Travel from Shelton to Concrete, Washington

We drove our coach 187 miles, about 5 hours of driving, from Shelton, Washington to Concrete, Washington.

The map route, heading north (exact start omitted for privacy):

Patial map route

A narrow road:

Narrow road

Paladin on the dash, unusual for him when driving:

Paladin on the dash

On the dash in front of Jenn isn’t acceptable, though:

Paladin on the dash

Freeway:

Freeway

Joining I-5:

Joining I-5

A bridge over I-5 in Olympia, the state capitol:

Olympia bridge

Paladin on the back of my chair:

David and Paladin

On the dash again; he seems to be getting more comfortable with seeing the traffic outside:

Paladin

While driving through Tacoma, a semi truck got too close to us and clipped our mirror with theirs, shattering the upper mirror glass:

Shattered mirror

Tacoma Dome:

Tacoma Dome

We stopped at a rest area for lunch:

Rest area

The SeaTac northbound rest area is rather nice, with a dump station and separate RV parking:

Rest area

I got out to inspect the shattered mirror; more on this in a future post (I should be able to replace just the glass):

Shattered mirror

Lunch for us and my Pokémon buddy:

Lunch with Pokémon

(My trainer code is 5198 7224 2799 if you play; my referral code is BT9H6KRBC, if you don’t but want to start.)

Pokémon trainer code

Paladin on my lap:

Paladin on David's lap

Boeing Field:

Boeing Field

Seattle:

Seattle

The freeway goes under downtown buildings:

Under buildings

Paladin on my lap:

Paladin

And sleeping on the back of my chair:

Paladin and David

We stopped at another rest area, and used their dump station:

Dump station

RV at dump station

Dump station

There was a handy map of rest areas and dump stations:

Map

Our exit:

Our exit

Paladin on the floor between us:

Paladin

Highway:

Highway

Our destination:

Our destination

Travel from Eatonville to Shelton, Washington

We drove our coach 84 miles, about 2.5 hours of driving, from Eatonville, Washington to Mom’s place near Shelton, Washington.

The map route, heading northwest (exact destination omitted for privacy):

Map route

Jenn driving our coach:

Jenn driving our coach

Paladin:

Paladin

Windy road:

Windy road

We turn around our knife block to prevent it from falling over while driving… but forgot this time, oops:

Knife block fell over

I picked it up while we were driving down the road; Paladin watching me, plus the GPS on the TV:

Paladin

A water tower:

Water tower

Not a huge fan of tight roundabouts in our coach:

Roundabout

Entering I-5:

Entering I-5

Paladin on the dash; unusual when driving:

Paladin

Shelton exit:

Shelton exit

Shelton sign:

Shelton sign

Not a huge fan of this narrow bridge in Shelton, either:

Shelton bridge

Paladin on my lap:

Paladin

Not a huge fan of the narrow roads near the destination, too:

Narrow road

But happy to arrive at Mom’s place. Here’s our coach and truck in their driveway:

Coach and truck at Mom's place

Slides in:

Coach and truck at Mom's place

Slides out:

Coach and truck at Mom's place

While “moochdocking” at Mom’s place, we hooked up the coach to an electrical outlet in the house. Our coach has a 50 amp cord, so we used an adapter to convert the 15 amp house plug to a 30 amp connector, and another to our 50 amp cord:

15 amp to 50 amp connectors

Not enough power to run ACs, but it keeps the fridge going, plus lights and such.

Me in the backyard:

David in backyard

We spent a week at Mom’s place, sleeping in our coach to keep Paladin company, showering and hanging out in the house during the day. It was great to spend time with Mom and Mike. Thanks for putting up with us!

Travel from Buxton, Oregon to Eatonville, Washington

We drove our coach 163 miles, about 4 hours of driving, from Buxton, Oregon to Eatonville, Washington.

