I knew something was going to go terribly wrong that day.....Thunderstorms
in Iowa, terrible floods, turbulence - - it all looked like a surreal, horrible
dream........Then I woke up.
Sunday morning I was packing my bag when I heard a tremendous clap of thunder close
outside the house. So loud that it jolted me off the floor (no small feat since it
takes a lot of force to lift a 230+ lb fat man off the floor). The result of that
lightning strike would 'haunt' me for the next 4 - 5 days when we realized that
two of our computers, an expensive embroidery machine and several other electronic
goodies were fried in the blast - - and I was 1800 miles away from being able to
repair any of it.
At the airport, it was a tearful send-off - my whole family was there. Giving
everyone hugs and kisses has it's price.....I was late for boarding and the Airport
Security decided that I must look like a hijacker - so I was COMPLETELY searched.
Bags and all. I think I left my undershirt back at the airport......
The flight out was REAL turbulent from Cedar Rapids to Minneapolis. Lighting hit
the tarmac as we landed and they delayed our departure for a half hour to San Jose.
Nothing like sitting on a plane without air-conditioning. Once in the air, we were
treated to a roller-coaster ride from Minneapolis to just outside of the California
border. But once we crossed into southern California - crisp, dry smooth air. It was
a nice ride for about the last 45 minutes of my flight.
On the ground in San Jose was a real trip back in time. The last time I was in San Jose,
I left through the same airport. Flash-forward 12 years.....Now I'm back and it's all
different. Why are there no 1989 Grand Prix's in the lot to drive!.....
Drove to my hotel and found that I managed to check myself into a 'Rat Hole'. How nice.
Once nice touch, however, was that all the furnishings were from 1989. Even the stains on
the carpet in my room were about that old. I would have taken pictures of my digs ('digs'
being the key word here) but the cockroaches wrestled me to the ground and took off with my
PalmPix camera. I finally found it that next morning, minus the lens. I went to bed and
slept with one eye open.....
MAN! What is that bright thing in the sky!? I haven't seen that in (what would seem) years.
When I left Iowa there wasn't one of those in the sky! Funny how those landing lights shine right
into my room when the planes are on approach.
WELCOME TO CALIFORNIA, where the women are fast and the cars are good looking. The weather here
must do something to people here. They're all tan! My first real day in California and the weather
is just like I remembered it....Sunny and 70's. The morning forecast I heard was: "....Today,
sunny and upper 70's. Tonight, clear, lower 70's. Tomorrow sunny and 70's. Tomorrow night,
lower 70's and clear....."
Arrived at work and met everyone there. Pretty interesting day, but spent most of it just getting
connected to the world. Using a modem to get my e-mail was a REAL experience. Everyone was trying
to figure out where that "..weird modem noise.." was coming from. Everyone here is real nice to me,
too. They gave me an office (cube), phone and access to call out all on the same day - what else could
a guy ask for (other than deli sandwiches and beer).
Took off from work after a 9-hour day (they work 9-hour days so they can have every-other Friday off).
What a great place this Rockwell-Collins is! Once I was on the freeway, I took these pictures:
This is the parking lot at Kaiser Aerospace (My car is the silver Dodge, Stratus on the end)
Typical California 6:00 PM commute traffic between Sunnyvale and Mountain View
Looking to the East Foothills (Mount Diablo) on the 237 Freeway in Mountain View
Here are the mountains to the west that separate the 'Valley' and the Pacific Ocean
A better view of the mountains on the west side of the 'Valley' - they're more plush due to the fog
Typical California traffic jams on the southbound 85 Freeway in south San Jose
Typical California gas prices: runs anywhere from $1.60 to $1.90 in some spots - Especially Mt. View
This was the day I got my box of stuff that was shipped from Cedar Rapids. All the papers
and office things I sent made it there in GREAT SHAPE (I have to thank Jennifer for that)!
However, when Jennifer was away getting the address for the box typed up, my fearless officemates
commandeered the box and stuffed it with the following contents:
A rotten creme Danish
A used styrofoam coffee cup
Candy wrappers
Several of MY Diet Mt. Dew bottles (that cannot be redeemed in California)
Several empty pretzel bags
Unidentified food wrappers
Ketchup bags, used
Used Kleenex
The Kleenex box where the Kleenex came from
Slimy bubble wrap
Soda straws
HA! It padded the contents so well that nothing was broken getting here!
