Today was sunny and warm. The temperatures started in the high 50’s and peaked in the low 80’s inland. Winds were light. This Seattle resident gets an early summer again!!
Day’s distance: 213 miles
Total trip distance: 1,105 miles
It is common at the motels I use on these trips to offer a free continental breakfast, served in the lobby or a room adjacent to the lobby. I usually grab a small bowl of the sugary cereal, a piece of fruit, yogurt if available, and lots of coffee. Oh, if I’m being completely honest, a miniature bear claw, too.
The Travelodge didn’t have yogurt :(. All other critical breakfast items were present!
Breakfast consumed, I packed up and headed south at about 9am.
I left the Pacific Coast Highway a few miles south of Mendocino and turned inland on Hwy 128. I traveled this road from Cloverdale to the coast during last year’s Western States Tour. I thought it was a nearly perfect motorcycle road with smooth pavement, great twisties, and beautiful scenery. This year I rode it eastward.
I stopped in Boonville for a latte and got a little artistic with the camera while drinking it.
Here are some of the other photos taken between the coast and Cloverdale.
[In the interest of full disclosure, there was maintenance being performed on specific part of the road this year. Flaggers were out, as was some big equipment.]
Hwy 128 east of Hwy 101 wasn’t as interesting. It travels southeast from Geyserville, through the vineyards of Napa Valley. Unless you are visiting wineries, there are better motorcycle roads out there. The same goes for Chalk Hill road, which while twisty, is not well maintained. Watch for trucks and tractors on both of these wine country roads. Hwy 12 from Santa Rosa to Sonoma and Hwy 116 from Sonoma to Petaluma are fairly congested and not worthy, either.
Hwy 116 from Petaluma westward had definite merits, including a smooth surface, tight curves and sweepers. The speed is limited in most parts to 45 and was patrolled by the police. Watch for them and bicyclists.
While Hwy 116 goes into Point Reyes Station, today I took the Platform Bridge Road and then part of the Sir Francis Drake Blvd back to Hwy 1. This was a result of my programming the GPS with a slightly different route without intending to do so. Both, however, were smooth and scenic.
I continued south on Hwy 1 as I did last year, over the Golden Gate Bridge, and into San Francisco.
After unpacking, my friend Craig and I went to a regular Thursday food event in Golden Gate Park. Approximately ten food trucks gather in the east end of Golden Gate Park. The trucks, along with live music, draw a nice crowd of folks from the nearby neighborhoods.
A double scoop of ice cream from The Ice Cream Bar (Cole St) followed by some wine and conversation finished the evening. A great day, indeed.
Steel Horse Journeys 