When my husband and I first came to the Delta neither of us knew anything about the area. Although we spent most of our almost 40 years of marriage in Southern California, neither of us had ever heard of the California Delta until our Son, Michael and his Wife, Irma, moved to the lovely town of Antioch.

At the time of our first visit, about three years ago, we were full-time RVers and had been traveling extensively throughout the United States. Our plan was to stay at an RV park for two weeks while visiting Michael and Irma, and then continue to travel. We had plans to spend a few months traveling around some of the Northern States; however, after spending a wonderful two weeks at the Delta Bay Club on the Delta Loop we decided to cancel our trip and stay here in the Delta. We did stay for another six months. After that we took several short trips and an extensive RVing trip through Alaska, but after each trip we were drawn back to the Delta. It felt like home to us and we have now made it our home.

Having retired from very stressful jobs in the Los Angeles area, Bill and I both fell in love with the easy lifestyle that is reminiscent of a time when life was less complicated and was spent more carefully.

Just a simple drive along Twitchell Island Rd. off of Highway 160 is still exciting to this “city gal”. My granddaughters especially enjoy the ride when I agree to stop the car and we “baa” at the goats or “moo” at the cows that are grazing behind the fences along the road. We really enjoy seeing the babies shortly after they are born to the goats, cows and sheep.

I have often said that life here changes dramatically at the top of the Antioch Bridge and it is as if you stepped back in time. At one end of the bridge and beyond, there is the City, with its dense population, shopping malls, businesses, fast food restaurants and accompanying traffic. As you cross the bridge, over the lazy San Joaquin River, you begin to see cattle grazing on the open farmlands, hawks perched on fence posts silently watching for their next morsel, and folks lounging along the banks of the river with their fishing poles in hand. The drive alongside the River is serene, quiet and relaxing.

We have thoroughly enjoyed a multitude of car rides taken through the Delta. I enjoy the levee roads that wind this way and that through this whole area, and the farms which produce everything from strawberries to pears to asparagus. I get a kick out of going over the many unique bridges that take you from one island to the next, and get a real kick out of riding on the ferries that still carry motor vehicles of all kinds across the water. Our travels have taken us to many of the picturesque little towns that decorate this area. We have eaten in some wonderful restaurants, and enjoyed many of the festivities which are unique to the Delta.

However, after being here for a year and watching from afar, and with some amount of jealousy, the variety of boats and smiling faces on the boats that crossed our path, we decided to buy our first boat. We had never been boaters before and it changed our lives in a most wonderful way.

We bought a 26 foot pontoon boat, otherwise known as a “party boat”. And parties we had with our family and friends. There is nothing as much fun as stopping for a few hours at a quiet inlet and having a barbeque right on the boat while the children swim and play in the water.

We have wandered from River to Slough, through water with white caps, and through water as still and shiny as glass. We have seen and smelled the change of the seasons as the foliage along the banks of the Rivers changed. Our family watched fireworks shower the sky on the Fourth of July, while anchored in the Sacramento River. We have seen the Herons return to this area and watched a variety of other unusual birds as they hid amongst the thick marshes or when they perched themselves on top of protruding poles on the San Joaquin River. We have heard the honking of thousands of migrating geese as they moved across the sky and looked up in time to see them flying in their geometric V shaped patterns. We have enjoy seeing the sea lions who, while sunning themselves, occupy several of the many buoys that line the Rivers like soldiers standing at attention.

They, the old timers here, say that you are not really a “Delta River Rat”, until you have managed to get your boat stuck somewhere out on the water. It took us over a year but we finally did it. We were out enjoying a pleasant ride and were near the Tower Park Marina when a very large, and very beautiful, yacht paraded past us and threw our little pontoon boat up onto a submerged log. There we were, stuck like a marshmallow on a fork. Other than being pulled out, there was no way to get loose. But, my husband Bill, being a fairly intelligent fellow said “Not to worry, we will just sit here and wait for another large vessel to float us off”. And, he was right. A short while later, a large and again, quite beautiful yacht, passed us by and created enough of a wake to float us off the log and we were on our way once again.

We have since traded our pontoon boat for a larger boat. We named her the Marianna after my Grandmother. If you pass by us just give us wave, but please try not to stick us on top of a log.