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After waiting seven years, we finally upgraded our solar and battery electrical system. Yay us! We had RV Solar Guys out of San Jose install some stuff on top of our 2018 Unity MB. The upgrade quote had a lot of words, some of which I knew. Bottom line, $10,000 later, we have 315ah of battery storage, 740w of solar, a 3kw inverter, a DC to DC converter, a battery monitor, a new solar controller, and an air conditioning soft start. Was this truly the path towards electrical independence? It was time to hit the road to find out!
A three-night trip to the California north coast was just the ticket! Sun, fog, wind, and even a tsunami advisory, upgraded to a tsunami warning, were on the bingo card. Truthfully, I could have done without the tsunami part. But with all the upgrades that I barely understand, we were ready. Of course, booking three nights on the beautiful North Coast with three days’ notice in the middle of the summer camping season is not necessarily the best practice. I must have searched for reservations at every Sonoma Coast State Park and Sonoma County Regional Park to no avail.
Then, using my trusty AllStays app, I stumbled upon a campground called Ocean Cove Campground, once owned by Columbia Movie Studios in the 1930s. I remember driving by it several times, but it always looked closed. Turns out, they ARE closed December 1-April 1. Also, it turns out they don’t take reservations or have numbered sites. But, on the phone, I was told I would have a “100% chance of getting a site on Monday”. So I figured our chances were 50-50.
Ocean View Campground is in Jenner, north of Bodega Bay, 82 miles from our house. For some reason, we always travel within 100 miles of home. A few years of counseling should get to the bottom of that.
The campground has no hookups, no dump station, and I’m not sure if it has showers. But I knew that I wouldn’t need shore power! What you DO get for your $40 per night cash and $45 credit card is a scenic setting above a beautiful cove with views to the west of sea stacks formed from lava. One even had an arch in it. You also get a very nice restaurant called Ocean Cove Grill and the Ocean Cove Store within walking distance.
When we arrived at 1:00 pm, after a three-hour drive, it was windy, like we were high up on an ocean bluff or something. Which we were. I was to appreciate being well above the ocean soon enough. That evening, we saw the most clear and long-lasting green flash at sunset I’ve ever seen. I cleverly had a lens that was too wide on my camera. But trust me, it was quite the sight, albeit not photographically documented.
It was ironic because, while driving through San Francisco on 19th Ave towards the Golden Gate Bridge, we followed a beer delivery truck whose brand name was “Green Flash Brewing Company”. I know because this guy couldn’t seem to drive without being two feet into the lane to the left of him. This is why I followed and didn’t pass. Late that night, I walked a couple hundred feet to the sand and rock bluff edge to shoot the Milky Way. The north coast is a great place for dark skies, and the stars really popped out, along with hundreds of nano-satellites, a shooting star, and a meteorite. Did I mention it was still pretty windy?
The morning came, and it was foggy, much like our coastal home. All summer long. But I’m not bitter. At least the wind stopped, but there was a very cool fog bow! I could have captured both sides of the arch if you had guessed it. I had the right lens on my camera. I enjoyed shooting the same sea stack scene at sunset, near midnight, and sunrise. What else was I going to do? We didn’t tow the Jeep, and leaving the campsite with the Unity could end up with it being taken over by squatters.
As luck would have it, or rather, as I carefully, painstakingly planned, right next to the campground was Stillwater Cove Regional Park. There were even a couple of breaks in the fence to enter through. So we hiked along the bluffs, taking in yet more sea stacks and coves and some trails that went into very low tree canopies, providing shade and claustrophobia.
That second evening, at sunset, a few clouds stayed around. I was composing a shot, with the right lens this time, when my phone made this loud, obnoxious sound. It was a text from the Sonoma County Sheriff, which was a coincidence, because I ordered the short ribs with “the Sheriff’s barbecue sauce” at lunch. The text said, “Tsunami Alert! Stay away from the coast, definitely don’t get near the ocean”. Check and check. We’re on the edge of the continent, next to the ocean. But no way am I driving away from the campsite, seeing as there are no reservations!
I am a grizzled veteran of tsunami warnings, having gone through one at home last year, when we jumped in our Jeep and drove further up the hill, joining many neighbors. I stood on the roof of my Jeep watching the ocean for signs of a big wave, with my neighbors watching my every move. I must admit that I was looking at my phone more than the ocean. They felt safe knowing I was on the job. This time we were 82 miles further north, where the tsunami would hit sooner and be higher. Okay, 1′-3′ higher surf was projected on our part of the North Coast, but I was very glad to have a 150′ bluff between us and it. Seemed like a useful safety margin.
The tsunami was due to hit us at 11:40 p.m., although I cannot officially verify this because I am sound asleep. Plus, it was dark. Turns out Crescent City, another 95 miles north, sustained a million dollars worth of damage at its harbor from the tsunami.
But enough about natural disasters, I was here to test my new electrical system! I had three new apps to monitor, and I did so constantly. I figured my wife would want to know how many watts of solar power and amps of battery power we had at any given moment. Who wouldn’t? You’re welcome, Susan.
Oh, yeah, so we were able to watch the TV late into the night, use Starlink 24 hours a day with five or so devices, a coffeemaker, a microwave, a Jenson stereo, a Dish receiver and dome antenna, an Apple TV, charge electronic devices, ceiling lights, and the lowest of the three new lithium batteries ever showed in the morning was 59%. They were charged within a few hours, despite the fog, thanks to six solar panels. All this, and we didn’t lose storage space! Of course, these days, Leisure Travel provides lithium and solar packages with new coaches, but for us, it has been a revelation!
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