19 June - Arrived at Petaluma CA Coast Guard Station

19 June
Today we pulled chocks at Travis Air Force Base FamCamp and traveled to the Petaluma Coast Guard Station near Petaluma CA, our 11th campground on this tour.

We were in no hurry to get here because it was only supposed to be about an hour drive (Ha!  Yeah CA traffic, whatever....) and check-in time was 1300 hrs.  So we took our time, fueled the pickup, emptied the sewer tanks and then headed over the the base car wash which has an RV wash bay.  It's construction was well-intended but you can tell the person who designed it had no clue about RV's!  It had this exotic steel platform system on both sides of the wash bay, which just got in my way.  All I need is a hose bib!  Most RV'ers have a telescopic brush and a bucket - no need for a scaffolding.  But, at any rate, we scrubbed off the scum and then headed on down the road to Petaluma.

On the way out the gate Doreen took a picture of these odd shaped pine trees that we see quite often out here.

So we trucked on down the road and found Petaluma, which is north of San Francisco.  We called enroute and we are very glad we did as there is apparently some unwritten rule that you don't bring your RV through the housing area when you are headed to the campground.  The local Coast Guard Security Forces are not giving warnings and are citing those who break the unwritten rules. 

We quickly found the campground and our site was vacant which is always a good thing!  Tons of room here, but 30 amp (vs 50 amp) and water but no sewer.  Translating all that, we can't use both air conditioners at the same time and we need to be careful generating sewage and we will be storing it all in our on-board tanks.  That means no long showers, instead we take GI showers - quickly wet down, then shut off water, lather up, then quickly rinse off.  We also need to be careful with the dish washing - conservative with the water.

Beautiful sites, though - only six of them.

Our condo on wheels.

Tons of space between sites

Rear view with our Nation's Colors and Air Force Colors flying high and proud.  Hey, we are on a Coast Guard facility.  They need to know there are Airmen in town!!

So we had a late lunch and then headed to the MWR office to sign-in and pay our bill.  $25/night can't beat it.  We got a lot of good info from the MWR office including details on the dining hall, I mean the "Galley"!  Petaluma is the home of the Coast Guard Culinary School and retiree's are allowed to eat in the Galley!  Yea buddy!  Check out the menu (hopefully it is readable):

On the way out of the campground Doreen's eagle eye spotter her nemesis, mamma and a couple fawns.

 Petaluma also is the Coast Guard Emergency Medical Technician schoolhouse:

We stopped by the CGX (Coast Guard Exchange) and it is small but offers the basics including a small uniform sales area.

Doreen wanted to run down to the doggie daycare place so we drove into town and made sure they had all the dates and paperwork for Liberty.  The place was very clean and the people were very pleasant.  We then returned to the RV to watch the Cubs beat the Padres and relax with a cool breeze from the ocean!  Much nicer than last night!

Tomorrow we will head for the coast and check out some lighthouses.

Stats Update:
Point to point travel miles:  2485 miles

Vicinity miles:  3914 miles

Total miles:  6399 miles

Total point to point driving time:   50 hrs 21 minutes

Total fuel purchased:  426.581 gals

Total fuel cost:  $1031.62

Average fuel cost:  $2.585

Average MPG:  13.068 miles/gal

Lodging cost:  $1206.91

Average lodging cost/night:  $24.63/night