Off to see the ocean

[TinShack]

Hi Tom,

The smoke is particulary bad here today. Glad to see you had a nice afternoon yesterday and your site is nice. When you leave Morro Bay, you can take HWY 1 North to HWY 46 East. That will take you right to HWY 101 in Paso Robles. Too bad you can't go through Big Sur. Here is a Forest Service link to the Indians and Basin Complex fires that are plaguing the area if you want more information. If Morro Bay gets too cold, take a drive over the hill to Atascadero or Paso Robles where the temps will be in the 90's during the day. In the meantime, enjoy Morro Bay!

Los Padres National Forest - Current Conditions

[Fyrzowt]

The USA Today website has just posted the following article:

By Scott Lindlaw, Associated Press Writer
SAN FRANCISCO — Authorities on Tuesday ordered new evacuations on a strip of coast near Big Sur where firefighters were battling one of hundreds of lightning-sparked wildfires burning across Northern California.

The mandatory evacuation order covered a roughly 15-mile stretch along Highway 1 where firefighters planned a controlled burn Tuesday evening to help contain a wildfire that has burned about 74 square miles, said U.S. Forest Service spokesman Rolf Larsen.
The fire closest to the tourist community of Big Sur continued to grow this week and was just 3% contained — the same as last week — as it expanded away from populated areas. The mandatory evacuation affected about 200 people who live in an area from Partington Ridge to Limekiln State Park.

I would also recomment going up the coast to Hwy 46 and then east to 101. It's a nice drive up the coast, then as you go east there are some nice wide pull-outs that overlook Morro Bay and the surrounding coast. If it's clear enough it's a great view.

[Stream 1529]

We'll go up to 46 and then north on 101 to Salinas, then west to Monterey and Marina. We plan to over the hill to see the missions either tomorrow or the day after. The website will come in useful.

__________Tom

[Coastalview]

Hi Tom, just caught onto to your thread regarding your fantastic trip! If you catch this post prior to departure this morning to the Monterey Peninsula and need local information, I sent you a PM with my cell number.
Happy trails, Jeff

[Stream 1529]

We went to Mission San Luis Obisbo today. Very impressed with all of the plants. The towns are all so full of beautiful plants, trees and wonderful smells. Succulent bushes here grow in San Antonio, but they are just ground cover.

The Mission is different from the Texas Missions. The one in San Luis just seemed to be the church buildings which suggest that the Indians were more agricultural than hunters. Less roaming. The Missions in Texas would also include encampments for the Indians to live, and work for the Spainish.


We really enjoy seeing all of the green. Not to mention the very nice weather. It's strange that only a few miles to the east and you're going to be hot. This pic is the San Luis Creek taken just in front of the Mission.


We're making plans to see a parade on the 4th. Something we always try to do when we're traveling. Fireworks will be seen from the trailer.

_________Tom

[Fyrzowt]

Hi Tom, Nice shots of the mission, thanks for including them.
The Calif. missions did have encampments around them, not sure that any of them survived progress and time.
Where are you seeing a parade?
Dave

[Stream 1529]

Originally Posted by Fyrzowt

Hi Tom, Nice shots of the mission, thanks for including them.
The Calif. missions did have encampments around them, not sure that any of them survived progress and time.
Where are you seeing a parade?
Dave

Dave,

I think the parade is in Cayuga. A friend of ours here in Morro Bay has a 1934 Indian that she used to ride in the parade. We've really enjoyed attending July 4th parades in small towns. Parades, BBQ, and cold beer just seem to spell Independence Day.

If Cal Poly had a need for a Texas historian we just might have a hard time not taking it and moving out here. Pat & I have really enjoyed our time here, and can only hope that the rest of our trip up the coast, or as near up the coast as the fires permit, will be as nice as Morro Bay. My DW is really a Texan in every sense of the word, so when she said that she wouldn't hesitate to live here I was amazed.

_____Tom

[Stream 1529]

The parade in Cayucos was really cute. It had a bit of everything, and no one was disappointed. This was a parade put on by the whole community and anyone was welcomed to participate.


On our way back we stopped alongside the beach, and found this little guy taking a break. We rested a bit ourselves and then went to the harbor area to watch the fireworks. It was crowded, and foggy so we left after the first salvo did nothing more than light up the clouds. Several people on the beach were shooting off their fireworks, and the fog didn't hide theirs so we had our show.

