I Got Your Windy Road Right Here

On yesterday’s day trip to Ashland, we went west on a couple county roads, Clover Creek Road and Dead Indian Memorial Road instead of the slightly shorter, but longer time way of OR-66 because both Google and the Garmin recommended it. To get to Ashland you have to go up and over the Cascades. Klamath Falls sits at 4100′ above sea level and on the way over we hit altitudes of around 5,500 feet. The Clover Creek Road section out of Klamath Falls climbs easily and steadily to the plateau section that hovers at about a mile high. After about 33 miles you turn left on Dead Indian Memorial Road and in short order you cross the Pacific Crest Trail. The road settles into a smooth run through ranches and by small lakes until you hit the last 20 miles where you drop down a couple thousand feet of elevation. But unlike in the east, the open land allows a more shallow drop per mile traveled, most of the way down is in 4th gear with occasional foray into 3rd gear.

On the way home, we opted to try OR-66 because I kind of wanted to avoid the same road when going back. So the road profile is similar, just backwards, the 2,000′ climb is at the start, then plateau, then a shallower 1,300′ descent at the end. The Google map image above shows the approximate ascent. It is no Deals Gap, for one it is not really flat, it is a hill climb. And I didn’t count the turns, but there were probably about half the number as on the Tail of the Dragon, but I drove this road a lot slower than I do the dragon for a couple of reasons. The first is familiarity, we started going to drive the Gap in 1997, and in those intervening 22 years I’ve probably traveled that road a hundred times in one direction. The other is, on about 60% of the climb up on OR-66 there is no guardrail. And on the way up you are on the outside lane of the mountain! I don’t know about you, but I am not really afraid of heights, I am just not comfortable at all while at the edge of those heights. My testicles were residing somewhere up in my abdomen for a lot of the drive up.

If you look at the Google map again it says that stretch of road is 9.3 miles and it should take you 17 minutes. That averages out to be just under 34 MPH, I bet my average was more like 30 MPH. Now we were in the Mini, so when I get to drive the Miata and I’ve done it a few times that average speed will be reduced a bit. But I probably won’t get it below the Google estimate until I’m in the Miata and I’m going down on in the other where I’ll be up against the mountain not the edge…

38,000 Pieces of Hair Trimmed

Today was a much needed day off from House Hunting. We decided to take a trip east to visit Ashland, Oregon. Population-wise it is about the same size as Klamath Falls, but the two cities are as different as can be.

Ashland is home to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival which brings in people from all around world to its three major stages for around 800 performances over 7 months. Because of this it has a big city feel, with a vibrant downtown full of shopping and dining.

Klamath Falls is a city with has the heart of a small town and has a unique blend of roughneck and sophistication. Its downtown is the poorer cousin to Ashland, the businesses here are fewer and not as ritzy. But like Ashland you can find just about everything you with its large arrays of national chains in the surround area.

In Ashland you will be surrounded by Prii and BMWs while in Klamath Falls you are more likely to be surrounded by Subarus and jacked-up Pickups (some of them unfortunately spouting clouds of black diesel exhaust.) In Ashland a nice 3 bedroom/two bath house with a two car garage will set you back around $350K, while in K Falls it will be more like $250. All in all we still prefer Klamath Falls, even with its occasional redneck rolling coal, and we’ll leave Ashland for a dose of “culture” when we need it.

Last Wednesday was the day we would have gotten our haircut back in Aiken and one of the things we still have to do here is find a spot for us both to get our haircut. The human head has approximately 100,000 hair follicles, while Donna’s are probably all going strong, only about 38k are operating as designed. When we got to Ashland this morning it was about 8:30 and a lot of the stores were not open yet. So we stopped into a Starbucks for a snack. Afterwards while exploring more of the downtown we stumbled on a place that was open, called Hair City. They had just opened and there was no one in the joint. There were 2 stylists there and only one had a couple of standing appointments, so the other one took us in.

After the fresh haircut we headed over to Lithia Park, a 90 some odd acres of forested canyonland around Ashland Creek for a walk. It was in full fall color mode and it was crowded full of costumed runners participating in the annual Monster Dash. When I say crowded, it really wasn’t, the park swallowed all 250 participants and we hardly knew it was until we stumbled on the finish line while walking the tree filled trails on both sides of the creek.

We also managed to spend about $15 at the last farmers market of the year and spend nothing at the nearby artists market. Before we left town we had lunch of wood fired pizza at Pie + Vine and a few edibles to go at Breeze Botanicals.

Somewhere on Clover Creek Road west of the town of Keno the Ladybug zipped past the 38,000 mile mark.

House Hunters VI

Slow day on the house hunt today, all we had new was yesterday’s late addition. And we had high hopes for this house. It was located in a section of town that we have searched before and it was located about halfway between our number one and two picks from the past dozen houses. It had plenty of parking because of a nice front deck that stuck out and created a two-car carport that lead right into a two-car garage. But we also had low expectations too, it had been on the market for over six months.

