Driving through California

California

Spending the summer on Vancouver Island wasn't looking promising for us. We canceled our reservations and looked for a new plan.

 

California "closed down" and we couldn't extend our stay in Hurricane, UT because the Inn was full. Bullards Beach's host coordinator had contacted us to see if we were interested in hosting. We threw caution to the wind and signed up for March on the coast. It has been a brutal winter on Oregon's Coast. It felt like it was time to leave Arizona when people were cursing at wait staff in fast food restaurants, political flags were replaced with pullet proof vests for sale on street corners and a man lifting his fist at me for watching the inauguration in the laundry room. We will see if there is a little less crazy on the coast.

Who doesn't love these fruit stands throughout the farm belt near Gilroy California. This one even has a restaurant and a small train for the kids and of course, the pie stand. Even though California said they were closed due to the virus, we didn't see much evidence and could have easily spent a few weeks instead of pushing through.

While visiting the Farm market, I grabbed a blood orange and a few rolled off the stack. As I was replacing those rolling on the floor, the pile shifted and things went downhill from there. I backed away from the runaway blood oranges and casually but briskly walked away. It is sometimes better to leave it to the pros.

Of course, there is garlic in Gilroy

Lots of blossoms promising spring.

Driving through San Francisco wasn't too bad since we previously had lived there for 3 months and knew the flow of the narrow streets. I kept my backseat driving and recommendation to myself as Mike navigated the way to the Golden  Gate Bridge and breezed through on a Sunday morning without a problem.

Trinidad, California is a seaside city, located on the Pacific Ocean 8 miles north of Arcata. Situated above its own North Coast harbor, Trinidad is one of California's smallest cities by population. Fishing operations in Trinidad Harbor are vital to both local tourism and commercial fishing in the region. What a treat!

The Seascape Restaurant had only outdoor dining with heaters strategically placed to keep us cozy while we watched the fishermen empty their boats and shared fish and chips with our chowder.

Trinidad Head Lighthouse Trail was a perfect way to work off some of those fish and chips with great views.

Our campsite overlooking a pond.

We knew there had been rock slides along Highway 101 in several places blocking the highway. We continued towards the Crescent City as the rock slide had been cleared to a single lane of traffic. Our lane of traffic started moving as we arrived. Halfway through the zone, the flagman stopped the semi behind us and a worker above us jumped off his equipment yelling "GO! GO! GO!" Mike hit the gas, kicking up mud and rocks and moving us out of the area. It still makes the hair on my arms stand up.

Driving straight through California was tiring for us even though we kept the daily mileage down. We settled into the beautiful Harris Beach State Park for a couple of days. Oregon provides a free night in a state park in transit to a hosting position, before landing in Bullards Beach State Park for a while. We will see how the weather treats us on the coast.