HA!!! You Weasels!! Your evil plan backfired!!! I DIDN'T eat the rotten Danish!!
Continued to see more new faces, learn some new things and continue to do more 'New Guy'
things around the compound.....like setting off the alarm system. I successfully 'tested'
the alarm system for two days in a row when I left work. The alarm system at Kaiser is not
forgiving....I'm fortunate that everyone was nice about it, even though it sent several people
scrambling for the door looking for the perpetrator......
This was also a very sad day, too. My final night with the cockroaches. And I had just started
to learn all their names.....
Today was a RED LETTER DAY! This was the day that I was given a nameplate....MY OWN NAMEPLATE!
Now, I was SOMEBODY. OFFICE 725! MARTY WITTROCK! NO MORE 'NEW GUY'. I actually have a NAME!!
But I still continued to do 'New Guy' things....like getting lost in the building and finding
longer and longer paths to my office. But, I'm not setting the alarm off anymore!!
This was also the day that I moved from the 'Rat Hole' to my new 'Home'. Here's a picture of it:
Pretty nice digs, aye? I REALLY LIKE IT. And it's about $50.00 cheaper than the 'Rat Hole'!
This place has a stove, oven, dishwasher, refrigerator, microwave oven, cabinets full of dishes, a
living room, a nice suite-like layout, a computer desk, big closet and a nice bath. About the only
thing it doesn't have is cold beer running from the tap - but I fixed that. That works now.
Friday. It's a slow day here at Kaiser since it's their day off - - and I was working. But it was a
good day for me to 'wrap-up' a few loose ends for the projects I had in Cedar Rapids and do a little
light reading on the new project. I was loose at 12:00 PM and decided to go back to the hotel and
setup the website you see today. Took me about 6 - 8 hours to get it functional and (kind-of) filled
out.
Today was my 'Geek Saturday'. I spent the entire day 'Geeking' around the Silicon Valley, looking
for computer parts, looking at all the cool 'Geek' electronic goodies and generally touring the
'Valley'. Here are a few of the prominent buildings that I happened to pass by on my way around the
Valley:
This is Fry's - The Valley's (better) answer to Best Buy. A Geek's Paradise!
This is the home of AMD - Intel's rival in the Microprocessor marketplace, in Santa Clara
This is the home of Netscape and AOL in Mountain View, California
(not far from where I used to work at GTE Gov't Systems, on Whisman Drive)
My overall impression of the quality of the shops in town was fair - not as good as the old days.
But then, in the good old days the Commodore 64 was the 'state-of-the-art' for computers, too.
Sunday....and you know what that means.....IT'S BEACH DAY!!!!
I traveled from San Jose to Half Moon Bay by way of Interstate 280 going north, past Stanford and
the Ritzy areas of the San Francisco Bay Area (Menlo Park, Palo Alto, Atherton, etc). Once I arrived
at Half Moon Bay, I took the Coast Highway (HWY 1) north for about 1 mile and turned off at Venice
Beach. There, I took these pictures:
At the top of the hill above the beach
On the beach
In the surf on the beach
I spent nearly 2 hours there and then decided to drive south on the Coast Highway to Santa Cruz
about 45 miles away. On the way, I took these stunning pictures of the Pescadero Beach:
Rugged rocks off of Pescadero Beach
More pictures of the surf at Pescadero Beach
The Pacific Ocean, looking straight out from Pescadero
I managed to burn my shins while I was sitting there in the sun. The breeze was cold (probably
about 65 degrees) and with a wind of about 30 - 40mph. A REAL stiff breeze!! The surf was COLD!
I'd bet the ocean water temperature was about (and I'm not kidding) 50 degrees!! COLD!!!
But it felt great to cool off from the heat of the interior valley (San Jose, where it was in the
upper 80's to low 90's.
It was REALLY a nice day to sit on the beach. Next time, I'll remember to put sun screen on my
shins!!
Monday....I've been here officially a week now and I've gotten to know everyone well enough that
I can actually find their desks and speak with them on testing issues. Finding my way around the
building without asking directions has become a BIG PLUS for me - what GUY ever asks for directions
to go anywhere!?? This would be the day that I finally DIDN'T test the alarm system when I left
for the evening.
