California Dreamin'

The Star of India

This morning we moved out of our plush digs at the Sheraton in favor of a more centrally located hotel in Old Town San Diego. Our plan for the day was to walk a 10 km year round walk in downtown San Diego. Once in San Diego I was surprised at how little traffic there was. Finding a parking place on the waterfront was quite easy. An issue arose when I discovered that it was all three hour parking. Now normally it only takes about 2 1/2 hours to do 10 km. This walk is 11 km and goes through areas that we wanted to take a bit more time to see. Not to mention stopping every few blocks to wait for traffic lights.

The walk started along the waterfront and it was beautiful. We made really good time. Then we turned in toward the hills. The next mile and a half were almost straight up. It was great excise, but slowed us down considerably. At the top of the hills we entered Balboa Park. So we saw some of that yesterday, but everything was closed. Today everything was open, but we couldn’t really slow down to explore it (I don’t want to know how much a parking ticket in San Diego costs). We made a brief pit stop in Balboa Park and then hoofed it toward downtown.

Here comes the train!

Glaslamp Quarter of San Diego

View from the San Diego convention center

Long story short, we saw a lot of San Diego and we really liked it. We made it back to our car with just 9 minutes to spare. I wish we could have spent more time looking around in Balboa Park, but there just wan’t time. When we returned to the car we moved to a parking place closer to the Maritime Museum. After eating a lunch of sandwiches and an apple we were off to explore the museum. I have to say that the San Diego Maritime Museum is great (if you like ships and maritime history).

From the foredeck of the Star of India

Helms a-lee!!! Where did you say we were going?

Russian Foxtrot class sub

A cold war era Russian submarine

The control room of a Foxtrot class sub

San Salvador 1542

A replica of the San Salvador

When our legs finally gave out we headed to Old Town to check into our hotel. We then went to the restaurant to use our free drink coupons and relax on the deck enjoying the view. After a great dinner we walked down to the central plaza in Old Town to have a look around. Surprisingly everything was open and night life was the going strong. We finally gave in and came back to our room to rest.

Traditional dancing in Old Town

Shopping in Old town San Diego

Tomorrow we drive to Tehachapi, CA. To those of you who aren’t interested in trains I apologize in advance. The Tehachapi Loop is much like Mecca to rail fans. Tomorrow will be mostly about trains and railroads. Oh by the way, once we get to Death Valley on Thursday we won’t have wi-fi or cell service. We will emerge from the darkness on Saturday and I will post all of the episodes from Death Valley then.

Until tomorrow,

Jim

Oh wow, we got to sleep in this morning. Then there was coffee out on the balcony in the warm morning sun. Since we didn’t travel today the pace was much more relaxed. I don’t think I’ve explained why we’re staying in Carlsbad instead of San Diego. We got roped into one of those resort sales pitches. We got a two night stay at this fancy resort complex for almost nothing. The catch is that we had to attend a two hour sales pitch. We were lucky though, the people at Hilton Vacations don’t use pressure tactics. It was all easy going and a breeze to get through (no, we didn’t buy anything). In exchange we got all sorts of perks including a voucher for the San Diego Zoo for both of us (and a bunch of other stuff).

The Sheraton at Carlsbad

After the presentation we hopped in the car and headed the 30 miles into San Diego. The first stop was the zoo. Neither of us had even been to the San Diego Zoo. I have to say its an amazing place. It could easily take a full day to see everything. Did I mention that it is huge. We got in a lot of walking. I could go on and on about the zoo, but I won’t bore you with all of the details. I’ll just say it was great and if you’re ever in San Diego you should go to the zoo.

Rhinoceros of courserous

Feeding time at the zoo.

Panda taking a break

Pink Flamingos

After the zoo (it closed at 6:00 and we had to leave), we went right next door to Balboa Park. By this time of the day virtually everything is closed, but it was still fun to walk around and look at all of the cool buildings and enjoy the lush vegetation. Right now there are all sorts of pretty flowering shrubs in full bloom. It was starting to get dark, so we decided to head back to Carlsbad before it got really dark. I’m still not used to the insanity of the freeways here. I’m glad we didn’t come in my car. It just wouldn’t go fast enough to be on these freeways.

The Museum Of Man, Balboa Park

Spreckels Organ Pavillion, Balboa Park

Tomorrow we’re heading back into San Diego and will spend the night at a Best Western in Old Town. We plan to do another 10 km walk somewhere in the San Diego downtown area. There are three walks to choose from and we haven’t decided which we’ll do yet. It’ll be another easy going, relaxing day.

Until tomorrow,

Jim

It was a 300 mile day today. Now if that had all been on the freeway it would have been quick and easy, like driving to Spokane. Well 200 miles of it was driving down a very congested Pacific Coast Highway. Don’t get me wrong, it was very pretty, especially along the beeches. The problem is that on a beautiful, sunny Sunday half of the population of LA county was also out there enjoying it. Picture a hundred miles of bumper to bumper traffic.

The two high points of the journey were the town of Solvang and a visit to my good friend Frank Kenny’s house in Torrance. First Solvang, a must see if driving down highway 101 south of San Luis Obispo. This village was founded by three Danish immigrants back in the early 1900s. Solvang has grown into quite a large town and is very much a tourist attraction. There are lots of little and a few large shops selling souvenirs, restaurants, and hotels. We should have spent last night there in fact.

Downtown Solvang 1

Downtown Solvang 2

Exploring in Solvang

Solvang Brewing Company

Another cool windmill in Solvang

Our visit with Frank was way too short, but a very welcome break in our travels. We really enjoyed our visit and a chance to see Frank’s amazing train layout. I’d seen it once many years ago, but it has changed a lot since then. Thanks to Frank’s hospitality we were rested and refreshed when it was finally time to get back on the road.

