Welcome to our Back Porch...
We hope you enjoy your visit to our Scott Valley home...
Scenic Scott Valley......
The purpose of our web based photo album was to create a convenient way to share our Scott Valley home in Siskiyou County with family and friends. Siskiyou County in general and Scott Valley (28 miles long x 1-6 miles wide) in particular reflect the best of small town, rural California. We hope you enjoy your visit.Most people have not heard of Scott Valley in northern California. The Wikipedia describes it this way: "Scott Valley is a large, scenic rural area of western Siskiyou County, California, known for its vistas of the Marble Mountains, cattle and dairy ranches, and its historic background as a gold mining area, dating back to the days of the California Gold Rush. The towns of Fort Jones, Etna, and Greenview are found within Scott Valley." The 2010 census lists Siskiyou County's population at 44,900. The County website states that it is the fifth largest county in California by area; which explains why so much of it is a scenic rural wilderness, with plenty of space for its large farms and ranches.
Scott Valley is on CA Route 3, several miles southwest of the City of Yereka on I-5. To get to SV, one most travel over Forest Mountain Summit, elevation 4,097 feet. It's a scenic drive in which road signs cautioned one to watch out for--the ever present--deer.
Our home is situated between Ft. Jones and Etna on Route 3. Click on the adjacent link for a satellite aerial view (map) of the area: http://www.mapquest.com/?version=1.0&hk=6-2vMv5tZr The blue line on the map is Interstate 5. Once there, you can change the scale of the map by zooming in or out, and even scan different areas of the region. To return to this photo album, just click the backspace on your web browser.
If this is your first visit to our online photo album, I suggest you also visit our July-August trip to our Scott Valley hideaway, posted below (August posting)--for an introduction to and overview of Scott Valley--California's northern frontier bordering Oregon. Most TV broadcasts are transmitted from Oregon's "Rogue Valley" (including Medford) stations.
Autumn was definitely in the air back in Oct.
...with Fall colors in full bloom!
The Valley was ablaze with Autumn colors!
A ride along Eller Lane: One of the many country roads crisscrossing Scott Valley.
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| View from the porch: Morning fog. |
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| View from the porch: Evening sun set. |
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| Our property did its part, beginning its transition to autumn colors.... View from the back porch. |
The weather was cooling down but still delightful.
Even though November began turning colder with some evening temperatures
dropping as low as 18 degrees,
dropping as low as 18 degrees,
the wood burning stove added a toasty glow to our stay....
It pays to have plenty of firewood on hand.
Country living does have its seasonal chores...
In the Fall, our numerous oak trees seem to take delight in shedding their summer foliage.
....which of course, meant cleaning gutters--and raking leaves....
Adding gutter screens to the stand-alone garage to prevent having to repeat the cleaning-process next Fall.
Why didn't I think of that last year?
Of course, the house gutters were next.
Why didn't I think of that last year?
Of course, the house gutters were next.
It's burn day in the Valley....
A hand crafted "fire pit" is a handy--and safe--way to dispose of all those leaves!
burning leaves is a tiny fraction of the overall burn.
Of course, the leaves didn't get there on their own....
Leaf-raker gone wild! Well, maybe not that wild. After all there are a lot of trees.
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| There's always time to relax on the back porch. Well, maybe not total relaxationI; had just finished reinforcing the rocking chair joints.  ...some of the apples. But, ground squirrels and deer ate all the pears right off the tree. |
I never tire of viewing the wildlife--especially deer--
and the numerous cattle, horses,
and even alpacas on local ranches...
I found this pinto (paint?) especially beautiful. Even more so than the palomino in the background.
We stare at them, they stare at us! Each animal seems to have its own unique personality.
Valley Alpacas.
I love this scene.... There's something about it that I find very special.
A regular sight, right across the road from our house.... What a blessing.
View from the front window...deer crossing the driveway.
A common sight: three deer crossing front lawn.
Views of and from the back porch.
Our back porch provides a "window" into the daily lives of so many of God's amazing animals and birds.
Him and her rocking chairs. A great place to share quiet morning and evening moments together.
Stellar Jay feeding. Just one of the many varieties of birds visiting us daily.
Leaves were just beginning to fall when we arrived in mid-October.
The hubcap conveniently collects rain water for the deer and birds.
Even a very young Robin stops to take a drink. Thank God for hubcaps and rain.
But, we did get a bird bath....
...while a young buck curiously visits the nearby "recycle" compost pile.
Quail are routine daily visitors...and with each visit a lot of laughs!
If you ever watched a family of quail travel--at "lightning speed"--you'll know exactly what I mean.
If you ever watched a family of quail travel--at "lightning speed"--you'll know exactly what I mean.
Family of quail crossing our driveway.
This delightfully entertaining bird was a joy to watch. Anyone who has seen quail knows what I mean--their tiny legs move so fast, they're almost invisible.
Not only entertaining but beautiful in its own very unique way, especially its distinctive head feather.
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| None of this would be the same without my wife ...and best friend, Sharon, to share it with. |
City of Yreka is the Siskiyou County seat.
Of course every visit to Scott Valley includes shopping trips to Yreka
...a city of 7,765 people per the 2010 census; up from 7290 in 2000.
We pass through Yreka to get to Scott Valley.
Yreka, fire station (photos from our July-August trip)
Downtown shops and restaurants seemed to always be busy.
I'll let the sign over the shop speak for itself.
After checking out new carpeting for the house and picking up some groceries,
our shopping trip was over,
...so it was back in Scott Valley...
Etna (population 731)
City Hall (on left) / Police Station (on right)
Etna (our mailing address and closest town) is located at the base of the Marble Mountains Wilderness
in the Siskiyou Mountain (Cascades) Range.
Etna was first settled in 1830.
Saying goodbye wouldn't be complete without mentioning our Neighbor "Bo"
Things wouldn't be quite the same without
a daily visit from "Bo"!
Goodbye Bo; goodbye Scott Valley....until next time!
Time to head back to Southern California at the close of our Oct-Nov visit....
...also time for another trip to the county landfill to dispose of last minute garbage
before we start our 700 mile journey...
A final Look at Siskiyou County...
Our final look at Siskiyou County before getting on I-5 included a last trip to the county landfill.
Since we're not full time residents with scheduled trash pickup,
we generally take our trash to the county landfill during our weekly trip to Yreka.
Here's a photo of the entrance to Siskiyou County landfill
...referred to by most as "the County dump".
So why a photo of the county dump?
Serving as a long-time member of the Orange County Waste Management Commission,
may give you a hint why I posted this photo.
Something for my colleagues on the WMC...
...you might even say it has a degree of sentimental value.
"Please visit us again!"
Don't forget to checkout our June-July visit below, before logging off.
