heater on this trip. All seems ok. Takes about 20 minutes to heat water with our electric water heater. It looks like the hot water heater in your house but is about 20 times smaller.

The underside of our Sprinter looks clean. Looking closer reveals some added components. (Click image for larger size.)

This is the drain for the black water tank which is inside the Sprinter. It is the only component you can see looking at the Sprinter from a normal view. All others are hidden.

The grey water goes into this tank has an 8 gallon capacity. If we are going for several days we carry a wheeled portable tank we can drain this into as it is a little small. We were limited by space so this is the only size that would fit.

Hidden away the hose for draining the black water tank. It is a little hard to get to but we don’t use it much and would rather it be hidden than easy to get to. The gray water tank can also drained with this hose but is normally drained with just a garden hose.

The propane tank has an 8 gallon capacity and runs the heater and stove. This should last quite a while and is much larger than we had previously.

Outside access is through this door. Also in this compartment is city water (used also to fill the water tank), shore power, cable TV (just in case we end up in a fancy place) and our extend-a-stay connection.

Here is the 4D-AGM battery and the fuel tank. Fuel capacity is 25 gallons.

The battery would have to be lowered with a hydraulic jack if we need access. It weighs 132 pounds and is 20.5″ x 8.13″ x 10″