early morning fog

Spent the night in Mt. Tamalpais State Park. The wind blew so hard that dinner over a fire was almost a lost cause, but Adam got it going just enough to warm up some soup before the wind smothered it.

We had planned on heading further up the coast before setting up camp, but I wanted to stroll through Muir Woods Nat'l Monument before we headed north.

Driving from our campsite nestled in the hills of the forest to the Woods, we headed downhill on a winding mountain road. On the left were hills, and on the right was...

Sunshine and trees hidden amongst the fog.

Golden Bridge

After leaving the park, I insisted we drive down to Haight-Ashbury, if only so I could get a better mental image of strung out youth wandering the San Francisco streets in the late 1960's. We drove there, saw the iconic image of the crossstreets in person, saw a couple of head shops, looked for a place to park but quickly decided just to head out. Too many cars on such small streets! A subsequent visit must include more pedaling, or at least bi-pedaling.

Deciding to head north of the city, into the mountainous coast, we stopped to take a few touristy shots of the Golden Gate Bridge. Here are my best efforts.

 

Golden Gate Park/SanFran Botanical Gardens

Big cities unnerve us - it's mostly the cars and freeways. Especially in California. Everyone seems in a hurry to go so fast. Adam and I - where are we trying to rush to? We've got all of the time in the world. Everyone has all of the time in the world. Back in Minneapolis I seem to always speed down 94 on my way to and from work, frustrated by sunday drivers. But out here this fast pace is unnerving when you are an outsider - a traveler with no particular place to go.

Neither of us have been to SanFran, and Adam wished to avoid the city, but I, for whatever reason, insisted that we go. He obliged on the condition that I drove through the city.

Immediately aware that the mass amount of cars and hustle n' bustle was not what he wanted, we decided our stay would be short. On advice from my sister we went to Golden Gate Park and the San Francisco Botanical Gardens.

I could have walked through the park for hours in the cool ocean air, gazing at flowers and people as they passed us by, taking little notice of the fantastic greenery.

Walking past the conservatory, we discovered that admission was free today. Inside they had numerous beautiful blooming orchids.

up the pacific coast highway

Heading north to San Francisco, we made a brief stop for cherries and ocean dwelling.