DAY 21 - "Portland, Oregon"
Here I am on a bench, Sunday morning in the park, just outside the art museum. My last afternoon in Portland, the sun is shining and the air is perfect. Still a bit hazy from last night's wedding party, but other than that I feel good. Went to Shawn and Amy's hotel for some snacks, shared some pictures from the wedding, and said farewell. Then it was time to say goodbye to the Vesbits, which is never easy, but at least I'll be seeing them up in Michigan in a few weeks. They had a plane to catch, and I strolled around Portland, not quite ready to hit the road just yet.
Probably should have slept on that park bench. I am weary. Grabbed a really good lunch at Jake's, the main restaurant over in the Governor Hotel.... my favorite place to stay in Portland. So many fond Guvnuh memories from the Vesbit wedding on New Years Eve, three years ago. Picked up my truck, paid the $18.75 for a weekend of parking (NICE!), and skipped town. Stopped for a visit to the Rose Garden on my way out. Beautiful garden, but I loved the view of downtown Portland, with Mount Hood in the distance. A nice cap to a fantastic weekend.
Short drive over to my Aunt Kathy's place in Hillsboro, under 20 miles. So good to see Auntie... it's been way too many years since our last visit. We chatted for hours, and she cooked up a great dinner, complete with a new local beer I'd yet to try... another Oregon winner. Crashed out early, as tomorrow would be a long day of driving.
DAY 22 - "Humboldt, California"
Monday morning... the start of my 4th and final week on this trip throughout the West. Many miles today, so I zipped down the 5, and caught the coast and California, just beyond Crescent City. Not much to look at until I slid into the Redwoods. Beautiful cruise through the old growth forest. Huge trees, in some places looking as if they sprouted directly from the road itself.
Hooked up with the 101, and followed the coast south. Slow going, with twists and turns you usually find only in a racing video game. This was the only spot on the entire trip where I wished I had my car instead of the truck. That Chrysler would have devoured the curves.
Pretty foggy along the coast, which looked surreal as I'd slide up the mountains for a bit, momentarily away from the ocean and into the Redwoods. The mist looked like white smoke, curling over the hills and across the road, messing with my visibility. Kept my eyes on the road, my hands upon the wheel. Too much sight-seeing, and you'd find yourself tumbling, which was simply unacceptable!
After 400 miles I found Humboldt State Park, and turned off into an old growth forest of Redwoods called the "Avenue of the Giants". I was pretty beat, so the first campground, Burlington, looked fine by me. And jackpot: it wasn't full, so I snagged a spot and setup shop. Took a hike into the forest, cooked up some dinner, and called it a night.
DAY 23 - "Pescadero, California"
Another early morning, but not as many miles ahead of me today. Left Humboldt, and just past Leggitt, I joined up with the infamous 1 Freeway, or "Shoreline Drive". More video-game type driving, but man was the ocean beautiful. Huge rocks sticking up out of the waves... something you don't see a lot of in Southern California. The weather couldn't figure out what it wanted to do... I'd go from mist to sunshine and back again... guess it's common on the coast.
Stopped for lunch in a little fishing village called Tomales, near Bodega Bay. Picked up a bottle of wine at the market, and the shopkeeper recommended the deli across the street. Great food... lamb smoked in-house and homemade potato salad. Couldn't go wrong.
Stuffed, I pushed on, and finally came up against San Francisco. It had been a few years since I last visited, but so good to see the city once again. It was a bit foggy, but could still clearly make out Alcatraz, great views of downtown, and all topped off with a drive across the Golden Gate Bridge. Really need to get back here some day when I can hang for a week or two. One of the best cities you'll visit.
Drove through Pacifica, and followed the 1 South the rest of the way to my cousin Kelly's place in Pescadero. She and her husband, Web, have a great spot up in the hills, with killer views of the ocean (when it's not foggy). Chatted with Kelly and her daughter, Shay, and met their horse Dolan. After dinner, Web joined us for a hike along their property. Even got a "Bees 101" class, checking out a hive Web created. Just wild... amazing setup that helps the environment (we're running out of bees), AND you get regular collections of honey once it's up and running. Hung out back at the stables a bit, and called it a night.
DAY 24 - "Pescadero"
I stayed in town all day... messed around on the blog a bit, and took a hike around the area with Kelly and her dog. Beautiful, sprawling acreage, weaving through forest and fields, with plenty of viewpoints to gawk at the Pacific. I headed in to the little downtown area, hitting up the gas station for (I kid you not) award-winning tacos. Wandered around the one-horse-town, with a stop in old Saint Anthony's Cemetery.
Before dinner, Kelly recommended "No-Name Beach", just a few minutes south on the 1 Freeway. Glad I stopped by... incredible little hard-to-find beach that I had all to myself. Hung out for an hour or so, soaking up the sun and exploring the rock formations and tide pools.
