I
ian408
Guest
A friend up from LA for the MotoGP stopped in to look at a used K bike at
Cal BMW. Saturday, he flew up to pick the bike up. A great looking 1998
K1200RS with only 16K miles on it.
Saturday morning, I met Jerry at San Jose International. His flight was right
on time. A quick drive up the 101 and I dropped him at Cal BMW in Mountain
View then ran home and grabbed the RT. By 10:30, we'd met up with Roy
and were on our way North.
Our route took us through San Francisco, across the Golden Gate and into
Petaluma.
Here we are the GGB Vista Point.
Valley Ford Road takes us all the way to Bodega Bay where we stop for a bite
at The Tides. Nice place. Has a bar, full sit down restaurant and a "snack"
bar where we grabbed Calamari, prawns and other goodies.
Satiated, we head North, up the rugged California Coast stopping at the Stewart's
Point General Store. If you're in the neighborhood, this place probably hasn't
change too much since 1868.
The store is also at the junction of Stewarts Point/Skaggs Springs Road which
will take you all the way back to Geyesville/128 via a twisty little road.
As we rode North, we passed the little towns of Albion, Little River and Finally
Mendocino. We stopped for some culture at a film festival. Here we met Mike, a
K bike owner. Mike lives in the Sacramento area and like us, was on the
coast to beat the heat.
Jerry, Mike and Roy take in the film festival party goers.
Pretty soon, a young lady in period costume asked us if we'd like to go to a
hat party. Fairly insistent and somewhat intoxicated, she said they'd be changing
clothes on a regular basis and that free wine was available. Now I can say this
but I cannot show you, the costume was rather revealing to say the least.
As it was getting late, we decided to run up to Ft. Bragg, grab a room and have
some dinner. Seems a few others were of the same mind and it took a while and
some negotiating to get a room (thanks Mike!). And in the words of the hotelier, "we
have only 5 months of tourist season" when trying to explain why the room was so
expensive
Next on the menu, dinner. The Cliff House offered the nicest view of Noyo Harbor and
the setting sun. So it was there we went. Food was good but the company was great.
Returning to the Ebb Tide, we sat on the lawn, enjoyed cigars and solved most of the
worlds problems--we'll get back to you on that last bit.
Next morning, the four of us headed up to Eggheads Restaurant for breakfast. If you
are ever in Ft. Bragg, stop here. It is well worth it. Trust us.
Couple of things. Back off on the coffee. It's from a local roaster called "Thanksgiving"
and it's like having a double shot of espresso. It was good. Very good. Best damn
hash house coffee ever. Next, Dorothy's Revenge was eggscellent. It's Eggs Benedict
with crab dish (fresh local don't you know). The pumpkin waffle with almonds is a thing
of absolute beauty. Just the thing to start the ride home.
Ft. Bragg is a lumber town where the lumber and timber industry jobs are fast disappearing.
This was a mill active up until just a few years ago. Now, it's mostly home to Canada Geese.
Timber has left the area with a rich heritage. The town has a number of beautiful old victorian
homes.
Here's a parting shot of the coast before we headed back into the heat.
Highway 128 leads you West to East along the Navarro River and eventually, into Navarro.
Here, we've stopped for a quick look at the redwoods the line 128.
A quick stop at this little grocery is a reminder that things are a bit slower in some parts.
128 eventually leads into the towns of Boonville (think Boont Ale and Anderson Valley
Brewing), Alderglen Springs and finally Cloverdale. This is the heart of Anderson Valley.
Known for apples as well as grapes and the small wineries that dot the road.
At the junction of 101/128, we said good bye to Mike and headed back down 101 and
eventually, home.
Just off of highway 280 is Crystal Springs Resevoir. It made a nice stop before the final few miles home.
Hope you enjoyed the journey as much as I did in telling it.
Ian
Cal BMW. Saturday, he flew up to pick the bike up. A great looking 1998
K1200RS with only 16K miles on it.
Saturday morning, I met Jerry at San Jose International. His flight was right
on time. A quick drive up the 101 and I dropped him at Cal BMW in Mountain
View then ran home and grabbed the RT. By 10:30, we'd met up with Roy
and were on our way North.
Our route took us through San Francisco, across the Golden Gate and into
Petaluma.
Here we are the GGB Vista Point.
Valley Ford Road takes us all the way to Bodega Bay where we stop for a bite
at The Tides. Nice place. Has a bar, full sit down restaurant and a "snack"
bar where we grabbed Calamari, prawns and other goodies.
Satiated, we head North, up the rugged California Coast stopping at the Stewart's
Point General Store. If you're in the neighborhood, this place probably hasn't
change too much since 1868.
The store is also at the junction of Stewarts Point/Skaggs Springs Road which
will take you all the way back to Geyesville/128 via a twisty little road.
As we rode North, we passed the little towns of Albion, Little River and Finally
Mendocino. We stopped for some culture at a film festival. Here we met Mike, a
K bike owner. Mike lives in the Sacramento area and like us, was on the
coast to beat the heat.
Jerry, Mike and Roy take in the film festival party goers.
Pretty soon, a young lady in period costume asked us if we'd like to go to a
hat party. Fairly insistent and somewhat intoxicated, she said they'd be changing
clothes on a regular basis and that free wine was available. Now I can say this
but I cannot show you, the costume was rather revealing to say the least.
As it was getting late, we decided to run up to Ft. Bragg, grab a room and have
some dinner. Seems a few others were of the same mind and it took a while and
some negotiating to get a room (thanks Mike!). And in the words of the hotelier, "we
have only 5 months of tourist season" when trying to explain why the room was so
expensive
Next on the menu, dinner. The Cliff House offered the nicest view of Noyo Harbor and
the setting sun. So it was there we went. Food was good but the company was great.
Returning to the Ebb Tide, we sat on the lawn, enjoyed cigars and solved most of the
worlds problems--we'll get back to you on that last bit.
Next morning, the four of us headed up to Eggheads Restaurant for breakfast. If you
are ever in Ft. Bragg, stop here. It is well worth it. Trust us.
Couple of things. Back off on the coffee. It's from a local roaster called "Thanksgiving"
and it's like having a double shot of espresso. It was good. Very good. Best damn
hash house coffee ever. Next, Dorothy's Revenge was eggscellent. It's Eggs Benedict
with crab dish (fresh local don't you know). The pumpkin waffle with almonds is a thing
of absolute beauty. Just the thing to start the ride home.
Ft. Bragg is a lumber town where the lumber and timber industry jobs are fast disappearing.
This was a mill active up until just a few years ago. Now, it's mostly home to Canada Geese.
Timber has left the area with a rich heritage. The town has a number of beautiful old victorian
homes.
Here's a parting shot of the coast before we headed back into the heat.
Highway 128 leads you West to East along the Navarro River and eventually, into Navarro.
Here, we've stopped for a quick look at the redwoods the line 128.
A quick stop at this little grocery is a reminder that things are a bit slower in some parts.
128 eventually leads into the towns of Boonville (think Boont Ale and Anderson Valley
Brewing), Alderglen Springs and finally Cloverdale. This is the heart of Anderson Valley.
Known for apples as well as grapes and the small wineries that dot the road.
At the junction of 101/128, we said good bye to Mike and headed back down 101 and
eventually, home.
Just off of highway 280 is Crystal Springs Resevoir. It made a nice stop before the final few miles home.
Hope you enjoyed the journey as much as I did in telling it.
Ian
