Family posts and Hwy 1 Coastline drive...79 miles to Monterey

Note the steep falloff to the left. :)

Chipmunks


Sealions


Hearst Castle pix:

ANTHONY: I thought the Grand Canyon was fun and adventurous except for the height part. The height part especially bothered me at the Little Colorado River Gorge, even though it’s not as big as the Grand Canyon. I really liked the Grand Canyon a lot. I thought Sedona was pretty good. It was like any old town, just that it was in a mountain valley with a lot of rocks. The next day, we just went past Hoover Dam by accident. But we got to see it from the truck and I thought it was really short. It looked like a sci-fi movie. After a few more miles we got to Vegas. Vegas was beautiful at night. We went to Jimmy Buffet’s
Margariteville to dinner and there was this girl in a bikini or something and it almost looked like she was about to strip. I got really scared. When she didn’t strip I calmed down. Then we went to Bakersfield. That place was pretty neat. It was an orange orchard. The pool was a little dirty and a little cold. Next, we went to Morro Bay, and boy was it beautiful, except for the dead seaweed on the beach. Morro Rock was HUGE! Today, we are at Casa De Fruta RV park near San Francisco. Our trip here was long and curvy. Also, at the campground, we saw peacocks. They were big. The pool was cold, but me and Katie got used to it. See ya!
KATIE: I left off right before the Grand Canyon when I last blogged. The Grand Canyon was something else. I enjoyed it a lot, especially hanging my head over the guard rail, that adds the thrill. After the Grand Canyon, we went to Sedona, but I don’t think it was all that it was cracked up to be, except for the drive down there. It was absolutely breathtaking, but Sedona was a clone of Gatlinburg, so it’s kinda like saying “Been there. Done that.” , but it was nice. Then the next day we “unintentionally” drove past the Hoover Dam. I didn’t have much of a problem with that, because we were going to go down into it and I was like Anthony and the gorge, I was reluctant because my claustrophobia. Thankfully, for me, I didn’t have to do that.
Viva Las Vegas! I didn’t mind Vegas that much, in fact I kind of enjoyed it. The part I hated was the camper ordeal. I felt like I wanted to scream at the manager for making dad angry, cuz they better WATCH OUT! Mark is furious!
(insert from daddy: as we were driving into Vegas, Sharon and I were complimenting how nice everything was and what we expected from it. So we were into deep conversation in the front seat. Then, Katie in the back, exclaims “Hey, there is a EYEBROWSRUS store!” We all lol’d, we didn’t even see it. Whodathunk they’d make a store just for eyebrows?)
Next we went to Bakersfield, which was opposite from Vegas. It was quiet and charming in that little orange grove with the little baby oranges. It soothed my rushed mind. After that we went to Morro Bay. The first sign that I saw of a beach was Morro Rock. It was “ big and honkin’”. I loved the rocks on the beach there. They looked as if they had been polished and carefully plunked in the ocean by God, to wash on shore. I hated those sea creature-looking things that Anthony called Sea Sirens. Those suckers looked and smelt NASTY! So, today we end up at Casa de Fruita where everything down here is casa, even Casa de gas station. My favorite factor is the peacocks. They are beautiful and friendly. I got to go crash now so, casa de good night.
SHARON: Well everyone else has gone to bed, so I can have some quiet time to sit here and talk to you guys. The Grand Canyon is still grand as it’s ever been. It, along with so many other things we are seeing, just boggle the mind. You can’t convince yourself that you are seeing what you’re seeing. I have gotten very bad about heights, flying and sometimes Mark’s driving as I have gotten older. They can all make my heart race and make me feel like I don’t know what I’m going to do sometimes. Mark will be happy to know that he still makes my heart race, won’t he? Lol. Anyway, the Grand Canyon was a good example of heights making my heart race. I think it’s worse to see one of my kids near a dangerous height and Katie has no fear to my chagrin. Anthony, bless his heart, will keep safe, for now anyways. I loved the trip to Sedona, although the drive back in the dark was nerve wracking. (Another one of my developed fears of my advancing age). Of course, it doesn’t help that Mark has had some dental work done lately that leaves him with the need to floss after eating a meal and he usually picks driving time to do this task. So there he was, driving on unfamiliar, curvy, steep roads in the dark, using his elbows to steer as he flosses the meat out of his teeth. And believe me, he is not usually a pro at multitasking. He couldn’t understand why I was so tense. ( At least, we are not expecting to fly this trip, thank goodness.) When we left Flagstaff, we headed up to Hoover Dam. It was different from what I had pictured, but still spectacular. Do they put blue-green dye in the water out here? The water around the dam and the Pacific are gorgeous colors. So….. On to Las Vegas. Our experience here left much to be desired. Too bad we didn’t have time to give it another chance. The parking lot ordeal, really started us out on a sour note. I’m sure it can be a perfectly lovely place if you know where to go. The lights are sort of magical and the extravagance is breathtaking, but we are more the natural beauty kind of people. We really did enjoy our nice room and bath though. The next day, we were more than ready to head to Morro Bay and it was well worth the wait. We thought the beach would be nice and toasty like the beaches in Florida, Alabama and South Carolina that we have been to before. Boy did we think wrong. The temperature on the beach was in the 60’s and the water was even colder. No swimming in this water, and you sure didn’t want to wear a swim suit. But the water, the crashing surf, the huge Morro Rock were beautiful. It’s hard to tell in pictures just how large the rock really is. It’s gi-enormous! We were able to grill for the first time since Arkansas and we enjoyed the real campground atmosphere the fire helped to create. Today we left Morro Bay and went up the coast to Hearst Castle for a tour. The estate was a sight to behold. No such extravagance has before or since been created anywhere in the world. Of this, I’m convinced. W.R. Hearst left no stone unturned in his pursuit of all things grand, fine and opulent. Many famous celebrities were guests at the complex. He had several guest houses besides the main house, and all of these could house several guests. He even made a covered area over a mile long, just so he and his guests could drive or ride horses in the shade. There were many statues, carvings, imported ceilings, marble, gold leaf, and tapestries that were priceless on the property. There is a pool that he had redone three times before he was satisfied. Can you imagine Johnny Weismuller, Clark Gable, Carol Lombard, and many other famous actors, directors, and other folks all together in one place? That’s the way it was at the Castle; a steady stream of interesting, famous people. I could go on for a long time and I already have, but I need to continue with our trip events. The ride up Highway 1 was gorgeous, but another nerve-wracking, tense ride. I finally got used to the hairpin turns over the rocky ledges jutting out over the ocean, and was able to enjoy the views. (I was able to convince Mark to wait about flossing his teeth, this time.) It made for a long and tiring journey to our current stop, Casa de Fruta RV park, here near Gilroy, California. This is a pleasant place and will be a nice site for us to return to tomorrow after seeing San Fran. I’m beat too, so you’ll hear more from me later! Good night and sleep well friends.
Mark: It sounds like they covered it all really good. I’ve attached some pictures we took coming up the coast. It is breath-taking at times, between the crooked roads, the heights and the scenery. (You floss your teeth ONE time while driving on curvy road and they never forget it).
Notice there is NOBODY in the water…
I’ve decided the west coast, at least where we have been, is like a fake-cheeseburger: just looks good but you can’t use it.

Mark