End of the Tour, Thursday and Friday

Yes, this is a sad time for all of us. Our Tour has come to an end. We made some truly special bonds on this trip, and our group will share these unforgettable memories for years to come. We will miss everyone dearly. From the Western States Youth Gathering, to singing in churches, to outside showers, to Crater Lake, jet boats, the Boardwalk, and much more.


Thursday we had our final mystery day at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk. There were roller coasters and carnival games. There was some great clam chowder!!!! We also got to reveal our secret pals!!!! That was a lot of fun and everyone was super surprised.

Friday we got on the road for home! There was a bit of traffic and plenty of napping to go around. We got home, cleared off the bus for the last time, and practiced for our concert. We were reunited with our families at the potluck, and then we put on our end of tour performance. We're soo glad to be home with our families! It's been a great tour, and we couldn't have done it without all your support!

Wednesday 9 July 2014

Hey y'all!  Today we continued to travel south from Eureka, CA to Novato, CA where we are staying at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church.  Driving into San Francisco by crossing the Golden Gate Bridge, we spent the entire afternoon and evening in the city.  We visited the bay, walked on the wharf and Pier 39, sampled some chocolate at Ghirardelli Square, and were natural tourists of the area.  Finishing the evening off at Bubba Gump Shrimp Company on the pier, yet another birthday was celebrated by our choir director!  Bread pudding and chocolate chip cookie sundaes galore were the desserts of choice.  As the sun went down and more fog rolled in, we crossed the Golden Gate Bridge for the second time to reach a marvelous vista point overlooking San Francisco Bay.  The lights shone exceptionally bright as we left our hearts in San Francisco, hopeful to return soon. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tuesday 8 July 2014

Greetings from Northern California!  So today was the day when we crossed the border from Oregon back into California.  But we could not say goodbye to Oregon without first going on Jerry's Rogue River Jets.  We took a jet-speed tour of the Rogue River, complete with white water rapids and life vests.  The tour altogether was eighty miles, but was certainly worth every moment!  All of us got drenched, as our tour guide made sure of that as we went further inland.  We spent lunch at Agnes, Oregon overlooking the river, and then headed back on the jet boat to the coast.  It was definitely the most exciting boat ride none of us had quite expected!  Piling back into the bus, we ventured further south, drove back down to California, and stopped off at the Trees of Mystery.  Paul Bunion greeted us as we snapped yet another photograph.  Off to Novato next!



Monday 7 July 2014

Hello again!  Monday was quite the day as we began with breakfast at the delicious Camp 18 Restaurant, between Portland and Oregon's coast, highly recommended by all.  Even the cinnamon rolls were nearly three times the expected size, as we had lots of leftovers!  Driving amongst the Pacific Ocean's fog, we spent a wonderful day along the coast, stopping at breathtaking vantage points and taking in the scenery that only Oregon can provide.  We enjoyed the view of so many lighthouses along the coast, looking out onto the never-ending ocean.  In the afternoon, we absolutely had to try some cheese and ice cream samples at the Tillamook Cheese factory.  Their chocolate milk turned out to be really good, too, as one of our youth found out!