Nov 5, 2012 - Eureka to Mendocino

The sun nearly blinded us and we were nearly sweating in the warmth! We drove north a few miles north to drive through the Humbolt State University campus and hike through Arcata Redwood Park. Lovely morning with very light fog along the coast. We headed south and left Hwy 101 on route 211 to Ferndale, a village settled in 1852 and ultimately became a bustling dairy, agricultural and transportation center. Today Ferndale is a finely preserved Victorian village surrounded by beautiful dairy farms. We had breakfast at the Main Street Café...

Oct 10, 2012 - Mendocino, California via Pacific Coast Highway, September 24-25

Mendocino, CA We have learned on this trip thet the west coast of the United States is rugged and mountainous. Unlike the east coast where you can drive the entire coast and not see a hill, here the coast driving is treacherous. We also learned that because of environmentalists here, there are few cell towers and not much cellular signal. We spent a very pleasant weekend in Klamath, CA. We continued heading south along the coast line to Mendocino. We learned that you have to be wary about road maps too. We chose to drive South along Hwy 1,...

Nov 12, 2011 - MENDOCINO Area

Another reminder that this is the third of three entries that will all go out at the same time. Time to tour the area. This is one of the nicer coastal towns with endless coastal vistas. Walking around town we got a good feel for the history and architecture of this beautiful place. The water towers are phenomenal. For some reason the tanks are three stories off the ground but the water is pumped from wells into the tanks. Go figure, I thought they were catching rain water. Many of the towers have been converted into living space but the...

Nov 10, 2011 - Mendocino Walk

Remember that this is the middle entry of three beginning with Caspar Beach and ending with Mendocino. Mendocino has an incredible walk along the coastline within easy distance of downtown. The walk is about one to two miles and takes between one-half and two or three hours depending on how long one wants to walk how slowly one walks and how absorbed one gets into the incredibly ruggedness of this part of the coastline. The feeling of this dark rugged mysterious part of the coast is so overpowering that even the pictures cannot communicate...

Nov 8, 2011 - Caspar Beach

Once again we have been so busy having fun in San Francisco that we have totally spaced keeping up on the travel journal. So here we go back to Mendocino in early November. This place was so beautiful and so engrossing that it will take three entries just to get in all the pictures: Caspar Mendocino Walk, and Mendocino Area So here goes. We lucked out again by finding an RV Park right on the beach in a little cove between Fort Bragg and Mendocino. The beach was a popular place for beginning surfers(who almost never showed up while we...

May 20, 2011 - Mendocino, CA

Driving up the coast we passed many overlooks, secluded beaches, rock outcroppings and a little town with the name of Gualala. I love that name and wanted to stop and find out more about the name but, even at only 60 MPH, we missed the turn off and passed the town. And our rule of the road is that we don't go back. We didn't see any whales along the way either. Mendocino is one of our favorite places. Maybe because it's on the ocean, maybe it's because it has a lot of old, Victorian buildings but I think that it's really because they have,...

May 20, 2011 - Coastal Highway: (CA-1)

After leaving San Francisco we spent a couple days driving up the Pacific Ocean coastline. We walked a few beaches during low tide, but we learned you need to be very careful out there. There are rogue waves that have actually swept people into the ocean. We spent some time in Mendocino (remember the song?), a beautiful little community on the coast. We discovered that the old TV series, "Murder She Wrote" was filmed in that town and it was called Cabot Cove in the TV series. We toured its botanical gardens but that will be a separate...

May 10, 2011 - Mendocino, CA

Tuesday, May 10, 2011 Pomo RV Park, Fort Bragg, CA This morning Scott, Little Bear and I explored Jughandle State Reserve. We not only had the beach to ourselves, we had the entire reserve as our truck was the only vehicle in the lot! Bear had plenty of room to run (leash free) after sea birds, explore tide pools and wade into the freshwater stream flowing across the beach into the sea. Along the bluff trail were patches of wildflowers and panoramic views of the beaches far below. Point Cabrillo Lighthouse is a restored working lighthouse...

Jul 11, 2010 - Albion River Kayak

Today we drove back over to Mendocino and south on Cal. 1 to the Albion River. Here the river empties into the Pacific. A massive old wooden frame still supports the bridge of route 1 where trucks, RVs and cars still cross the large expanse. The bridge was wood framed since a large sawmill once occupied the mouth of the Albion River and supplied lumber for the city of San Francisco. The logs were transported from the heavily forested hills of redwoods via an old steam train. Also logs were floated from upriver to the mill. The sawmill began...

Jul 10, 2010 - Russian Gulch, Mendocino

Think a misty pastoral trail deep in the redwood forest that follows a stream to its waterfall source. Think of filtered sunlight streaming through the treetops highlighting the massive rough trunks formed by centuries of growth-stately and straight. They are living monuments to the rich clime of the California coast. It is a magical scene punctuated by massive boulders and rich colors of green ground growth. The smell of moist redwood mixes with the smell of the forest floor. The stream gurgles ,the birds warble and dash about. All is...

Jun 22, 2010 - Kayaking

Today started off with a thick marine layer, read fog and overcast, on the coast. It was supposed to be a high of 63 degrees but never made it. Ashley and I left this morning for a 11 am kayaking appointment at about 10 am. Even though the milage only says 20 miles, it means 50 minutes or so give the winding road. We arrived early enough to meet the other folks and start getting into cold, wet, wetsuits. for thos of you you have never had the pleausre of putting on a cold, wet, wetsuit, imagine a cold, damp towel wrapping around your body...

Jun 21, 2010 - Just some Photos

Hope all the guys out there had a good Fathers Day, I know I did. Took a walk to the beach and then watched the rest of the US Open. Here are some photos of the area we are in. It is cool here, today we are expecting a high of 61 degrees and tomorrow a high of 68, that is going to be the high for the week. Ashley and I have reservations for the kayak cave tour for Tuesday, so the warmer weather will be welcome. I will post those photos tomorrow. Today we went to Glass Beach, this used to be the dump for the town of Fr. Bragg, they have...