Ocean to Mountains trip July 2005
WEDNESDAY PM 7/20/2005
Started out driving from Lynne's house at 6pm and drove across the Bay Bridge very slowly. Traffic was pretty backed up. We drove down route 1 and stopped and had dinner at the Half Moon Bay Brewpub. Chet had Shrimp Tostada that was very good and Lynne had Linguine Pescadero which she liked very much. Then we shared a yummy Apple Crisp which the waitress would be very good and it was. Then we continued driving on to Salinas which was a mistake because it took us off our path and we lost about an hour. We stayed at the "Good Nite Inn" hotel which Lynne thought was rather skanky. You could feel the pointy spings inthe bed and the carpet was a bit funky.
THURSDAY 7/21/2005
Breakfast was in at The Village Corner Cafe in Carmel and it was very good and tasty. We didn't want to spend a lot of time there so we zipped out of there fast. Lynne says it was a good breakfast stop. Then we continued on route 1 south along the coast of the trip. We drove casually and stopped a good number of times. Chet got a few nice photos. We arrived at the Hearst Castle around 1pm and got the 150pm tour #1 at the mansion. The castle was totally amazing and totally exceeded Chet's expectations (Lynne's been to Hearst Castle twice before!). The tour guide really enjoyed her job and took a lot of pride of place and the art collection. She said us Californians owned it and the rest of the people were our guests. Hee hee no discount offered.
After that we took a short drive down to Morro Bay since the time was late and we wanted to wander around Morro Bay a bit. We decided that it might be fun to come back another time and take a couple more tours of the mansion on another trip. It was well worth the drive down. We arrived at Morro Bay around 6pm. The town has a beautiful big rock just West of the city that dominates the skyline. We stayed at the Ascot Inn motel which Lynne thought smelled and we aired it out and it smelled better. So it was dinner time and we walked around the Embarcadero and looked for a nice place to eat and we finally settled on eating at Rosie's. The people were nice and friendly but the food was less so. We both said that we need to lower our culinary expecations and also to order more simply and we'd be less likely to be disappointed.
FRIDAY 7/22/2005
In the morning, we stopped for breakfast at a place that was just a block from the Inn. Chet designed his own omelet to order (avocados, tomatoes and bacon), and Lynne settled for pancakes with stewed apples and a side of bacon. Much better - plus the restaurant had a beautiful view of Morro Rock, which looks quite different by day.After breakfast, we took a quick drive out to Morro Rock, hoping to find out exactly what it was. No luck, but we did get a great view of the birds who roost on the ocean side of the Rock. Apparently, it's a bit unstable these days, and climbing is strictly forbidden, although that didn't stop Chet from harboring fantasies of doing just that!
Lynne picked up the driving for a while, and took us out east, through San Luis Obispo, then through a couple of small mountain ranges - the Panza Range and part of Sierra Madre. We passed quite near the National Oil Reserve and the Tule Elk Reserve on Hwy 58, a fairly small deserted highway that runs through several interesting ecosystems. We went through some mountain, a lot of prairie and even some desert. Chet pointed out the tumbleweed by the side of the road, and played with his new GPS system on his laptop. All in all, very satisfactory and a nice leisurely drive. Our rental car, a Toyota Matrix, sports - among other things - an external thermometer. Once we'd left the ocean, temps ranged from 95 to 103 degrees. Even the cows in the pastures we passed sought shade under their trees!
Once we reached Buttonwillow on the way to Bakersfield, driving became more intense and less enjoyable. So Chet took over in Bakersfield. We both agreed that, based on what we saw, we weren't sure why people liked it there. Imagine: a large billboard ad for plastic surgery in front of the Costco and looming over a lot filled with camper tops. Very odd. A very gritty town, on the face of it.
