California Raw, Day 9

This morning we started off our day by visiting Saulsalito and the Golden Gate Bridge. Sadly the fog was too heavy for good pictures, but we had a very enjoyable lunch on the water and did some gallery hopping.

We took 101 North out of Saulsalito and said our prayers that we weren't going the other direction. I guess everyone was headed home from their holiday weekend adventures.

About that same time we realized that US 101 was not CA 1, and that we were missing our drive up the coast. We set the GPS to get us over to the Pacific Coast Hwy and had a very nice surprise drive from somewhere just south of Santa Rosa, through Occidental I think, then Guerneville, and finally to Jenner. This was mostly on Hwy 116 which was largely forested, lush, and secluded.

If I were going to live in CA, I think this would be the place to do it: close to SF, Napa, Sonoma, Pacific Coast Hwy, and with all the pleasantries of small town living. We stopped at a very peaceful coffee shop in Guerneville and got some pictures of small birds that were frolicking in the trees all around us.

Hwy 1 was gorgeous again. --Not as high up as we were outside of LA, but with lush flowers and vegetation on all sides. I'm waiting for the faeries or elves to pop out of the woods as we come around a corner up here. It really won't surprised me at all.

And as we made our way further north we began to see more redwoods. Mostly our drive was beset by heavy, heavy fog today, but there were some gorgeous shots that I was just dying to get -- and with no pulloffs to be had anywhere.

We stopped for an early dinner hoping the fog would clear in time for some sunset shots. That didn't happen and we later had something of what I think of as a "Lord of the Rings" (or any fantasy novel) experience that I'll try to relate:

For our last stretch of travel tonight we were in the dark, laden with heavy fog, on wet and windy roads, no other cars on the road, and passing through deserted towns that had long since closed for the evening. I was getting increasingly tired, needing to stretch my legs, use the restroom, and it looked like there wouldn't be anything until we found the hotel. And then, in another sleepy town, we came across a Bed and Breakfast/Inn with its lights on. We stopped and the inn keeper took pity on us, serving us coffee and desert even though she had just closed.

Other people in the inn were sitting around, talking quietly, telling stories. Someone asked Mom where we drove from and we where headed. The inn keeper/waitress/hostess was running around tending to everyone. And somehow it all just felt like something out of a book. If I ever mange to write one, I think I'll try to work it in somehow.

We're staying at the North Cliff Hotel in Ft. Bragg tonight, which is a lovely place indeed. I'd compare it to the Marriott in Marina del Ray, though they're kind of apples and oranges. The Marriott had its own nightclub; this place has a ton of a charm, and there is an honest-to-God fog horn in the distance. We have a fireplace and a complimentary breakfast waiting in the refrigerator, which looks as though it will be very nice when we wake up.

As I post this I'm listening my Zune, specifically to a recording of Martha Argerich -- my very favorite pianist (second perhaps only to Luis!) -- perform Ravel's "Ondine". I mention this because it's been playing in my head the entire trip whenever we're on Hwy 1 -- over and over and over like someone is playing it in my ear. Usually that kind of thing only happens if I have a bad fever (Ravel's Piano Concerto in G major was somewhat ruined for me by a bad flu several years ago), but I guess this is just the theme music for the vacation.

It's also worth mentioning because Mom and I found a place called "Ondine" in Saulsalito today. I thought it must be a divine omen and so we went in. Sadly, it was just a restaurant that wasn't open. But I guess I'm not the only one to match this piece of music with the Pacific coast.

Ten new pictures uploaded.