Fort Bragg to Trinidad

4/27

Fort Bragg to Trinidad

I won’t say we got a late start today, but it was afternoon by the time we left Fort Bragg. We spent the morning buying Shawna some new waterproof shoes (that she probably won’t wear anyway…but nonetheless…) as well as a nice warm jacket. We were going to try to get out of California, but that soon proved to be not possible because the end of Highway 1 was very steep and windy. One of our first stops was the Ten Mile State Marine Reserve, a nice beach with dogs and families playing and houses on the cliff. After taking a few pictures and getting nice and cold, we went on up the road. By up, I mean, up a mountain, tight turns and switchbacks, steep mountainsides and cliffs. We said goodbye to Highway 1 at Leggitt where it dead ends into the 101. Before we turned north, however, we made a quick 5 dollar stop at the Drive-Thru Tree. This 6x6 foot hole had been carved in this 300 foot tree in the 1930’s. Since the park was full of people, we got our postcards and got out!

 

Avenue of Giants

Once on Highway 101, we were able to move much faster, four lanes of open road gives confidence. We made several turnoffs to visit the redwoods we were flying by. One such detour was on the Avenue of Giants, highway 254, which meanders around through massive groves of redwoods. These trees are nigh impossible to photograph, even if I had a wider angle lens for my camera. The sheer scale is mind boggling. This is one of those places you truly have to see to believe. After saying goodbye to the toothpicks and Lincoln logs, we had lunch in Miranda at the Avenue Café.

Smile now, Cry later

Since we already were feeling behind for the day, we moved on toward Eureka. Surprisingly, no jokes were made about the name of the city… When we arrived there, we realized that we didn’t want to stay there, it was too crowded and after being in the country for awhile, the last thing we wanted to deal with was people. At about 6pm, we made it to a small town north of Eureka called Trinidad. Trinidad is a typical small northern California town, perched on cliffs overlooking the ocean with a small bay for fishing boats. Our bed for the night was Trinidad Inn, a small 15 room motel in the middle of the forest.

Our photographic adventures took us to the Luffenholtz Point Overlook at sunset. As the sun sets, a large glowing orb in the western sky, it highlights the high outcroppings and islands. These islands used to be the main coastline a long time ago, but water, wind and rain eroded all the soft rock away leaving only these remnants, like silent sentinels of an ancient time. One day, I think, the place where we stood will be like that, and it will look as untouched by humans as the day it was birthed from the earth.

Bodega Bay to Fort Bragg

4/26

Bodega Bay to Fort Bragg

We awoke to the sound of waves and RV’s pulling out. The morning was again misty, and I think that it’s going to be this way all the way up the coast. No dramatic sunsets here. Packing the truck went much easier the second time around, and very quickly we were on the road again. Sonoma Coast is very beautiful, it reminds me of Ireland in many ways; the vibrant greens, grey granite stones.

We stopped at a few places along the way, Arch Rock Beach as well as Goatlandia. It’s a mighty place. As we traveled we kept seeing houses up on the edges of the cliffs that we wish we could live at. High enough that it’s out of the tsunami hazard zone (we passed through 2 such zones), but still close enough to hear and smell the ocean. Why would anyone leave their house?

A wee bit further started climbing up the mountain. We passed through all these tiny towns, such as Elk, Point Arena, and Gualala. We stopped in Gualala to check out a bookstore called Four Eyed Frog, but they didn’t sell postcards and only had new books. Point Arena was our lunch stop for the day, and we went into the Point Arena General Store and had their “world famous sandwiches”. They are nothing to write home about, but they accomplished their purpose.

After what seemed a long time driving, but really was only about 4 ½ hours, we got to Fort Bragg. All the campsites are full for the weekend, so we checked into the Beachcomber Motel. It has a view of the ocean from our back porch, and is very nice. Dinner this evening was at Restaurante Los Gallitos, courtesy of Yelp. The food was very excellent.

Tomorrow, we get to see redwoods, and hopefully Oregon!

