Monterey Peninsula

Sunday and Monday found us on the Monterey Peninsula.  When we were planning our day trips from SF, Mike said Monterey was 3 hours away – a little too far.  I put an option on the table: leave the motorhome at the RV park, drive to Monterey on Sunday, spend the night in a hotel and come back on Monday. 

I’m not going to say this fell under Mike’s Life Rule #1 (compromise and do it her way).  Instead I choose to view these two days as an early Mother’s Day gift!  And the fact that 3 famous golf courses, and several others, lie on the scenic 17-Mile Drive of the peninsula really helped my cause.

I had heard of the Monterey Peninsula, including the towns of Monterey and Carmel, but had honestly not ever heard of the 17-Mile Drive.  I came across it while searching online about the area and for hotels.  We arrived on Sunday in Monterey about noon.  I had booked a small boutique hotel there.  We were happy when we drove up, because. . . well. . . you know, the internet can make anything look good.  (you have to be thankful for the little things. . . )  They let us check in early and were extremely helpful with all my questions about the area.  They directed us to a local sports bar for lunch and to try to catch the end of the NASCAR race. 

We decided to drive the peninsula first and explore the rest of downtown Monterey later.  Before we even got to the 17-Mile part, we went along the coast with some great views.   I said I would drive.  Sometimes when Mike is driving, I’ll see something cool and think, “He’s going to pull over so we can see this better.”  When he doesn’t, it is too late for me to say “Pull over!”  If I drove, I could stop wherever!  I demonstrated this when we had not even gotten to the beginning of the Drive and I pulled over.  When there is a parking area, with lots of people, that’s a pretty good indication that the view is worth stopping for.  And it was.  And had I not stopped, we would have missed Lover’s Point! 

We have observed that every green space or neighborhood park that we have seen in California is always filled with people having picnics, playing games, flying kites.  In the case of Lover’s Point, it involved climbing on the rocky shore, too.

We entered the 17-Mile Drive at the Pacific Grove gate.  You have to pay a $9.75 fee to travel the Drive.  This seemed strange, but I’m sure it goes toward garbage removal at the numerous (at least 18) turnout areas, restroom facilities at some of the stops, and general road maintenance.  What we discovered is the Drive goes through a private residential neighborhood.  Quite an exclusive neighborhood, to be sure.  We saw one house for sale on the water for $3.9 million!  The coastline is dramatic and with 18 designated stops, there were plenty of places to get out and walk the beach or just admire the rocky shore. It was windy and overcast, so I’m sure the pictures aren’t going to adequately convey the beauty. There are plenty of signs along the way to keep you on the Drive, but just to be sure, they have a red and yellow stripe down the center of the road to follow.

The Drive takes you to Spanish Bay Golf Links, Spyglass Hill Golf Course, Cypress Point Golf Course and last (from our direction), the crown jewel – Pebble Beach Golf Links.  We did not drive up into Cypress Point because the sign said “Members Only”, but we did see the others, and the road goes right past Pebble Beach.  We didn’t stop because we had reservations for lunch on Monday at a restaurant at the course.

Our drive ended in Carmel.  We stopped here and walk the main street, which was upscale shops, jewelry stores, and restaurants.  We went into one gallery – the Thomas Kincaid gallery as the walkway back to it was so inviting.  We didn’t seek out Clint Eastwood, or continue south on Highway 1 to Big Sur.

 It took us 17 scenic miles to drive from Monterey to Carmel.  When we headed back to Monterey, the direct route was 3.5 miles!

Monterey is an old, historic fishing town.  It was the capital of California at one time.  Like San Francisco, it has a Fisherman’s Wharf, which, like San Francisco’s, is no longer used for fishing purposes, but is a pier of shops and restaurants.  The Custom House near the wharf stakes its claim to “the oldest” – it is the oldest government building in California.  On July 7, 1846, U.S. Marines landed at Monterey Bay and raised the American flag over the Customs House, which meant Mexico and the United States were at war.

A mile down from the wharf is Cannery Row, which we liked much better.  This several-block area is still the shops and restaurants like the wharf, but the buildings are old sardine canneries and the vibe was just “cooler”.   The Monterey Aquarium is at the end  - a world-class attraction we were told, as we didn’t get there.  After walking around, we settled on Sly McFly’s (the most famous, oldest, historic restaurant on Cannery Row, according to their menu cover) for dinner.  We were done eating, but waiting for the band to start when an older couple sat next to us.  They were from Sweden, here on a 5-week vacation.  Anders and Birgitta Graffner.  You know how several times I have mentioned that we dislike the traffic in California?  These people put things into perspective for us.  They had a flight from Sweden to London, then a non-stop to LA.  They landed in LA at 5 pm – peak rush hour.  They rented a car to drive to Monterey.  When he talked about having to cross 8 lanes of traffic to get to his exit, we realized he did it after flying a quarter of the way around the world! 

