Day 3: Marin County Road Trip part 2

After visiting the Muir woods we drove north up the coast to Stinson Beach. This photo below is from the first overlook that we stopped at. It was absolutely breathtaking, and this is just one of those instances where the photographs will never do the experience justice.

An interesting looking dead tree that continues to support a lot of life.The drive up the coast was surreal. It was exhilarating to drive along the curvy, dangerous road along the cliffs that fall off quickly to the crashing pacific below. I only wish there had been a way to capture more pictures along the way. I didn't really capture the road itself in a photo which had hairpin turns not unlike those I drove on in the Rockies outside of Jerome AZ. or in the Black Hills in S.D. We stopped at Stinson Beach and walked around a while taking in the gorgeous day. It was cool, but there were actually some hearty souls out taking a dip, surfing, and tanning. Stinson Beach was quiet, however, this little town showed all the signs of being a booming tourist haven and getaway from the city during the summer. It had a quaint main strip with shops restaurants and small inns, adjacent to a large parking lot for the beach. The beach is over 3 miles long and I'm sure serves as a popular place to cool of in the summer with its proximity to the cities of the bay. This photo is Kate attempting to get a read on how cold the Pacific is this time of year. There is a tough little kid standing in the water off to the right. There were signs by the shower facilities warning swimmers of great white sharks which apparently call these waters home. On the way back towards San Francisco we stopped at the first overlook hoping to get some sucker to snap a photo of us. A nice older couple helped us out and talked to us for a while. Kind of a weird pose for me, but a great picture of a great memory regardless. We headed to Point Bonita lighthouse and were disappointed to find out that it was closed.It was closed for a good cause. The harbor seals nest in the areas seen below. We could actually see a mother seal feeding her pups, however it was too far away to get a good photo without having some really good equipment.Here is Kate next to the closed gate of a tunnel that leads through the ledge to the closed lighthouse (trying to look disappointed). There was a tiny window in this door and we were able to peer into the dark damp tunnel. Kate claimed to see a mouse scurrying about inside the tunnel.On the way out of the park we saw a deer, however the only photo Kate could get was of its but, which wasn't particularly picturesque. The Golden Gate Bridge is seen below coming around the steep hills headed back towards San Francisco from Point Bonita. Next: The conclusion of Day 3: Chinatown and North Beach.

Day 3: Road Adventure Begins! Muir Woods

We woke up Thursday morning and headed a block from the hotel to pick up our reserved compact car. I was pleased to see the car was a Pontiac Vibe, which is essentially a Toyota Matrix with a Pontiac symbol slapped on it. It was a comfortable car, however I did find the acceleration to be uneven and tough to get used to. Additionally the automatic shifter was on the dash and I accidentally knocked the car into neutral once when I was looking over my shoulder at traffic.

After getting situated in the car we headed down Lombard St. and over the Golden Gate bridge which is a surprisingly narrow 4 lanes. We got off at the wrong exit at first, however we quickly got back on track and headed towards the Muir woods.

Most of these images are self explanatory. Kate with the Vibe, she obviously wasn't expecting this photo.

Kate emphasizing the height of the trees.

Kate demonstrating a tree cutting as a timeline.Those pretty trees are really tall.That is one wide tree that I'm standing in front of.Holy Redwood Batman! I'm walking on a tree! (It was chilly in the forest!)Kate is seen here brown-plastic-bagging it. Her eco-friendly stainless steel water bottle leaked all over her bag on the first day of the trip. The plastic bag became an aggravating yet effective means of preventing a recurrence of this leak. Banana Slug! Ahhh wildlife.This was our lunch! The Muir woods cafe. It was a bit on the pricey side but the sandwiches made with organic ingredients were actually quite tasty.Here I am inside the base of a tree! One more look at the trees.

We went for a long hike in the forest up a seemingly large hill. It took us through many groves of the Sequoia out of the valley. As we neared the top of the peak the trees diminished in size, however not quite enough to provide a view of the ocean. Along the trail were many bridges made of fallen trees, as well as a large tree that had a gap in the base that you could walk into (as seen above). Returning to the visitor's center a woman warned us that a fawn (newborn deer) had fallen into the path. She was headed off to get a ranger and we stood guard to warn other people. It was still breathing and moving slightly, however it appeared that it may had fallen off a ledge and may have been injured. Kate snapped a photo (which we debated whether it would be OK to do) and perhaps I'll post it later when she provides me some copies. When the ranger came we let her handle things and headed off to lunch. The park had become very busy by this time and we were glad we managed to get there early in the morning when it was still peaceful.

Next we'll take a ride up the rocky Pacific coast!

Day 2 conclusion- Evening in San Francisco

Wednesday evening after returning to the city we thought about our plans and where we'd like to eat. We were going to take a cable car through Nob Hill by Lombard St., however the line was down for repairs and we decided just to walk up to Union Square instead. The column seen above forms the center of a park in Union Square and is a monument to Commodore George Dewey who led the American Navy to victory over a fleet of Spanish ships in 1898. Union square is essentially like San Francisco's Times Square. There is a ton a foot traffic, many touristy eateries, and a lot of places to shop.