San Francisco to Bodega Bay

4/25

San Francisco to Bodega Bay

We left our hotel at about 9am this morning and drove to Pier 39. Pier 39 is a tourist trap full of weird shops and restaurants. There was a shop where you can buy salt water taffy by the pound, another which sold only socks, as well as an Irish gift shop and various restaurants. But they have sea lions sitting on floating platforms in the bay. The males are constantly barking and putting on a show, trying to knock each other off the platforms, like an epic game of king of the hill. They also tend to lay on each other when sunbathing, leading to piles of seals.

The seals were definitely my favorite part of Pier 39, but we left there and headed to visit my Aunt Anne. When we were about 20 minutes from Sacramento, in Davis, I realized I had left my laptop in the hotel room. I called Aunt Anne and expressed my sincerest apologies, as well as promises to visit at a later date, and we turned around and drove another 70 miles back to San Francisco.

After braving traffic yet again, including a pile up on I-80 that had traffic stopped for about an hour, and crazy city traffic, we picked up the laptop and headed out over the Golden Gate Bridge. We decided to walk part of the way along it. You really can’t tell by driving over it how big it is. The columns that hold up the suspension are absolutely huge! Once on the suspension portion, you begin to notice the bridge is swaying back and forth as the wind blows as well as the up and down motion of the hundreds of cars passing. It is not a peaceful experience. The cars streak by on one side at 55 miles an hour, while you look down into the depths on the other. The water is 245 feet below, and you are separated from falling by a 4 foot high metal fence.

Leaving the Golden Gate behind, we headed out highway 101 toward Bodega Bay. After finally leaving the freeway behind at Petaluma, we cut across the rolling hills and farms that make up inland California. The cows looked quite happy, eating grass and dandelions. We were fortunate to arrive in Bodega Bay at 5pm, at Doran County Park, and snagged a campsite next to the Bay. After setting up camp and obtaining firewood, we settled in for a chilly evening.

As night fell I decided to try a couple night photographs with the help of my lovely assistant. After that, it was bedtime.

Diamondbacks and Chinatown

Breakfast messiness

4/24

Diamondbacks and Chinatown

At the ballpark

We were up early today and decided laundry must be done. After a small continental breakfast we moseyed across the street to the Stop-n-Wash coin op. 3 loads and an hour and a half later, we finished, went back to the hotel and showered, preparing for the Diamondbacks game at AT&T Park. Driving to the park was a mistake. It took us 45 minutes to find a place to park and it cost 40 dollars, although it probably would have cost that much for a taxi. However, we managed to get to our seats before the end of the first inning. We had seats on the fifth row on the first base side. The baseball park is really beautiful and we have never been so close to the action before. Several foul balls landed in our area, but none close enough to try to catch. After a pitcher duel into the 8^th inning, several runs were scored, along with lead changes, but in the end the D-backs won in the 10^th inning. It was awesome hearing the loud stadium go silent as the last out was recorded.

Our seats

The Entombment - Rembrandt

Surprisingly our drive back to the hotel was quick and painless. After dropping the car off with valet, we started walking to Chinatown. Along the way we stopped at the Irish Castle Shop were we met the lovely shop owner, Orla O’Malley aka Granny. She regaled us with tales of Ireland and her Native American husband. She said that I could pass for an undercover cop, with my backwards cap. She wished us many blessings and told us that we were going to have a girl.

After leaving her shop, we were walking past a few art galleries and I saw an Albrecht Durer in the window of one of the galleries, Christopher Clark Fine Art.

Chroma - Richard Macdonald

Walking in I discovered that there were over 50 different prints of Durer, Rembrandt, and others, all on display and for sale! If only I had an extra 40 thousand dollars to spend! While Shawna ran interference for me, chatting up the gallery attendant, I was able to surreptitiously snap a few quick shots of these masterpieces. Fantastic lines, darkness, light covered these pages, some from the early 1500’s. There were also some works by Richard Macdonald, a famous sculptor whose pieces were all dancers in motion. One of my favorite pieces by him was a dancer in mid-leap coming, his foot coming out of the stone in which he was carved, as if he had emerged from it.

