Road Trip with Debbie and Mike
September 24 to October 6, 2021
At some point midway through the summer we scrapped our European adventure and decided instead to visit San Francisco and then take a road trip down the coast, all the way back to San Diego!
Here are a few photos and some comments on the trip. To skip down to a particular location, click in it below.
San Francisco - Santa Cruz - Monterey - Cambria - Paso Robles - Solvang
First, we had to get to SF. We thought of flying and then renting a car but instead we decided to drive so that we could bring a cooler, wine opener, a fifth of gin, and a few other things that airline security frown upon. Here Lorri is driving up the immensely scenic I-5, somewhere near nowhere.
We learned there is a place called Harris Ranch in Coalinga, about 300 miles north of San Diego and just off I-5
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We decided to break up the nearly 500-mile trek with an overnight stop here. It was a good decision. We stayed at a Best Western rather than the Harris Ranch Resort and bought Harris Ranch take-out rather than have dinner there. This was probably the last money saving decision we made on the trip!
Crossing the Bay Bridge approaching SF, and what do you know? Foggy, overcast weather!
A view from the bridge out the car window
Stockton Street near our hotel
Around the corner from our hotel, the Union Square Marriott, we found Sears Fine Food, which, as far as I know, is not related to Sears Department Stores, thankfully.
It's been around for 81 years and, by golly, it looks it! We had a nice late lunch, though, and then moved on.
Here we are, getting ready to move on.
We crossed Union Square and noted a surprising absence of homeless people and also a surprising number of establishments that were temporarily or permanently closed due to the pandemic and presumably, the lack of tourists
Next stop was John's Grill, Dashiell Hammet's old hang out. If you don't know who he was, read this.
Lorri and I were killing time waiting for Debbie and Mike to arrive from Baltimore, and this was a good spot to do so.
Here is the Maltese Falcon.
Here is the obligatory photo of as cable car. Don't worry, it's not the only one.
After Deb and Mike arrived and got settled, we walked down to Johnny Foley's for some nourishment and a pint or two.
Is this Johnny? I don't know.
Jack's pint and Lorri's not-a-pint!
Sunday, San Francisco
We were all set to take the Powell Street Cable Car to Fisherman's Wharf but for some reason, it wasn't running this day
So we took the vintage trolley instead, which turned out nicely. For $5 a day you can use the trolley as much as you like.
Initially we rode from Powell and Market, down Market and all the way around, past the Ferry Building and many Piers until...
We hopped off at Pier 39. BTW, Debbie had never been to SF and Mike only on a work assignment, many years ago. We had to see the famous tourist places such as this, right?
Speaking of tourist places, check out Alcatraz over Debbie's left shoulder.
Here are the smelly, ugly, loud, sea lions that some people (Debbie, for instance) think are cute. Some people (me) were thankful there were not more of them this day.
Typical Pier 39 tourists
We walked past Fishermans Wharf toward Ghirardelli Square looking for the Irish Coffee place.
We found it! It was crowded and there was no room at the bar.
So we got our Irish Coffee to go
That's Debbie in the middle and the bar man making our drinks. We learned that when you get them to go, you get an airplane bottle of Irish Whiskey which is to be added to your drink when you leave the premises. Why? I don't know but I didn't complain.
In SF, most establishments required face masks and actually checked your ID and Vax record before allowing you inside.
We moved on with our coffees and found Ghirardelli without much trouble.
Another view of the Bay and Alcatraz from G-Square
"Small Batch Fine Spirits" caught our eye. We had to go in!
We had a fun time talking sports with this young man and he was knowledgeable and generous with the Fine Spirit samples. We bought a few small bottles to take with us.
After Ghirardelli, we got back on the Trolley and took it (or it took us) to the Ferry Building, which, besides having a Ferry terminal, also has many shops and restaurants. Here is a view from the Ferry Building toward the Bay Bridge.
Hog Island Oyster Co. was our choice for lunch
They have lot's of types of oysters, clams and all sorts of seafood. It's a busy and fun spot
From the Ferry Building we took yet another vintage trolley back to Union Square. The Trollies are from various cities around the country and have been restored and refurbished. There is actually one from SEPTA (Southeast Pennsylvania Transportation Authority) that looks exactly like the one that very nearly ran over me when I was in 2nd grade.
It was a nice sunny day in SF on Saturday. This is the view looking easterly from our room on the 21st floor. That is Coit Tower in the middle of the photo in the distance.
This is looking westerly.
We had a tough time finding a suitable open establishment for dinner but finally stumbled across Sam's.
Sam's Cable Car Lounge turned out to be a nice spot with a huge wine cellar and retail wine sales in the basement.
Monday, San Francisco
We decided that the best way to see a lot of the City in a short time was to take the "hop-on, hop-off" tour bus.
Here we are at Union Square waiting for the bus
Masks were required!