Tuesday....It's my first opportunity to meet with the customer - about 9 fellows of various disiplines
from Lockheed-Martin. Meetings were held the entire day and ran well into the evening, discussing
System Requirements. I didn't actively participate - took a bunch of notes on my Palm Pilot, though.
I think I have a book's worth of notes on there - - this system is COMPLEX, but REALLY COOL!! Talk
about designs that are on the 'bleeding-edge' of technology.....!
Wednesday....Requirements meetings continue with the customer. Another 'book' worth of notes is
crammed into my Palm Pilot. We managed to complete the review earlier than what was scheduled.
That gave me time to collect my notes (and my thoughts) since the testing issues would become
even more involved than originally thought. Looks like this could be a 'jam-packed' three month
assignment!!
Thursday....A few more requirements meetings were held 'off-line' today - - one of them I attended I
actually understood what was being discussed. I have all the terms down solid and understand
the design better than a couple of days ago. This would be the day that I got down to the business
of looking for test hardware solutions - - NOW I'M IN MY ZONE! This would also be the day that
Clay Jones was in town to speak to everyone at Kaiser about how we're doing as a company.
He gave a real nice speech and was a very charismatic speaker. Later that day, I heard Clay in the
hallway near my desk, so I took the opportunity to meet 'DA MAN' face-to-face and actually shook
his hand. For the moments that I met him face-to-face, I was speaking Swahili (VERY NERVOUS!).
But Clay understood.....he speaks great Swahili, too!
Friday....The meetings have ended and the custmomers have packed-up and left the facility. The
System Requirements Review (SRR) was a success and left us with a few action items to attend to,
some of it based on testing - but mostly on the design itself. This would be the day that some of
the design elements that I became 'comfy' with would be re-evaluated and possibly cut. Oh well,
that's the dynamics of the design process! This would also be the day that I was told: "....You
really hit the ground running, and you're doing great....". Just hearing that made all 'new-guy'
pitfalls (like the alarm system and all the bread crumbs I was leaving to find my desk) worth
while - - but I'm still learning.
Saturday....FLEA MARKET DAY!! Bright and early on Saturday morning I left the hotel and headed
straight for the San Jose Flea Market. I'd been pestered for a week to check it out and see if
it was still there - - it was. It seemed bigger at first, but I found after walking through it
that it was about the same. More vendors than private parties, too. No more blankets on the
ground with beat-up old toys, tools and kitchen appliances. No more 'Velvet Elvis', no more
ragged clothes to be sold. NO SIR - only the worlds largest collection of Cell Phone booths and
jewelry carts anywhere. Here are a couple of pictures to give you an idea....
The entrance of the San Jose Flea Market on Berryessa Road
A look down the aisle-way of the San Jose Flea Market - clothing is especially popular there.....ALL KINDS!
A look down the aisle-way of the San Jose Flea Market - the Ladies just LOVE it! Shop 'till you drop!
Anyway, I was there for about 4-hours looking around. Didn't think that I'd get sunburned being there
that long....but I did!! YOW! Face arms and hands - nice shade of red!! I also stopped at the
Capitol Flea Market in South San Jose - - MAN! What a crappier Flea Market that was!! Now I know
where all the private-parties take their beat-up stuff to unload! By far worse than any garage sale
I've ever been to!! I didn't take pictures for that very reason!!
Sunday....AND YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS?! BEACH DAY!!!! I started up my day early again (on the road
by 10:00 AM) and decided to roll on out to Highway 17 to start at Santa Cruz. WHAT A MISTAKE THAT WAS!
I came upon a HUGE traffic jam on Highway 17 JUST at the foothills and right before the LAST EXIT.
Knowing the roads is a HUGE benefit for me. So I pulled off at the last exit and cruised North on
Highway 17, onto Highway 85 (North) and then onto Interstate 280 going toward Half Moon Bay. It's
less congested and a little out of the way (to say nothing that I had already been there last week)
but this time I took a detour to get this excellent hill-top view of the ENTIRE Santa Clara Valley:
This is a panoramic picture I 'built' from several shots. It shows the ENTIRE Santa Clara Valley
including Mountain View, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara and a little bit of San Jose
After that panoramic shot, I took the Half Moon Bay exit and then headed for the Skyline Highway.