Past Bakersfield, we soon reached the Sierra Nevadas on the way to Lake Isabella. Wow. Words cannot describe their beauty and majesty. The Kern River runs along Hwy 178, and - probably due to the late rains this year - it's still flowing pretty heavily. Very spectacular. Unfortunately, increased elevation did not bring decreased termperatures. And Chet was wilting rapidly. A very nice drive to Lake Isabella, which is a rather dreary town. So we decided to head north around the Lake to Kernville, which turned out to be a very sound decision. Kernville is a very nice little town nestled in a valley where the Kern River flows into Lake Isabella. The first place we stopped, there were no available rooms. So we went to the visitors' center, where they located a room for us at the Sequoia Lodge, which turns out to be a very nice find. The Lodge sits right on the Kern River. There are barbecue facilities, as well as a fish cleaning station on site. The rooms are well appointed with microwave and small fridge and, joy of joys, it doesn't smell bad!! Also, it has air conditioning. Yahoo! Boy, are we feeling lucky right about now. We went down to the river, where Lynne stuck her feet in and enjoyed the sunshine, then spent some time sitting in a swing bench down by a small garden. Where we saw a beautiful big yellow butterfly with iridescent blue spots on its tail. It went away before Chet could grab a photo, so we'll just have to remember it. But it was spectacular, and what a treat!
We had dinner at a small Italian restaurant in town called "That's Italian!" It was actually quite good, although we did keep it simple this time. Wine was nice, as was the garlic bread and the main meal. Chet had Chicken Cacciatore, and Lynne had Chicken Piccata. Both very nice.
After dinner, Chet decided he wanted to try to photograph the night sky. Unfortunately, he hadn't quite figured out how to make the camera behave before we set out. So, after a partially successful half hour, and a very pleasant walk, we returned to the lodge. Lynne wanted to spend a little time sitting out by the river, so we did. But, the bats soon drove us back indoors and to bed. They're harmless, but it's still rather unnerving to have them swooping about one's head!
SATURDAY 7/23/2005
Woke up to a nice and toasty morning and went over to have a 'big breakfast' at the Kerville General Store and it was very nice. It was only $3.95 for a BIG breakfast. The people were extra friendly and we had a great time. We both also really enjoyed staying at the Sequoia Lodge. We both think it would be a very cool place to stay at in the future and think that dad Shannon & Stephen I might enjoy it, even, with the river being just a few feet away and people saying they caught 5-9 trout in a day. Lynne talked Chet out of driving through Death Valley because it would take us too long and it was 130 degree F there in the day now. Instead we decided to drive up through Sherman Pass at 9300' in the high Sierras. (Northeast of Kernville.) The temperatures fell from 105 to about 70 and it was very very pleasant and quiet at the viewpoint. We then found a beautiful meadow of wild-flowers in peak bloom. Chet spent about an hour taking some very pretty (we hope) photos with his digital camera while Lynne enjoyed the fresh air and the views.
We then took off for route 395 to get us up to Bishop, Calif. The views along the way from the summit of Sherman Pass were superbly pretty. This was a drive that we both were happy we made. After that we drove up along US route 395 to the North for about 120 miles to Bishop, Calif where we immediately stopped at Galen Rowell's Mountain Light Gallery. The gallery was great and was quite a great inspiration. Also, it was a great place to take refuge from the heat - down from Sherman's Pass, the temps climbed to about 100 degrees. After our visit to the Rowell's we went hunting for our motel for the night. Wound up at the Ramada which has - oh joy! - free wireless access! And air conditioning. Chet's happy. After a brief rest (amazing how much driving takes out of you!), we went looking for dinner. After an unsuccessful search for the Firehouse (no longer), we wound up at Jack's. Fishing memorabilia decorate the wall, which very large trout and some interesting t-shirts. Having successfully managed our culinary expectations and ordered accordingly, we had a very satisfying supper. Chet had a patty melt with fries, and Lynne had their special: barbecue ribs. With fruit pie for dessert, a very reasonably priced, pleasant meal. People were really nice, too. Back to the Ramada for a nice, quiet evening. Looking forward to more adventures tomorrow!