We sat at the very back
We passed City Hall on the left side
And what appeared to be a homeless tent city on the right side. I guess this is why we didn't see many homeless around Union Square.
On to Haight-Ashbury where you see all sorts of interesting things.
We hopped off at Haight and walked around a bit and had a bit of a brunch
We left Haight and walked through part of Golden Gate Park until we found the pick-up spot to hop on the bus and continue our tour.
We cruised up through the Presidio to the Golden Gate where Karl the Fog attacked us! We were whipped by the wind and soaked by the rain until we got to the viewpoint on the north side when we could remove ourselves to the lower level.
The ride back across the GG was not as bad. Karl left and we hopped off on Lombard Street, walked up to Union Street and made our way eventually to Cresta's 2211 Club, a fun dive bar in the Polk Gulch area.
We were in need of a rest stop and attitude adjustment and this was just the spot!
Dan, the owner, bartender, Cubs fan, and resident funny guy, joined me for a shot of Irish whiskey. Notice the backward Cubs "C" on his hat. Someone told him it was a "selfie hat" so that if he took his own photo in a mirror it would be facing the right direction. He said it was backward because that's the direction the Cubs went this season.
We made our way from Polk Gulch back to Lombard where we hopped on and found our way to North Beach where hopped off for the last time.
Debbie living dangerously with no mask!
North Beach is the happening Italian district in SF. Lots of Italian restaurants, bars, and so on, but don't call it "Little Italy", Original Joe's is an old-school Italian restaurant - pizza, pasta, chianti, Carpaccio, garlic, all of that stuff!
We were joined by our good friend John, the brother of our brother-in-law, Steve Evers. He is a long-time SF resident and was able join us for appetizers, wine, and a few laughs.
This was our last stop where we sat at an outside table for some pizza and vino.
We thought that we would have a long walk over the hill back to Union Square but it turned out that the Cable Cars were back in action and we caught one!
Mike hung out on the running board and managed to not fall off
Lorri was not quite as adventurous. We made it back to our hotel and woke up the next morning to plenty of sunshine and looking forward to a ride to Monterey!
This is a panorama from our window
Tuesday, San Francisco to Monterey
We couldn't check into our Monterey hotel until later so we made a pit stop in Santa Cruz. We had never been there. There is a giant amusement park along the beach that takes up most of the south side of town. You can sort of see the roller coasters and rides in this photo.
There is huge pier with restaurants, souvenir shops, car parking, boat rentals, and fishing.
They hoist the boats over the edge of the pier into the water. Not sure how they get the people in them.
The bay north of the pier. Looked like a nice break at the point - lots of surfers.
Waiting at the car to move on from the land of the fighting UC Santa Cruz Banana Slugs
This was a State Beach area a little south of Santa Cruz
Here we all are! What a great day for a cruise down the coast!
Looking back toward Santa Cruz
We spent one night in Monterey which is probably enough unless you're going to the aquarium, golfing, or you're a John Steinbeck fan.
Several of the shops and restaurants were closed due to COVID. We walked around and did some exploring and had dinner at a brewery. We also managed to squeeze in a little wine-tasting.
Checking out the Bay
Have I mentioned Steinbeck? That's him at the top and he's surrounded be a sundry cast of characters that were instrumental in revitalizing Cannery Row.
Wednesday
Leaving Monterey, we took the "17-Mile Drive" route around the perimeter of the Peninsula.
It's a very scenic drive which passes world-famous golf courses, fabulous mansions, and amazing ocean views.
Pebble Beach is one of those courses and, of course we had to stop there.
This proves that we were there. We were going to play a round but decided that $575 (per person) would probably be better spent on wine and other essentials.
We drove through Carmel-by-the-Sea and on down Route 1, through Big Sur and on down the coast. We stopped for a bite at a burger/bbq/gas station which is where this photo was taken. There is no shortage of spectacular views along this route.
We found out that Hearst Castle was closed due to -you guessed it- so we made do with a visit to Hearst Ranch Winery. Actually, we did not ever plan to go to the castle but we did plan to stop here.
The tasting "room"
What a great setting!
These are views up and down the beach from the tasting area.
Debbie bought here fancy wine opener here.
It was a happy place for us on the way to Cambria!
We checked into our hotel - The Moonstone Landing and were pleasantly surprised!
The rooms were spacious, well-appointed, and clean...
and best of all, had great ocean views and a nice view of the famous Sea Chest Restaurant next door!
Our rooms were to the right, about in the middle of the building
We did a little walking along the boardwalk trail which goes on for miles north and south of here.
Lot's of driftwood on the beach
Part of the boardwalk
Where it's at! We were at Moonstone Beach.
Selfie of a happy couple out for a walk!
No green flash tonight on our walk to dinner at the Moonstone Beach Bar and Grill.
Deb and Mike.
