I found myself with 3 months off from work while the pandemic was still happening but vaccinations were becoming more common. I used this to my advantage to cross off one of my items on the bucket list. Motorcycle up and down Pacific Coast Highway 1 from Santa Cruz to San Diego, where my parents live. The last few times I looked at doing such trip there had been big storms that rolled through and washed out parts of the highway, closing it for months. Similar had happened at the beginning of the year but they managed to repair the broken section ahead of schedule! This was my chance.
Warning, this is my first trip that I write with a fresh memory just days after coming home. It will be a longer read than previous trips.
I was most excited about motorcycling through Big Sur. Starting just south of Carmel by the Sea the mountains go straight from their peaks down to the Pacific Ocean, leaving little room for everything else. It goes like that all the way, basically nonstop, until San Simeon where the Hearst Castle is. That didn’t stop trees from growing and people deciding to build a road through there. Near the “castle” also exists a beach where native Elephant seals like to hang out at. When I stopped they were almost all sunbathing and occasionally tossed sand in the air to cool themselves. And yes, it smelled about as bad as you are imagining. I tried to stay upwind as much as possible.
The trip between The SF-Bay where I live to San Diego via the PCH1 is a bit long to do in a single day, especially on a motorcycle and with me wanting to take in the view every now and then. On my trip down I stopped in Santa Maria. nice town but nothing special so no photos. However on my way back up I stopped in Morro Bay for the night. I got there at 4ish and had time to kill before dinner and then pass out for the night. I walked around the harbor for a good hour or two, looking for placed to eat and distracted by the views. There were sea otters! They were so cute! I also saw a seagull kill and eat a pigeon so circle of life, I guess?
I wanted to stay out in the harbor and watch the sunset, but the chilly wind made it a bit too cold for me to stay out. I did notice if I got to the right place in the harbor I could technically get a sunset by using the big mound at the entrance of the bay. Satisfied, I walked back to my hotel, which was up a small incline, so I technically got to see the sunset twice. Thankfully the second time I was better protected from the elements inside my hotel room.
Made it this far and like Motorcycles? Cool! Me too! Here’s some pictures of my noble steed, a 2017 FZ07. The blue bike is my Father’s Tracer 900 GT. We went on a father-son trip, going to Palomar Mountain, Borrego Springs, and Mount Laguna all in one trip.
All in all I rode a bit more than 1200 mile this trip.
The gas price was at Gorda Springs, which is basically as far away as you can get on the PCH1. The other super old gas station was out on the 33, near New Cayuma. Both are still out in the middle of nowhere. All those cops were having lunch at Neptune’s Net, same as me! We actually ended up sitting at outside tables near each other. We did not interact. As for the weird tire pictures, I have a philosophy when it comes to thieves stealing motorcycles. I may not be able to make my bike theftproof while on road trips but I sure can make it annoying as hell for any potential thieves. None of these images are for sale but if for some reason you really want one contact me and I can send it to you.