We went to the mission in San Miguel the next day, and it was very nice. There was about a 25 degree variance in temperature from the coast inland about 20 miles. The woman at the mission told us that this is the most complete mission we will see in California. She told us that the towns encroachment would eat away from the out buildings until only the chapels and a few buildings were left. San Miguel had not grown like the other towns and so no distruction for town growth.

This is what happened to the Alamo in San Antonio. The Alamo became surrounded by businesses, and piece by piece it started to disappear. The conservationists put a stop to it around the end of the 19th Century, but the Chapel and courtyard area is about all that is left.

I filled up when we got back to Morro Bar, and paid $5.15 p/g for diesel. Gettin kinda pricey.

________Tom

[Fyrzowt]

Glad you enjoyed our area, yeah the fuel prices are definately higher here. Cayucos is a great little town, if the hou$ing wasn't out of sight there it would be high on my list of places to live.
Keep posting, it's interesting seeing others experiences and what their interests are.

[Stream 1529]

Originally Posted by Fyrzowt

Glad you enjoyed our area, yeah the fuel prices are definately higher here. Cayucos is a great little town, if the hou$ing wasn't out of sight there it would be high on my list of places to live.
Keep posting, it's interesting seeing others experiences and what their interests are.

We passed a realtor's leaving the parade, and saw a flyer. Yikes! We made it to Marina yesterday, and did the 17 mile tour today, wow. Stopped at the Carmel Mission, wow again. Wifi problem, so pics will come later.

Fuel in Marina is $5.79 p/g. Gads! 8 gallons for $50. Off to San Francisco tomorrow.

_______Tom

[altamont]

See if you can stay in Bodega Bay at Doran regional park. Then north 35 miles to Stillwater Cove 16 miles north of Jenner. Both worth staying at but Stillwater is a RELAXING place with NO amenities like wifi, cell service, hookups, etc. Weekends are full at both but weekday stops will probably find you a spot.

[Stream 1529]

We've made it to Petaluma, but the Excursion may be sick. The last two days its been making a noise kinda like a kazoo. At first it would happen around 60-65 and stop at lower speeds. Then it started at lower speeds, and would get louder when the transmission went into a lower gear. I've checked the fluids and they are fine. As long as the Ford dealer here can here the same thing I did, and fix it is all I'm thinking now. They took it in right away, and said they'd try to look at it today, but would get to it for sure tomorrow. Well we're here for 4 nights so I hope they can get it done.

At least I've got a chance to get some pictures up.

________Tom

[Stream 1529]

We made the drive from Morro Bay without any incident - except for the noise noted in the previous post. We took the 17 Mile Drive in Pebble Beach and were really blown away. The waves on the rocks, seals, trees, fog just everything that a flatlander would never see anywhere else. We also went through Carmel Mission. It's beauty shows what can be done to restore a Mission when there is financial backing.








The area was a bit pricey so we didn't spend too much. Diesel was 5.79 p/g, and they didn't take credit cards plus they wanted a .45 fee to use a debit card to pay for it. I paid $50 cash for 8 gallons. Drove out towards San Francisco and the price dropped to 5.09. I wasn't surprised by the prices, and we wanted to stay in the area.

[Stream 1529]

The trip up from Marina was a nice trip with gorgeous views. Going North, all the scenic pull outs are on the other side. There weren't that many, but when my DW saw a lighthouse we started looking, and found, a pull out.
The weather was perfect, and we stretched a bit before heading out again.

The traffic started getting heavier around Pacifica, but nothing really bad. I had been concerned about the road going through San Francisco, only to learn later that it had been upgraded after the 1989 earthquake instead of rebuilding the damaged freeway. Nice wide lanes up to the Presidio area, and then it got kind of narrow. Going through big cities mid-day has worked this whole trip, and it did once more. Traffic was very manageable. Getting up and onto the Golden Gate Bridge was exciting, but we got on and enjoyed the views of the bay. This trip across there was no fog. We got to Petaluma fine, and the KOA here is exceptional. Nice wide spaces, and very accommodating staff. It was over 100, but with both a/c's working the trailer cooled down nicely.

The next day I had the Excursion worked on. See my thread Turbo Flutter for that saga.

Then we went to San Francisco for the day. The trip over we had fog. We went to the Japanese Tea Gardens, and how beautiful they were. We took a cable car ride, went through China Town [DW didn't get homesick], Fisherman's Wharf, and Fort Point. On the way back we did get some pictures of Golden Gate as the fog eased up a bit. Temps in SF were in the 60/70 range, and when we got back to the trailer it was in the low 90s.

