Traveling Down the Pacific Coast

 Highway 1 is known for its scenic splendor, heart-dropping curves,
 and rugged terrain. The section we traveled, from San Francisco to Watsonville,
was very scenic without all the driving drama.
We were spared motion sickness and dizziness.
Instead, we had fog and drizzle with patches of clearness.

 

 

 

Despite the overcast and blustery weather, the ocean was still beautiful.

When some people are by water, they just can't stay out of it.

 

 

 

Other people stay up on the bluff, out of the sand and water,

but in the blowing wind.

 

This is one way to clean the sand from your feet when it's time to get back into the vehicle.

 

I was glad I had picked up this headband in Chinatown the night before.

It was more effective at keeping my forehead and ears warm than my sweatshirt hood.

 

 

 

One of our  stops along the way was the Pigeon Point State Park.

 

The landscaping around the cottages was beautiful and uniquely Californian.

 

 

 

 

The little grey ovals down on the rocks were harbor seals.

They were trying to stay warm without any sun to warm the rocks.

From one of the sign boards, I learned that seals lose most of their body heat

through their flippers.  They try to keep their flippers as warm and dry as possible.

 

 

The light house is undergoing restoration so we were not able to go inside.

The tower is 115 feet tall and is made from 500,000 locally made bricks.

The lighthouse sits on a 50 foot bluff over the ocean.

There are 136 wrought iron steps inside the double-walled tower.



 

The four ton Fresnel lens has been dismantled, restored, and is on display

until they are ready to dismantle it again to put it back into the lighthouse.

There are 1,008 glass elements and the lens was made in France.

This was a small whales' skull.

 

 

No one was frolicking in the water in their bathing suits on this particular day

but there were plenty of surfers out on their boards in some areas but

they had the benefit of wet suits.

 

After a stop in Santa Cruz, we headed a little more inland where

there were farms between the highway and the ocean.

It always amazes me that some rich person(s) have not bought

up this farm land and built mansion(s) overlooking the sea.

We finished off the trip with a very late lunch (or was it supper?)
at a yummy California eatery.

 

This is also where Rudy offered up his witty comment of the day.

He ordered a chocolate shake and when I expressed my surprise 

his retort was, "I'm balancing out my salt intake."

Yea for healthy eating!!