Today was another rain day. Oh, how we loathe rain. With nothing better to do we decided to just drive on a bit. We had spent the night in a state park along the Avenue of the Giants, so we continued there before hopping back on the 101. We eventually veered off onto the 1, which leads straight on down the coast to San Francisco.
We’ve driven Highway 1 a number of times, each time in a less nimble auto. Our first time we were in our ’65 Porsche, then it was the VW bus, and now we’re lumbering along in a 27′ motorhome. Next thing I know I’ll find myself passing through Fort Bragg in a tour bus with a Ford F-150 as my tow vehicle.
What an utterly exhausting drive the 1 was today, though. The first thirty miles are non-stop switchbacks marked between ten and twenty miles an hour. I spent a good ninety minutes shifting between Low1 and Low2 gears peering through the rain. We eventually broke through to the coast though, and while it was still raining, it felt much better.
We headed straight for the Fort Bragg public library for some dry indoor time before grabbing a pizza and pulling in at MacKerricher State Park just back up the road. After paying our thirty-five bucks and picking out our muddy spot with no hook-ups we decided that we’d have to start looking for alternatives to the California State Park system—they just don’t justify the expense, unlike every other state we’ve visited. They tend to have the location down, but seem to rely a little too heavily on that.
Man, the Pacific Coast is an awesome sight to behold. From Washington right on down, it is powerful, rough, and beautiful.
Ice cream stop. I got an It’s-It ice cream sandwich for the first time. Apparently this is a famous San Francisco treat. It’s vanilla ice cream between two oatmeal cookies, all dipped in chocolate. I looked over at Ali, who had one too, and said, “This is really good.”
“I know, I’ve had them before. Your mom had a whole bunch of them in the freezer.”
“And you never thought to mention them to me? Oatmeal cookies are my favorite. You didn’t think that I might like one of these too?” I asked.
She just shrugged her shoulders and wiped some ice cream from the corner of her mouth. Marriage 101.
If only every day could be a heated pool day.
This is the overflow lot at Salt Point State Park. It wasn’t full, but for a lower price we could dry camp just above the ocean as opposed to up the road in the woods. Easy choice.
Ouest often asks us to “make her homework.” So we make up a little worksheet for her, she does it, and then she draws her own smiley face on it just like her pre-school teacher did.
20 Comments on “On the 1”
I loved that stretch of road… up until a few years ago when we were on our honeymoon and stopped at a little cafe for our morning coffee. When the waitress saw my overly-large midwest plastic mug she said, “that’s an awfully big cup missy” and proceeded to charge mr $4.00 to fill it. Somehow that irritating smugness took away any desire to finish proceeding up Hwy 1!
I bet you had a smugness when you pulled that overly large cup outa ur overly large purse! I would have sold you one cup at a time! Then watch u fill er up! And yes i would have shared a smug smile!
Pat, Don’t know if you are still in the Ft Bragg area there is a place called glass beach I bet your kids would love. It is actually an old ocean dump from back in the 1900’s but everything except the glass has been eroded away. Kids love finding little tumbled glass pieces in the surf. its like treasure. Ask a local as its a little hard to find.
Scott
Hey Pat, If you have done Hwy 1 one too many times give some thought to Hwy 395. You do have to get up and over the Sierra’s. I-80 at the north end of Tahoe or Hwy 50 at the southern end of Tahoe might be a good choice for you guys. Free BLM land camping at Alabama Hills down near Lone Pine is beautiful. The kids will have more rocks to climb than you will have time for. Mt. Whitney in the back ground doesn’t hurt either.
Roger
Oh yeah then there is the ghost town of Bodie along the same route. My memory is terrible these days. Maybe you all have been already.
Yep, HWY 50 is cool, particularly as you get a bit closer to Tahoe.
We’ve done that drive as well. Love it.
Great pics from the new camera. Love that area.
Completely agree with you on the California State Park system. The maintenance on the parks is also horrible. How can they not be making a ton of money at $35 per night with no services?
I think the wife saw that the oatmeal cookies with ice cream covered in chocolate only come in a four pack. How many days did you stay with mom’s just sayin….
1. If you haven’t passed Ft Bragg yet, check out the Pygmy Forest just past Mendocino. It’s SO AWESOME. Also, the tide pools in that area are a lot of fun
2. Are you guys able to boondock? That’s what we prefer to do (and it’s why we drive our F350 with Alaskan popup and solar panels.. easier access). There are some sites like http://freecampsites.net/ that are worth checking out
3. It’s IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!
wow thanks for the link to free camping!
Yeah, we can boondock for days. Finding nice places to do so along the coast is difficult though. I’ve tried using free campsites.net in the past, but 90% or more of it seems to be parking lots, casinos, turnoffs, and Safeways. Not exactly the types of places we’re looking for while showing the kids the States. The website is a good idea, but I find it very impractical.
Welcome to the wonderful world of It’s It! A family tradition, especially after a stop at Stinson Beach. I recommend the coffee flavor.
So glad to see you and your little munchkins enjoying life
and having a great time together, reminds me of my own life,
when i am lucky enough to experience the conditions that you do.
Trent.
Might i add that your photographic skills, i am not sure if it is you or your wife Ali behind the camera as of late, but they are seriously amazingly beautiful and talented photographs, i would not be lying in saying that they remind me somewhat of national geographic, the thing about national geographic photography is it is so powerful it actually says more than a million, not a thousand words, the picture of Ouest on the rocks with her Camera, is so perfect, so national geographic, you have captured not only the beauty of the environment, but also the inquisitive fascination quest has with the camera, and since she is such a wee little girl, it’s almost like you can see she is a budding photographer for nat geo!
Trent.
Great photos….having camped along the coast from Seattle to San Francisco with our children my wife and I both live a little vicariously….our children, now in their middle forties, tell us, that our many campany forays all over America from West to East coast were some of the most enjoyable trips and times of their lives….we keep “rocking on” but now just the two of us and our dog Katie. Love every moment of RVing…. Planning from Atlanta to tuscon and environs for winter…..can’t wait. We enjoy this site very much somehow we have allowed life to get in the way of living all to often but today enjoying the beautiful Mountsin scenery from our north Georgia mountain cabin and the refreshing mountain air so haven’t let life get in the way completely.
The last stretch of Hwy 1, from around Olema to the Golden Gate, will definitely test your kids’ motion sickness limits. We drove a 66 VW bus down there once and I swear that some of those turns were so tight that I could look into the back window of the bus as we came around the bend. I was driving and even I was woozy. Poor kids were strapped into the far back seat. Ever since then, I turn inland at Olema for the final stretch.
Envying the kids running around in shorts. We’re in Livingston MT right now, headed for Yellowstone. In October! What are we thinking? I think we may have to pick up our 50 mile/day pace and get south!
re: camp site rates, etc
Are you a member of any of the campground associations (Good Sam’s, KOA, Passport America, etc).
For a $45/yr membership (for passport america, for example) you could have stayed in Wilits, CA near Ft Bragg for $19/night with power, hookups, wifi etc.
I would pay for itself fairly quickly, and you won’t have to get jacked around by the lack of CA state park amenities.
I lived in Ft. Bragg for about a year in the late eighties and loved it. The photos are gorgeous and brought back fond memories. I love Hwy 1.
Love, love, love the pic of the waves receding from the cliff with the lighthouse. The California coast is amazing.