Started out driving from Lynne's house at 6pm and drove across the Bay Bridge very slowly. Traffic was pretty backed up. We drove down route 1 and stopped and had dinner at the Half Moon Bay Brewpub. Chet had Shrimp Tostada that was very good and Lynne had Linguine Pescadero which she liked very much. Then we shared a yummy Apple Crisp which the waitress would be very good and it was. Then we continued driving on to Salinas which was a mistake because it took us off our path and we lost about an hour. We stayed at the "Good Nite Inn" hotel which Lynne thought was rather skanky. You could feel the pointy spings inthe bed and the carpet was a bit funky.
THURSDAY 7/21/2005
Breakfast was in at The Village Corner Cafe in Carmel and it was very good and tasty. We didn't want to spend a lot of time there so we zipped out of there fast. Lynne says it was a good breakfast stop. Then we continued on route 1 south along the coast of the trip. We drove casually and stopped a good number of times. Chet got a few nice photos. We arrived at the Hearst Castle around 1pm and got the 150pm tour #1 at the mansion. The castle was totally amazing and totally exceeded Chet's expectations (Lynne's been to Hearst Castle twice before!). The tour guide really enjoyed her job and took a lot of pride of place and the art collection. She said us Californians owned it and the rest of the people were our guests. Hee hee no discount offered.
After that we took a short drive down to Morro Bay since the time was late and we wanted to wander around Morro Bay a bit. We decided that it might be fun to come back another time and take a couple more tours of the mansion on another trip. It was well worth the drive down. We arrived at Morro Bay around 6pm. The town has a beautiful big rock just West of the city that dominates the skyline. We stayed at the Ascot Inn motel which Lynne thought smelled and we aired it out and it smelled better. So it was dinner time and we walked around the Embarcadero and looked for a nice place to eat and we finally settled on eating at Rosie's. The people were nice and friendly but the food was less so. We both said that we need to lower our culinary expecations and also to order more simply and we'd be less likely to be disappointed.
FRIDAY 7/22/2005
In the morning, we stopped for breakfast at a place that was just a block from the Inn. Chet designed his own omelet to order (avocados, tomatoes and bacon), and Lynne settled for pancakes with stewed apples and a side of bacon. Much better - plus the restaurant had a beautiful view of Morro Rock, which looks quite different by day.After breakfast, we took a quick drive out to Morro Rock, hoping to find out exactly what it was. No luck, but we did get a great view of the birds who roost on the ocean side of the Rock. Apparently, it's a bit unstable these days, and climbing is strictly forbidden, although that didn't stop Chet from harboring fantasies of doing just that!
Lynne picked up the driving for a while, and took us out east, through San Luis Obispo, then through a couple of small mountain ranges - the Panza Range and part of Sierra Madre. We passed quite near the National Oil Reserve and the Tule Elk Reserve on Hwy 58, a fairly small deserted highway that runs through several interesting ecosystems. We went through some mountain, a lot of prairie and even some desert. Chet pointed out the tumbleweed by the side of the road, and played with his new GPS system on his laptop. All in all, very satisfactory and a nice leisurely drive. Our rental car, a Toyota Matrix, sports - among other things - an external thermometer. Once we'd left the ocean, temps ranged from 95 to 103 degrees. Even the cows in the pastures we passed sought shade under their trees!
Once we reached Buttonwillow on the way to Bakersfield, driving became more intense and less enjoyable. So Chet took over in Bakersfield. We both agreed that, based on what we saw, we weren't sure why people liked it there. Imagine: a large billboard ad for plastic surgery in front of the Costco and looming over a lot filled with camper tops. Very odd. A very gritty town, on the face of it.