Hurlingham - James Whistler

With regret, I left the gallery after 20 minutes, but hunger was calling and we had a date at the Utopia Café. The Utopia Café is in Chinatown and they serve the most delicious sesame chicken I’ve ever tasted. It was a small hike to get there but was totally worth it. Afterwards, we strolled down the main drag of Chinatown, Grant Street, stopping at various places just to browse. I found (and now wish I had bought) some of the foam airplanes with plastic propellers that my granddad had used to give us for Christmas.

Sesame Chicken

San Fran at night

It is very interesting to see the changes in the city as you walk. As we walked down Geary Street, back toward our hotel, at first the city appears very opulent, with Chanel and Louis Vitton shops everywhere. But as we continued to head west, the buildings get a little bit more run down and people asking for change increased. I’ll admit, the people that asked for money that were original I had a hard time refusing. Now off to bed. Tomorrow, Sacramento to visit Aunt Anne and then the real part of our trip starts, going up the coast!

Arriving in San Francisco

The Campsite

4/23

Arriving in San Francisco

The air mattress was slightly deflated and it was cold when we woke up. A heavy fog still lay over the mountains as we emerged from the tent. Four raccoons had tried to eat our food last night after we turned in, so I had put the boxes away in the truck. A thick layer of dew lay on everything. The campsite is even more beautiful in the morning light. The views north and south show dramatic cliffs tumbling down into dark greens and blues while straight in front of us lies an infinite gray. The sky and water reflect off one another and there is no way to tell where one ends and the other begins.

Hot Chocoffee

The Cliffs of Big Sur

There was no wood left to burn this morning so we settled for coffee and hot chocoffee (her mixture of coffee and hot chocolate mix). After eating breakfast, a mixture of carne asada from the wedding, eggs, and avocado, we decided that breaking camp was the best plan before exploring. Unfortunately, we spent too much time doing that and had little time for exploration. I think that we will be pros by the end of this trip.

The Edge of the Sky

After repacking Mounty with the seats down so that we could see out the back, we headed off to San Francisco. This trip involved multiple stops along the way, there are some things that you cannot miss no matter how in a hurry you may be. Highway 1 offers some amazing overlooks and views. We stopped in the general store for ice and postcards for our thank you notes. Everyone that came to our wedding will be getting one from somewhere along our journey. We then journeyed through Carmel, and came to one of our favorite places, the Whole Enchilada Farmers Market. This place is in a small fishing town called Moss Landing. The colors and smells of the fruit are always stunning.

Once again we found ourselves running a bit late for our reservation at the Prime Rib Haus and had to speed through the last 100 miles to get to San Francisco in time. We found our hotel with little trouble, a Best Western in the middle of downtown. However, the hotel was built in 1918 and is full of old world charm; crown moulding, archways, and other fine touches adorn the walls.

Hungry?

We had no time to enjoy it though, we had a destination and a plan. We have been to the Prime Rib Haus before and it was the best prime rib I have ever had. Tonight was no exception. We arrived right at our reservation time after taking a short cab ride. The only thing on the menu is prime rib and sides. I had a medium rare cut, and Shawna got a medium cut. The flavor of the prime rib is only enhanced by the different kinds of horseradish that they off with it. Sides included creamed corn, creamed spinach, baked potato and Yorkshire pudding. Our waiter surprised us with a small complimentary cup of raspberry and orange sorbet for our honeymoon. We left there extremely full and happy.

Tomorrow; laundry and baseball!

Leaving San Diego Behind

My Beautiful Bride

 4/22

Leaving San Diego Behind:

After a restless night of tossing and turning we awoke to blisters on our feet. Apparently standing all day Saturday and walking on Sunday was not good to our feet, but we wouldn’t change it for anything!

