Kim McGrath
Author
The Book
My Year On The Road
How The Tubbs Fire Sent Us To Europe And The Camp Fire Brought Us Home.
After the Tubbs Fire of 2017 my husband and I rented our home to one of our doctors whose house had been destroyed in the fire. We had a list of places we wanted to see with the idea that we would becnome “those Americans” living in some far-off place. This is the story of how we did it, the mistakes we made, the joys we experienced, the lessons we learned. It was one of the best years of our lives, rooted in a disaster, and brought to an end by another: the Camp Fire of 2018.
Please join us on the road!
Available on Print
Available on eBook
Kim McGrath
Kim McGrath is a fourth-generation Californian with an itch to travel and a habit of writing stories. She has lived north and south from Sonoma to Capistrano Beach. She transferred her English Lit major to Community Counseling and is now a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor currently living, once again, in Santa Rosa, California with her husband, the former firefighter, Bob.
The Author
Our penciled itinerary started in the US (Carmel, San Clemente, Sonoma, Oregon, New Mexico), went to Portugal, Germany, France, Ireland and then wherever the fancy took us. As happens, life overtook us and we never got to Germany or France while spending a lot of our year on the road in a place we fell in love with: Ireland.
The Places
California
First to Carmel. Friends, natural beauty that makes your heart ache, music, and – once again – great food. Try Yafa in Carmel By The Sea.
Next stop was San Clemente, California. More friends to visit and food to eat. Find Pines Park when you go. It’s on the blufftop overlooking Doheny Beach of Beach Boys fame. The views, even on a bad day, are spirit-mending. Dana Point Harbor shows off the local geology, accesses a great beach for tidepooling, and provides a good walk with the chance of – there’s a theme here – good food.
Pines Park, Capistrano Beach
Oregon
Silver Falls State Park
Silverton, Oregon lies west of Salem and south of Portland in lush farm country with the requisite rivers and creeks. My great-great-grandmother lived in Silverton as a child, a fact I didn’t know until I was researching family history on the drive to Silverton.
We enjoyed Silver Falls State Park on a cold, drizzly day. Great weather to watch the falls roaring along. Cool and green is how we like it, so this was perfect. It was January so don’t be put off if you’re a warm weather fan. Go in summer.
The Gordon House, a Frank Lloyd Wright house open to the public by appointment is a treasure for architecture fans. It sits next to the Oregon Garden, a pleasure for gardeners.
Our rented cabin by a creek was cozy enough that we had to force ourselves out of the house. One day we ended up father afield in nearby Mount Angel where many things German can be found, including, or maybe especially, delicious food. An annual beer festival, usually in September, draws huge crowds. And it will again post-pandemic.
From Silverton we headed towards the coast to Newport to visit family. Newport is an especially beautiful spot where the bay and ocean views are picture-worthy, and the food (seafood, of course) amazing.
From Newport we went to Grants Pass, Oregon. More family and more good food. Here we encountered the first caves of our year on the road at Rogue River Natural Bridge.
Natural Bridge, Rogue River, Oregon
New Mexico
Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and a little spot inbetween called Placitas. More family, more food. My sister moved here because she loves the desert light and the way it plays on the mountains near their home. A spine-tingling ascent (for those who don't like heights) on the Sandia Tramway gives a long view of the mountains and valleys from over 10,000 feet. This tramway would only be the first of several in our year on the road.
One evening while staying in a restful resort I walked out to see the desert sky turn to night. A howling in the late dusk stopped me in the midst of this solo walk to the edge of the bit of wilderness between our hotel and the Rio Grande. I stood contemplating the wisdom of being the lone human being there. A sign welcomed me to the refuge, warning me of several precautions to take, reminding me of the value of companions. More howls answered the first from left and then the right. Coyotes or wolves? I turned back to the human world with the distinct feeling I was being watched from the wildness near the Rio.
Back inside the hotel with laughter and the sounds of dining and the safety of walls I looked out at that other world feeling I had stood at the portal of something vast and deep and enduring, a travel destination I had not anticipated.
California
Our penultimate stop in California was Sonoma, where husband and I spent some of our growing-up years and where my brother and sister-in-law now live. We boomeranged from their home to our US travels until finally we left for Portugal. Sonoma is the namesake of the county, the home of General Vallejo, the final mission in the state – both fractious parts of history. It is also the home of excellent cheese: Vella Cheese Company, 2nd Street East, offering excellent Monterey Jack, fresh and dried, soft cream cheese, and excellent butter. Restaurants, bakeries, and wineries abound. Take your pick. Eat your way around town and through the plaza, then make time for a walk. I recommend Jack London State Park in nearby Glen Ellen. Beautiful, literary, historical, and just far enough from town to keep you focused on burning calories instead of consuming them. Though you should stop in town at The Fig Cafe or one of the other eateries. A drive over Sonoma Mountain Road gives you our famously beautiful mountain and vineyard vistas. The things we missed in our year away were our favorite food haunts (Monti's, Mary's, Union Hotel, Colibri Grill, Dierk's Parkside Cafe, The Villa, to name just a few), the mountains, and the ocean. Head to Bodega Bay to feast on food and to feast your eyes and your heart. The headlands vista is as good as any you’ll see elsewhere.
