Bodega Bay to Crescent City

The PCH to the South was a blast. We really enjoyed following the coast so the next weekend, we decided to head north on 1 and 101 up to Redwood State and National Parks.

The entire drive, once again was beautiful. There was a bit of haze, fog, marine layer over the headlands in the morning which made for a different feel. It was a bit chilly and cloudy, but we were ready to embark north to check off yet more items on our bucketlist.

Leaving the East Bay fairly early, we met up with the 1 in Bodega Bay. We meandered our way from Bodega Bay to Fort Bragg for our first day. We made stops at Point Arena, Stornetta Public Lands, Little River, Van Damme State Park, Mendocino (including Mendocino Headlands), and MacKerricher State Park in Fort Bragg. I wanted to see the sea glass beach in Fort Bragg but we weren't able to find it while it was still light out so we watched the sun set at MacKerricher and headed back into Fort Bragg to eat and sleep. As the sun set, there were four harbor seals in just off the coast that were paying extra special attention to us. They took turns popping up and down and watching us. I thought this was very cool, but as it turns out there are pretty territorial and were most likely making sure we weren't going in the water... or Kobi for that matter.

 

Stornetta Public Lands was a dog friendly place, wide open with lots of opportunities to watch the waves crash into the cliffs.

Pygmy forest, Van Damme State Park near Little River, CA
All growth is stunted due to the ancient soil the plants are growing on. It doesn't contain a lot of nutrients anymore. These trees look young, however they are quite old. 

Mendocino Headlands

Sunset at MacKerricher State Park, Fort Bragg

We stopped at North Coast Brewing Company! We were very satisfied with our choice. Gourmet pizzas and craft beer! mmm I was even able to do a little Christmas Shopping in the gift shop attached to the restaurant!

The next morning we found the sea glass beach. Interestingly enough, the beach site was a landfill. Eventually, the trash was cleaned up but many broken glass pieces and bottles were too numerous to remove. After years of wave after, the pieces were polished. There is virtually no sand, it is all wave tumbled and polished sea glass. You are not supposed to take any! 

We continued on 1 as far as we could go and then eventually had to turn on to 101 toward Leggett where some people are able to drive through a drive. The car was too big so we drove around it and then walked through it! Still very cool. The redwoods are incredible. Yes, it sounds like I am using a lot of big and wonderful adjectives but I truly believe there is no great way to describe the enormity and the beauty of these trees. They are almost magical in a sense. They are resilient, strong, beautiful, tall, and collectively groves of these trees are enchanting. Pictures and videos cannot even fully capture the details of what it is like to be in the presence of such a species. 

Driving north on 101 from Leggett, we drove through Avenue of the Giants. More trees and touristy places to view tree drive-thrus, tree houses, tree cafes, etc. The Ave. of the Giants was so enjoyable, we did it on the way home too! The drive along the coast with redwoods towering around you every now and then is a bit surreal. Everything is green, lush, and just beautiful! We continued into the various state parks and to the National Park visitor center. We went up to Crescent City, but as it started to rain Eureka was looking like a better place to fill out bellies and settle in for the night. 

Lost Coast Brewery, a great place for dinner with a fun atmosphere and obviously good beer was not the only fun place we found in Eureka. The Local Beer Bar had some great beers on tap, this is where I enjoyed the best sour I've ever had. The Black Lightning Motorcycle Cafe was a neat shop that serve both breakfast and coffee and host live music with beer in the evenings. Half is a cafe and half is a motorcycle shop.

The next morning we had a long way back to go so we didn't follow the same route. We took 101 all the way back with gave us some different scenery. Although, we did the Avenue of the Giants again we continued along 101 and had the opportunity to stop at Parducci, a local and sustainable winery. Then, we stopped at a brewery for lunch...yes a lot of alcohol for an afternoon but why not indulge when you have the opportunity. 

It was another great long weekend enjoying some of California's best!

Pacific Coast Highway

Wow! It sure has been awhile since I posted. We have been up to some wonderful adventures. I just haven't had as much time keeping up on the blog as last year.

Over Thanksgiving weekend we headed south to check out Monterey, Carmel by the Sea, and Big Sur. Before we set off on, Nate was supposed to work on Thanksgiving day but was called off last minute so we had our own little Thanksgiving dinner in the Airstream. It was a bit limited due to cooking tool availability. He even opened a bottle of wine with a screw and screw driver...

