Not far, but away
On Saturday, ThumbSucker and I took a day trip. As he had not been to the town, we went to Mendocino, taking the same route I drove with my mother and sister the previous weekend (29 to 20 to 1, then south on 1). I drove ThumbSucker's 1982 Mercedes Benz 380SL, which pleasantly surprised me with well-mannered handling during the twisty sections of the drive. This car is built like a tank! It's heavy, and sticks to the road. Again, I was pleasantly surprised.
Once in Mendocino, we visited some shops, but left shortly as it was freezing. "I said brrr! It's cold in here. There must be some Toros in the atmosphere!"
Rather than head back to the LC, we drove south on Highway 1, and stopped at the bed and breakfast town of Elk to look at pottery and perhaps grab a bite to eat. No luck. Restaurants would not open until 5:30 p.m. And at 3:00 p.m., we were hungry. We continued our drive south, and stopped at Point Arena, a dilapidated, yet charming town with 440 residents. Immediately we were greeted by a local, directing us to locations to visit. Our hunger was all we could think about, so we b-lined it for El Burrito, an organic Mexican restaurant that opened two months ago. I had the burrito pollo and a Negro Modello. ThumbSucker had the burrito grande and a Negro Modello. Tasty!
ThumbSucker said Point Arena's downtown area reminded him of rural, small town Ireland in the 1970's and 1980's. We didn't see any houses with wood siding. And painted stucco is king in Point Arena. This reminded of a story my VP told me... He and his wife, also a native of Ireland, took her parents to look at homes in San Francisco. The father-in-law was shocked that homes here are built with wood frames. In Ireland they build houses out of stone, brick or concrete - not wood.
Back to Point Arena... ThumbSucker and I drove to the pier, and walked along the beach, which had rocks instead of sand. It was low tide, and the sea floor -- with sea urchins, starfish and hermit crabs -- was exposed. I explained to ThumbSucker, what is a sea urchin. He was semi freaked out.
On the beach, we met Abalone Shell Guy, an early-60-something and 40-year resident of Point Arena who gathers abalone shells and trades them for gold with a friend who makes jewelry from abalone shells. At 4:30 p.m., he spent nearly three hours to fill four 20-gallon buckets with abalone shells. It was a long day for him, and his wife was expecting him home for dinner. He warned us that the tide would come in at around 6:00 p.m., and that we should leave the beach then, otherwise, we would have to climb the side of a cliff to escape. No thank you.
I felt like a kid again! Seriously, this was mild Goonies action - finding beach treasures, learning that we may need to escape a rising tide, meeting a guy who trades abalone shells for gold... And did I mention the cave? Yes, there is cave that leaks fossil oil. Abalone Shell Guy said during the warm summers, oil oozes on to the rocks, and forms a coating that looks similar to black cement.
We walked away with two abalone shells, a few cool-looking rocks and coral-colored, bulbous shells.
We continued to drive south on Highway 1 to soak in the incredible views of the Pacific Ocean. Goodness - they really are amazing. After this trip, I'm always game for playing tour guide. If you have not yet experienced the majestic view from Highway 1, then call me, and we'll make it happen.
At the town of Jenner, we headed east on Highway 116 towards Santa Rosa, where we took State Highway 12 to Calistoga, then Highway 29 back to Kelseyville. We drove a total of 270 miles today. But it was an adventure...
Once back at the house, we watched the final two episodes of More Tales of the City, the second series and follow-tp to Tales of the City. Afterwards, we hit the sack. We were beat.
This was a great weekend, but alas, I am now sick. I have a gnarly head cold and allergies, and I'm constantly sneezing and feel achy. I feel like crap. But I need to recoup this week as we depart for New York Saturday morning.
G'night.
Once in Mendocino, we visited some shops, but left shortly as it was freezing. "I said brrr! It's cold in here. There must be some Toros in the atmosphere!"
Rather than head back to the LC, we drove south on Highway 1, and stopped at the bed and breakfast town of Elk to look at pottery and perhaps grab a bite to eat. No luck. Restaurants would not open until 5:30 p.m. And at 3:00 p.m., we were hungry. We continued our drive south, and stopped at Point Arena, a dilapidated, yet charming town with 440 residents. Immediately we were greeted by a local, directing us to locations to visit. Our hunger was all we could think about, so we b-lined it for El Burrito, an organic Mexican restaurant that opened two months ago. I had the burrito pollo and a Negro Modello. ThumbSucker had the burrito grande and a Negro Modello. Tasty!
ThumbSucker said Point Arena's downtown area reminded him of rural, small town Ireland in the 1970's and 1980's. We didn't see any houses with wood siding. And painted stucco is king in Point Arena. This reminded of a story my VP told me... He and his wife, also a native of Ireland, took her parents to look at homes in San Francisco. The father-in-law was shocked that homes here are built with wood frames. In Ireland they build houses out of stone, brick or concrete - not wood.
Back to Point Arena... ThumbSucker and I drove to the pier, and walked along the beach, which had rocks instead of sand. It was low tide, and the sea floor -- with sea urchins, starfish and hermit crabs -- was exposed. I explained to ThumbSucker, what is a sea urchin. He was semi freaked out.
On the beach, we met Abalone Shell Guy, an early-60-something and 40-year resident of Point Arena who gathers abalone shells and trades them for gold with a friend who makes jewelry from abalone shells. At 4:30 p.m., he spent nearly three hours to fill four 20-gallon buckets with abalone shells. It was a long day for him, and his wife was expecting him home for dinner. He warned us that the tide would come in at around 6:00 p.m., and that we should leave the beach then, otherwise, we would have to climb the side of a cliff to escape. No thank you.
I felt like a kid again! Seriously, this was mild Goonies action - finding beach treasures, learning that we may need to escape a rising tide, meeting a guy who trades abalone shells for gold... And did I mention the cave? Yes, there is cave that leaks fossil oil. Abalone Shell Guy said during the warm summers, oil oozes on to the rocks, and forms a coating that looks similar to black cement.
We walked away with two abalone shells, a few cool-looking rocks and coral-colored, bulbous shells.
We continued to drive south on Highway 1 to soak in the incredible views of the Pacific Ocean. Goodness - they really are amazing. After this trip, I'm always game for playing tour guide. If you have not yet experienced the majestic view from Highway 1, then call me, and we'll make it happen.
At the town of Jenner, we headed east on Highway 116 towards Santa Rosa, where we took State Highway 12 to Calistoga, then Highway 29 back to Kelseyville. We drove a total of 270 miles today. But it was an adventure...
Once back at the house, we watched the final two episodes of More Tales of the City, the second series and follow-tp to Tales of the City. Afterwards, we hit the sack. We were beat.
This was a great weekend, but alas, I am now sick. I have a gnarly head cold and allergies, and I'm constantly sneezing and feel achy. I feel like crap. But I need to recoup this week as we depart for New York Saturday morning.
G'night.
posted by E-Double at 9:18 PM
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