Central California Coast

I had the opportunity (again) to drive Highway One from Morro Bay to Monterey. This on my way back home from one of many jaunts I take every year to the Pismo Beach area of the Central California Coast. In most times past, I would usually wimp out and decide to simply "highball" it back on the usual route...101 to 46 to 41 to 5 to Modesto where we currently live. I say currently because I still believe our Modesto (Salida) existence is temporary.

We had just returned from our little one-night-stand in Monterey the previous weekend...I had planned to make the Pismo drive the following weekend to visit my son, my mom, and my sisters... of course, to visit the Central Coast...where I resided for almost 25 years until ten years ago. The Highway One drive adds about fifty miles and three hours to the journey back...hence my wimping out and opting for the quicker way back to the couch! But this time I made that left turn off Highway 101 at San Luis Obispo, transistioned to Highway One, and headed toward Morro Bay, Cayucos, Cambria, Big Sur, Carmel, and Monterey. Before leaving though, I managed to snap a few hundred shots of Pismo Beach, Shell Beach, Oceano Beach, and Montana de Oro Beach. Afterall, the Central Coast does have beaches! That's what this whole thing is about.

It was 9:00 am when I left Pismo, only two hours later than I had planned! This in itself was a good enough excuse to exclude the long Highway One plan home. I figured it would take me about seven hours versus the usual four and a half...I'd still arrive back on my couch around 4:00 or 5:00, just in time for the evening news. So, with camera stuff in tow, a small cooler with a few Diet Pepsis, a couple apples, and some yogurt...I left my old stomping ground for points north.
The weather was perfect (sans fog)...I had a full tank of gas, a whole day to drive home in a leisurely fashion, and I was by myself. Loretta had to work and couldn't come on this trip. I was bound and determined to get some nice photos of the one of the most beautful places in California...Highway One. Even though I had made this drive on many occasions over the years, it was still somewhat of an enigma to me. Yes, this drive takes you past some beautiful vistas of the ocean. But it is also, at times, quite scary...especially when driving solo! The elevation of the highway goes from zero to over a thousand feet above sea level and back again several times. Those thousand foot drops just inches from the roadbed evoke a lot of anxiety from someone who has...well, vertigo!Keeping in mind that the inside track (the northerly drive) on Highway One is less imposing, it's still a bit freaky at times...especially driving by yourself. You ain't gonna be able to sightsee from behind the wheel! The road goes from long, sixty mile per hour straightaways to twenty mile per hour switchbacks in no time at all...and some of those windy sections are literally in the clouds.

Scary sections notwithstanding, I found myself well past Morro Bay in a short amount of time...I had committed making the drive. Besides, the Highway 46 turnoff back to Paso Robles and Highway 101 I had long since past by...there was no escaping now! I pushed on past Cambria and San Simeon.

Now, there are many places to turn off the road...vista points. Some of these are convenient, most are set up with a left hand turn lane and plenty of vision up and down the highway. I managed to hit most of them I think...including some improvised turnouts where at least I was fairly confident that I wouldn't get smacked by some over zealous tourist from Austria in a rented Cobalt. After a half dozen or so photo stops, I realized that one day does not a Highway One photo safari make. At this rate, I might get home by Tuesday night (it was Monday morning at the time). But, it's hard not to stop at every opportunity considering the scenery at hand...it is simply incredible. I knew I must pick and choose how many times I got waylaid. Plus, I had relagated myself to the fact that I was only going to be getting typical touristy shots, since I didn't have the time or the knowledge of off-the-beaten-path locales. The slow pace coupled with the perpetual road construction on Highway One...it's not the quick way home.

Being summer, even on a weekday, this area is ripe with travelers. They are everywhere on the Central Coast. People drive and fly from all over the U.S. and the world to come here. All in all, it really wasn't too bad. Traffic was relatively light, despite the ocassional Flagman Ahead obstruction. I only had to stop and wait once, and just for a minute or so...enough time to snap the photo above while waiting in line.

Since one day is not enough time, I will return shortly...probably in a few weeks...and do it again with Loretta in tow. We'll most likely zip over to Morro Bay, visit my son, and spend the night there...leaving early the next morning for the drive north on Highway One. We also plan to spend the night in Monterey, so we'll have a more leisurely time of it on the way.And, one blog's worth of writing and photos doesn't do this justice. There are more photos on my flickr site, and I will be adding more from time to time. I took upwards of 500 shots on this Pismo/Morro Bay/Highway One trip. I could have easily shot 1000 or more...just not enough time.

That's what it all comes down to...enough time. So...I make time now...doing the things that I enjoy most and, hopefully, do best.