This Saks Fifth Avenue is off the square. I wanted to capture the vintage animated neon sign on the old art deco high rise behind the store, however the photo does not do it justice.

The park in the center of Union Square.

After leaving Union Square it was one of the few times during the trip that we had some transit difficulties. We wanted to get up towards Lombard St. but couldn't determine the best way to do it. We inadvertently headed west, which probably took us closer to the Tenderloin than we perhaps should have been as dark was approaching. We had a rather comical moment at a bus stop where Kate was so absorbed in looking at a map that she didn't notice the two guys packing a crack pipe (or something) in the seat booth. They were minding their own business, and I didn't notice the drugs until I got a concerned look, and a smile from a pedestrian walking by that said "I hope you know what you are doing". It was at this point that I noticed one of the men had dropped some of their fix of choice on the pavement. He was licking the tips of his finger to pick up the crumbs and put it into the pipe. At this point I tugged on Kate's jacket and lightly whispered "come on" and we walked a block (up a steep hill of course) to an unoccupied bus stop. The neighborhoods didn't really seem unsafe, and most of the people waking the streets were well to do professionals. The picture above with the neon garage sign was from that area. I believe we ended up heading back towards Van Ness where the hotel was, and then caught a bus towards Russian Hill. We walked up the hill from Van Ness in the direction of Lombard St. Our adventure took us through some picturesque parks built on terraces that had signs warning us of coyotes in the area.

Eventually we made it to the top, and tried to take some shots of Lombard St. at night. It is incredibly difficult to use a digital camera in the dark. Below is the best shot of several that I snapped.

Next we headed down Hyde st. to Za's Pizza where we had a delicious meal that definitely hit the spot. There was a wait, however it was a cozy little/ bar cafe with a great down-to-earth atmosphere and a good beer selection which I took advantage of.
Afterwards we headed back to the hotel and rested up for what would be a big day on the road into Marin County.

Day 2; pt 2 Berkeley

As mentioned previously, from Oakland we got back on the BART (Kate called it the BARF, although there wasn't anything nauseating or gross about it) and headed to the hippie haven of Berkeley.

We were very, very hungry upon our arrival and we scoured the main street for a place to eat. Our guide books didn't give many suggestions, and many of the top choices available were too chainish (one of our top choices was a place called BurgerMeister-- which we later discovered was a chain). On a side street leading towards the University and Telegraph Avenue, we found Razan's Organic Kitchen which totally seemed like the Berkeley thing to do. The food was pretty good and they had a nice little dining area upstairs that was quiet and comfortable. Kate had a chicken burrito, and I had falafel wrap sandwich called an "Egyptian Wrap". Proud to say I went veggie when I ate in Berkeley. We split a order of blue chips and salsa. The salsa was fabulous, fresh cilantro tomatoes and onions, pico de gallo at its best. Kate refused to smile with her food, convinced that she would have a piece of something green in her teeth, so I suggested the eating pose. Funnily enough you can tell she is smiling anyway. I as Kate said "appear to be making love to my wrap sandwich". Hey, what can I say, it was good.

I suggested that Kate appear as a student at Berkeley, but I think the shot is too obvious. I should have had her mingle in a crowd, or get further away.

The campus is gorgeous, many quiet places of solitude, beautiful lawns, rolling hills, and majestic trees. Some students (and I suspect locals) were lazing about on the beautiful day we had.

Sather Tower shown ahead is the signature piece of architecture that dominates the campus. Kate and I took an elevator ride to the top of its 30 stories for the view. An elevator attendee gave us a brief history, and told us that the intermediate floors were used as storage for dinosaur bones, and some makeshift lab space.

Views from the top were impressive, and the breeze coming off of the bay was soothing.

There are a series of bells in the tower which are actually played multiple times a day via a keyboard, which is in a glass enclosed room in the center of the observation deck. The elevator guide told us that students can take a class to learn how to play. The class is actually good for credit, and it has a long wait list to get into because of its popularity.

The reason I took the shot below is that it is the sciences building. On the left it reads "Biochemistry", on the right it reads "Psychology". Kate thought it kind of represented our relationship- as our education majors were essentially paired here in stone.

The trees below, which I've since learned are eucalyptus trees, grow to impressive heights of up to 200 feet.

After walking around the campus for some time, we took in Telegraph Ave. First we grabbed some refreshing iced tea from the local Walgreens. We walked up and down the busy portion, taking in the students, hippies, pan-handlers, and homeless. We checked out People's Park which we did not photograph because it was essentially covered with homeless people gathered socially, sleeping, or sitting in what appeared to be semi-long term make shift open residences. Rasputin Music seen below is a well known music store on Telegraph Ave. I wasn't impressed with the selection, and it made me acutely aware of how the age of mp3s and Amazon has destroyed the magic of these stores. Newbury Comics locations on Newbury Street or at Quincy Market are just as good, if not better.

We decided after taking all of this in that we wanted to get back to San Francisco for supper. Additionally, the BART trains become more limited in service later in the day. Before leaving we bought big cookie from a store. Kate was chastised by the clerk for not buying more- weird eh? Next up: 2nd day finale: Evening in the city.