We ate breakfast on the patio at World Famous and then said our goodbyes to Shelby, Maura, Karen, Brian, Katie and Joe. Our first stop today after packing all of our gear was the San Diego County Courthouse to file our paperwork and make sure everything was in order. We had one small amendment to make, changing Phoeniz to Phoenix on our license. After that it was time to get through LA. Surprisingly, we made very good time, there was little traffic on the road. Driving the 101 through downtown LA is always a treat. We passed the Capitol Records building and other major landmarks while listening to Spotify (thank you Shelby!).

Under the Boardwalk!

Polaroid Madness...

After getting gas we stopped at our favorite small Mexican restaurant in Oxnard called Jesse’s Tacos de Mexico. We had been there before and it was just as good as we remembered. Carne asada tacos and nachos consumed, we headed back out, a few hours behind. Our campground was still 200 miles away up on top of the climb to Big Sur.

There are no words to explain the regret of passing amazing sights, a telephone pole here, a farm there, vineyards laid out in straight rows up the hill in the evening sunset; We sped pass them all. Arriving in Morro Bay at around sunset, we stopped for gas and groceries. Morro Bay is a small town on the coast that overlooked the bay. The houses are stacked on top of one another much like a small Mediterranean village over looking the ocean. The fog was rolling in as we left.

We started to climb, up the mountain in dense fog, passing the Elephant Seals, and other beautiful sights. As we reached the switchbacks to take us up to Big Sur, night had fallen. With the fog in our headlights, visibility was at about 15 feet. I was worried that we would miss our campsite in the fog, but Shawna has sharp eyes and pointed it out in time for me to stop and turn in.

Our campsite was closest to the ocean, and after setting up the tent in the headlights of Mounty we sat by the fire and listened to the wave’s crash.

The Wedding

Just Married

The Wedding: April 20-21

Where do I begin? I asked Shawna to marry me on July 21^st 2012. I found a jeweler that took stones from estate jewelry and put them into new settings. I selected a beautiful ring that looked like a rose, it was the first ring that I had seen, after looking at what seemed like thousands, that spoke to me. Shawna didn’t know that I had bought it and I had such a hard time not telling her for the week that it took to get resized. I got down on one knee in the backyard after she had worked all day. She thought I was looking at the stars when I asked her to come out into the yard with me. One thing that I remember specifically was that she didn’t even look at the ring before saying yes! I had to remind her to look at it after kisses and tears.

First Dance

After long months of planning our big day was finally here. We had decided we wanted a beach wedding and since Shawna’s parents had so many connections in San Diego and we loved it so much, we decided to have it there.

In the Ocean

I don’t remember anything from the ceremony. I remember seeing Shawna walking down the aisle toward me, and then she is in front of me crying and the next thing I know we have kissed and are walking back down the aisle. The whole ceremony was so beautiful and simple, just the way we had wanted it. The reception was on the patio of the Surfer hotel and was designed by Shawna. She personally made all the table centerpieces, designed the layout, etc. The lights overhead reminded me of a starlit night, as did the flashes of cameras as we danced our first dance together.

Kiss

Dinner was informal, a self serve taco stand, that paired nicely with the latin acoustic guitars playing in the background. Such an outpouring of love from our family and friends, we felt almost overwhelmed. We must thank a few people by name; Mark and Cindee, we could not have done this without you! Dida and Pat, thank you so much for your love and support! Ronnie, you really helped us so much, transporting, setting up, tearing down, when you didn’t have to! Sarah and Joel, you both came such a long way and helped us so much!

The Next Day

After packing up the next day, there were a few friends left to help us recover. We walked along the beach with Brian and Karen and Katie, stopping at random shops and photographing the underbelly of Crystal Pier. Kristen and Pat brought baby Parker with them and took us to a lovely dinner at Isabel’s Cantina, a fusion of Mexican and Asian. After this amazing celebration, we look forward to our life together, starting with our honeymoon, a road trip up the coast to Seattle and back down through Montana, Yellowstone, and Utah. I will try to write down these amazing adventures so that I can share them with you and also so I can remember them in the years to come.