We left Sacramento in May to spend a couple of weeks in Palo Alto watching a house and a little cat. We had signed up for TrustedHousesitters in 2019 and did two sits in Oregon just before Covid-19 struck, but this was our first sit since then. TrustedHousitters matches nomads like us with people who need someone to watch their homes and pets while they are away. We were in one of the most beautiful sections of Palo Alto and we enjoyed walks through the neighborhood and on the nearby Stanford University campus. Click on the first photo in each block to view larger images in a slideshow.
We left Palo Alto to drive south down the coast. We stopped for lunch at the old pier in Santa Cruz, then toured the UC Santa Cruz Arboretum.
We spent a couple of nights in Monterey and took the opportunity to visit Pinnacles National Park, in the hills south of Salinas. The park preserves a scene of ancient volcanic uplifting along the San Andreas Fault. We had passed the Pinnacles turnoff on Highway 101 many times but we had never visited the park. It was an interesting and worthwhile outing.
We continued southward on Highway 1, which provided many scenic views of the rugged Pacific coast. We drove through Big Sur south to Cambria.
We then spent a couple of weeks near Paso Robles, house sitting and cat sitting for our friends Sue and Leo while they went on vacation. Their house is quite remote, about a 45 minute drive west of Paso Robles, so we enjoyed the peace and quiet. Leo is a winemaker with a beautiful vineyard just downhill from the house.
We kept on going southward to spend a few days with our friend Betsy in Ojai. We continued our cat odyssey with Betsy’s two friendly cats. We were also able to visit family in Camarillo while we were in the area.
We returned to Sacramento to spend a couple of months before heading to southern Oregon in August. We are at a house that we stayed in last summer near the Carmichael neighborhood. It is very spacious and has a backyard pool that is perfect on the hot Sacramento summer days. We are not far from Oakland so we have been able to visit Andy and Heather several times.
Hi Charlie and Carrie!,
Just checking in and glad to see you two are on the road again and thanks for sharing your journey!
Dennis and I have been on the road as well, mini van glamping for six weeks April 16-May 25, 2021. [Making this three months out of the last fifteen months] This time weaving our way through California’s coast and desert!
Visited friends in Santa Barbara and Laguna Woods, in April, camped in Carpenteria and near Ojai, and then again upon our return from the desert in May. We then respited from camping at the wonderful Cambria Pines Resort for five days, [unusually great mid week rate] and, weather being inviting, journeyed on to I395. Weather was perfect for a day trip through
Death Valley and camped in beautiful Lone Pine at base of Mt Whitney. Re-visited historic, Manzanar.
Headed home by continuing along I395, visiting Keoghs and Grover Hot Springs, and then along Hwy 50 finally landing in Davis to visit son! Happy Trails! Have been away from Zydeco dancing for quite a bit now due to Covid… Hope you continue to enjoy, best wishes.