Carmel to San Francisco, CA

We woke up to find that the power was down all over the area which meant no hot breakfast, not even a cup of coffee was available in Carmel. No point in staying around so we headed to the beach along with half the residents of Carmel and their dogs. We had a lovely walk.

We then went on the scenic 17-mile drive around the Monterey peninsula. It took us through Pebble Beach and we dropped into the golf club, some of which we had seen from the beach and enjoyed a welcome if expensive coffee while looking out at the 18th green. We then went down to have a closer look at the golfers approach and putt on the green. They were also being watched by a flock of geese busily pecking around near the green.

As we continued our our drive towards Monterey we admired the stunning views of both the sea and the big mansions overlooking the sea.

We reached Monterey and headed to Cannery Row, made famous by John Steinbeck. The streets were crowded with people as most of the stores and cafes were still closed due to the power outage.

We drove back to Carmel and watched the sunset over the Ocean.

The next morning, our final day with the car, we headed towards San Francisco on the Pacific Coastal Highway and more great scenery.

We drove through the city, crossed the Golden Gate Bridge and headed to Muir Woods to see the great redwoods.

Then it was back to the city and we drove down Lombard Street - the "crookedest" street in San Francisco on our way to our hotel and then return the car.

We drove 3861 miles in total!

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Holbrook, AZ to Peach Springs, AZ

We left Holbrook in bright sunshine and continued our drive along Rte 66 which once again had us driving on the Interstate at times. Our first stop was in Winslow made famous when The Eagles recorded "Take It Easy" whose second verse starts with "Standin' on a corner in Winslow Arizona". We then drove on to Flagstaff but didn't stop in the city. Flagstaff has a beautiful forested location high up on the Colorado Plateau and it was a change to be driving on roads lined with tall ponderosa pine trees. We had a picnic lunch off the beaten track in Buckskinner Park, Williams, AZ. We followed a dirt trail to the picnic area which really tested our car's tyres. They survived, thankfully. We soon found ourselves in Seligman (pronounced Sligman), a sleepy town which maintains a lot of its historic character together with a few unexpected twists - eg Santa in a Chevvy outside the wacky Snow Cap Drive-in. Our destination for the night was th

Seattle, WA

We left Everett on Sunday morning and headed south to Seattle, our final stop on this trip. We drove to our hotel and dropped off our cases before we headed to SeaTac to return our car. After the brief stop at the hotel we drove to Kubota Garden, a 20-acre Japanese garden in one of Seattle’s southern neighbourhoods. It was started in 1927 by Fijitaro Kubota, a Japanese immigrant. It is an urban oasis with Japanese and native trees and plants, ponds and waterfalls. It was beautiful with its fall colours. The following morning we headed down to the waterfront to the historic Pike Place Market where Starbucks first opened its doors to the public in 1971. Then we wandered through the market which opened in 1907 and strolled by the numerous stalls of seafood, fresh produce, crafts and flowers. On Tuesday we took the monorail, which was the first commercial monorail in the USA and built in 1962 as an attraction for the 1962 World’s Fair. It still uses the original cars. The monorail

Volcanic Country

On Wednesday morning after breakfast, we headed back to the airport to pick up our car. We got a very nice car, a Ford Edge, fairly large for what is described as a small SUV. Then it was off on the road trip part of the holiday. Our first stop was in a cabin in Ashford, a very small town near the entrance to the Mount Rainier National Park. Thursday morning saw us head to Mount Rainier NP. Mount Rainier at 14,410 ft is the tallest mountain in Washington State. It is an active volcano and is the most glaciated peak in the lower 48 states. We drove up to Paradise which at an elevation of 5,420 ft. is famous for its stunning views. We then walked to Myrtle Falls and the views all round us were just stunning. After lunch we drove to Reflection Lakes along a road with hairpin bends and precipitous drops to the side. While in Ashford, we ate at the quaint Copper Creek Restaurant which opened in 1946 and is the oldest, continuously operating restaurant in Washington State.

On the Road with T and S

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