The map route, heading north:

Map route

We pulled into a maintenance area to hook up our tow bar:

Tow bar

Our new Sinclair Trails logo sticker is visible inside with the slide-out in:

Sinclair Trails logo and David

Jenn driving; yes, she drives our coach:

Jenn driving

Enjoying some coffee at a traffic light stop:

Jenn drinking coffee

Sandy:

Sandy

Interesting MAX light rail station:

Interesting MAX light rail station

MAX light rail:

MAX light rail

Heading towards Seattle:

Heading towards Seattle

Paladin on the back of my chair:

Paladin and David

Leaving Portland:

Leaving Portland

Leaving Oregon:

Leaving Oregon

Stopping at a rest area:

Rest area

Lunch:

Lunch

The rest area had an RV dump station; nice:

Dump station

Paladin:

Paladin

Bridge:

Bridge

A small plane taking off:

Small plane taking off

Driving:

Driving

Another Tiffin joining the freeway:

Tiffin

Paladin passing over my lap:

Paladin

Gee Cee’s Truck Stop; quite nice and not busy:

Gee Cee's Truck Stop

Another bridge:

Bridge

We have Sinclair Trails logo Yeti coffee mugs:

Sinclair Trails coffee mug

Sleeping Paladin:

Sleeping Paladin

Mayfield Lake:

Mayfield Lake

Jenn driving:

Jenn driving

Paladin asleep:

Paladin asleep

Highway 12:

Highway 12

Hey look, another bridge:

Bridge

Hobo Inn, staying in train cars:

Hobo Inn in train cars

Day use area at Alder Lake:

Day use area

Our destination, Rocky Point campground:

Rocky Point campground

A rather narrow road within the campground:

Narrow road

Mt Hood Village RV & Camping Resort

We stayed at Mt Hood RV & Camping Resort in Welches, Oregon. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A nice Thousand Trails Encore park.

Dates:

Check in: 2022-07-25
Check out: 2022-08-07
13 nights

Weather:

Mostly sunny
High temps ranging between 77-98°F, lows around 54-67°F
No significant wind

Noise:

No road noise or train noise
Not much neighbor noise (kids and dogs)

Site:

Vine Maple Hollow #78, back in, gravel
Needed to disconnect toad; parked in front of coach (on gravel)
Fairly level, sloped up a little at the back
Medium site: about 60 feet long by about 30 feet wide
Full hookups:

50 amp power conveniently located
50 PSI water pressure (we boosted from our tank); fairly conveniently located
Reasonable sewer connection, conveniently located (1 10 foot hoses used)

Picnic table, fire pit on gravel
Several trees for privacy

Internet (in usage priority order):

Starlink: 53 Mbps down, 10 Mbps up, 72 ms ping
AT&T: 6 Mbps down, 5 Mbps up, 27 ms ping
Verizon: 8 Mbps down, 1 Mbps up, 40 ms ping
T-Mobile: no service
Campground Wi-Fi: none

Amenities:

Garbage dumpsters
Indoor pool
Onsite restaurant

Here’s our review on Campground Reviews:

Nice campground close to Mt Hood

This park has a nice mix of sites close to all sorts of outdoor activities in the area. We were grateful to be under the tall trees during the worst of the heat even if it meant the Starlink was pretty useless. There are newer sites that have no trees, but they were baking in the sun. You really need to weigh your priorities when making your site reservation. The roads are a bit narrow in spots, and they have a few trees that need to be trimmed, but overall we had no trouble getting our 40′ motorhome around to our site. We really enjoyed the on-site restaurant. Their breakfasts are awesome. We camped at Mt Hood Village RV Resort in a Motorhome.

