Wednesday 27 July 2016

Big Guy rides the Left Coast - Day Three - Crescent City, CA to Mendocino, CA

Day 3 - 375 kms - 7 hours

I woke up after an incredibly good sleep- and I actually slept in until 8! I packed my stuff (which doesn't take a long time) and headed down to the lobby of the motel for a fine brekky of a bagel and banana before starting off - into the fog!

Feeling perplexed by the lack of sunshine in California.

When I left it was 12° Celsius (54°F)! The road was twisty and a bit rough so it was hard to see at times! Not to worry, though, as the temperature started to climb.
My BMW with a tall tree.

A little perspective.


I joined the Redwood Highway pretty much right away and saw many of the mighty trees. I took a side road named after somebody called Drury (but probably not Ian Drury of the Blockhead - 'hit me with your redwood stick...'). It was densely populated with Redwoods.


The big tree.

Big guy, big tree!
At one point I stopped to see the 'Big Tree' which was, in fact, a big tree. Nice photos.

Ladybird tree.

Such a tall hollow tree!

Another tree selfie in Ladybird Johnson grove.

You can see the forest for the trees!

Stuck in the middle with two trees.

I continued on until the detour for Ladybird Johnson grove which was a 3.5 Mike detour and a 1.5 mile walk and definitely worth it! It was a self guided trail and very informative. Lots of photo ops with giant cedars.

Lunch time was at a Subway in some small town. I did my best to have a light breakfast and light lunch while I was riding. This is to avoid that feeling where you all full and sleepy and start to nod off while going 120 km down a twisty road. And through the forest there were lots of twisty roads! It was a blast to ride them!


Inside the One Log House.
A little later, feeling very hot, I stopped at the One Log House. Somebody hollowed out a giant cedar many years ago and made the world's first tiny house. It was interesting, and inexpensive ($1)  but the best part was the air conditioning in the shop where I bought the ticket! Back on the bike, the temperature topped out at 42°C.  (107° F)!...Hot!

The view from Westport.

Rocky view from Fort Bragg.
I continued down highway 101 until I reached the split off to highway 1. Then it was prepare the Go Pro and ride! Super twisters and narrow roads! Fun, fun, fun! Got some nice photos at Westport and at Fort Bragg.

I finally rolled into Mendocino around 4:30 - a mere 7 hours on the road! Including a couple of hikes!


I followed the CoPilot app's instructions to find my hotel for the night but thought there was an error because I was outside this classic stately manor on the Main Street facing the ocean. Nope, no error. My $68 went far tonight!



Now, the room was tiny - bed,chair, sink, and little table - and a tiny closet. The bathroom / shower was in the hallway but was clean and looked nice. The lobby was fantastic - the best part!  It looked like your classic idea of an old time fancy hotel.  I had a few beers and some dinner sitting in a little couch. Very nice food! I spent a fair bit of time taking to a retired couple from New York who retired to Arizona named Larry and.... Mrs Larry?

We spoke of many things - our respective trips,kids, retirement, beer, and, of course, motorcycles. They were very nice company for my meal. Very nice couple.



I then took a walk - across Main Street and over to the beach. There was a nice walk that took me around some rocky outcroppings and gave me some excellent views. It was a lovely place.

After dinner, beer, and a walk, I went upstairs to the little balcony over the front of the hotel and painted. It was a post-beer painting so it's not one that will fetch a fortune in 100 years....

Looking forward to seeing my friends Mike and Shirley in El Granada tomorrow! Should be fun!

4 comments:

BayDance.com said...

The adventure continues.

SonjaM said...

That interesting. We also stayed in Mendocino back in 2011. I liked this small town very much.

Dave Dixon said...

I would definitely go back to Mendocino for another visit!

David Masse said...

Thoroughly enjoying the story of your vacation.

I think if I were ever to ride down the coast to California, I'd have 'California Dreaming' playing on the Sena as I crossed the state line.