Last stop before Europe: San Francisco, just one night before heading to the airport. The city is a visit all on its own. Do whatever touristy things appeal to you, then head out walking. If the hills are too much for you there are flat neighborhoods to peruse, or best of all, go to Golden Gate Park. No, Crissy Field, the Golden Gate Bridge (you must!), Ocean Beach, Twin Peaks. Take your pick. Go to the Legion of Honor, the de Young, MOMA, Yerba Buena, the Cartoon Art Museum, The Walt Disney Family Museum, Asian Art Museum, Contemporary Jewish Museum, and whichever others pique your interest. There is an abundance to choose from. And if, like me, it is too late and the flight too early to manage any of this, then find a place to sit and watch the sky and the sea. San Francisco is a geological wonder that rewards contemplation.
The Algarve, Portugal
The Algarve is the sunny southern strip of Portugal along the Mediterranean, the holiday zone, the beach zone. Even in winter and early spring the ocean views are fantastic. We rented a small house in Boliqueime, then a townhouse in Albufeira. Boliqueime is a non-tourist town set amongst the many touristed towns along the coast. Hortas das Oliveiras sits at the edge of tangerine and orange groves. Permission to taste came with the house and we gladly used it. A tangerine fresh off the tree is a unique pleasure.
Albufeira is a larger town to the west of Boliqueime, with more hotels, restaurants, bars, shopping, and those gorgeously cliffed and arched beaches you have no doubt seen. Food can be either unbelievably inexpensive or the opposite. But wherever we went, whatever we paid, the food was wonderful. Ratatouille in Boliqueime was a favorite we returned to over and over. It’s a locals kind of place with a chalkboard menu with the day’s offerings. Lunch comes with a glass of wine, dessert, and coffee. Like Turkish or Greek coffee it comes in a tiny cup with a large packet of sugar. It’s sippable jet fuel. No refills needed.
Caves abound on the beaches here. You can board a boat that will take you into the bigger ones. Or you can stand on the bluff by the Portimão Lighthouse and watch as boats seemingly disappear into the cliffside, then move over to one of the large holes that open straight to the sea.
Madeira, Portugal
Madeira, an autonomous region of Portugal, is four islands off the coast of Africa. We stayed on the main island near the capital, Funchal.
Another series of tramway, or teleferico, rides took us to the world-famous Botanical Gardens and another took us down a steep cliff to the beach. The Botanical Gardens are definitely a highlight of any visit, though public gardens and gorgeous vistas are everywhere it seems. If you like heights and these three tramways aren’t enough for you, then go to the Miradouro do Cabo Girão. It’s a glass-bottomed walkway similar to the one over the Grand Canyon. I got a cardio workout just standing on the edge of it.
Following the unexpected cave theme of our travels, we went to the São Vicente Cave for a tour. Deep, cool, long, and many-chambered the former lava tubes now run with water. Everywhere on the island is evidence of the volcanic nature of these islands in the cliffs and caves, as well as the steep roads.
Seafood is abundant and delicious. But the specialty is espetada. Chicken or beef are the usual offerings. Chunks of meat are skewered and then cooked quickly in something similar to a pizza oven. The skewer is brought to the table and suspended on a hook for you to slide the meat off onto your plate. A simple salad, warm bread, spicy olive oil, piri-piri sauce, and a glass of wine makes a wonderful meal. There is usually the option of potatoes in one form or another. Roasted potatoes were always good. The other option was Milho Frito which is basically fried corn meal. It may not sound good but done properly it is amazing. Little squares of slightly crunchy whipped deliciousness.
Madeira is full of history and great natural beauty. Christopher Columbus married and lived here for several years. He may have traveled to the northern side and seen the natural volcanic pools formed by ancient lava flows that now catch the seawater and let it warm for swimmers seeking a safer ocean experience. He may have gone to the highest point of the island, looking east for Africa, or walked the spiny eastern edge of the island that seems to be reaching for Africa, closer than Lisbon is.
Ireland
London, England
Green and lush and beautiful, full of friendly people, loaded with history, afloat in tea and Guinness, and blessed with good cooks and good food, you can't go wrong visiting Ireland.