An hour after leaving Frank’s we finally gave up on highway 1. It took us an hour to travel 20 miles so we bailed out and crossed over to the interstate. Once on I-405 we were barreling along at 80mph. It seemed like a very long boring drive to Carlsbad, but we had an appointment for between 6:00 and 7:00. We arrived for our appointment on time but there wasn’t anyone to meet us. It seems that during the day (while we were driving) we missed an e-mail.

As I write this we are relaxing in our spacious room in the Sheraton Hotel in Carlsbad. We had a very nice dinner in the up-scale restaurant in the hotel to celebrate Karen’s birthday. The best part is that we are staying here for two nights. We can sleep in tomorrow! Hurray!

Our room at the Sheraton

Thats all for tonight, more tomorrow.

Jim

Today I was reminded of why I never want to live in California. Crowds where ever you go, lines, traffic, high prices, etc. I guess the flip side of that is that there is always something cool happening. I think I’m becoming a cynical old man. I could sacrifice some of the cool events for a bit of open space and quiet.

Pigeon Point Light Station

Pigeon Point Lighthouse

We departed Half Moon Bay under cloudy skies and cool temperatures. We stopped at Starbucks on the way out of town. Uh-oh, it’s Saturday and we waited 20 minutes for my cup of coffee. OK, back on the road and heading south with a steamy cup of good coffee, it was worth it. We were just cruisin’ along when suddenly there was a cool lighthouse on the horizon. With some quick action we turned off the highway onto the narrow access road to Pigeon Point Light Station. The light station is now a hostel and preservation project.

Then we were in Santa Cruz where we stopped to get more oil for the Mini. Next thing you know we were going through Monterey. I should mention that no one in California drives even close to the speed limit. Most of the time we were cruising at 85 mph just so we wouldn’t get run over. Its crazy! Once through Monterey we were driving along and came to a flashing sign that said the highway was closed 26 miles ahead. Surprise!! I checked google maps several times and it didn’t show that it was closed.

After calming down we back tracked several miles to cut over to highway 101. The i-pad still must be set to avoid highways because it took us down country roads instead of the freeway. I’ve got to have a look at that.

Our next stop was in Morro Bay where we were going to do another 10 km walk. Surprised again we drove around for over half an hour to find a parking place. This weekend is the Avocado and Margarita Festival. To top it off, at the walk start there were no more sheets of directions for the walk. So, undaunted we made up our own walk which included margaritas and the festival. Happy and relaxed we finished our walk and then made our way to San Luis Obispo.

Fishing boats at the marina

The Morro Bay Avocado and Margarita Festival

Statues at Morro Rock

I have one comment to make before finishing tonight. San Luis Obispo must be in a different universe. An expensive universe. The cheapest motel I could find is the Motel 6 at $255.00 per night!!! As if thats not enough, they charge $5.00 extra for wi-fi! To top it off, its a dive! I wouldn’t board my dog here. Travelers note, don’t even stop on your way through San Luis Obispo!! Everything here is way over priced. We are paying less for a much nicer place in downtown San Diego. Enough of my rant, I apologize.

Until tomorrow,

Jim

Morro Bay Harbor

Morro Beech

When driving down California Hwy. 1 there should be magnificent views of the rugged coastline and the ocean. I know this because I’ve done this before and its beautiful. I’m afraid Karen will just have to take my word for it, we were in the fog for 200 miles. At first it looked like it might clear up, but then it would get socked in again.

Point Arena Lighthouse in the fog.

Point Arena

We did make several stops along our route today even with the fog. The first stop was in the quaint little town of Mendocino. I desperately wanted a good cup of coffee. No luck there so we drove on. Our next side trip was out to the Point Arena Lighthouse. Unfortunately it wasn’t open yet. We took a couple of pictures and went on our way. Then we stopped at Ft. Ross, an old Russian fort along the north coast. We spent quite a bit of time there learning much about its history. There was a school field trip at the fort while we were there. They were having quite an experience.

Fort Ross State Park

Changing of the guard

Guns at Ft. Ross

Ans so it went, all the way to San Francisco. Passing through quaint little towns and through very pretty countryside. One of my favorite smells on the planet is the scent of the Eucalyptus trees when the fog rolls in. All along the north coast there are groves of the huge Eucalyptus trees. Oh it brought back so many fond memories. The closer we got the San Francisco the more traffic we encountered. Then, beyond Stinson Beech, Hwy. 1 was closed. We had to take a long, crowded detour through Mt. Tamilpias State Park. I thought Hwy. 1 was twisty, oh my gosh was I surprised. We climbed about 2,000 feet in elevation in just a few miles. How do these motor homes make it?

Sweet smelling Eucalyptus trees

Mt Tamilpias State Park

We finally took a lunch break while in the park. Our lunch in San Francisco just wouldn’t do. By the time we got to SF it was rush hour and the traffic was awful. We did make it down to Fisherman’s Wharf eventually, but it was so crowded that we didn’t stay long. We opted to drive over to Fort Point to go walking instead. We had a great walk to unwind and let traffic thin down a bit.

Alcatraz and a harbor tour boat

The Golden Gate Bridge?

Finally we started the final leg of our day’s journey to Half Moon Bay. In an hour and a half we were checking into our room for the night and deciding what to do about dinner. It has been another 200+ mile day and I’m beat. As I finish this chapter with beer in hand I think I’m going to have a good night sleep.

Until tomorrow,

Jim