To further help my case that these two days were an early Mother’s Day gift, Mike got up Monday morning and went to a French bakery across the street to get me a foo-foo coffee and an apple tart for us to share.  We had a noon reservation at The Gallery Café at Pebble Beach.  You have to pay the $9.75 to get on the 17-Mile Drive to get to Pebble.  There is no other way.  If you enter it at the Carmel Gate or the Highway 1 Gate, Pebble is only about a mile or two down.  But if you are going to pay the fee, why not see the scenery again?  So we did the exact drive we did on Sunday, but Mike drove this time. (if you play Pebble or eat at a restaurant there, the fee is refunded.)

The Galley Café overlooks the putting green and the first tee.  Halfway into lunch, we saw a deer walk out onto the first fairway!  After a visit to the Pro Shop for some souvenirs, we went into The Lodge and sat on the deck that overlooks the 18^th green and the bay behind it.  Lunch at Pebble Beach was perfect.   Golf at Pebble Beach for Mike will have to wait for a “guys” golf trip.  While we didn’t see any famous golfers or celebrities like you would during their tournament, going on a regular day, parking right onsite, having access to everything and not fighting crowds was priceless. 

Someone had told me about a beach close by where we could find sand dollars.  It was on our way back, just not the exact way we would have gone.  In yet another example of my Mother’s Day gift, Mike drove to this beach and walked it with me looking for sand dollars.  Remember, we were dressed for lunch at Pebble Beach, not for digging in the sand.  We found lots of broken sand dollars, but none intact.

Going back this way took us by fields and fields and fields of a variety of vegetables and strawberries, most under the Dole name.  Artichokes – 12 for $1.  What a bargain!

This route also passed the outskirts of San Jose where I serenaded Mike with “Do you know the way to San Jose?  I’ve been away so long, I may go wrong and lose my way. . . “

We have had several conversations during this journey, usually with store clerks, that, when we say we are from Michigan and are on a 3-month trip in our motorhome to see the west, they say, “That is SOOO neat” or “I would LOVE to do something like that” or “That is on my bucket list” or “I haven’t had a vacation in 2 years so I would love even ONE week to travel.”

It reminds us that you have to be thankful for the BIG things, too. . .

Many pictures today: us at Lover’s Point; varied views of the peninsula coast; Bird Rock; the Lone Cypress Tree (the symbol of Pebble Beach).  It has survived perched on this rock for over 250 years; the entrance to Pebble; downtown Carmel; Fisherman’s Wharf in Monterey; the Customs House; Cannery Row; me on the beach at Spanish Bay; Mike walking toward The Lodge at Pebble; a cute statue called “Just Like Dad”.  Notice the oversized golf shoes and club; our view of the first tee during lunch; overlooking the 18^th green and looking back down the 18^th fairway.

I Left My Heart in San Francisco

Not really. Mine is right here beside me! San Francisco was not originally on our itinerary as we early on decided not to go to places we have already been to. I think I mentioned this before, which is why we didn’t go to the Grand Canyon or Phoenix, or San Diego. In 1995 we came to San Francisco for a business conference for Mike. I saw more of the city than he did because while he was in meetings, I did the city tour. (and I was back in SF several years later with my sisters for a long weekend). But Mike wanted to drive across the Golden Gate Bridge, which we had not ever done.

Our campground (and I use that term loosely as we are RIGHT next to I-80 with no grass in sight) is about 35 miles north of San Francisco. I had always wanted to go to Sausalito, which was exactly on our route to the Golden Gate Bridge. Once there, we didn’t even get out of the car. After driving down the main street of town, we didn’t see anything that piqued our interest enough to stop the car. We don’t walk through galleries, it was too early to get something to eat and boutique-y shops don’t interest Mike. (they interest me, but I was not driving!).

So we proceeded to cross the bridge. Besides the lanes for vehicles, they had lanes on both sides for walkers and bikers. We were excited because we brought our bikes and thought we may not only drive across the Golden Gate Bridge, but we may bike across it! We’ve never even walked the Mackinac Bridge on Labor Day (to our shame).