'Skyline' rides the tops of all the mountains on the west side of the valley and then meanders to
either Los Gatos (back in the valley) or it heads toward the ocean at Pescadero Beach. I took the
route to Pescadero and followed the Coast Highway (Highway 1) until I got to the little town of
Davenport (population: 200). Here is Davenport, California:
This is the HUGE metropolis of Davenport, California
Being from Davenport (Iowa), there's quite a difference. The weather is better here.
I continued down the Coast Highway (HWY 1) and just about to Santa Cruz saw all these dudes
Windsurfing!! Take a look:
They're kind of small in this picture, but there are about 12 Windsurfers out there!
Finally, I got to Santa Cruz and found it to be PACKED with people (hey, it'a a nice day....).
So I cruised past Santa Cruz and decided to head for Monterey instead. It's only 25 more miles
to get there. When I entered Monterey proper, I decided to head up to Pebble Beach - I'd never
been there before. I got to Pebble Beach and found out quickly why we never went there.....
it cost $8.00 to enter the beach!!! I turned the car around and headed to Carmel instead -
it doesn't cost ANYTHING to walk the beach at Carmel! On the way to Carmel, I took this (sort of)
nice picture of the beach at Monterey:
It looked a whole-lot better from where I was standing than the picture shows (it was beautiful!)
Once I got to Carmel-by-the-Sea, I headed for the beach - sandals and all. The beach and surf there
are the most impressive and stunning anywhere in California (even Santa Monica Beach). Here are just
a few of the pictures I took:
THIS is the snow-white sand of Carmel Beach - impressive!
Carmel Beach is 'rimmed' with mountains, too - it's just stunning!
It's hard to see in this picture, but the greens you see are the Pebble Beach Golf Course
Surfers taking the waves at Carmel Beach - RaDiCaL!
Here is a shot of 'Up-Town' Carmel - VERY QUAINT AND CLASSY! The soup is $10.00!
I walked the beach at Carmel for about an hour and then I took off at about 6:30 PM for 'home'.
I would have a 2-hour drive back to San Jose since the traffic leaving the beach resort areas
was a 'mob scene'. The Bayshore Freeway (Highway 101) was packed from Hollister (south of
Watsonville) to just south of Gilroy (a nice 'crawl' of about 25 miles). I got 'home' at
just before 8:30 PM (local time) and just in time to call home and get a 'Happy Fathers Day'
wish from my kids.....life is good.....
Monday....AND YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS?! GOING BACK TO WORK DAY!! YEAAAAA!!! Seriously, it was
pretty much a mondane Monday. Getting back into the groove after being in Carmel the day before
was a pretty good shock to the system. But I kept reviewing the specification from the customer
and getting things lined-up for the equipment cross-reference that would define the test equipment
needed to test the MFDS (Multi-Function Display System). Spent the better part of the day working
that issue and getting a definition for our Acceptance Test Specification that will soon follow.
Tuesday - A carbon copy of Monday but with more focus on getting a better picture of what risks
we may have upon delivery of the LM-Star Test Systems and our proposed development schedule. First
quarter of 2003 could be pretty risky....and advised all of the implications. Kept working test
equipment issues and getting a more solid picture of the ATS (Acceptance Test Spec) layout.
Wednesday - more of the same.....but it's almost done. I have not only the 'view' of our Acceptance
tests and 1st Article Testing, but I have an excellent 'view' of the Environmental Stress Screening
(ESS), too. It's all beginning to fall into place and I'm now getting a clear idea of our impacts
and other schedule related risks even into ESS. This would also be the day that I would be formally
invited to the first planning session for the Test Equipment Group at Kaiser - a pre-planning session
to set the schedule for the entire project. Gee, I must be someone important to be invited to that!
It's set for next week - - God know's I'm ready!
Thursday - Picked up the hardware side of the test system again and found that there were MANY changes to
the design in just one short week! YOW! But I learned that at this stage of the game, you gotta stay
flexible. Locking anything into place is a big mistake - - you end up revising thing so much that it's
all you do......So it's best to wait until the design is solid and quits moving. In our case, the design
is still 'flying' - FAST!