This was my wife's first trip to San Francisco and she really enjoyed it. Tomorrow we're going to go over to Bodega Bay to see the sights there. Then Saturday it's off to Benbow.

_________Tom

[Taj MaHaul]

Just found the thread - if you are going 1 and not 101 above SF then look for these cgs: Manchester SP (just north of Pt Arena); Albion Creek CG (pvt); Mackerricher SP (just N of Ft Bragg) and one of our favorites is Westbay Union SP - you won't find a place closer to the ocean.

Skip Shelter Bay (west out of Garberville) as it is a long way for little reward and the road tho paved, isn't good. There are a couple of state parks in the Redwoods and you can't go wrong in any of them.

A word to the wise: if you are hoping to find a cg on a weekend night along 1 or 101...well, you've probably already learned what that's like.

Got lots of suggestions for the Oregon coast if you want 'em.

Bill
ferry360.com

[Stream 1529]

Agsag, thanks for the tips. We're at Brookings and will leave for Florence in the morning. I started planning this trip, on another thread over a year ago, and it's been a success so far because of the great advice I received.

__________Tom

[Gene]

Tom,

I also just found this thread too. We've been along most of the Pacific coast highways (we avoided all the big cities), pre-Airstream, and you're helping me re-live it. Too bad you couldn't get to Big Sur, but more reason to come back. The road north of SF and Pt. Arenas, is very curvy and hilly and will take some time to travel, but you may be past there by now. It would be great fun in a sports car though. You'll have many cars behind you. When you get to Gualala, there's a an excellent pizza joint—I think it's called Ultimate Pizza and it's the best I've had since I moved West 30 years ago. It's on the right in a little building at the south end of town (or was several years ago). When you get about half way through Oregon (where they pump the gas for you), traffic picks up and lots of little towns.

When we went it was the rainy season in the Northwest (most of the year I think) and after weeks of rain, we who live in the high desert, started to get crazy, but I think it's the dry season now and you won't be going north of Oregon. Looks like you'll be traveling along the Columbia R. We took the road on the Washington side as it seemed to be less intense than the interstate on the south side. There's a Pendleton factory store 15 or 20 miles east of Vancouver, Wash., with some good discounts. It's in a town starting with a "W". There's no Pendleton store in Pendleton, Ore.

We're hoping to bring our Safari west in September starting north of Pt. Arenas and going north to Oregon until we have to return home at the end of the month. If the fires stop and gas prices don't get any worse, we'll go.

Gene

[Stream 1529]

We left San Francisco and made it to Benbow. Once again we're without wi-fi with no explanation or apology. We survived. We took a trip south on Hwy 1 to Ft Bragg just to see the Redwoods, and the coast.

The road was as advvertised, and I was glad for the advice y'all gave me to stay off of the 1 when in tow. The trees are a wonder, and we're both wondering when we'll see blue sky again. The fog has added a flavor to the pics that we don't really experience in Texas that often.

We visited friends in the area and they took us up the Avenue of the Giants, and showed us Ferndale to see the old buildings.

__________Tom

[Fyrzowt]

Hey Tom, I forget your travel route, but last I heard Hwy 1 was re-opened through Big Sur. Might check the CHP website.
I haven't been able to get on here much in the last few weeks but I'm enjoying your photos when I can catch them.

[Stream 1529]

Originally Posted by Fyrzowt

Hey Tom, I forget your travel route, but last I heard Hwy 1 was re-opened through Big Sur. Might check the CHP website.
I haven't been able to get on here much in the last few weeks but I'm enjoying your photos when I can catch them.

Our access has been spotty as well. The drive into Oregon was very nice. Nicer still was diesel for $4.89 p/gal, and they pump it for you. We stayed just North of Brookings at Whaleshead Beach RV, a great park suggested by this thread. The park is terraced into the side of a mountain, and overlooks whaleshead island. Our slot had its own deck, and a nice view. Trailer life does not give good ratings, and these should be ignored. It is a very nice park, and has a very good cafe to boot.

We walked across to the black and gold beach to see whatleshead up close. The first thing we noticed were the pelicans, which are rare in Central Texas. The island/rock does look like a whale and is home to a bunch of birds.

The beach just seems to go for ever, and with the sun out it was a very nice place for a walk.


The drive up from Benbow was hard with the turns and grades to climb and descend. My speed did not get over 50, and I didn't go that fast all that often. My mileage dropped to 11mpg as a result.

One more stop on the coast, and then we head inland to Portland for a three day rest with little of anything on the agenda, yea.

________Tom