Staypineapple was a really cool little boutique hotel located in the Gaslamp Quarter. It’s facilities and rooms were high quality and yet it had the buzz and energy of a backpackers. We grabbed some free bikes from the hotel and set off to explore San Diego. First stop was the waterfront and the impressive aircraft carrier USS Midway. We then headed inland to Balboa Park and spent an hour riding around the park. There were a lot of beautiful old colonial buildings housing quite a few museums and art houses. We started noticing the large number of homeless people – mostly males – but what was interesting was that they were very polite and quite chatty when engaged.
We decided to ride the 6km to a shopping mall which took us out towards the airport and the port. A few times we had to ride along the edge of the motorway which was a bit disconcerting. The number of homeless people around the naval base was incredible – I guess a lot of them are ex military. In the end we did around 30km so got to see a fair bit of the city. While we felt we did not really get a handle on the place, we both picked up a vibe that was a mixture of affluence and poverty. Quite weird. We grabbed a meal at a Gaslamp fish restaurant which was expensive given what we had been used to paying.
A big storm forecast for the next day so we chilled in the morning before picking up our car for the driver to Coachella. We took the more scenic highway 79 and were amazed at the amount of snow left over from the big storm over Thanksgiving. It got dark by 5 so finding our place turned into a bit of a challenge. Made worse by us trying calling the place for the next night when trying to get access to get access. We finally got in to our room which was basically a converted garage with a toilet attached. It was fine and served its purpose.
The next day was spent driving through the Joshua Tree National Park. We bought a $80 pass which gave us access to most US National Parks over the next 12 months. Joshua Tree was incredible, as was its namesake cactus/tree. We stopped a couple of times for a bit of a trek – once to see the skull rock which we never found; and another to walk up a canyon. It really was beautiful – I can I understand why U2 named my favourite album after it and why a lot of people come here to take mushrooms. The roads were populated by a lot of large RV’s and massive ute’s.
Our room for the night was in Casa Frank – basically a home (the owner Frank slept in a little side room) with 4 bedrooms and a communal lounge and kitchen. 1 bathroom was a bit of a ‘mare. Interestingly our approach of only staying at places rated 8 and above on Booking.com didn’t work in America as there were no places rated above 8 in our budget range. Americans must be tough raters as the 7 rated places were fine. We had heard good things about a diner called Pappy & Harriet which was a bit of an institution that played live music, so decided to drive the 15 minutes to check it out. The bands were OK but probably not worth the drive.
Next day we had a bit of a drive to Death Valley Inn & RV Park in Beatty on the outskirts of the Death Valley National Park. We were in real cowboy zone with the plenty of cowboy hats and massive cars and utes. It was also cold. We walked into town – it had a few dodgy food places and motels. Deryn stayed in the motel while I headed into town for dinner at the local Denny’s which was located inside a casino. Can’t get more American than that. We got away early the next day as Death Valley was huge and we needed as much time as possible to see what we could before it got dark. We were in the park within 20 minutes. It was spectacular – a vast expanse of valleys and mountains in the distance. We took quite a few photo’s but they just did not do it justice.
First stop was Zabriskie’s Point and a walk up the hill to admire the coloured mountains. Next stop was Dante’s View up the top of the Black Mountains. It was a bit of a drive and as we stated to near the top the clouds started to roll in so by the time we reached the top visibility was basically a metre! Great. So back down to the valley floor and a hike in Golden Canyon. We decided to do the 6km walk and when looking for out little backpack we realised that we had left it behind back in Beatty. Damn. It had Deryn’s wallet as well as our water bottle so we had to go retrieve it. Thankfully it had been found in our room and was waiting for us in reception. A 120km round trip – it wasn’t that bad as the views were that impressive it didn’t matter seeing it for a second and then third time. It was nearly 2 hours before we returned to Golden Canyon so only had time for a 30 minute walk. The scenery was unique – you would not want to be in the area when it rained as the there was no top soil to soak up any water and it would funnel into the canyons that we walked into. Not that rain was a real risk as the area only has 2 inches a year (and an average temp of 120F in the summer!).
Next was the Devil’s golf course which was basically a salt plain but a lot different to the last one we saw in Northern Argentina. The surface was very jagged, unlike the smooth surfaces elsewhere. Badwater Basin – the lowest point in North America at 282ft below sea level – was our furthest point before heading out via the Artists Palette and Artists Drive. Again, it was a lot less colourful than Argentina – the perils of a prolonged period of travel; you get spoiled. We spent the night in Panamint Springs Motel & Tents on the edge of the Park. We had to check in at the local petrol station; the room was basic but fine. There was only one restaurant in the area so we had dinner and then the included breakfast – most US places include a breakfast with the room rate. Deryn likes them but I find them a bit basic. But then I do love a full English Breakfast sans meat!!!
It was a 4.5 hour drive around the Sequoia National Park through some stunning farmland and mountains. We stopped a couple of times for a cup of tea (one cafe was packed to the rafters with gunc – no photos allowed – and cats of all ages!) and then lunch (where a naturalised Aussie told us of his plans to ride his horses from Mexico to Canada). Our place in Three Rivers – Lazy J Ranch Motel – was on a family run ranch – been in the family since the 70’s. It was beautiful with a few goats and sheep to make it feel authentic. There were a few lambs which surprised me – they explained that it was done intentionally to coincide with the annual farm show in May where they would compete.