The RV park map; it a large park, with multiple campgrounds within it, separated into short-term and long-term RVs, plus cabins:

Map

An embedded map (that you can zoom and pan around):

Weather:

Weather

Our site:

Our site

Our bikes:

Bikes

The screen tent:

Screen tent

We moved the picnic table out of the way, since we have our own in the tent:

Screen tent

A big rock on the neighboring site:

Big rock

Utilities:

Utilities

I got out my ladder to access the roof; I attached knee pads to it to protect the edge of the roof:

Ladder

The main reason for the ladder was to remove a branch that I’d noticed was wedged up there:

Branch

I also took some pics of the roof, since this was the first time I’ve used the ladder to access it (and I’ve still never been on the roof):

Roof

We took Paladin out into the screen tent:

Paladin

David and Paladin

Paladin

Some aerial photos from my drone:

Aerial

Campground

Roof

The village has a restaurant and store:

Restaurant and store

Village store:

Village store

Dragonfly Cafe and Bakery:

Dragonfly Cafe and Bakery

Breakfast:

Breakfast

Dinner:

Dinner

Plus a game room:

Game room

And indoor pool:

Indoor pool

We were in the Vine Maple Hollow campground (a bit harsh to call the children slow):

Vine Maple Hollow

Campsites

Our neighbor had a catio:

Campsites

Another catio:

Catio

Some campgrounds were a bit more exposed:

Campsites

Monthly sites available:

Monthly sites

Campsites

More campsites:

Campsites

Tiny homes and cabins:

Tiny homes

A nice park. We’ll likely be back here again in the future.

Travel from Buxton to Welches, Oregon

We drove our coach 79 miles, about 2 hours of driving, from Buxton, Oregon to Welches, Oregon, with a detour to Todd’s Auto & RV Service in Portland.

The map route for the first leg, heading east:

Map route 1

And the route for the second leg, also heading east:

Map route 2

Leaving Buxton:

Leaving Buxton

Paladin on the steps:

Paladin on the steps

Sunset highway:

Sunset highway

The freeway tunnel:

Tunnel

Downtown Portland:

Portland

Freeway bridge

Portland

Todd installed our tow system last year, but recently the light on the dash that confirmed the brake was being applied in our toad stopped working. Fortunately, we had to pass near Todd’s shop when heading through Portland, so we arranged to stop by there so he could investigate (supervised by Paladin):

Todd fixing indicator light

The issue turned out (as we suspected) to be a bad indictator light; he was able to swap it out for a good one; this light comes on when the truck’s braking system is activated, due to the coach brake being applied. It’s a useful confirmation that the truck is actively braking with the coach:

Brake indictator light

We then continued on, passing through Gresham:

Gresham

MAX light rail stop:

MAX stop

Paladin asleep in his safe space:

Paladin

Through Sandy; here’s their “trolly” bus:

Sandy trolly

Downtown Sandy:

Downtown Sandy

Sandy used to be our local town (well, Estacada was closer, but smaller; we preferred to shop in Sandy). Mt Hood Pet Resort is where we took our dog for daycare and boarding:

Mt Hood Pet Resort

Speaking of Mount Hood, a view from the highway:

Mount Hood

And our destination, Mt Hood Village RV Resort:

Mt Hood Village

LL Stub Stewart State Park, Dairy Creek West

We stayed in the Dairy Creek West campground of LL Stub Stewart State Park in Buxton, Oregon. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A pleasant state park.

Dates:

Check in: 2022-07-11
Check out: 2022-07-25
14 nights

Weather:

Mostly sunny
High temps ranging between 73-90°F, lows around 49-62°F
No significant wind

Noise:

No road noise or train noise
Some neighbor noise (kids and dogs), mostly quiet
Crows making a racket on the roof

Site:

#46, back in, gravel
Needed to disconnect toad; parked in front of coach (on asphalt)
Fairly level, once we moved the coach away from the edge
Large site: about 64 feet long by about 45 feet wide
Full hookups:

50 amp power conveniently located
30 PSI water pressure (we boosted from our tank); conveniently located
Good sewer connection, conveniently located (1 10 foot hoses used)

Picnic table, fire pit on gravel
Several trees for privacy

Internet (in usage priority order):