We arrived on June 1. We left Madeira on a day when the locals were bundled up in long pants and coats because it was only 72F. Mike, the man who was waiting for us at the airport, (a friend of a friend again) was wearing shorts and flip-flops because of the heat wave. It was 72F. We were on a different island for sure.
Mike, introduced us to an Irish pub that night, and for the next eight months he was our friend, guide, translator, and friend. Our time in Ireland would have been much diminished without him.
Ancient, modern, blindingly fast, peacefully slow - London is always a delight. No matter what you’re interested in, what you’re looking for, it’s here. I come to London for history, art and people. Everything else is a bonus.
Pick up a tour book for the city. It should be a big book to cover all the facts and advice you will need. I recommend Rick Steve’s London guide (available at www.ricksteves.com) Take the time to figure out the tube and the buses and travel with the locals.
There’s too much art for even a museum lover like me to take it all in. Choose a theme or two and make your visit fit around those.
Be sure to enjoy a pub and a market. Camden Lock is where I would go for both.
Kew Gardens is a multi-day feast for gardeners.
Do as many tourist sites as you like. The Tower is a must, really. After that pick a neighborhood and start exploring. Like any big city each neighborhood is often it’s own self-contained mini-city.
Don’t neglect the Thames. It’s the reason London is where it is and why it is the international jewel that it is. Cross the bridges, walk alongside it, ride in a boat or two, sit and contemplate it. If you’re there on a low tide (it is a tidal river) you might be fortunate enough to see mudlarkers sifting through the detritus of humanity looking for the treasure that’s been left behind or lost in the Thames for millennia. If this intrigues you check out tidelineart on Instagram and You Tube. Nicola White is a charming mudlarker.
A book to read well before departure for the history is London by Edward Rutherfurd.
London, like Paris, Rome, Amsterdam, Lisbon, and a great number of other cities are all crossing points of history and humanity. London is a place you can return to over and over without seeing the same place twice.
The Emergency List!
Be Ready for an Emergency with the
GO! and Packing Lists
Your Go! bag should always be ready. Don’t unpack it because you think fire season is over. You should be ready for any emergency at any time.
I want to be sure my pearls – great sentimental value - will be coming with me in an emergency. How to be able to use things that you also want to have in your Go! bag? I keep my pearls in my bag. In an emergency they’re in there with the flashlights, Turkish towels, toothbrushes, external hard drive, silver foil blankets, wind-up radio, etc. When I want to wear my pearls I know I’ll find them in the Go! bag in a file labeled “Pearls, Passports, Pink Slips”.
The Go! list allows you to think through what you need to grab and toss in the bag as you leave. Given that some folks in the 2017 Tubbs fire escaped with nothing but their lives it is an exercise in hope to fill out this chart. Practically speaking it can be a great help in those panicked moments when you know you have to go but can’t figure out what to grab. The top panel gives you a time frame. If your order is to go now, then you grab your Go! bag, keys, wallet, phone and get out. With more time you can gather more things.
The idea is that you will fill out the Go! list in a calm and serene time, when you are thinking clearly and logically. Item by item consider what can go in the bag and stay in the bag. For those items, like meds, that you may not be able to keep in the bag, note their location. In a panic you may not remember where things are. In an anxiety-ridden emergency the brain doesn’t always help out by being logical. It just wants you to get out of danger. The list will also help whoever may be gathering your things for you. Imagine you’re at work and someone else is at your home looking for your stuff. You can tell them where the Go! bag is and that there is a list on top of it. That list should show the location of everything that you want to be evacuated.
Ideally no one will have to go through your desk drawers looking for insurance papers, DMV info, etc. It’s far easier to take photos of those items and keep them in your phone, tablet, laptop, flash drive, and external hard drive. Yes, that many places. We cannot predict where we’ll be when an evacuation order comes through. I love my tablet, and it has most of my pictures and much of my life on it. But I leave it at home when I go out. If an emergency happens and I can’t get home for my Go! bag and tablet, then I need those photos of documents and possessions to be somewhere else. The alternate locations are a good backup. An updated flash drive in the bottom of my purse will make it easier to transfer that info to an insurance adjuster. Photos on my phone can also be transferred. Note “updated.” My goal is to update my flash drives when I update my external hard drive. A weekly or monthly update that takes minutes will save hours of turmoil post-emergency if you need to document your property and possessions. Photos of your stuff and your documents can smooth the rocky road that is an insurance claim.
Use the empty boxes for your particular needs. Children’s items, or pet supplies, medical equipment, etc. can all be added in.
The second list is a simple travel packing list. You will find these all over the internet and in travel guides. This is a version of one I use for extended travel. Refill your toiletries bag when you return from a trip so that the next time you travel you don’t have to spend time topping up your containers. It’s a timesaver for pleasure travel and a necessity for an emergency.
Travel Pictures
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