Friday - It's a half-day for me (so I can work my time for next Friday when I go back home). Everyone
in my team has the day off (the normal every-other-Friday-off week). So I kept busy looking over my
block diagrams I built of the test system interface and the 'new' design details, so I'd have something
for next week's Test Planning session. Spent about 4 - 5 hours re-drawing and revising my design to
match the new implmentation. Looks pretty solid (for this week). Left the facility at 12:30 PM and
began my final week of 'Geeking'. Went to several computer stores and bought parts for the machines
at home that exploded in the lightning storm. I was like a dog in a meat market! Tongue hanging out
panting, drooling - - and that was just the USB accessories! More of that when I found the motherboards
and processors. AHWOOOOOOOO!!!! Spent about $200.00 on my AMEX just getting everything. I even found
SEVERAL differnt Linux distributions (Redmond, Mandrake, Suse, Slackware, etc.) sitting on a rack at
a local computer store!! AHWWOOOOOOOO!!! My pocket runneth empty! Maybe next trip......
Saturday....AND YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS?! IT'S TOURIST DAY!! YEAAAAAAAA!!!! Got up at 7:00 AM
and cooked breakfast (scrambled eggs with cheese on toast). Hosed myself off and got prepared to
take the day by the horns. I told Rhonda last week that I had seen a Flea Market in Hollister
(south of San Jose and Gilroy by 35 miles) that had Disneyana (a term for Disney freaks who collect
Disney memorabilia). So I headed to Hollister by way of Highway 101 (the Bayshore Freeway) from
San jose, to Gilroy, to Watsonville and finally to Hollister. When I got there the parking lot was
empty - - there wasn't so much as a Mickey Mouse anywhere. Looking around, I saw a sign that read
"Flea Market Every First Saturday of the Month". So much for that....
So then, I figured I was already on my way to Monterey and Carmel (but I'd already been there). So I
decided to go to Big Sur - I remember it being real pretty there a long time ago.....So I headed down
to Big Sur by way of Monterey/Carmel and onto the Coast Highway (Highway 1). All the way down (from
San Jose to Carmel, the fog had rolled-in the night before and the bay was pretty foggy - even started
spitting rain in Carmel when I whizzed past there on my way down the coast. In some places, the fog was so
thick that I was having a hard time seeing!
Entered the Big Sur area. I want to tell you now, that I'm going to be as descript as I can be, because
what I saw for the next five hours was VISUAL OVERLOAD! I was so stunned by the beauty of this place
that......well, I'll tell you later.....
There are MANY pictures of Big Sur, so I'll start where I started out and roll through them with
more detail:
Entering Big Sir from the North, note the fog...
The coast is a lot more 'craggy' here than the white sand beaches of Carmel
The hills at the foot of the coast, shrouded by the fog from the bay
From the road that I traveled on...
The road was pretty 'socked-in' with fog now - I couldn't see the road...
A little less fog at the lower elevations - getting prettier....
From the road and looking out onto the Pacific - stunningly beautiful....
My car and the road ahead - entering the forest of Big Sur that's right on the coast.
The redwoods where just HUGE and, again, just stunning that they were so TALL!!
This picture of those lone redwoods on the cliff just doesn't do it justice! My jaw dropped
when I saw this in my rear-view mirror and then I got out to take this photo. JUST BEAUTIFUL!!
It's not easy to see this, but in the group of trees on this cliff, there is a BRAND NEW HOUSE
with windows on about every side overlooking the Pacfic. Anyone want to guess the value on
that place??? It's also in the middle of the Big Sur forest on the Coast Highway!
This is where I begin the most descript part of my tour...(see picture, below, then start reading)
I saw this view as I was rounding a curve on the road and it just had the most rich color that
a person could ever view (lots of deep blues, vibrant greens and yellows of the flowers). The sound
of the surf beating against the rocks and shore, the gulls sweeping overhead. The cool breeze of the
ocean and the fragrance of the flowers (smelled like sweet, black licorice) mixed with the fresh
air of the ocean. Within seconds I was captured by the 'sensory-overload' of the moment. I smiled wide
looked straight up at the beautiful deep-clear-blue sky and said....."God,..Nice work...". That moment
and everything that went with it will be forever etched in my memory......
More pictures and captions......
Leaving Big Sur and entering Los Padres National Forest...
Again, the picture doesn't do it justice, but the surf roaring over the rocks was stunning...
