Highway 1 roadie

24 June 2024

We made our way back to San Rafael via highway 1 which provided a range of coastal delights. We started in the cute little village of Jenner. It was a misty morning with sea fog which made for a beautiful start to our drive south.
 

First things first and that was coffee at Cafe Aquatica - great coffee and right on the river.

Our next stop was Goat Rock and Blind beach. We had hoped to walk to the seals but as you can see from the pictures below the sea fog was quite thick so after a while we turned back.

Majestic rock formations just off shore  clouded in mist  - made it very dramatic.

It must be stunning on a clear day. We loved it none the less.

Next  we wound our way along the incredible coast line with so many little coves and beaches. We stopped at Portuguese Beach and School House Beach before arriving at Bodega Bay.

Bodega bay was established as a port by the Russian settlers who came for a milder climate to raise crops and fur trade with Alaskan settlements. (We passed by Bodega where the film The Birds was shot).

They picked a great spot. The wide sheltered tidal estuary is home to so much marine life it's incredible. In the short time we were there we saw sea otter, an Osprey flying with a fish it had caught in its claws, so many wading birds working the tide lines, seals and seabirds of all descriptions.

Our expert road trip advisers suggested we try the clam chowder and/or the Dungeness crab. So always one to follow instructions that's exactly what we did and it was perfect - we sat outside and spotted a sea otter!

On the road again, we drove all the way down beside Tomales Bay - stunning coastline and the sun was out. 

We poked our noses into the Tomales shops, think Martinborough and you'll get the idea - cute as a button!

Next stop another cute little town, only bigger, Pt Reyes Station.

We looked into the famous 'Tobys Feedlot' where we grabbed a coffee and checked out the amazing range of produce on sale. King Charles and Queen Camilla have visited here so if it's good enough for royalty...😁

The little gallery had an interesting exhibition.

Then we drove out to the Pt Reyes Lighthouse passing all the little beachside settlements along the way. Gorgeous road that hugged the coast for quite a while. The closer we got to Pt Reyes the more foggy it became. Oh no, would we see the light house?

Where there's a will, there's a way - a bit of foggy mist never hurt anyone.

There are 321 steps down to the lighthouse.

The lighthouse was actually beneath the mist when we got to the bottom of the steps.

We smashed out the 321 steps back to the top no sweat - we have calves of steel from our rock climbing on the Likya Yolu in Turkey 😄

We drove the Lucas Valley Rd back to San Rafael. It was lovely to drive through a tunnel of towering Redwoods. 

Fun fact, the earliest AA garage is in Pt Reyes Station village - it has a wall of trophy heads too. What a fantastic day, one for the memory bank for sure.

Russian River rodeo

 23 June 2024

We were lucky enough to experience a little bit of a 'real deal' rodeo while camping at the Russian River. 

We had the most perfect campsite beside the river, gorgeous spot.

The rodeo turned out to be fully sold out so we looked over the fence and got a sense of the event, it's like nothing I've experienced before.

We got to see real cowboys and steer wranglers, rodeo queens and the moving parts that make the rodeo tick - check out the size of the horse trailer!

The stands were full and in the hot, full sun. I think we had a better spot on the edge and in the tree shade for a bit.

Just across the road from the rodeo grounds was the local pub and it was pumping, the busiest day of the year they said. 

The band was playing some sweet music, people were grooving and a lot of rodeo fans and cowboys were quenching their thirst.

I chatted to these two cowboys, they were quite shy but happy to answer questions from a rodeo 'newbie'. They do this for their professional job travelling all across America.

The rodeo grounds were a real family affair with people from all walks of life and a really lovely relaxed atmosphere - just families enjoying time together.

They had a groovy hay bale/ corn kernel play area for the little ones.

If you weren't all gussied up in your country clobber there was no shortage of belts and hats on sale.

Never seen so many stetsons in one place, it was awesome. The gals behind the bar were fantastic, smiling as they worked like mad to serve the crowds.

 

Back to the campsite for riverside pre dinner drinks and on to Guernville for a bite to eat. We were seranded by a solo artist who did a pretty good job.

The bright lights of Guernville!

What a great day, so many sights, people from all walks of life, all getting along, not a spot of bother or hassle and the best western style hats ever! 

Fantastic day, one we won't forget in a long time, yeehah!  Thanks to Kevin and Michelle for doing all the planning and booking a perfect campsite. 

Tiburon Wooden boat show

 23 June 2024

We were fortunate to attend the Annual Master Mariners Wooden Boat Show at the Corinthian Yacht Club in Tiburon. We were heading up to the Russian River later in the day so nipped across to Tiburon early...the early bird catches the worm...they were still setting up as we wandered about.

It was a glorious morning and what better way to spend an hour wandering around the gracious ladies of the sea. YUCCA is a yacht that my brother has sailed on many times with the sailing legend of the Bay Area, Hank Easom.

So many beauties, Ole, Sea Witch, Brigadoon, Nautica, Farida....

The skippers were so welcoming and invited you on board. Many were very much labours of love .....and still not 'complete' after 30+yrs of restoration. 

There were pennants and bunting galore!

The yacht Victus was built in New Zealand and made of Kauri and Pohutukawa planking. She's owned by a charming French gentleman who rescued her from ruin - some previous owner had put a hot tub in her, I kid you not! Now Victus is restored to her former glory and looking for a new owner who will cherish her, the Frenchman lives in Europe and she's needs to be sailed he said. 

Adored the little wooden rowing dighy.

Wonderful views from the upper deck of the historic yacht club, a bird's eye view!

We got to see our dear friends Carol and John's beautiful sailboat Ole, we'd heard a lot about her so it was wonderful to admire her in person. 

Wonderful to see the restoration and preservation of traditional sailing vessels and such lovely people willing to share their passion.