Friday morning we loaded up the car and took off. We are both getting very efficient packing and knowing exactly what needs to be brought along for, Kobi, and sufficient snacks and food to last the trip! We left the East Bay area and headed over the Santa Cruz Mountains and through the brusslesprout and artichoke fields to Monterey. We escaped the madness of the malls and Black Friday shoppers, not like either of us were big into that anyway.  

Our first stop was Fisherman's Wharf and Municipal Wharf 2. We walked out on the old wooded piers and observed the crab boats. There was a group of people gawking at "sea lions" so naturally I went to look. As I got closer, I realized they were sea otters!!! I have loved otters since I was little; I first saw them while we were camping near the Menominee River (the boundary between MI and WI). I watched the otters until they were out of sight and we continued over the visit the other piers and get some coffee. It was a bit chilly.

We explored the downtown area, grabbed a quick bite to eat, and headed to Cannery Row. I was familiar with Cannery Row because of Steinbeck, but was unsure of the history until we strolled in the historic district. The area was home to a sardine canning factory and the site of John Steinbeck's novels. Now, it is a bustling tourist stop. The Monterey Bay Aquarium is at the end of the row as well...which we of course had to visit. The aquarium was pretty much everything I had ever dreamed of. Once, again since I was little I always wanted to go see the kelp forests and the otters living in harmony in Monterey Bay. I was fortunate enough that day to visit the famous aquarium, experience its hands-on (not just for little ones) exploration, and see otters in the wild. Amazing!

We even got to take park in the Cannery Row Christmas Tree lighting. It was your normal community tree lighting with Santa, public officials, sugared up kiddos, and some carolers but it was nice to see. 

The next day we continued south around the peninsula we Asilomar State Marine Reserve and continued on to the 17 Mile Drive. I read mixed reviews on whether this road was worth the $10 fee or not. After doing it, I would say it is worth it. The road winds through a beautiful area and follows the coast for the most part. The give you a booklet with numbered stops. We let Kobi out to run on the beach, saw dolphins, saw some amazing homes and Pebble Beach. The road runs into Carmel by the Sea so we went with it and visited the beach there too. Kobi loves the beach! He learned early on that saltwater isn't a good idea to lap up, like the Great Lakes. He runs miles around us! Occasionally, a wave will catch him off guard and he body surfs in!

We continued south on the PCH to Big Sur. If you ever do this...GAS UP before you get to the Big Sur area. There are two gas stations (maybe three) and gas is about $2 more/gal. 

Big Sur is beautiful. I didn't know that redwoods grew this far south. The wild coastline zigs and zags in and out, dashes around rocks, waves crash on shore, and it can all be observed at the many look out points. We stopped at the iconic Bixby Bridge, Julia Pfieffer Burns State Park and McWay Falls.

We continued south to Pacific Valley Beach in Los Padres National Forest. We walked down to the beach and were fortunate enough to get there 30 min before low tide. Kobi had a blast running on the hard compacted sand. I snooped around the rocks to find barnacles, mussels, anemones, chitons, limpets etc. We watched the sunset and then continued to drive south to find lodging for the evening. We ended up in Morro Bay for the night. We grabbed some food, hit up a liquor store to try to local brews and hit the sack.

The next morning when we woke up in Morro Bay, boy were we in for a surprise! Morro Bay has a very large rock sitting just off shore... in the ocean. See picture. We didn't even notice it the night before because it was late and dark. We got up fairly early to start driving north because we had a lot of ground to cover.

Headed north, we got a faraway look at the Hearst Castle. It was too hot to leave Kobi in the car so we had to pass. It looked beautiful from the distance. 

Unbeknownst to us, elephant seal birthing season was about to begin. There were signs for an elephant seal look out and I was more than surprised to see seals all over the beaches. Most were females and young males practicing their sparring. These seals are quite territorial, the fight for females can be vicious and even end in death. We only saw one male out in the water bellowing and testing the area. The first elephant seal pup was born less than 24 hours before our arrival as well!

We followed the same beautiful way back through Santa Cruz and back up to the SF area. It was an amazing weekend, well worth the travels! I'd do it again in a heartbeat!