<\/a><\/p>\n Last weekend I proposed to Susan and our daughter that we take a day trip to the coast. \u201cYes!\u201d Kelly exclaimed, and they both quickly agreed it was a good idea. So it was that on Tuesday May 5th we headed out at 9am to take a day trip to the California coast.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n As written in my previous post<\/a><\/span> and considering the current \u201cstay at home\u201d orders by the state of California, we wanted to make this trip as responsible as possible. It was important to minimize contact with other people, especially outside our home area. We estimated we would be gone for nine hours. This meant we needed to bring food, water, and a full tank of gas. We thought we had thoroughly planned out our trip and would reduce or eliminate contact points during our travel, but that was not the case \u2013 which I\u2019ll touch on later in the post.<\/p>\n Beautiful and Rugged<\/a> California Coast<\/p>\n Items we brought with us included a cooler with drinks, lunch, and snacks. In case we could take a walk on the beach, we also brought flip flops, hats, sunscreen, and a couple towels. Another consideration was to have a jug of water and hand soap so that we could stay clean, along with hand sanitizer and face masks incase they were needed for some reason. Again, the plan was to not be in close physical proximity with anyone if at all possible.<\/p>\n <\/a>Our Ride for the Day<\/p>\n We talked about what area of the coast to visit. I suggested an area that was a little more remote as we wanted to avoid crowds and congestion. In the end we decided to travel through the Napa and Sonoma wine country areas and then up Hwy 101 to the turn off for the Russian River road. This road meets California Highway 1 at Jenner, a small community on the coast where the Russian river empties into the Pacific Ocean. From there we planned to go north for about an hour and on up to the Timber Cove area. Fort Ross State Park is also in that area and it\u2019s a place I\u2019ve always wanted to visit.<\/p>\n <\/a>Our Trip Route<\/p>\n The weather was sunny and breezy and driving on a Tuesday made the already light traffic even less congested. Our last trip before the shelter in place orders was visiting friends in Petaluma, which is also located in the Napa area. Susan and I spoke about how different the world was now verses our last visit there, just a mere two months ago. Driving by the Russian River was also beautiful. From Interstate 101 you take the River Road two lane highway until it merges with State Route 116. It is a gentle windy road that follows the contours of the Russian River and then proceeds through the assorted small communities that subsist next to the river.<\/p>\n <\/a>Russian River Road into Highway 1<\/p>\n At the end of Highway 116 is the California Coast and Highway 1, the famous two-lane highway road that runs north and south and follows the jagged California coastline. Here sits the small town of Jenner California, a sweet and casual coastal town with beautiful views of both the Russian River and the Pacific Ocean. After driving through Jenner, we turned north up Highway 1 and pulled over to have lunch.<\/p>\n Traveling along \u201cthe 1\u201d there are numerous rest areas and lookouts so that motorist can take a break, or even have access to the beaches and the pacific coast along the highway. Unfortunately, all of the beach and coastal access pullouts were blocked off and closed for our day trip. I understand the arguments for doing this, but I really think it was unnecessary in this remote part of Highway 1. As to be expected, all public park facilities were also closed.<\/p>\n <\/a>Beach Access Closed<\/p>\n It was after lunch that I discovered the one oversight in our day excursion. Susan asked, \u201chey where do you think I can visit a bathroom.\u201d Humm, I hadn\u2019t thought of that one for this trip and what an oversight. With most businesses and state services shut down there was not a lot of choice of facilities to use. We eventually found a gas station with porta potties and took care of our business. Still, I can\u2019t believe I hadn\u2019t thought of or planned around that issue.<\/p>\nTrip Considerations<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Where We Went<\/strong><\/h3>\n