Fog rolling in from the other side of the bay, well North of San Simeon (Hearst Castle) and in the
Los Padres National Forest...
Lower elevations at Los Padres National Forest (15 miles north of San Simeon)
High upon a cliff overlooking a beach below (some guys were in the surf looking for something)
This goofy Seagull was FEARLESS! He let me take a picture of him like nothing was bothering him!
Still in Los Padres National Forest but about 5 - 7 miles North of San Simeon...
That goofy thing on the top of the hill was Hearst Castle! It's so far up on the mountain
that you have to take a 20 - 25 minute BUS RIDE to get to it!! It costs $14.00, too - No, I didn't!
Making the loop back 'home' to San Jose (150 Miles away!) by way of Paso Robles and the interior
valley. This is looking back at the Pacific from about 5 miles away and at 1750ft.
Heading 'home' on Highway 101 (The Bayshore Freeway) about 55 miles south of Salinas in Gonzales
Flat as a pancake, too - reminded me a lot of Iowa....
Nearing Salinas, note the fog rolling over the hills from Monterey....
As I came closer to San Jose, I thought what a nice day it had been....tomorrow is going to have a
heck-of-a time competing for the beauty that Big Sur and Los Padres has to offer.......We'll see...
Sunday....AND YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS?! IT'S BEACH DAY!! YEAAAAAAAA!!!! And this would be a
Double-Dog-Dare Beach Day. More on this later. Got up at 9:00 AM and didn't have time to fix
anything to eat. Was ready and out the door by 10:30AM, once I had read the (thick) newspaper,
the San Jose Mercury News. Once I was out the door, I had to make a quick trip to the Capitol
Flea Market and see if I could find a couple of 'requests' from home (cell-phone face plates).
So I spent about a good hour at the Flea Market and couldn't find a reasonable deal on a Cell
Phone faceplate for Melissa's phone (Nokia 5967). But, and you'll never guess, I did find a
SPECTACULAR buy for me - - I found a commercial-grade pH meter (by Corning) that worked great!
I give $15.00 for it new in the box. I use pH meters for making beer - it's a long story, but
ask me about it sometime soon. I'll bore you stiff with the details. Left the Capitol Flea Market
at noon and headed back to the hotel to drop off my meter and grab some ice tea. Then it was off
to the beach by way of the Bayshore Freeway, Highway 85 and then onto.....SAN FRANCISCO!!!
The only way to go to the beach - Stinson Beach - was to cross the San Francisco Bay by way of
the Golden Gate Bridge.
On my way into the 'City' (San Francisco), the route to the Golden Gate Bridge was PACKED.
here is a sample of the traffic about 2 miles from the bridge at San Bruno:
Note the traffic jam in San Bruno heading toward the Golden Gate Bridge - 2 miles away....
As I snaked through town for about 30 minutes, FINALLY the moment came when I saw the bridge in
sight. Here are the pictures as I entered and crossed the Golden Gate Bridge:
Entering the Toll Plaza at the Golden Gate Bridge....
Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge...
Still crossing the Golden Gate Bridge almost to center span....
When I got to the vista point on the other side of the bridge, here is what I saw:
This is a panoramic shot of San Francisco on the Marin County side of the Bay
Use the scroll control of your browser at the bottom of the browser window to view the panoramic pic
Pretty nice, aye? I was impressed. I've been to this Vista Point several times in the past when we
used to live in the Bay Area and it never becomes tiresome. It's always a beautiful view no matter
what. I was lucky today that the temperature was quite warm today and it kept the fog from shrouding
the view of the 'City' and the Golden Gate Bridge. I stayed here for about 1/2 hour and snapped a
few more pictures:
These are smaller, close up shots of San Francisco and 'The Rock', Alcatraz Island....h
Another picture of the Golden Gate....
Got back into the car and headed up Highway 101 (Bayshore Freeway) on the Marin side of the bay.
Got off at the Highway 1 (Coast Highway) at Sausiledo and toward Stinson Beach. The Coast Highway
turns into a two lane road that is VERY twisted and really snakes around hard curves to get to the
beach, Muir Woods and Mt. Tamilpius. I decided that I'd take another side trip next time to goto
Muir Woods and Mt. 'Tam'. As I headed toward Stinson Beach, I came upon Muir Beach. I thought
what-the-heck. I'll make it a 'Double-Dog-Dare' Beach Day. Two beaches for the price of one!!