House #14 – We arrived about 15 minutes early, as usual, and used the time walking around the outside peeking in windows. After circumnavigating the place we almost called the realtor to tell her forget it. The windows were probably as old as the house itself, around 40-years old! But we did wait, figuring she probably already on the way. And she was right on time. Upon opening the front door the first thing you notice is the flight of stairs right there on the left. Kind of surprising. Probably would have been better if the door had been hinged on the left side so that the potential for sudden death by falling down a flight stairs was reduced. There was then one step up into an awkwardly shaped area that served no noticeable purpose and the only ones I could come with was a foosball table or perhaps a half-size ping pong table. To the left, around the stairs was a step down into the living room, which was probably the nicest room in the house. It led into the front deck which was sunny and had a mediocre view towards the south.

The pictures of the kitchen made it seem nice and at first glance it was just that, but if you look closely to the microwave/stove set you notice they are a period correct for the late 70’s… And from the looks of the bathroom fixtures they were of the same vintage. By this time we were ready to call it quits, but when the realtor and I checked out the garage, even was the first to say out loud what we both noticed, a distinct damp smell. Nothing looked wet, but who wants to take the chance. To add to the whole miserable experience there didn’t seem to be any direct sun entering the home, it was oriented all wrong. Oh, did I mention that the backyard was mostly just dirt and the hot tub (more than likely from the 70’s as well) was full of dirty water because someone had left the top off.

I could go on, but by now you can guess where this house ranks on the list, that’s right, not on it.

House Hunters V

Today we agreed to meet at 2:00 PM in front of House #5, but of course we can’t stand still that long, so after breakfast we made a shredder run to Staples, took a short walk along the OC & E Trail and drove by House #8 to see if we would be able to get later in the day. The roofers were working but no big forklift blocking the entrance.

After lunch back in the AirBnB we left early so we could drive by a couple other of our prospective homes. We first cruised by House #3, first in one direction and then in another, looking for the “view” mentioned in the write-up. This was Donna’s biggest complaint about the house and I couldn’t remember anything about a view, I liked the inside well enough so any view would be a bonus. The only view this house has is if you walk to the end of the driveway and look left you see part of the hills surrounding the town.

After a quick return to the AirBnB to retrieve a forgotten object, this left us just enough time to head over to our 2 PM meeting place. Were were about 15 minutes early, but it was perfect as our realtor was just pulling into the driveway.

House #5 – This place quickly jumped to the top of both our lists. Two-car garage, a nice front porch with a view, it is in a nice neighborhood with tree lined streets and it has a good looking recent re-model of the kitchen. The main floor was also very nice with 2 bedrooms, one a master, and a second bath along with access to a nice little deck and pretty back yard. It started to fall apart on the lower level. It was an interconnected warren of a hallway, another bedroom, another bathroom which also served as the laundry room and another random separate small room. If you beamed down someone from the Starship Enterprise to the lower level it might take them 20 minutes to find their way to the main level. After the visit it ended up down some, but still in the top half.

House #8 – We both love the curb appeal of this house, with its look of the green color against the dark stone filled front yard. The insides left us as unimpressed as did House #9 two doors down the street. The third bedroom had a shelf with a monitor showing eight or so views from inside and outside the home, very creepy. The backyard was as low maintenance of the front, but instead of stone, they went with bare dirt! The straw that broke this house’s back was in the back there is a bike/walking trail that runs along a canal, the back gate in the fence which leads to the trail was open and near there was an empty shopping cart on laid on its side.

House #13 – When our realtor called the selling realtor about not getting in the front door, her response was, “I’ve been having the same problem, I go go in the backdoor.” The backyard faces the east boundary hill of town and will always have that nature view. The no carpet, even in the bedrooms, was nice, but it couldn’t overcome the fact that the kitchen and both bathrooms were very dated and needing updating. Plus the exterior would be needing painting within the next couple of years. Crossing this one off the list.

Long after the days House Hunting was over, while we were watching Thursday Afternoon Football on Fox an alert popped up with a nice looking contender for the next House of Bogardi. So we emailed the realtor to see if we can get in to see House #14 tomorrow. It is kind if at the top of the budget range, but we are becoming a little less concerned with that at this point. If means burning a little more of our IRA nest egg to buy a nice nest to live in, let’s do it.

House Hunters IV

We met with the Realtor (same one as in June) at her office at 11:00 AM to make a house hunting plan. We had sent her list of ten we wanted to see on Sunday, but she was out of town until today, but we didn’t stand still while we waited. We drove around looking at the outsides and neighborhoods of the ten we were interested in. We eliminated one and added 2 more. The realtor added one of the ones we looked at before that just came off the market. Around half were vacant so they were easy to get into, but others had to be scheduled. So we agreed to meet again at 2:00 PM at the first house and by then they should have the rest lined up.

House #1 – There was a pretty descent view of Klamath Lake and the insides were freshly painted. They were also freshly carpeted which was a big no no for Donna’s dust allergies. And it was really a shame they didn’t spend some of that money of re-staining or painting the outside because the place really needed it.

