adventures from last year

Ahoy,

I think I should update this adventure log before I forget what things we did. Pictures will have to come later because this sd card reader is faulty right now.

The holiday season started off with a jump back in December. The RRS had some gift cards that was gifted to us for a stay at a b&b in Carmel. I took this opportunity to expand the trip with a stops in Morro Bay and Big Sur. We took the iconic highway 1 up the coast in his little sportscar. He loved it. We departed on a Friday afternoon and made it to Morro Bay in time for dinner at our favorite place for oysters. The hotel was run by an Indian family - likely the only "ethnic" people for a while - and the lobby smelled delightfully of Indian spices. We had parked outside this exact hotel on other day trips to this tiny town.

In the morning, we picked up a baguette and coffee before hitting the road up the PCH to Big Sur. That baguette was so good. We should have gotten 2. The day before and day after would be overcast and rainy, but it happened to be bright and clear the day of our trip. We got to ride with the top down and it was before the holiday season and winter, so there wasn't a lot of traffic to get stuck behind. He had a great time zooming along the winding roads and every corner another reveal of dramatic cliffs into a vast ocean. Lunch was a picnic with a sweeping view over the ocean from the hike to McWay Falls. One of those moments where you can't believe the beauty of nature, and the fact that you are enjoying it. What an honor to be alive, to have a heartbeat and 2 working legs. We made in to our campsite with pretty good time - enough to set up our tiny home for the evening and to go on a hike to a waterfall. A fire happened pretty easily despite everything being quite wet. It was a nice night to be among the trees.

We awoke early to a light misting. Yesterday's weather was long gone. Our trip up to Carmel continued to whisper weather at us. There's a dusting of magic to witness the wilderness in natural elements. I feel in many ways honored to feel the dampness of bark and drops of water on my bones as we swept through the once "vast, unexplored, and impenetrable" coast. By the time we got to Monterey, it was raining pitchforks. We went hog wild at a bakery and sought refuge at the aquarium. His boss also gave us passes so we spent our time seeking out the exhibits we liked because we had both been there before.

We checked in to the b&b that afternoon. It had a fireplace and was so cozy. A's boss joked with him that taking me to a b&b would ruin my taste for camping, because it was what happened with him and his wife. But I jested that that would more likely happen with A's taste because he has never cared for the cold or wet. We wandered around Carmel before tucking into some French food. French is always our go-to for when we feel fancy, which is him more often than me. We all know that he's the fancy one.

We took the 101 back down to LA the next day in one straight shot. It was delightful. To go camping in December! For all the flack I give this place... to be able to go camping in December!

greatly humbled,
jt