Retirement Road Trip 2011: Day 27, Wednesday 9/21

249 miles, camped at Riverwalk RV Park in Fortuna, California.

It has been a very melancholy day.  I left Cory after spending 6 days and 7 nights with him.  I had a lump in my throat when I said good bye.  Also, today is Kathy's birthday. In a perfect world, we would be taking this trip together. But it's not a perfect world, so back to the real world!!!

I pulled out about the same time Cory left for work.  I was on the road by 7:00.  I headed south on I-5 until Grants Pass, Oregon.  Then I picked up Highway 199 to Crescent City, California, and then took Highway 101 south.  Below is Crescent City in the distance.

Highway 101 is the westernmost north–south route in the U.S. Highway system.  The southern terminus is Los Angeles, while the northern end point is Olympia, Washington.  The total distance spanned is over 1,500 miles.  The road has different local or common names, depending where you live.  In southern and central California, it is often referred to as the Pacific Highway.  North of San Francisco to the Oregon border, many refer to it as the Redwood Highway.  In Oregon, it is called the Costal Highway.  It generally follows the topography of the land.  At times, it runs within yards of the Pacific Ocean.  At times, it dives inland and hugs the mountains.  Sometimes it is reasonably straight and flat, while most of the time it is narrow and curvy.  Often is it a four lane, while at other times it is a very narrow two lane.  You will never get bored traveling Highway 101.


For lunch I pulled off at a picnic area right on the beach and let Zoey run.  The fog bank was rolling in off the water and you could feel the mist in the air.  Really cool, both physically and mentally.

The Redwoods are beyond description.  They are so huge, and so tall, and so old.  Photographs can't do justice to them.

Just walking among the Redwoods is an experience that is hard to describe.  In fact, the tallest tree in the world at 379 feet, is located within these trees of Redwood National Park. However, they won't tell you where this tree is.  That is probably a good thing.


Thursday I'm off to explore some gravel roads that lead to the ocean in an area called "The Lost Coast."  There is a large section of 101 that does not go near the coast for many miles.  Supposedly the area was too rugged to build a road through.  Thus the name The Lost Coast.  Depending on the weather (wind and fog), I hope to camp on the beach there.  There will probably be no cell service there, so I may be a day or two late in the next post.


Stay tuned...........