House #2 – This one won the House Hunter challenge in June. At right now is the leading contender again. There is a nice front deck with a view over a park. the garage is not attached, but there is a covered walkway to the kitchen. The reason the last deal fell through had to do with the house inspection, so if we can figure out what spooked the previous bidder, maybe we can deal with it the issue or pay for fixing it if we purchase the place.

House #3 – This was one of our late additions. This sucker checks all the right blocks, no carpet at all, 2-car garage, central air. Donna claims there is no view, she is sort of right, but the big stumbling block is price, it is at least $30k over what we want to spend.

House #4 – This one serious potential, it was in a really nice area and the price was right in our sweet spot at $199K. But it quickly went downhill to elimination once we visited it. All the bedrooms were carpeted (not unusual around here), the kitchen was a mess in that the stove was antiquated and custom built into the counter top and the street turned to be very busy.

House #5 – This one was a late scratch as the owner couldn’t get away from a meeting to corral her dogs so we could see the insides. it is one they scheduled for tomorrow.

House #6 – This is on a very busy street, but Donna wanted to see it because she really liked the kitchen along the rest of the insides and the backyard looked pretty good. I knew it was going to be a non-started based on the fact that there was no garage and there was no place to add one. The handicap ramp on the front was gone, but that turned out to be the only positive. The front part of the house was not on a foundation so it had a distinct list to it. But kudos to the photographer as they made the place look 40 times better than it was.

House #7 – This was Brian’s favorite place. The style! The garage! The landscaping. The view. It also had an excellent kitchen. But ultimately it will not be our new home. It sits on a high hill which would necessitate 4-wheel drive in winter and it, like House #3, is a bit too high in price for us.

House #8 – This was near the top of our must see list. It is within walking distance to the YMCA where Donna can swim and get her Yoga fix. It checks every box except for the carpet in the bedrooms. One of things mentioned in the ad for the house was that a new roof would be added before any sale. Well today was the day they were doing it. We couldn’t get in because the big forklift truck was parked in the driveway lifting shingles up to the roof. Our visit was tabled until tomorrow.

House #9 – This was 3 doors down from the other Merryman place, so we had parked halfway between the two. It really wasn’t a bad house, but we both came away with an icky feeling. This one gets crossed off the list.

House #10 – This house was runner-up in June, but we had to cross it off the list because it was under lease until May of 2020.

House #11 – It is low on the list for it’s strange location, but we wanted to look at it anyway because the kitchen is recently re-modeled and looks great in photos. It is having an open house this coming Sunday, so we said we would go then just to trim the house visits today.

House #12 – This is listed as Dawn Court, but it is actually on Dawn Drive. We were intrigued just on the fact that the house was brick and there are very few in this town, plus we are coming from a brick home. Turns out this is a short sale and the pictures on the web are carefully selected to not show how bad a shape this house is in. It is listed for $190,00 probably because that is what they owe the bank and the house would be worth that if you could get it for $140 thousand and spend $50 more on renovating it.

House #13 – This was our second late edition home and it turned out that 13 is an unlucky number because although there were several keys in the lock box none of them fit the front door lock. There was one for the deadbolt, but there was no way we were getting in this one. A second attempt is scheduled for tomorrow.

So after two & half hours and 9 homes walked through, we left the realtor behind and headed to Baskin-Robbins for some re-fortification and talk-talk, because, man, House Hunting is a lot harder work than they make it seem on HGTV.

Its a Small World After All

On our last day of driving we went 283 miles from Carson City to Klamath Falls, 211 of those miles were in California and for the most part were on very rural forested roads. The biggest town we passed through was Susanville with a population of around 18,000. The rest were small little places, I hesitate to call them actual towns they were so small, named Hackamore, Newell, Ambrose and Buntingville.

Just outside one of these kinds of places, Adin, population 272, we stopped at a little gas station called Juniper Junction for a nature break. There was one other vehicle there too, getting gas, but we didn’t really pay attention to it. We both went inside and Donna asked the clerk if they have a restroom and was given the key, attached to a small plunger so it wouldn’t wonder off in a pocket, and pointed around outside to the other end of the building. As we were leaving the store we could hear another individual ask about a restroom as well, so I turned and said, “Follow us.”

As we walked by the car gassing up I noticed a familiar looking license plate. Donna went into the bathroom leaving me and the guy outside, where upon I asked him, “Is that SUV yours?” He replied, “Yes.” So I pointed at the back end of our Mini and said, “Small world.”

I launched into our story of selling our house and moving to Klamath Falls and that it has been a long and scenic trip, but were happy to be near the end. He told me that it sure is a pretty drive, but all his family and friends said he was crazy to drive all this way instead of flying. He lives in Duncan, South Carolina and was returning there from Klamath Falls. He was in K Falls because he had just attended the funeral of his father, who was a lifelong resident there.

I apologize for the earworm, if in fact the title of this post effected you like it did me.