Welcome to the City of Weed, California. August 6th, 2021
You might think of marijuana when you hear this city mentioned. Likely most do. While we were there, I didn’t smell it or see anyone smoking it. I did see plenty of t-shirts and other items which said, “I love Weed.” Then there are these signs on the right side of the picture below for “the Weed Store.” I’m not sure what they sold inside because I didn’t go inside that one.
By now, you are probably wondering, as I was, why is the city called Weed?
“The City of Weed gets its name from the founder of the local lumber mill and pioneer Abner Weed. Abner discovered that the area’s strong winds were helpful in drying lumber. In 1897 Abner Weed bought the Siskiyou Lumber and Mercantile Mill and 280 acres of land, in what is now the City of Weed, for the sum of $400. The town was incorporated in 1961.
In 1971 the town’s Mayor, Frank Rizzo, proposed changing the name to “Shastina.” This stirred up a hornet’s nest of opposition and discussion regarding the future of the town. It drew national attention in the press shining a spotlight on this peculiarly named community. Ultimately the proposal was defeated and the town has since embraced its unique and occasionally controversial name.” – from the Hi-Lo Press, volume 29, which you can pick up at the Hi-Lo Cafe.
I got these answers when we went to eat dinner at the Hi-Lo Cafe.
The Hi-Lo Motel, Cafe, and RV Park in Weed, CA have been popular destinations for travelers since 1951.
Behind the Hi-Lo Cafe, Mount Shasta looms 14,179 feet tall. It has a habit of creating odd cloud formations called “lenticulars” which wrap themselves around the mountain in a variety of shapes. Some say these shapes hide spaceships that come to refuel from the vortex of the mountain. Scientists say something different.
The clouds are formed when wind forces air above its stable temperature level around the rugged terrain of the mountain. When the air rises, it gets colder and condensation occurs, forming the base of the cloud. Once the air rises beyond the top of the mountain, it descends again, creating a vacuum. The up-and-down effect past the dewpoint and then back again is what creates the ripples forming the lenticular shape.
I didn’t see any clouds around the mountain while we were there. We had a smaller mountain directly behind the motel.
This is a picture of my husband maneuvering our 43-foot motorhome out of the “RV Park” which was more of a park your RV in the motel parking lot kind of setup. It was a bit snug for our motorhome, so I parked the truck in one of the motel room spots with their permission while he carefully worked our motorhome into a space. Fortunately, my hubby is a good driver and can back it in just about anywhere.
We had a barking dog next to us, and we were all very close together. I worried the neighbor’s dog would keep us up and was hoping I wouldn’t have to get my headphones out to sleep in. But by eleven p.m. his owner had put him inside and thankfully the barking had stopped. We only stayed one night, on the way through to our next stop, at Sicilia Vineyards in Yuba City, CA, which would be our first time trying the Harvest Host program. You’ll find that link below.
Mount Shasta can be felt even when it can’t be seen. It’s a feeling difficult to explain or put into words or photos.
My best photos were taken on our way into the city. The others just didn’t turn out because there was so much smoke in the air, from the wildfires. But the day that we arrived the skies were clear.
Just before we got to Weed, taking S. Weed Blvd. Mount Shasta to the left.
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Here on my travel blog, you will find many travel posts from 2021 on our 109 – day trip west, from Ohio to the California coast and the redwoods, and back to Memphis, TN.
Currently, I am writing a book about 2021, our first year on the road, and how we sold and closed everything in Memphis to move into a motorhome full-time and see the U.S.
In 2022, we worked at Camp Hatteras for the summer season and lived on Hatteras Island in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. You will also find travel posts from our summer there on this blog.
Posts are in the order I write them, so look around. Variety can be a good thing.
I’ve also started a list of our travels, one for each year, for those who want to see the route, and will be updating those lists soon to post.
And my YouTube Channel will have updated videos from our travels as soon as I can get to them. Right now it is just raw footage of videos taken.
Currently, we are wintering in KY while our motorhome is getting repaired. We’ve been here since September and yes, that is a long time. Waiting on parts and on State Farm and on the repair guys. I’ll be glad to be living in our home once again after the repairs are done and traveling down the road somewhere to a warmer place.
Beautiful Day Traveler 