So I entered Muir Beach:
The scenery at Muir Beach...
The other side of the beach...
Still more scenery at Muir Beach.....
As nice as this beach was, I wasn't as impressed with it as it was pretty 'muddy' for a beach. the
sand wasn't nearly as pristine as Carmel, and the wind was whipping up the sand and causing everyone
to get 'sand-blasted'. I must admit, the winds down there were so strong that I had a heck-of-a-time
keeping my balance as I walked the surf and took pictures! Those winds must have been 55mph!
Left Muir Beach after a quick 1/2 hour stop and decided to forge on to Stinson Beach. Along the way
I saw a rather scenic spot high above the cliffs as I wound my way along the Coast Highway:
Along the Coast Highway (HWY 1) heading toward Stinson Beach....
Some of these cliffs were PRETTY HIGH!! At every point along the route, not only was I twisting
and turning on the road, but the car was 18" from a drop of up to 150 feet into the ocean below.
No matter where you were on the road, if you didn't watch your 'step' you'd be sleeping with the
fishes in your car!! Lucky for me I was used to this already (from yesterday's travel) and was
taking it slow - you have to!!
As I approached Stinson Beach, I decided to take a shot of it from the hill. As I did, a truck
stopped and a gal asked if I could take a picture of her and her husband. I said "Sure!" and
she hopped out and gave me the camera. I took 3 shots of them and then one more with a different
camera. As a parting shot, she asked if I wanted to have my picture taken, too. I thought -
"...what the heck..." and gave her my Palm Pilot and PalmPix camera. She took the shot of me
high above Stinson Beach:
A REAL NICE shot of Stinson Beach north of San Francisco......
A REAL NICE shot of a 'parade' balloon (me) high above Stinson Beach
Finally, I made it to the beach. It took awhile to get there, but it was worth it! This
beach is SO CLEAN and SO PRETTY that I am making it my mission to get to Stinson again on
the next trip - - and I'm taking plenty of beach towels with me!!! The parking was HELL
and it took me about 1/2 hour to find a spot to park - but it was worth it!
I walked the surf and watched all the crazy surfers (some weren't much older than 12) out
there doing their thing. I also noticed that the Beach Patrol was out in full force since
there was a recent Great White Shark attack at Stinson Beach about 3 weeks ago. A buddy of
mine at work (Eric Morse) told me that there is a 'triangle' that runs along the coast at
Stinson Beach, to the Farallon Islands off the coast, and finally south of Stinson Beach
where Great White's like to hang out and gobble-up Steelheads, Salmon and Seals. So when a
surfer is out on a board, flopping around in the water, the sharks think "hmmmmm....LUNCH!".
The attack last month had a surfer in critical condition (he lived) and had 300 stitches to
get him patched back together.
Anyway, more pictures and captions.....
In the surf at Stinson Beach looking to the North....
The South end of the beach.....
The youngest surfers I've seen - couldn't be more than 12 - 16....
The Beach Patrol watching for sharks while the surfers go radical....
The surf was WARM and beautiful here - I'd go swimming in it if it weren't for the sharks!
A close-up of those radical 12 - 16 year olds!
Still more pictures of those surfers - no sharks in sight....
More pics of the surfers - Man, are they crazy!
On the way back from Stinson Beach to San Francisco, high above the ocean (150 feet!!)...
Finally, I headed back to the 'City' and decided to just head home - I was beat. Here are some
shots of the Golden Gate coming back from Marin toward San Francisco when the fog was JUST rolling
in:
Just getting onto the bridge - note the fog at the center span....
In the center span of the Golden Gate - the fog is REALLY evident now!!
Okay, so who's the winner? Stinson Beach or Big Sur? I have to admit, both are really attractive
places to visit. But for sheer 'Visual Overload' I have to give my vote to Big Sur. I was so
impressed with Big Sur and Los Padres National Forest, that I'm planning to go back and spend a lot
more time there. But not to slight Stinson Beach - It's on my GOTO list of places for next time
too - for completely different reasons. There's something restful about the beach and surf.....
until next month when the sweatshirts come off and the bikini's are in full 'bloom'!!
