Driving down the California coast

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This past weekend my parents and Jim and I drove up to Monterey to visit my daughters and their families and my brother and his family. We took off early Friday morning and had to make the obligatory stop for coffee. Of course, then two hours after that, we had to make the obligatory stop for a potty break. And so it was...We drove up Interstate 15 to I-210 and eventually met up with Interstate 5 that we took North.

We stopped in Buelton for lunch and more coffee and were back on the road again. All along the way, we saw acres and acres of some sort of fruit trees. The trees appeared to be young because of the size of their trunks. When we reached Highway 46, we took that to cut across over to Highway 101. If you have ever driven that road, you know that it is miles and miles of rolling hills and a few oil wells here and there. You couldn't help notice that the hills looked very much like velvet. When we got closer to Paso Robles, the hills were groomed and manicured with their rows exactly separated and acre after acre of luscious grape vines growing in the rich soil. There were dozens of little wineries along the way, and a few well-known wineries as well, like Meridian with magnificent entries into their property and vineyards.

We arrived in Monterey in a little less than eight hours - which is great driving time! We checked into the hotel and got everyone situated then were off to see the family. It was a great weekend being able to spend time with our two daughters, our two grandson, son-in-law and my borther and his family. We drove up to Gilroy on Saturday and had lunch with my brother's family. On Sunday they came down to Monterey and we all went to dinner to celebrate a bunch of birthdays, etc.

Monday morning we were back on the road again coming home after a far-too-short visit. But, that's the way it is. We drove south on Highway 101 to Paso Robles and then I decided to take Highway 46 out to the coast and drive down 101 to Santa Barbara. It was a beautiful day. There were a few clouds in the sky but basically clear. Once we drove out to the coast, we drove through Morro Bay and saw the huge monolith off the coast. The ocean was relatively calm, so there were not any large waves crashing on the rocks on the shoreline. They were gently sweeping in and out leaving a little white foam.

Along Highway 101 are some beautiful areas with old oak trees. The shadows from the clouds cast different colors on the hills, and it was just beautiful to see. We drove on down to Santa Barbara where there were dozens of surfers in the water trying to catch a wave, and then we turned inland and drove over to I-405 and headed south into San Diego. We really lucked out in the carpool lane, and had basically no stopping even though we drove through LA at rush hour.

It was a great weekend and a fun drive. Mom and Dad enjoyed it. I drove the whole way - as I'm the designated driver these days. I love driving so it works well.

Our next trip will by in July driving up to Monterey, then Portland, then to Washington State and out to Friday Harbor in the San Juan Islands where we will spend a few days. In the meantime, we are at home again and Rusty (our golden retriever) is happy to have us here. Time to get back into the routine - ugh!

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