Jack and Lorri
Thursday, Cambria
Another beautiful day along the Central Coast!
We explored the quaint little town of Cambria.
It's full of shops, restaurants, antiques, interesting architecture, and at this time of year, Halloween displays.
We had a great Mexican lunch here, sitting in the shade on the back patio
What more does one need but a pitcher of margaritas, chips, salsa, carnitas, etc.?
We could have sat at the bar! Nope. It was too nice outside.
Later we went for a hike here, Fiscalini Ranch Preserve, another portion of the Coast Trail.
We saw a few sea lions or seals or elephant seals but no sea otters.
The trails are a combo of boardwalks like this, where the terrain is a little uneven, and gravel
Great ocean views!
looking north along the coast
Everyone says "you have to go to the Sea Chest! So we did.
It's a popular spot that has its first seating at 5:30. Cash only and they don't take reservations. People line up early to get prime tables or seats at the bar where you can watch the chefs work their magic.
Here we are with our beverages waiting in line with all the happy people.
By 5:30 there were 30 or 40 people in line and this was a Thursday evening in the off season.
Here we are sitting at the coveted bar seats.
And here are the chefs working their magic
And here is more magic, our dinner wines. Interestingly, we visited both these wineries over the next couple days.
Clams casino, baby.
Mussels, clams, shrimp, scallops, pasta, cioppino sauce, oh my!
Lorri taking a photo with my phone
The photo
This one was taken by our new friends whom we met while waiting in line outside
The guys doing all the work
Friday, October 1
The dawn of another beautiful day! Time to leave Cambria and drive all the way to Paso Robles, maybe 30 miles.
But first, a morning walk.
We drove straight to Tin City but I have no photos of San Liege or our lunch at McPhee's, probably because I was recovering from getting a speeding ticket on Route 46 on the way from Cambria. Next stop was Firestone Walker Brewery.
In all our years visiting Paso, this was our first visit to FW. It was the least we could do for Mike, as beer is his favorite beverage.
Our VRBO was very nice and a perfect home base for the weekend
2 BR, 2 Bath, and a nice open floor plan.
It worked out great!
Friday night: The Hatch!
Seared salmon!
Mushroom pasta with an egg!
Getting ready to go with the remains of our dinners
Saturday
Our first tasting was at one of our favorites, Caliza.
It was starting to warm up. The afternoon temps were in the 90s!
Maury was a good host
The ladies
It was a great way to start the day!
We were winding around toward Opolo when we saw the sign for Jack Creek and decided to take a detour. It's another place we had not ever visited.
Jack Creek is a family affair and we were served by the owner's daughter.
I forgot to mention that before leaving town we picked up picnic lunch boxes at the Red Scooter Deli.
We pulled off at Dover Canyon, yet another new place for us, and asked about having our lunch there. It turned out to be the perfect spot!
There was a picnic bench...
...a tree swing
What more could you ask for?
After a brief stop at Opolo we cruised on up to Calcareous, known as much for its views as for its wine.
It has a beautiful hilltop setting
And, like I said, great views!
Sunday, October 3
We started the day at Daou, mainly to see the winery and the views.
We didn't do a tasting here as we already had three tastings scheduled for the day
Every time we come up here it seems like the Daous have added and improved (and raised their prices).
Our first actual tasting was at Halter Ranch
It's another facility that has come a long way. They now offer vineyard tours in this vintage Land Rover imported from Africa, they say. I thought they were made in England!
It's a great setting
Looking down at the covered bridge which you cross to get to the tasting room buildings
Something different, they served tastings for four in little carafes. You pour your own tastes and they come out and tell you about them. Another COVID innovation, I guess.
Second stop: Adelaida
Third stop: Pick-up Party at Tablas Creek
Sunday night we had dinner in town at the Fish Gaucho, sort of a Mexican seafood place. They have other stuff too...
...Like an extensive tequila list. This was my choice.
It was lights out at our VRBO. At some point we decided to spend a night in Solvang instead of driving all the way to San Diego on Monday.
Monday, 10-4, my birthday!
But first, we made a detour to Avila Beach for lunch
It's a nice little beach town
They have a pier and everything a proper little beach town should.
Next stop: Los Alamos and Casa Dumetz
Unfortunately our friend Sonja was out harvesting grapes but we still had a nice visit
We were able to have a glass of wine and...
...Mike got beer from Babi's!
We had a great birthday dinner at Mad & Vin in the Landsby Hotel, just across the street from the luxurious Wine Valley Inn where we stayed.
I think my iPhone camera must have been getting tired. Sorry to not have taken more photos!
Last one. Back in San Diego on Tuesday, we had a birthday celebration for Michelle, a long-time family friend from Baltimore and current San Diego resident.
It was a great week-and-a-half and quite an adventure with Debbie and Mike. It was a worthy stand-in for London and Paris, and a lot easier to get to!