Eureka to San Francisco was a long haul but so worth it. We took Highway 1 that twists, bends, and curves all the way down the California coast. On a detour we drove many miles on the Avenue of the Giants, a road through some of the most gigantic redwoods we had ever seen. As we pulled onto Highway 1 we picked up a hitchhiker named Cory. He was from northern California and was making his way to Mendocino. He had driven the highway probably hundreds of times in his 58 years. Cory was an excellent guide down the coast, giving us some history of the redwood logging of the old days and pointing out sights along the way.
We drove Cory for a couple of hours along some of the most beautiful coastal views. The positives of Highway 1 are the spectacular vistas and beautiful sunsets. The negatives are a lack of public restrooms and gas stations. It hadn’t helped we drank highly caffeinated beverages all the way down the coast. Gas stations were few and far between and the one we finally found turned its closed sign on the second we put the car in park.
Our timing wasn’t the best and we made it to Muir Woods at 8:14. It closed at 8:00. We continued toward San Francisco to meet up with some great friends Nate met traveling in El Salvador a couple years ago. At a beach hostel in El Tunco, El Salvador, he met a group of four Californians and ended up traveling with them for nearly a month on a backpacking trip. Over the last two years, all of them found themselves living and working in San Francisco, so staying with Kian and Spencer was almost like a Central American reunion. Later, we met up with Dana, Spencer’s girlfriend, and Kian’s sister, Chloe, all of whom made up the most fun travel group years ago. What a trip it is to be able to pick up with old friends exactly where you left off.
We spent the evening chatting about Project Wildness and ideas we had for Saturday. Spencer also pulled out some old photos and videos from our Central American travel days that brought us all back to the old days. Stay tuned for some of the amazing stories we came across in San Francisco!
Good people make good friends. And good friends last.#ProjectWildness