We drove around some, ended up at Fisherman’s Wharf to get some lunch (clam chowder and fish and chips, of course) and took a 90-minute cruise of San Francisco Bay, something new for us. It was VERY windy so we didn’t sit up top. The boat trip cruises along the shoreline, giving great views of the SF skyline. The narration during the 90 minutes made the boat ride worth it. The Bay was filled with sailboats, both large and small and windsurfers. As we approached the Golden Gate Bridge to go under it, we realized we missed our chance at biking across it. It was so enveloped in fog we could not see it until we were almost under it. That and the wind ended our hopes of being able to bike the bridge. You will be able to see the fog in the pictures. I did take a picture of us going under the bridge. So we may have a little claim to fame as we also have a picture of us going under the Mackinac Bridge (in our boat Point Guard). And come to think of it, we went under the Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridges in New York on brother Greg’s boat Blue Fairways. Not everyone can say they have been under so many suspension bridges!

After turning and heading back toward SF, the boat made a trip around Alcatraz (which we toured on our earlier trip) and by Angel Island, which is called the Ellis Island of the west. We ended by going under the Bay Bridge (another suspension bridge) which connects SF to Oakland. You may recall the Bay Bridge was the one damaged in the earthquake of 1989. To get to Oakland you drive on the Bay Bridge, through a tunnel on Treasure Island and the rest of the Bay Bridge, which we did. We drove to the Oakland Coliseum, home to baseball’s Oakland Athletics and football’s Oakland Raiders. I was taking pictures and saw people going in and out of the stadium. There was a high school baseball tournament being played and we were able to walk right in! (you have to be thankful for the little things. . . )

Along with presidential libraries, we also like sports, so seeing the green grass of the field and the retired numbers of famous A’s was a treat.

Right next door was Oracle Arena where the Golden State Warriors of the NBA play.

Our weather changed today from the high 80’s to low 70’s and the wind and fog made it feel even chillier. Our narrator quoted Mark Twain: "I have never spent a colder winter than the summer I spent in San Francisco!" We head to the Monterey Peninsula tomorrow and it is suppose to be low 60’s. I think the weather back home is about the same. I did Face Time this morning with members of my family who were all at a bridal shower for my great-niece and they were all in short-sleeved shirts and some in shorts!

Pictures today are: driving across the Golden Gate Bridge; a typical hilly street in SF. I could never drive a stick-shift in this city!; Mike looking at the seals who sun themselves at the Wharf; a close-up of the seals; me with the Coit Tower and Trans America building in the background; the fog surrounding the GG bridge; going under the GG bridge; Alcatraz; the Bay Bridge and tunnel; me under the Fisherman’s Wharf sign; Mike at an entrance into the Oakland Coliseum; the field of the Coliseum.

Because we had already been to San Francisco, we didn’t repeat what we have already done, so for those of you who have never been here, I am sorry there are no pictures of cable cars, or the crookedest street, or the Presidio, or the Ghirardelli Chocolate Factory, or the inside of Alcatraz, or the many other interesting that make up San Fran.

Golf and Gold

Thursday was one of those days we knew we would have when we weren’t tied to such a time schedule. We woke to yet another sunny day and decided to play golf. We made breakfast, which is a treat, (unless you count the cooking and cleaning up!) because breakfast is usually a banana/breakfast bar/yogurt while driving somewhere. We drove 20 minutes to Phoenix Lake Golf Club and played 9 holes. It wasn’t Pebble Beach, or Torrey Pines, or Riviera, but hey, it was golf. . . in California. (This is how you can tell Mike is on vacation with me – we played nine holes. Golf with the guys is 18 holes or it’s not golf.)

Boy did it take a few swings for the muscles to loosen up. We are not posting any scores; suffice it to say, we enjoyed exercising our arms instead of our legs for a change. (but, if either of us had a career round, you would hear about it. Darn tooting’!) And with no one behind us and no group in front of us until the last 2 holes, it was a really enjoyable round of golf.

