u/CamelEnvironmental57

Just some pics from our recent roadtrip I thought people might appreciate. Lassen Volcanic, Crater, Redwoods and highway 101 & 1. All raw no edits

Just some pics from our recent roadtrip I thought people might appreciate. Lassen Volcanic, Crater, Redwoods and highway 101 & 1. All raw no edits

Just wanted to give an appreciation post for the road trip my fiancée and I just completed. We did 10 days total in a Couples Condo from Roadsurfer through Northern California and Oregon. I’m going to try and break down the things we did, how we did them and what the experience with Roadsurfer was like. This was done from August 1st through 10th with dropoff on the 11th.

Okay, the trip in itself was pretty simple to plan. On day 1 we picked up the camper van in San Francisco around 4PM. From there we drove to Lassen Volcanic NP where we pulled off and stayed on a pullout just shy of the southern entrance.

Day 2 we did Bumpass Hell and Kings Creek - amazing hikes! Kings creek at the bottom had an area you could cool off with the water which was very refreshing. After the hikes we stayed in Butte Lake Campground on day 2. If you stay here be warned of that 7 mile road going to the campground, it was extremely bumpy but we made it.

Beginning of Day 3 just after sunrise (5:30AM) we hiked Cinder Cone - amazing hike but pretty tough going up with the loose gravel/dirt. Views made it 1000% worth it though with being able to see Lassen Peak and the surrounding areas. After this hike we packed up and headed to Crater Lake NP. We stayed at Annie Creek snow park with the creek which was very peaceful and quiet.

Starting Day 4 we hiked Watchman’s Peak to see the sunrise over Crater Lake - beautiful views and an easier hike than some of the other peaks. We made it over to the visitor center and did Castle Crest trail which was an easy hike with pretty wildflowers. We were staying in Diamond Lake that night so we made it there early to enjoy the lake with a fire and some swimming.

Starting Day 5 we drove to Portland to see some family and stayed about 1.5 hours from the coast.

For Day 6 we drove to Cannon Beach to see Haystack and walk around for a bit. We started south down the 101 and the first hike we did was Short Sands Beach via Cape Falcon - beautiful beach with some crazy rock formations. Devils Cauldron was next, saw our first elk there as well! After that we did God’s Thumb - didn’t go all the way out but made it there and did The Knoll while we were there. Ended the day at Cape Perpetua and walked down to the rocks at Devils Churn. Stayed in Eel Creek Campground this night as well.

For Day 7 we started the day at Simpson Reef Overlook which had an enormous mass of sea lions that were incredibly loud, if you keep driving up the Cape Arago Highway there is another small lookout trail with a better view of the sea lions. After that we went to see the Coquille River Lighthouse and then tide pooling in Bandon Beach where we saw a plentiful amount of starfish. The rock formations and walking around here was insane and one of the best parts of the trip. We hung around the city of Bandon and got amazing fish and chips at Bandon Bait Co and then made our way to Secret Beach. Another beautiful hike well worth your time especially if you walk down the beach and go to the creek! Natural bridges was another stop we made that was well worth it! Lone Ranch Beach was another stop along the way with near rock formations. Finished the day at Crescent Beach Trailhead with sunset and stayed in the city for that night.

Day 8 started our time in the Redwoods, we did an 8 mile hike that started at the Jedediah Smith day use area to Stout Grove and Grove of Titans. That was enough hiking for the day and we drove to Klamath and stayed at Klamath River RV Park. This place was MAGICAL. Hands down probably our favorite place of the entire trip. We were greeted by Dave who checked us in and gave a rundown of everything. They had wild blackberry bushes that anyone could pick from so we loaded up on fresh wild blackberries. The views from the campground are amazing as well and the fire rings are positioned to watch the sunset perfectly. The star gazing here was the icing on the cake, we land down in the grass and just watched the stars by the fire - so so so much fun.

Our Day 9 started with the Big Tree and then Luffenholtz beach - very fun to walk around on this beach. We then made our way over to Highway 1 and got to watch the sunset go down while driving along. Stayed in the Fort Bragg area and got some more fish and chips which was worth it.