Next morning it was an early start with our first stop in town to buy/rent some snow chains which is are mandatory to carry in the car when heading into the Park. I had no idea how many sizes of the damn things. We ended up buying some cheap ones (US$60) which we could return and get a $30 refund if unused. We knew there was going to be a bit of snow as we could not drive between Sequoia and Kings Canyon as the road through the pass was closed. Within 30 minutes of driving we were climbing through multiple hairpin bends; then we hit the snow. We stopped at the Giant Forest Museum to get a bit of background to the amazing Sequoia trees. They only grow naturally between 2800 and 4000 metres in this small part of California. They are the biggest trees in the world by mass and and some are thought to be well over 3000 years old. The biggest, General Sherman weighs over 1800 tonnes and is thought be to 2700 years old. That makes it only a middle-age giant sequoia, as other trees are believed to be more than 3,220 years old. We tried to go for a hike amongst the magnificent trees but unfortunately the snow was too deep and we had to bail out and walk back on the road. We then drove up to see the General. Quite awe inspiring standing in his shadow. From there we drove to the Lodgepole centre for a cuppa before heading back down to the warmer climes to have a picnic lunch in a park.
Given the amount of snow, visiting Kings Canyon and Yosemite was not an option so decided to head back to LA and do the coastal drive up to San Francisco. We reached out to Jimmy and Zsoka in Santa Monica to make sure there was a bed for the night – there was so we were good. 4 hours later we were in J&Z’s place – the motorway was full of massive cars and trucks top with only 1 driver. Insane. It was lovely to spend some time with James and Zsoka which included a walk around the very habitable suburb of Santa Monica including its beach (much prefer Aus and NZ beaches) We went for dinner at a local pub where we joined by Simon Oz Osborne for a lovely evening. We kept going at James and Zsoka’s – Zsoka and I gave my bottle of Jamison a very good nudge.
We headed up Route 101 after a leisurely breakfast in another lovely local cafe. The food and coffee in Santa Monica was certainly top shelf. First stop was Malibu. Incredible how they have built all the houses basically on the beach. The house owns the beach up to the high tide mark – will be interesting to see how much their insurance premiums are going to increase on the back of global warming. Next stop was Santa Barbara. Another beautiful place with a very liveable vibe. We stopped for a bit of a wonder; I got talked into buying a jacket and jeans after which we grabbed a tea and a fruit juice from the cafe in The Californian – $22!! Not a cheap place to stay me thinks.
The drive to Cambria was OK but route 101 was a bit too much of a motorway; things started to improve once we turned off onto route 1. We had a brief stop at Morro Bay to admire the sun setting over the estuary. Our hotel – Cambria Beach Lodge – was very cute. On checking in the owner asked me twice whether I had any pets – apparently this part of the world is pet city. We checked in and went for a walk along the beach to watch the sun set followed by another overprices meal – if you share the main without an entree they add $8 to your bill.
The drive the next am was beautiful. First stop on the was Hearst Castle, built by William Hearst in the roaring 20’s. Unfortunately you had to join an official tour to see the castle up on top of the hill so Deryn and I declined. Next stop was a nearby beach that was home to a colony of elephant seals. There must have been over 100 of them – the males were huge! For the next hour or so of our journey we were engulfed by fog which hampered the view but also gave the scenery a ghostly vibe. The fog finally lifted and we were treated to incredible views. We must have stopped every 15 minutes or so to admire the views. We did one walk down to a small 2 site camp ground – would be a magic place to camp but not with children given the sheer drops all around. We, of course, had to stop to photo the famous Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge. Standing room only but definitely worth it. We stopped for a hike in the Los Padres National Forest. We climbed through a forest of the world’s tallest trees – the Redwood. Amazing. There was still lots of evidence of the 2016 Soberanes Fire which burnt over 133,000 acres. Dinner was a burger in a mall on the outskirts of Carmel-by-the-sea before checking in to our very pleasant Forest Lodge.
Carmel-by-the-sea is famous for being the location where Big Little Lies was filmed. The place was stunning. A very cute village with an amazing beach – I would hate to think what a beachside pad would cost. We both agreed that we would love to spend a lot more time in the area. Our drive to San Fran was a bit bland – more because of the contrast from the Big Sur. We dropped our bags off at Clayton’s place in Cow Hollow before driving around for a whole trying to find the car rental place. We had travelled 1904 miles on our brief US adventure.
We then had a lovely weekend in San Fran with Clayton. Dinner with Wayne and Cherie Fairbrother on Friday night, a brief lunch with Jennifer and Silvia on Saturday before a night playing pool in a local bar – we liked the Alaskans we met but found the local SF folk that turned up a bit later a pack of knobs. To be frank. I had lunch with Paul (a mate of Clayton’s from London now living in NY) and Clayton on Monday before flying to Vancouver late afternoon. So that’s it from the blog for now. It’s been an incredible adventure.