My perception of what 50 looked like was very different than how I actually felt when I turned a half century old. I don’t feel 50, but back in 2021, my golden birthday was upon me and I couldn’t think of a better place to celebrate this milestone than in California where I have lived most of my life!
My San Jose Besties and I, known by the moniker “DEJA B” (based on our first name initials), have been going camping together at Pinecrest Lake every summer for over a decade. In 2021, it just turned out that our camping trip was right before my birthday, making it an ideal time for a road trip to see my friends and then celebrate in the Bay Area after. My trip began on June 19th as I headed south along I-5 to Oregon. It was a beautiful sunny day with clear skies and I ended up near Lebanon to see my cool friend Kim for the night. It’s always convenient to have a safe overnight spot and luckily I have a few great friends along the way that I usually stop at. The next morning I continued on south into California, passing Weed and Mount Shasta, and ending up in Chico at my friends Julie and Eric’s house for the night. Continuing on the next morning, I stopped in Marysville for lunch along Ellis Lake and let Maverick explore a bit and watch the ducks. Then my journey south took me passed Copperopolis and Lake Tulloch and finally ending up in Pinecrest at our campsite in the early evening.
We camped for six days in the forested campgrounds right by the lake and enjoyed our daily swims and campfires. Since there’s no data service at Pinecrest, I drove up to Dodge Ridge every few days to get some things done on my phone while Maverick explored the rocks. My hiking in Washington for a few months prepared me to hike the Pinecrest Lake Loop, which is almost 4 miles around. Check out my Instagram Reel from that hiking adventure to get an idea of what the trail is like. It was a hot day, so I was a bit drained at the end of the hike, but it was totally worth it! My besties had a small 50th celebration for me the last night with lots of decorations and a “50 Looks Good On Me” sash. I had a great time celebrating with these lovely ladies who have been my besties for over a decade!
Following our camping adventure, I visited Yosemite for the day and then made it back to my old stomping grounds in San Jose. On my actual birthday July 2, my bestie Joanna hosted a pool party at her house for the extended DEJAB group, which was an absolute blast! Then the following day, my lifelong friend Barbara (yes we have the same name & are both Swiss), whom I’ve known since I was 5 years old, offered up her incredible property for my Big 50 Birthday Party, which was super sweet of her. Around 30 of my favorite people showed up to celebrate with me for the evening with a taco truck and lots of wine! It was so good to see everyone and spend time with them catching up on life events. I even had one of my Clubhouse friends named Max show up, whom I hadn’t met in person before, as well as some vanlife friends whom I met a few months earlier! It was a bittersweet goodbye at the end because I knew I wouldn’t see many of these people for a long time since I don’t live in the Bay Area anymore.
After the birthday festivities, I headed to Clearlake to celebrate 4th of July with the Chesterman Family, more dear friends of mine whom I have a long history with. They have a lovely lakehouse in Lakeport and we celebrated Independence Day with boat rides during the day and fireworks at night! I realized I didn’t take any photos of the group, so this is all I have to share with you from that patriotic day.
I headed north the following day to Cottonwood, where Rebecca and Ed live, friends and neighbors through yoga class from a few years before I moved. I spent the day and night with them at their new place along the Sacramento River learning all about how they ended up living at Lake California and how they are adjusting to their move. I sadly didn’t take any photos of us but I did get a few good sunset shots.
As you can see, I am lucky to have a lot of wonderful friends that I can visit and stay with whenever I travel from Washington to California, many of which are conveniently located off major routes I take to get around. My 50th was a highly memorable birthday and this road trip really allowed me to spend time with most of the people that I proudly call friends and love my with my heart!