Past Bakersfield, we soon reached the Sierra Nevadas on the way to Lake Isabella. Wow. Words cannot describe their beauty and majesty. The Kern River runs along Hwy 178, and - probably due to the late rains this year - it's still flowing pretty heavily. Very spectacular. Unfortunately, increased elevation did not bring decreased termperatures. And Chet was wilting rapidly. A very nice drive to Lake Isabella, which is a rather dreary town. So we decided to head north around the Lake to Kernville, which turned out to be a very sound decision. Kernville is a very nice little town nestled in a valley where the Kern River flows into Lake Isabella. The first place we stopped, there were no available rooms. So we went to the visitors' center, where they located a room for us at the Sequoia Lodge, which turns out to be a very nice find. The Lodge sits right on the Kern River. There are barbecue facilities, as well as a fish cleaning station on site. The rooms are well appointed with microwave and small fridge and, joy of joys, it doesn't smell bad!! Also, it has air conditioning. Yahoo! Boy, are we feeling lucky right about now. We went down to the river, where Lynne stuck her feet in and enjoyed the sunshine, then spent some time sitting in a swing bench down by a small garden. Where we saw a beautiful big yellow butterfly with iridescent blue spots on its tail. It went away before Chet could grab a photo, so we'll just have to remember it. But it was spectacular, and what a treat!
We had dinner at a small Italian restaurant in town called "That's Italian!" It was actually quite good, although we did keep it simple this time. Wine was nice, as was the garlic bread and the main meal. Chet had Chicken Cacciatore, and Lynne had Chicken Piccata. Both very nice.
After dinner, Chet decided he wanted to try to photograph the night sky. Unfortunately, he hadn't quite figured out how to make the camera behave before we set out. So, after a partially successful half hour, and a very pleasant walk, we returned to the lodge. Lynne wanted to spend a little time sitting out by the river, so we did. But, the bats soon drove us back indoors and to bed. They're harmless, but it's still rather unnerving to have them swooping about one's head!
SATURDAY 7/23/2005
Woke up to a nice and toasty morning and went over to have a 'big breakfast' at the Kerville General Store and it was very nice. It was only $3.95 for a BIG breakfast. The people were extra friendly and we had a great time. We both also really enjoyed staying at the Sequoia Lodge. We both think it would be a very cool place to stay at in the future and think that dad Shannon & Stephen I might enjoy it, even, with the river being just a few feet away and people saying they caught 5-9 trout in a day. Lynne talked Chet out of driving through Death Valley because it would take us too long and it was 130 degree F there in the day now. Instead we decided to drive up through Sherman Pass at 9300' in the high Sierras. (Northeast of Kernville.) The temperatures fell from 105 to about 70 and it was very very pleasant and quiet at the viewpoint. We then found a beautiful meadow of wild-flowers in peak bloom. Chet spent about an hour taking some very pretty (we hope) photos with his digital camera while Lynne enjoyed the fresh air and the views.
We then took off for route 395 to get us up to Bishop, Calif. The views along the way from the summit of Sherman Pass were superbly pretty. This was a drive that we both were happy we made. After that we drove up along US route 395 to the North for about 120 miles to Bishop, Calif where we immediately stopped at Galen Rowell's Mountain Light Gallery. The gallery was great and was quite a great inspiration. Also, it was a great place to take refuge from the heat - down from Sherman's Pass, the temps climbed to about 100 degrees. After our visit to the Rowell's we went hunting for our motel for the night. Wound up at the Ramada which has - oh joy! - free wireless access! And air conditioning. Chet's happy. After a brief rest (amazing how much driving takes out of you!), we went looking for dinner. After an unsuccessful search for the Firehouse (no longer), we wound up at Jack's. Fishing memorabilia decorate the wall, which very large trout and some interesting t-shirts. Having successfully managed our culinary expectations and ordered accordingly, we had a very satisfying supper. Chet had a patty melt with fries, and Lynne had their special: barbecue ribs. With fruit pie for dessert, a very reasonably priced, pleasant meal. People were really nice, too. Back to the Ramada for a nice, quiet evening. Looking forward to more adventures tomorrow!
posted by Chet Shannon at 10:29 PM
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