Met up with Web at Pescadero's famous old bar, Duarte's, for some smoked salmon. Food was so-so, although Web picked one of the winners: a green chile soup. Headed back up the mountain to the house, and chatted with Kelly before bed.
DAY 25 - "Manhattan Beach, California"
Slept in a bit, and played a little guitar for Shay and Kelly before I hit the road. Fueled up in downtown Pescadero, and joined up with the 1, following the coast south. Beautiful scenery through Big Sur, with no signs I could see of the huge wildfires that ravaged the area just a few weeks prior.
Around lunch time, I stopped in the village of San Simeon, and took a shuttle up to Hearst Castle. I signed on for the two hour tour of the sprawling estate, formerly used as a summer home by newspaper tycoon, William Randolph Hearst. Amazing architecture, and I got into the history along the tour. So much American excess... he spared no expense even through the castle was never finished (it's a state park today). Walked through the bungalows near the huge Neptune pool, the main hall with centuries-old tapestries and church seats, under ceilings hand-crafted and purchased overseas. Stopped a bit in the formal dining room, where Hearst entertained the likes of Churchill and Chaplin, and finished the tour in his private movie theater and indoor swimming pool. It was all so immense, yet he rarely hosted more than 8 or 9 guests at a time.
After the castle, I was feeling pretty good, so with the help of some coffee, I skipped camping the night and made the final, 200 mile push for Los Angeles. I was worried about LA traffic close to rush hour, but it was VERY smooth sailing. Piece of cake, really. I cruised into Santa Monica around 9 and met up with some friends at a swank and happening sushi bar, Teng-U. Great food, but the highlight had to be our brush with fame... child star Anthony Michael Hall was sitting at the bar, right in front of us.
Hung out for a few hours, and rode back to Chris Combs and Hilary Rosen's pad in Manhattan Beach. Pretty much done, I crawled into bed. I made it!!! My last stop before home...
DAY 26 - "Manhattan Beach"
Woke up early this Friday morning, and saw Chris and Hilary off to work. Messed around on the computer and walked down to the North End Cafe for some fantastic breakfast burritos. Nice and simple... eggs, avocados, and killer salsa. Relaxed all morning, glad to be taking a couple days off from the freeway and out of the car. A little mist (marine layer) over the ocean next door, but still a beautiful day. Met up with Hilary for lunch and hit the beach. Need to get my tan on before I head to the East Coast next week.
Chris got off work early, and we had some solid mojito's before a feast of grilled mahi mahi. Hilary found some really fresh seafood at a local fish market and cooked up a fantastic dinner. Stuffed, but we managed to put on some collared shirts and head up the street to a new martini bar. A little too fancy for laid-back Manhattan Beach, but we had a good time. Met up with some friends, and we all retired to Combs' and Hilary's for drinks and Guitar Hero. ( I killed on "Slow Ride") Another late, late night.
DAY 27 - "Manhattan Beach"
Hilary headed to Santa Barbara and Combs had a surgery, so I grabbed some coffee at The North End, killing some time with a few episodes of "The Soup". Chris returned, and a few friends stopped by for a drink. We all grabbed some bikes and cruised down the boardwalk to Hermosa. Such a nice ride, with the ocean on the right, and multi-million dollar "cabins" on the left. Our trail ended, at the new favorite dive bar: the HBYC (Hermosa Beach Yacht Club). Great time, tossing back a few schooners before biking back to Manhattan.
Quickly cleaned up, and we were off to Korea Town for dinner. Can't say I've ever had traditional Korean bbq, but it was excellent. So many little dishes, with a "cook your own meat" setup built into the table. Good food, and I, being the only non-doctor in attendance, sat back and enjoyed the shop-talk... like what's the music of choice when performing spine surgery? Sheryl Crow or Coldplay?
Headed back to Chris' place and fell asleep watching "Rambo". (That's the 2nd time I've fallen asleep watching "Rambo"... the third time WILL be the charm!)
DAY 28 - "Tempe, Arizona. Home."
Sunday, July 27. The last day. Pretty uneventful... I slept in, Combs and I grabbed some breakfast in El Segundo, and I hit the road for one last drive. The trip from LA to Phoenix has never been a favorite of mine, but the traffic was easy and I knocked it down in exactly 6 hours. And just like that, I rolled into my garage in Tempe, and put Beefy to bed. That truck was AMAZING... over 4500 miles, with a wide range of elevation (10 feet to 10,000), and not one problem.
And here I am, Tuesday morning, with one more day of Arizona down time, before I hop on a plane to Boston. I'm meeting up with a crew in Maine next week, followed by a stop to see friends and family in Michigan. Thanks again for following me along on this fantastic journey.... hope this finds you well, and that I'll see you soon!
Dave
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