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| Day 1 - Santa Clara, CA Day 2 - Lee Vining, CA Day 3 - Baker, CA Day 4 - Las Vegas, NV Day 5 - Las Vegas, NV Day 6 - Grand Canyon, AZ Day 7 - Durango, CO Day 8 - Glenwood, CO Day 9 - Highlands, CO Day 10 - Highlands, CO Day 11 - Estes Park, CO Day 12 - Craig, CO Day 13 - Jackson, WY Day 14 - Cody, WY Day 15 - Mammoth, WY Day 16 - Choteau, MT Day 17 - Kelispell, MT Day 18 - Sandpoint, ID Day 19 - Omak, WA Day 20 - Anacortes, WA Day 21 - Anacortes, WA Day 22 - Poulsbo, WA Day 23 - Poulsbo, WA Day 24 - Poulsbo, WA Day 25 - Astoria, OR Day 26 - Lincoln City, OR Day 27 - Bandon, OR Day 28 - Eureka, CA Day 29 - Anchor Bay, CA Day 30 - Martinez, CA FINAL THOUGHTS |
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| We are cutting back over to the California coast today
and will stop to see Cliff Carter, a close family friend, who is staying
at Anchor Bay. The morning started out a little cool but turned
sunny within the half hour. The ride down Hwy 101 is a pleasant ride
and takes us to both the Redwood Highway and the Avenue of Giants;
they tend to parallel each other. Yesterday I talked a little about the redwood trees of northern California. Today, we will ride through some of the old growth forests that people talk about when they refer to the California redwoods. Some of these trees get really big. I mean reallllly big. This part of Hwy 101 is called the Redwood highway because it passes through redwood forests and is a fantastic ride in itself, but to really see these majestic trees you must get off 101 and slow down, while you are dwarfed within the Avenue of Giants. One minute you are up in the bright sunlight of the highway, the next minute you are down in the cool shade between the king of trees, the Sequoias. They are so tall, that sunlight, that is not directly overhead, has a hard time getting to the forest floor below.
The speed limit drops to 45 mph through the Avenue of Giants, which is just fine, because there is too much to see and admire to go much faster. You find yourself saying, “Man, look at that tree,” or “Linda, do you see this?” Since this is part of the Humboldt State Park area, you can stop at any number of places to read about these trees and to hike some of the trails that will take you to other groves or larger trees not near the road. If you have the time, I recommend you get off the bike and walk among these giants. It’s quiet; its cool, and you will get a kink in your neck from always looking up. We stopped for some pictures (photos 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, & 6) to show just how big these beauties are, but it seems impossible to capture it on film, much like taking pictures of the Grand Canyon. There are old trees that have fallen and the trucks are lying waiting for time to try and diminish their stature. It takes a long time for that to happen because these trees are majestic even in death (photo 7). Since the Avenue of Giants is just off the freeway, there are several opportunities to get back on the freeway. After traveling about halfway down the Avenue of Giants, we got back on 101 heading for Leggett. We still have some way to go today before we get to Anchor Bay and 101 will be the last of the freeway where we can make time.
As we reach the intersection of 101 and California Hwy 1, at Leggett, we stop for our picture at the “Chandelier Tree,” better know to Californians as “The Drive Through Tree.” This tree is 315 feet high and 21 feet in diameter. That’s not 21 feet in circumference folks, that’s 21 feet across. Unless you live in California, just look around where you live and take a look at the biggest tree you can find. How far across is it? I would wager to bet it’s not bigger than 3 or 4 feet, tops. If your in the Pacific Northwest, maybe 6 feet. An old growth redwood just has to be seen to be believed. We pay our $2 bucks and get in line to take our picture. Linda does the honors while I do the driving (photo 8). It all takes no more than 15 minutes and we are back on the road to California Hwy 1. The reason I make a point of saying California Hwy 1 is so those on the east coast will not confuse it with U.S Hwy 1 which takes folks down the Atlantic seaboard. California Hwy 1 just goes down the coast of California. As you will recall, we just came off U.S.Hwy 101 that took us down the coast of Oregon. That should clear up any confusion. The crossover to California Hwy 1 is one curvy road with enough switchbacks and short curves to give you vertigo. The condition of the road is almost perfect the whole way but with a large motorcycle, you are constantly busy throwing the bike back and forth. First a 30 mph curve, then 20, then back to 30 before quickly dropping to 10. Your tires and concentration get a workout but the Goldwing handled it all without complaint. The large amount of torque helps when some of these short curves come on you quickly. You would think you would see a lot of motorcycles on this road, but you really don’t. I think it’s because when motorcyclist talk about the “twisties,” they are usually referring to high speed curves, not these stomach churning type curvy roads.
After 44 miles of this foolishness, we reach the coast. About halfway there, we started to feel the change in temperature. We switched to jackets for the last several miles of this ride. By 2:30 we stopped in Fort Bragg for some lunch since we had not eaten since early in the morning. The local Denny’s had service slower than molasses so while we waited, I made reservations at the Country Inn in Gualala for the night. The food eventually came so we ate and got back on the road. Now Linda has been asking for some pictures of California poppies or a Bald Eagle so as we were leaving Fort Bragg, she spotted some poppies, thus (photo 9). There was another type of flower growing along side so I snapped a picture of those also. I have no idea what type they were and don’t care, but Linda likes them, so here they are (photo 10). I’ve only got two days left to get that damn eagle. We pulled into the Anchor Bay campground just as the campground was getting ready for a “potluck” dinner with a 50’s/60’s theme. Many of the campground residents dressed up in 50’s garb and they had a DJ playing 50’s and 60’s music, Elvis, etc. I know many of these folks. These are fisherman, skin divers, and motorcycle riders. It’s embarrassing to see such fine folks looking so pathetic. They had a few cars of the period and a Harley Springer Soft tail on display, which I enjoyed, but to see these poor souls, dancing, singing, and apparently having a great time while dressed up in silly clothing, was a little disconcerting, I must be honest. I, of course, never allow myself to ever look or do anything foolish (photos 11, 12, & 13).
While they were doing all of this, they had a ceremony for the winners of the Anchor Bay Salmon Fishing Pool contest, which lasted the month of July. It seems that the winning fish came in at 38 pounds and the winner received $400 and a beautiful fillet knife. Unfortunately, the biggest fish ever caught at the Anchor Bay Campground was caught this year and came in at 41 pounds. It also happens that my good buddy, Cliff Carter, caught that 41 pounder and was NOT in the pool (photo 14!!!). Well, for this competitive group, they had to recognize this lack of planning and apparent cheapness, and honored Cliff with the Woulda, Shoulda, Coulda, award (photo 15). In Cliff’s defense, he had broken his arm in April and it had an external cast and frame to keep him from moving it. Who would have guessed that he would be able to actually fish by July? As it was, he had to jury rig a means to hold the poll while he reeled in fish. Nobody seeing this contraption would guess that he could have caught anything big with this setup. Never under estimate what a determined fisherman can do when properly motivated by a good salmon run. We left the campground about 10:00 p.m. that evening (photo 16) and headed to Gualala and our motel. Tomorrow we relax in the morning, visit some more with Cliff, and then head to Linda’s parents house in Martinez. |
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