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California: From Monterey to Ojai
Roadconnections
When we go to a special location for a round-trip excursion or for a shamrock, the question always arises about the way we should choose to get there. Most of the time we use interstates or major highways. Oh, God, is this ever boring! But during our last trip to the Monterey Peninsula, a solution occurred to me and that concept created a new department we're calling Roadconnections.
I'm fooling around with Christa in our hotel room in Monterey. "Should we take I-5 for the tenth time or Hwy 1 for the fifth?" I ask. "Or should we add another day and stay in Ojai? This road connection on the map looks pretty interesting," I say, as if I need to convince her.
"Don't talk to me like a politician. You know I'm always ready for an exiting ride someplace new," she replies.
Highway One
The next morning is foggy. Not the right way to experience "someplace new" if you want to see it. But only a few miles later, around the Carmel Highlands, the weather gods relent. The fog rises and patches of blue sky begin to predominate. We know this first part of Hwy 1 very well and with little traffic to trouble us we open the throttles to sweep the wide curves and narrow corners. In Big Sur we stop for a coffee at the Nepenthe Restaurant to optimize our caffeine levels. It's a short stop, of course, because we want to take advantage of the low commute in the early hours. I've never seen this road as empty.
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