We got back and decided to ride our bikes the short distance into Columbia. This calls for a little explanation. We pick campgrounds solely on the basis of proximity to what we want to see and do. In this case, Yosemite. We chose Columbia strictly because it was a reasonably priced, big-rig friendly (according to our RV books and iPad RV app) campground near Yosemite. Little did we know that for most people, Columbia IS their destination. Why? There’s gold in them there hills! Columbia is actually a State Park because it is considered to be one of the best-preserved gold mining towns in all of California. Who knew? Certainly not us! But there were clues that we missed on our drive here last Tuesday. After our 7-hour drive to get here, we must have been too tired to notice. But there are signs advertising businesses called “Mother Lode Auto Body Repairs” and “Mother Lode Mini-Storage” and “Mother Lode Answering Service”.

All of the brick buildings are original, dating back to 1850 when gold was discovered here. (March 27, 1850, to be exact). Between 1850 and 1930 over $87,000,000 was taken out of the mines. And that is using 1850 gold pricing! The town is a several block area of things like a general store, mining supply store (you can pan for gold. We didn’t as I had done that in Alaska), bank (Mike refused to let me take his picture in front of it, his #2 rule of life coming into play), Wells Fargo Express, drug store, ice cream parlor, candle and soap making shop, and several saloons. All these are housed in the original buildings or re-created wooden ones. Another claim to “the oldest”: Columbia has the oldest 2-story brick schoolhouse in California. When we left to play golf, there were 6 school buses in the visitor parking lot, making Columbia a favorite spot for school field trips. No vehicles, except the horse-drawn stagecoach, are allowed on the streets. By the time we got to town, the school kids were gone. (you have to be thankful for the little things. . . )

We bellied up to the bar in one of the saloons and I got me an ice-cold sarsaparilla. Delicious! I’ll let you guess what Mike ordered. Remember, this is a working saloon.

Columbia was another one of those unexpected gems God has blessed us with.

Today we are driving 4 hours to Napa Valley where we have a spot reserved for a week. We are anticipating several day trips from there and also some relaxing down time. Wine country . . .where is Patsy or Matt when we need them? Red or white?

I’m typing as we are driving and we are passing lots of farms with lots of different things growing. The only ones I recognize are strawberry fields and it must be the season for them because there are roadside stands everywhere. The one thing I don’t see growing is corn. That I would recognize. Knee high by the Fourth, and all that.

I’m waiting for one of our boys to start a “Just how many clichés is Mom going to use on this trip” pool. Probably Matt, who does the family March Madness pool every year. So don’t be surprised if you get an email giving you the odds or the over and under or whatever the wagering terms are!

And for the sake of honest reporting (or in this case, blogging), and because I just plain hate to be wrong, I gave you some misinformation about Yosemite. Besides, Mike said somebody will read that and say, “I don’t think that is right. . .”

(we just had to pay a $20 toll – didn’t even know we were on a toll road!)

I said Yosemite is in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada range. Columbia is in the foothills. Yosemite is smack in the middle of the High Sierras! While in the park we were at an elevation at one point of over 6,000ft. (There, I feel better).

Pictures today are: the golfers; my sarsaparilla; the inside of the saloon, and images of Columbia.

PS – Nix the staying here for a week. We just checked in and got set up. Probably only staying until Tuesday. We are packed in here like sardines and no RV washing, which I can’t believe I’m saying this, but we really need to do. Will be OK for doing day trips but not a place we want to stay to relax.

Yosemite National Park

Before I begin to tell you how incredibly wonderful Yosemite National Park is, a little about our drive here. I had mentioned in an earlier post how nerve-wracking it can be driving with 5 lanes of traffic. We encountered 8 lanes – all going the same direction! I’ve got to believe that is more than around Detroit.

Once off the freeway, the terrain began to resemble Michigan, with farms and rolling green hills. Not a palm tree in sight. We drove at least an hour through this countryside to arrive at our campground in Columbia, CA. Our pull-through lot is more like a pull along side as we have a large hill on one side of us. We actually like it – very private.

After checking in with the office this morning (they were closed when we arrived yesterday) we drove 1 ½ hrs. to Yosemite. This national park is at the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, but we still drove up to an elevation of over 5,000 ft. I’ve heard several family members describe “The Road to Hana” in Hawaii and how treacherous it is. We’ve never been on it, but we can’t imagine it is any more twisty and curvy and drop –off cliff hugging than we drove today. The good part about being the driver is you have to concentrate so hard on the road you can hardly glance up. But the passenger (me) is almost compelled to look over the edge at every turn. We would have NEVER done this drive in our RV. There were signs saying to turn off your vehicle’s air conditioning, presumable to save wear and tear or prevent overheating. Have you ever heard of such a thing? I am continually amazed and in awe of the engineering minds and hard-working laborers who carve these roads in these mountains.

