Back on the road again

Three weeks went by very quickly and it was with mixed emotions that we finally left our house-sitting assignment in El Dorado Hills.

From left to right - Karma, Sparkie, Sammy (licking paw) and Micky

Having grown quite attached to the pets it was not fun to have to say goodbye, though after such a good break we had a renewed urge to continue our travels. The homeowner was very pleased with how we had looked after everything and so after a quick handover we said our goodbyes and were on our way again.

For that night we had booked a nearby motel where we watched on the local TV news station - and from our window - a major wildfire starting to develop. It was only few miles south of us and even made headlines on the BBC news with around 1500 fire fighters tackling this blaze, just one of many hundreds currently burning across the state during the worst drought here in forty years.

Point Arena Lighthouse

The following morning we drove north through the Napa Valley, probably California's most famous wine region, stopping for two nights at Ukiah, a delightful small town from where we visited Point Arena lighthouse - the tallest lighthouse on the US west coast, and where the final scenes from the film "Forever Young" starring Mel Gibson were filmed.
After six weeks inland we were pleased to see the ocean again and smell that unmistakable sea air too. The waters here are deep and cold, creating coastal fog which drops the air temperature on the coast, a welcome relief from the heat inland.

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The fog also helps sustain the giant California Redwood trees that grow in a narrow corridor along this coast, the tallest trees in the world. Driving through these amazing trees on the scenic "Avenue of the Giants" was quite an experience - not only are they incredibly tall, but you can actually drive your car through several of them, which of course we had to do.


And so onto the town of Eureka which is where are staying for a few days, the largest coastal city between San Francisco and Portland. The old town area is full of history and listed buildings, perhaps most famously the Carson Mansion, now a private members club and a truly stunning building. There is also a lot of whacky artwork on the buildings and it is quite a funky town, only marred by the largest number of homeless people that we've seen since Honolulu.

Whacky artwork on a plain building

The Carson Mansion

We even saw a poodle today with a goatee. Enough said.