Our Day 10 started at Fort Ross with some history and we had to get going so our next stop with Point Reyes Lighthouse. On the way back from Point Reyes we got to see another wild elk herd of about 20 elk, another crazy thing to see especially with 2 bulls fighting! We got to finish the day at Trojan Point watching the sunset above the clouds which was yet another amazing thing to add to the list of stuff we got to experience. I know we didn’t see everything there is to see, I know there are more beaches and towns and hikes that can be done. It was my fiancée and I’s first time in a camper van and it was just a phenomenal trip for us with the experience. We did close to 55 miles of hiking over the 10 days which we’re proud of.

For the camper van Roadsurfer treated us well. The only complaint was that we didn’t get a shower curtain and we only realized until we tried to shower the first time. The one thing I’d say that helped the most is the YouTube video about the van - that helped SO much. It is what you make of it and we made the most of our trip. Check in and out in San Francisco was a breeze, no complaints there either. The van drove well and handled everything we needed.

This is a really long post but I just wanted to share my thoughts and appreciation for these states and parks we went to - if you’ve got any questions about anything let me know I’m happy to talk!!

Just a little appreciation for Cinder Cone and Lassen itself - what a beautiful park. It was the first stop on our road trip and we were not expecting how amazing this park was. Finished it off with Cinder Cone which kicked our asses, it looks so easy from the bottom but the rock/gravel/cinder/sand was not fun to hike up… if you haven’t gone to Lassen or are thinking about skipping it do yourself a favor and go. Bumpass, Kings Creek, Cinder Cone are all worth it

Just wanted to share the ring because it’s a piece I’m proud of and maybe it can give inspiration to someone!

For context, the diamond is a 2.01 carat lab grown marquise, VVS2, color E that I got from Calavera. 14k gold setting from a local shop in Chicago

I posted a few months back about the v-tips for my girlfriends engagement ring and now I’ve officially asked the question and she’s my now fiancée! The ring turned out way better than I could’ve thought and the v-tips were turned out great! Just wanted to share the ring because it’s a piece I’m proud of and maybe it can give inspiration to someone!

For context, the diamond is a 2.01 carat lab grown marquise, VVS2, color E that I got from Calavera. 14k gold for the setting, setting was from a local Chicago shop

I posted a few months back about the v-tips for my girlfriends engagement ring and now I’ve officially asked the question and she’s my now fiancée! The ring turned out way better than I could’ve thought and the v-tips were turned out great! Just wanted to share the ring because it’s a piece I’m proud of and maybe it can give inspiration to someone!

For context, the diamond is a 2.01 carat lab grown marquise, VVS2, color E that I got from Calavera

Girlfriend bought this syngonium within the last week and repotted it but it has not responded well. This ring around the pot has formed and it’s been watered well but she doesn’t know the answer on what to do for the plant. Anyone have suggestions or advice??

Girlfriend bought this syngonium within the last week and repotted it but it has not responded well. This ring around the pot has formed and it’s been watered well but she doesn’t know the answer on what to do for the plant. Anyone have suggestions or advice??

I’m curious how everyone takes this turn going southbound on Halsted and turning onto Lincoln. You’ve got the box turn (yellow), you’ve got waiting with the cars or the short 5 second green arrow (green), or using the crosswalk twice (red). Now I’ve taken each one of these routes and the green route is probably the sketchiest with oncoming traffic. The crosswalk/sidewalk is obviously not huge at the edge of Fullerton/Halsted and Fullerton/Lincoln so you don’t want to get in the way of pedestrians… What’s everyone’s preference for taking the turn and reason for it?

EDIT - The map is inverted and is showing as if you are going south on Halsted making a left turn to go south on Lincoln, my apologies.

I’ve gotten down to the final design for the ring I’ll be getting for my girlfriend but I just wanted to get an opinion on the v tips for the ring. I’m thinking something more rounded, softer works best with the ring but any thoughts or suggestions would be great! Diamond size is 2 carats as well but not the one in the pic.