Road Tripping

We drove from Santa Barbara to Mendocino which is far and beautiful. I took a lot of pictures. First with my Canon Power Shot TX 1.

This is a spot called Point Lobos State Reserve south of Carmel. Stunning. Huge, soaring, thundering waves. (see above)

(and below)

The ocean is powerful. Most people can tell by looking at it.

But apparently not everyone because there were a lot of signs...

And if the waves don't get you, look out for the mountain lions.

And the poison oak.

If you survive, enjoy the view.

We did survive and drove on to San Francisco,

By "we" I mean "Ron." He drove and I photographed me photographing me.

It's awe inspiring to know that millions of tourists before me have passed across this very spot, gazed in wonder, pointed a camera out a window and taken pretty much this exact photograph.

At the Yerba Buena Center in San Francisco, there is a powerful Martin Luther King Memorial, inscribed with his words, "We will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream."

This is Meredith and Stefan through the water.

We drove onward to Bodega Bay, where they shot, "The Birds,"

starring the great, great grandparents of these guys, and Tippi Hedron.

From there, it was due north to Point Arena where Ron's cousins, Mia and Kevin own a lovely bed a breakfast called The Coast Guard House.

Here it is from the bottom of the hill.

From Point Arena, it's about a 40 minute drive up to Mendocino,

where we found this masterfully restored lighthouse.

and then wandered through the streets of this charming little personality laden burg.

As the sun was setting in a thick, cloudy sky over the Mendocino Headlands, I lost battery power in my camera. A lesser woman would have panicked (or enjoyed the view) but, I managed to bravely reach for my Verizon En-V cell phone and continue taking pictures.

And I kept taking pictures until well after dark... even if the phone rang.

A wonderful trip up the road.