T-Mobile: 4 Mbps down, 5 Mbps up, 38 ms ping
AT&T: 8 Mbps down, 6 Mbps up, 25 ms ping
Verizon: 30 Mbps down, 12 Mbps up, 23 ms ping
Starlink: not used
Campground Wi-Fi: none

Amenities:

Garbage compactor and recycling outside campground entrance
No pool

Here’s our review on Campground Reviews:

Huge sites in a beautiful park

We loved our stay at this campground. Our site was beautifully tucked into the trees, and it just felt like what a campground should be. The place has an awesome vibe. It feels like a rustic campground but has full hookups. It feels like you’re a long way from anywhere, but it’s pretty convenient to Hwy 26, so you can head to Portland or the Coast for an easy day trip. The camp hosts are really on top of things; they rake and tidy things up almost as soon as the previous occupant has left. And the sites are just massive. We had room for our 40′ motorhome, tow vehicle, screen tent with table and chairs, plus the campground-provided picnic table and firepit, with room left over. I can see why this park is popular with groups. We saw several campers with multiple sites booked, who all hung out at one site in the evenings.

We stayed in the West campground, which has a lot more trees around the loop than the East one and has a few that need to be trimmed along the road because they twanged the antenna on top of our rig, but it’s a minor thing because we will stay here again when we’re in the area. We camped at L.L. Stub Stewart Memorial State Park in a Motorhome.

The RV park map:

Map

An embedded map, that you can zoom and scroll around:

Our site before parking:

Our site

Our coach in our site:

Our site

From the hill behind the site (and yes, the tent is new; I’ll do a separate post about that):

Our site

A peek of the roof:

Roof

Woods behind our site:

Woods behind our site

A murder of crows; they had an annoying habit of walking on our roof, making a racket:

Murder of crows

The crows did enjoy the drip tray of our griddle:

Crow on griddle

Another recent addition was a milk crate to help carry and stabilize the propane cylinder:

Milk crate for propane cylinder

Griddle breakfast for dinner:

Griddle breakfast for dinner

More pics of our site:

Our site

Another dinner:

Dinner

Oh deer:

Deer

Levitating squirrel:

Squirrel

Butterfly:

Butterfly

Another deer:

Another deer

Aerial views of our site:

Aerial view of our site

Aerial view of other sites

Let’s explore. The welcome center:

Welcome center

The campground didn’t have any garbage bins or dumpsters, but did have a trash compactor just outside:

Trash compactor

And it being Oregon, of course there were lots of recycling bins, too:

Recycling

Self registration station for late arrivals:

Self registration station

Bathrooms:

Bathrooms

More bathrooms:

Bathrooms

Tent sites:

Tent sites

Other RV sites:

Other RV sites

We will probably come back here in the future, but might like to stay on the opposite side of the road, for better shade. Site 41 could be a good choice:

Site 41

Or site 43:

Site 43

Or site 45:

Site 45

Behind site 45:

Behind site 45

A seating area by a path to the adjacent campground:

Seating area

We were in Dairy Creek Campground West; the East campground is nearby:

Dairy Creek Campground East

Both campgrounds have a couple of Park Hosts:

Park Host

Dairy Creek Campground East is a bit more open:

Dairy Creek Campground East

This campground might be better for our coach; it brushed some of the foliage in the west campground. Sites 82, 84, 86, 88, 89, 90, and 92 would all be excellent choices for afternoon shade and a decent amount of privacy:

Site 82

A very nice couple of campgrounds. We’ll likely stay here again when visiting Portland.

Travel from Lebanon to Buxton, Oregon

We drove our coach 190 miles, about 4 hours of driving, from Lebanon, Oregon to Buxton, Oregon, with a detour to the Oregon Motorcoach Center in Eugene.