Our scary drive was rewarded almost immediately after entering the park by the sight of a beautiful waterfall. Yosemite is filled with them – a distinctive feature. A little further down brought us to Bridalveil Falls where a short path promised a “vista point”. Nowhere did the sign say you would get wet! This fall was a raging flow. If you have been to Niagara Falls and taken the Maid of the Mist boat ride under the falls, you will know what I mean. But at least there, they give you a rain poncho to wear. The mist from the fall was like a spring shower – I was hesitant to take a picture for fear my phone would get soaked like we were! All the falls were gushing. Our info sheet said some of them dwindle to a trickle or dry up completely by the end of summer, but spring releases all the melting snow and ice.

Speaking of snow and ice – there were two roads that we were not able to travel on because they were still closed due to snow. We did not get to Glacier Point or the Tioga Road, which runs east and west across the park.

It is a 24-mile drive from where we entered the park to the valley floor. Most of the drive was pine trees with the immense granite rock formations behind.

Have any of you driven to Pittsburgh, where you emerge from a tunnel and the city is RIGHT there? Or driven north on I-75 entering Ohio from Kentucky when you crest a hill and the skyline of Cincinnati is RIGHT there? Take that and double or triple the WOW factor and you will know what we experienced when we came through a tunnel and the valley opened up RIGHT in front of us. I know the pictures can’t possibly reproduce that feeling so just trust me on this one. You have El Capitan, the largest sheer monolith of granite in the world on your left and the Half Dome on your right. The Half Dome is probably the most recognizable symbol of Yosemite. Breathtaking! (I found another descriptive word! I hesitate to use it because I was saving it for what I imagine the Grand Tetons to be, but it so appropriately conveys what we saw.)

We are seeing first-hand that there is nothing man-made or created that equals the beauty of The Creator’s handiwork.

Through the orientation film at the visitor’s center we learned Yosemite is called “The Grand Cathedral”. In 1864, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Yosemite Grant, which preserved Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Sequoia Grove. Due to the efforts of John Muir, the boundaries were enlarged and his lasting legacy is Yosemite National Park.

We also saw pictures of the damage bears can do to vehicles when food has been left in cars and people are off hiking. Unbelievable! Windows and doors literally torn off.

The park has a free shuttle service, but we had already driven around the park enough on our own that we didn’t ride it. We had a choice to make. We didn’t have enough time to leisurely bike a trail in the valley or see some giant sequoias. Since we are not going to get to Sequoia National Park, we opted to see the magnificent trees. There are 3 different sections in the park where sequoias are concentrated. One area where you could see the trees from your car was a 1 ½ drive to the opposite end of the park. Another was a 4-mile hike. The area we chose was a two-mile hike. A tour bus was parked in the lot and everyone we passed on their way up was speaking French. The forest was filled with tall pine trees and I wondered how the grove of sequoias at the bottom was going to be any different. Hah! Once we saw the huge circumference, the unusual bark, and the towering height, we realized the difference. These trees are over 1,000 years old.

As I learned at Bryce Canyon, what goes down must come up. Whereas on the way down we held hands and chatted freely, we walked in silence (better to hear the chirping birds) on the way up. Mike was a good 15 ft. in front of me, making it difficult to hold hands! The one time we broke the silence I said, “I’m surprised we haven’t seen any wild animals”, to which Mike said, “Thank God”. I had forgotten we did learn at the visitor’s center that a bear can run 25 miles an hour!

Although inaudible to anyone else, our calves and thighs were screaming. The hike back up was only 60 feet less of an elevation change that when we climbed Diamond Head in Hawaii in Feb. Ninety - five percent of the climb up was shaded. You have to be thankful for the little things. . .

We saw several acres of obviously burned, charred tree trunks. When we asked a ranger, she said there was an unintentional fire back in 2009.

We have been blessed with beautiful weather and today was no exception. We have not had any rain (good for us, probably bad for the farmers) other than one day on the road.

Pictures today are: entrance to park; our first waterfall; Bridalveil Falls; a calmer view of Bridalveil from a distance; the view of the valley; view of the valley without Mike and I obstructing it. El Capitan is on the left and far down on the right is the Half Dome; Yosemite Falls, one of the world’s tallest waterfalls; the Half Dome; Mike taking a picture of a waterfall; El Capitan; the top of a sequoia; me at the base of the sequoia; Mike at the base of a sequoia in which a tunnel was carved for people to walk through.