The adventures started early because Matt had to get to work. Our border crossings had been non-events until this point, but this one became a bit of an event as we got just a glimpse of some of the hassles that come from regular border crossings. The issue seemed to boil down to who could use the special plates and surely Clare and my presence didn't help. Matt waited patiently and after a 20-30 minute delay and a (fortunate?) shift change got us to San Diego transit and himself on the way.
We rode into Little Italy where we drank coffee, charged phones, and waited to rent our car. My KC Royals hat was again a conversation piece as the barista claimed to be Ewing Ka*uffman's grandson. I didn't know what to say when he told me that, so I chose, "Nice to meet you."
Rolling along in our Kia Soul, we set sail for Newport Beach. We stopped for REI fuel and Wal-Mart groceries and stopped again at a harbor for lunch after declining to pay $15 for a park entrance fee. We arrived just after two for what was supposed to be tea with Jean (my third cousin). By three, we'd had drinks and been then started into a full lunch. The lunch included fresh fruit, some persian items, and baklava for the road. Taghi, grandson Jay and son-in-law Juve' also kept us entertained. I wish we'd been able to stay longer, but we had to head out and battle LA traffic. It wasn't as bad as expected and we made it to Point Magu and camping on the beach before sunset. The wind was whipping our tent around and the tide was coming in, but all the noise drowned out the sounds of the highway. It was a noisy evening for sure. I awoke at two am and found the gibbous moon was nowhere to be seen, except for what looked like a continuous headlight around the bend on 101.
Clare woke up first the next morning and started breakfast. After cooking through the plastic lid of the jetboil, her cooking improved. We packed up camp and hit the road in fits and starts. Our first stop was Santa Barbara. I had a hankering for cinnamon rolls and we managed to find Recipes Bakery for a pair of delicious ones. After a stroll down the main drag and a stop in the old courthouse, we headed on to lunch at a Cal-Mex place recommend by Sunset magazine just outside of Santa Maria called Rancho Nipomo.
From there we visited the slightly disappointing location of the first motel. I wanted to make a joke about the pool since its remnants were still visible, but I still don't have one. We also had a few tastes of beer at the Central Coast brewery, both in SLO, San Luis Obispo.
We drove on from there to Nit Wit Ridge which is no longer open. Some had called it a poor man's Hearst Castle, but after visiting Hearst I wonder if it might have been more my speed. Hearst's "ranch" was an ostentatious art collection on a hill, way up on a hill. Our guide thought he was a legend, but I have to wonder if the guidebook's description of him as a meglomaniac might be more accurate. Something about the place really bugged me. Maybe the fact that it was only a part-time home.
We pushed on to Big Sur, arriving to our creekside campground just before dark. The creek was rushing by and we'd had dinner for the first time since the tacos in Tijuana. The dark clean-up was a little challenging, but now we're settled in for the night.
No comments:
Post a Comment