FJ60Cam an' Fam Get High AF

[FJ60Cam]

Our (on foot) route back to the waterfront took us through Little Italy/North Beach and the far end of Lombard Street.

We noticed the curves waaaaaay off in the distance and had to go check it out.

Going down the hill was no biggie, but the walk up was steep and getting steeper. Of course, pictures don’t do it justice, but those streets are MF’n steep.

 

[FJ60Cam]

Just like in the movies, it’s a bunch of tight turns. It’s a 27% grade if it were to go straight up.

There’s even driveways in the turns...

 

[FJ60Cam]

Then on to Fisherman’s Wharf for a stop at Lou’s other joint...

 

[FJ60Cam]

We made a grave miscalculation here. We were taking a ferry back across the bay, and thought it departed from Pier 41. We actually needed to go to the Ferry Building (Pier 1 if it had a number), which was a good two miles away.

We had already walked like ten miles, so this kicked our butts.

We did stop at Pier 39 to check out the sea lions. Holy hell those mofos smelled like $#!+

They are best viewed from upwind.

The Ferry Building itself is more of a market than a ferry terminal, with all kinds of ultra high end fooderies. @spressomon told us we had to go to get some Dandelion chocolate while we were there. After perusing the selections which averaged $200 or more, we decided on a $12 small batch 2016 Costa Rican bar.

Holy hell. You’ve never had chocolate until you’ve had some of this caliber. We tasted every bit of those graham crackers, golden caramel, and dried figs. Wow.

We then took the ferry to Larkspur, which was an easy Uber to Mill Valley. Keeping up with a car would have been a challenge.

 

[spressomon]

Y'all look like you belong...in the West

 

[FJ60Cam]

Y'all look like you belong...in the West

The Operation PermaHigh mission has not been aborted. It is just a really big baby that has to develop.

 

[FJ60Cam]

The next day, we needed to see some nature. Muir Woods is literally like a block away from Tom’s House. You need reservations because it fills up quickly. Luckily we made them for the first available time and there weren’t too many people.

We saw the giant Sequoias last trip, so it was cool to see these big coastal redwoods this time.

 

[FJ60Cam]

Unlike the dry, high altitude Sierra environs that the Sequoia love, the Redwoods thrive in this lush, green, dank, sea level forest.

 

[FJ60Cam]

Muir Woods is not a huge place, so we took the longest trail they had .

 

[FJ60Cam]

 

[FJ60Cam]

Muir Woods doesn’t take much of your time, maybe two hours at most. Our plan for the rest of the day was to head up to the Point Reyes Lighthouse area for a picnic lunch and beach exploration.

 

[FJ60Cam]

We stopped at the tiny town of Inverness which had a small market/deli. Perfect for lunch supplies.

This was not your typical small town country store with canned goods, bread, and light beer. This place made Whole Foods look like a food stamps food pantry.

There was a wine & beer selection that rivaled a full sized grocery store, plus all sorts of high-end snacks.

We ordered some restaurant-grade food from the deli and grabbed some snacks from the shelves.

 

[FJ60Cam]

They offer a wine box for our order, and we get back on the Sir Francis Drake Blvd.

 

[FJ60Cam]

At this point we’ve had to go rock crawling in our rental Camry, and now we would have to test it’s river crossing capabilities. If I can fit a set of true 33’s on one, I may convert

 

[FJ60Cam]

After perfectly bow-waving our way through the water, we next came upon a dune blocking the road. I tried to floor it to jump it, but the ATRAC limited the throttle to prevent wheel spin. Lame.

 

[FJ60Cam]

After making it through the Overlanding gauntlet, we emerge into a cattle ranching paradise.

There are cows out here grazing on the coast in some of the most beautiful weather and terrain imaginable. They probably don’t appreciate it, but I can imagine the diary and meat products they produce are amazing, with the constant brining from the salty air and fog.

(pics stolen from the internet)

 

[FJ60Cam]

A few more miles and we make it to the tip. The lighthouse is closed for repairs, but it’s the perfect place to eat lunch.

Cheers!

 

[wngrog]

Muir Woods doesn’t take much of your time, maybe two hours at most. Our plan for the rest of the day was to head up to the Point Reyes Lighthouse area for a picnic lunch and beach exploration.

View attachment 2015083

We came over from Sonoma across some scenic highway to Bodega and then down to Point Reyes a couple of years ago. Great area to explore

 

[FJ60Cam]

We head back up the road to the beach access, and find the parking lot empty. There’s no one in sight. Unreal.

 

[FJ60Cam]

The surf is deafening. The aftershocks from each wave crashing sound like jet engine.

(use headphones for realistic experience)