The map route for the first leg, heading south:

Map route

And the second leg, heading north:

Map route

We hooked up our toad on the way out of Gill’s Landing RV Park:

Our coach

Heading south on good ol’ I-5:

I-5

I watched a travel day video on travel day:

Watching travel day video on travel day

Eugene exits:

Eugene exit

Arriving at Oregon Motorcoach Center:

Oregon Motorcoach Center

Our coach surrounded by others:

Our coach

Reception:

Reception

We hung out in the waiting area, enjoying the company of one of the two resident dogs; a very well-behaved dog, who liked to play, but wasn’t overly pushy about it:

Waiting area with resident dog

Our coach:

Our coach

We went out for a Shari’s breakfast for lunch:

Shari's breakfast for lunch

Our coach, with a tech installing SoftStartRV units on the roof ACs:

Our coach

Other coaches:

Other coaches

Once they were done, they backed up our coach for us, so we could hook up our truck:

Our coach and truck

A great company to work with; they were responsive via email in scheduling the appointment, and got several things done, including replacing the engine air filter, installing two SoftStartRV units, fixing some interior accent lighting, and investigating a couple of other minor issues. And they were happy for Paladin to stay in the coach while we hung out in the nice waiting room, started work promptly, and wrapped up in time for us to continue our journey. We’ll definitely use them again in the future, probably every year as we head back to Portland.

Back on the road, a diesel fuel stop on the way out of Eugene (our tank is 150 gallons, but we usually don’t let it get below halfway); spendy stuff:

Diesel

Back on I-5, heading north:

I-5

A rest area stop:

Rest area

Hey #vanlifer, you may be an RV, but you don’t need to be in the truck parking:

Van does not need to be in the truck parking

My Pokémon buddy brought me a gift:

Pokémon gift

217 exit:

217 exit

Typical 217 traffic:

Typical 217 traffic

26 exit:

26 exit

26 westbound:

Vernonia exit:

Vernonia exit

Arriving at our destination, Stub Stewart State Park:

Stub Stewart State Park

Our coach backing in to our site:

Our coach

Gill’s Landing RV Park

We stayed at Gill’s Landing RV Park in Lebanon, Oregon. (Campground Reviews listing.)

This is a small city park, and quite nice.

Dates:

Check in: 2022-07-05
Check out: 2022-07-11
6 nights

Weather:

Mostly sunny, some drizzle
High temps ranging between 74-82°F, lows around 52-60°F
No significant wind

Noise:

No road noise; occasional train noise
Some neighbor noise (kids and dogs)

Site:

#6, back in, cement
Needed to disconnect toad; parked in front of coach
Level
Large site: about 60 feet long by about 40 feet wide
Full hookups:

50 amp power somewhat conveniently located
25-60 PSI water pressure (pressure drops with usage, so we boosted from our tank); conveniently located
Non-threaded sewer connection, conveniently located (1 10 foot hoses used)

Picnic table, fire pit

Internet (in usage priority order):

T-Mobile: 14-24 Mbps down, 25 Mbps up, 45 ms ping
AT&T: 8 Mbps down, 1 Mbps up, 32 ms ping
Verizon: 1-17 Mbps down, 1 Mbps up, 45-75 ms ping
Starlink: not used
Campground Wi-Fi: not used

Amenities:

Garbage bins
No pool
River

Here’s our review on Campground Reviews:

Beautiful city park on the river

This is a small, lovely RV park right on the Santiam River. All the sites are back-in and pretty large, arranged around a central circle. Our site backed up against trees so it felt nice and private. There’s a nice multi-purpose path that runs along the river for biking or walking. Hardly any traffic or train noise, so it was a very pleasant, quiet stay. We camped at Gills Landing RV Park in a Motorhome.

The RV park map:

Map

The sites are all back-in, so we needed to disconnect our truck from our coach on arrival:

Tow bar

Our site:

Our site

Utilities:

Utilities

The water pressure is inconsistent; a nice 60 PSI, but drops to 25 PSI when in use. So we filled our fresh water tank and used that to boost the pressure:

Water pressure