the trail from Blaine, WA to Santa Monica, CA

[Jo-Ski]

Greetings, folks--

Well, we may just be spontaneous this year and head south towards Santa Monica,
CA in December--probably around the Christmas holiday, of course! It's my old
teen-age stomping grounds, and we've got some long-time family friends there.
Though the scenic route (Hwy. 101) would be lovely to consider, time constrains
us to take the I-5 route.

Some questions, please:
a.. Any suggestions for pleasant campgrounds once you get south, past
Portland, OR please? From our great experience this past summer at Jantzen Beach
campground (just outside of Portland), we'd stop there for sure for the first
night--was lovely. Was wondering if folks had suggestions for good
campgrounds/logical overnight stops for the rest of the legs of the trip to the
LA/Santa Monica area, please. We were figuring 3 days' travel from Blaine, WA to
Santa Monica (does that sound reasonable from anyone else's experience?).
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b.. We've heard of two campgrounds near Santa Monica--Malibu RV Park and the
Dockweiler RV Park in Playa Del Rey. Is anyone familiar with those campgrounds,
please, or does anyone have other recommendations?
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c.. Also, what can we expect at this time of year down in that
neck-o'-the-woods, please? Are the RV parks likely to be booked and jam-packed
full? In other words, are we kidding ourselves to even be able to camp at these
places? Being still relatively new to the RV world, we don't have a feel for how
big this really gets in that area in the winter months.
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d.. And, what about the notorious stretch of I-5 known as "the grapevine" at
this time of year? I remember from driving through there in my teens that just
about every service station along the way had 20 stalls to accommodate cars
whose radiators had blown from the heat. Is it gonna be a stinker to deal with
in a Blue Bird at this time of year, por favor?
Many, many thanks in advance for any suggestions and advice!

Best regards,

Jo-Ski (and Stew)
"The Bird Abides"
'83-FC 35 RB
Blaine, WA

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