Inklings

Tag: California

  • Leaving Cali

    Our last day in California was relatively light with activity. In the morning we visited Ocean World where we learned about some of the creatures that inhabit the waters of Crescent Beach. Suddenly the idea of picking up a sea star or touching a sea anemone didn’t seem so scary to the boys. In fact, we all had the opportunity to pet leopard sharks. It felt nothing like I expected. Petting the shark from head to tail felt like soft leather, but going the opposite direction their skin felt bristly like a pig’s.

    After two and a half days of dreary, overcast weather we finally had an afternoon of beautiful California sunshine. To take advantage of the break in the weather we spent the rest of our last day combing the beach outside our motel. We collected rocks and drift wood of all kinds. The constant abrasive action of the waves makes everything rounded and smooth. Even small pieces of drift wood end up looking like baby carrots.

    The boys bravely climbed the rocky outcrops on the beach searching for sea stars that they would, thanks to their experience at Ocean World, pry off the rocks, handle and then release back into the water. The tide finally dropped low enough in the evening for us to travel across to Battery Point Lighthouse where we witnessed a fabulous sunset. Those final hours of day three certainly made for a nice end to our California stay.

  • Mighty Redwoods

    It’s an understatement to say that the California Redwoods are large trees. They’re huge. Massive. Enormous. Mighty. No picture I’ve ever seen or taken will do justice to the experience of actually being there. It’s something everyone, especially those from the flat lands of the midwestern prairie, should experience for themselves.

    We hiked several miles on a number of trails that wound through the del Norte Redwoods. I’ve never seen such a thriving, lush forest in all my life. Dense forest surrounded every trail and in most cases you had no idea where you were headed or where you had been. Redwoods stretched upwards into the cloudy morning mist making them appear endless. The forest floor was carpeted with ferns, young sprouts, broad leaf clover and moss. We observed fallen redwood trunks (possibly hundreds of years old) with mature redwood trees growing right out of the bark. In some cases the roots would eerily finger down several feet to gain a fertile foothold. The only thing that was not green with growth was the crushed gravel path we walked on. We also observed several living redwoods that had ashen black burns on portions of their trunks. I doubt that these singed trees were the victims of selective arson, but lightning strikes due to their extreme heights.

    Any fallen Redwood that crossed the trail was obviously carved or cut away by park rangers. Being able to see the diameter of some of these tree trunks really put into perspective just how large they really are. Unreal.

  • It’s Not Always Sunny in California

    I guess none of us should have been too surprised when we arrived in Crescent City, California – unofficial gateway to the Redwoods – and instead of a vibrant, tourist-friendly, sunny, seaside town we found a dreary, cold, and foggy downerville. I mean, we were in the Pacific Northwest and the Redwoods have to sustain their height and constant moisture somehow but this little community had little to offer in the way of tourist entertainment, not counting Ocean World (it’s like a distant tenth cousin to Sea World, thrice removed). We later learned from a friendly local that the once vibrant logging and fishing industries of the area are failing and the only thing keeping the community going (aside from the scant bits of tourism) is the maximum security Pelican Bay State Prison (with whom said local was gainfully employed). Turns out if you’re an unsuspecting tourist or a gangster thug in deep doo-doo (we’re talking the worst of California’s worst) this is where you’re incarcerated. Yep, a veritable paradise.

    All things considered, we did have the best motel in the area – right on the ocean front – just a stone’s throw from Battery Point Lighthouse. Great views from our third story patio to the beaches below. This would represent the depth of our western exploration and a three day stay awaited us. Our five hour trip along coastal highway 101 brought us here and to top things off we were desperately searching for exciting ways to celebrate our oldest son’s eleventh birthday. The best we could come up with was a night out for dinner in town.

    I should mention that we’ve kind of made it customary, when traveling abroad, to patronize the local eateries to get a bit of the culture and tastes of the region and avoid the franchise food that we can get anywhere. So, we let the birthday boy, with some encouragement, choose a local dining establishment. Within minutes we found ourselves parking in the lot of the local Pizza King only to open the front doors, scan the room (the three customers and two employees simply glared at us), reel back from the unappetizing smell and turn to leave. That night, out of necessity, we drafted an exclusionary clause to our travel dining custom. Pizza Hut never tasted better.