Drakesbad and Better
Some people went horseback riding, and the pool got a lot of use afterward. Dusty trails were the rule, so a good rinse was essential! At night, the pool provided a great location for stargazing, as the area is truly dark at night. No light pollution up here. The nightly campfire provided a great place for S'mores, nightcaps and a chance for everyone to share their adventures.
The food was excellent, and the service was ideal. The staff at Drakesbad were all friendly and helpful, and right there when you needed anything. They made everyone feel right at home.
A fantastic trip, with great weather to boot! Thanks to Steve and Nancy for setting this up.
Around the Whirled in 80 Days
The original theme was slightly hijacked due to the alchohol issues to add a prohibition theme. Carry Nation's Leminade Stand was the new bar, which changed to Debbie Dunn's Dunnit Inn when the "authorities" were gone. Al Gibbs created a classic Speakeasy style lemanade serving table, which flipped over to reveal an operational roulette wheel. Unfortunatly, the chips were only worth what you paid for them, so nobody got rich.
Mitch provided smoked brisket, which was paired with grilled chicken and the usual assortment of potluck The band had a good crowd on the dance floor, and a great time was had by all!
Many thanks to the Hangar Party Committee, ably led by Linda Howard. Maggie Smith set up the bar and make an excellent lemonade, Patti LaGrelius checked everyone in, Laurice Churchill, Lori Delane and Anne O'Brien worked on decorations along with Robert Beckwith, and there were plenty of other volunteers who helped out. Thanks again to everyone!
Work in Progress
Our July dinner meeting featured special guest Dr. Perry Roth-Johnson, an aerospace engineer and informal science educator. He told us about the plans for the future home of Space Shuttle Endeavour at the California Science Center which will includes a 200,000 square foot expansion wing with three main multi-level galleries: Air, Space, and Shuttle. When completed, the Center will include over 100 artifacts and 150 hands-on exhibits. We all enjoyed his talk and hope he'll join us again soon!Some Glamped, Some Camped
There seemed to be a contest as to how many wineries could be visited during the weekend. As far as this reporter could tell, it was a neck-to-neck race between Team Frugal Campers (the pitch-your-own tent people) and Team Sedey/Sappington. The Campers went straight from landing at KIZA and drove to a couple of local wineries (not even taking time to set up camp - something they may have regretted later). Team Sedey/Sappington also visited a tasting room or two before getting to their Safari Tents (their only regret was missing the daily Safari Tent turn-down service).
On Friday evening, we had Happy Hour at the Safari campground fire pit followed by a great BBQ dinner, and a second Happy Hour back at the fire pit. On Saturday, most people drove into Santa Ynez to walk around the annual western-themed "Old Santa Ynez Days" street fair. The teams then formed back up and set off for an afternoon of more wine tasting. An early group dinner was held on the patio of the beautiful Vineyard House restaurant in Santa Ynez, followed by the mandatory Happy Hour meetup back at the fire pit.
It was a fun weekend attended by an enthusatic group of DAFers. Thanks to Larry and Jodie for setting everything up.
Endorsed by Earhart
Author/historian Barbara Schultz presented a slideshow of the many products Amelia endorsed while she was alive. Her endorsements included airlines, automobilies, fashion, collector cards, the Longines watch, chocolate bars, malted milk, tomato juice, etc. Afterwards, Barbara made herself available for questions and many DAFer's purchased signed copies of her book "Endorsed by Earhart"!High Water at Kern Valley
It was nice to see the lake so full, with lots of trees half underwater by the airport. The stream by the airport was going strong for the first time in years! Thanks to Jim Pavlick for setting the trip up.