Showing posts with label US 101. Show all posts
Showing posts with label US 101. Show all posts

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Crawl across the West with Me

...

This is a huge country!

I awoke in Fortuna, California, a pleasant town on the northern end of CA-1. I puttered about until first light. Then I drove south. Through the evergreen forests, over the streams and rivers I marveled at the view. Naturally, it was overcast and raining (why does it ALWAYS have to rain?) the entire trip. The effect was to give the country a secret, hidden feeling. It was as if I were there all alone. I soaked it up.


Sunset in La Jolla

The roads have few (read zero) shoulders in the forested places, so extensive exploration on foot was out of the question. I shot from the hip and on the move many times. Naturally, I have a dozen photos with scenery seeming to rush toward me. It happens.


Sunset in La Jolla II
 The challenges began when I reached the “Shoreline Highway.” Long time readers know I cannot resist a tight corner. Shoreline Highway is CA-1 on LSD. It is a constant series of tight, hairpin turns. Many either went uphill or downhill, sharply, or even seemed to go both way at the same time. I was able to average about 45 mph through here and I earned every inch of it. It was the upper body workout of the century for me.

Cloud in the Mountains

A Mountain Cabin
 When the road finally let me go, I was exhilarated and limp as a rag from the experience.

I will stick a couple photos in here for a glimpse of the scenery. No, the photos do not do the place justice.

Lots more to come...

PS: Click on the photos to see a larger version.