The next morning we left Lincoln City and headed south along the coast towards Gold Beach.
The unfortunate reality was that to make San Francisco and her daughter's return flight, we would have to make serious time along the coastal highway. It seemed doable on paper but in reality I knew the trip would require long days on the road with little time for stops.
Despite that, it was good to see family and share the time on the road. Kim relished having her daughter with her after so much time on the road, even if only for a couple of days.
It was a brilliantly sunny and clear day, the ocean was blue with tufts of aqua and the views were great. As we made Depoe Bay, we stopped where people were gathered at the viewing area. We peeled out of gear for some whale watching and sho’ nuff there were whales cruising the waves below. For several moments only the waves would be seen, then the great, grey back of a whale and the telltale puff of mist would signal a brief sighting. A first for us all and we really enjoyed it.
Seeing and riding the coastal highway was fantastic, the curves and high overlooks, the ocean and rock formations below. Alexis was enjoying the ride from the back of the Beemer, tapping and pointing out something here and there. More stops for distant whale sightings below...
We eventually made Gold Beach for the evening, getting a motel for the night. Kim enjoyed the beachside hot tub, listening to the sound of the surf til closing.
The next day we were excited to get to see some redwoods for the first time. On the map I noticed that there were several redwood preserves and parks in region, a surprise as I just assumed there was only one. The Drury Scenic Byway was a real treat, a beautiful road with the magnificent trees flowing by.
Harbor seals in Crescent City
Due to our time constraints, I didn’t shoot a lot of photos which I regret in retrospect, however sometimes it’s nice just to feel like you’re riding with no cares and leaving the camera holstered was nice. One of the highlights of returning to the US was at least I could stream Pandora again, and just listening to music and riding the curves felt great.
Traffic was something we’d had to get used to again after the thousands of miles in Canada and Alaska, and there was quite a bit more than expected on the road. In one congested area of twists and turns, a white pickup emblazoned with fire department logos came barreling up on us, his yellow lights flashing and passed us on double yellow line curves. He was driving a bit crazy and since his siren wasn’t on it didn’t seem he was heading for a fire. Jackass driver noted.
A while later, the same truck came racing up behind me on the scenic byway, riding us about 10-15 feet behind, then racing out again in a blind curve and catching up to Kim, sitting about 15 feet behind her. He continued to ride right against her for a mile or more. I was seriously pissed and Alexis leaned around asking why he was such an asshole. Kim finally slowed to about 10 mph and he jerked around her and tore off ahead.
About a mile ahead we came up on him sitting behind a parked car on the roadside with his lights flashing like a cop car. We rode past and stopped. I got off and walked back to him, where he immediately started commanding me off the roadway like a cop. I’ll let your imagination go, but serious words were exchanged and I told him exactly what he was and where I could put him. He was a serious asshole suffering from severe control issues. Kim said he was one of those creeps who probably couldn't make the police force and was now trying to live out his fantasy...
A couple of moments later a Park Ranger showed up at the scene and Kim went up to the ranger, explaining the situation and wanting to report him. It was a bad scene and the guy seriously needed to get tossed off the force based on his driving both earlier on the main roadway and then after endangering us. Notes were made, yada yada but I’m sure nothing would come of it.
From that experience, we at least continued unmolested through the forest and enjoyed the ride. Our plan was to continue until Leggett, where we were to jump off Hwy 101 onto Hwy 1 out to the coast again where we wanted to camp. Kim wanted to stay and enjoy a slow ride and walk in the redwoods, asking us to go ahead and find a camping spot where she could catch up to us.
Alexis and I took off since the day was getting late, stopping at Leggett junction and waiting a while for Kim. There was no cell service so we rode back north about 15 miles but didn’t see her and still had no cell service. We decided to head back to Leggett to wait. As darkness approached we got worried that some how we’d missed her and went briefly to the small store to check for wifi so my phone could call out over wifi. None was available so we rode back the 400 yards to the intersection and waited again. It was beginning to get dark and I thought maybe we should ride on to the beach 30 miles ahead just in case she’d somehow slipped by us.
Hwy 101 was an incredible motorcycle road, super tight and twisty but about 3 miles in I decided to turn back, since I didn’t want to leave Kim to ride it alone in the dark.
Again we waited until well after dark by the roadside, eventually giving up and looking for a motel… the only one available in the area being a couple of miles away in South Leggett. A ride over in the dark led to a dimly lit motel sign with no cars in the lot, however a knock at the door proved the owner/manager there. He looked questioningly at us, probably a bit surprised and a little suspicious for some reason, until we explained the situation, having lost Kim somewhere. He was happy to lend us the land line phone and Alexis got voicemail, but after several repeated attempts got Kim on the phone. Apparently she had ridden by during the 10 minutes we’d left the roadside to seek wifi, and had also missed the turn at Leggett. She was safe and had found an RV Park to camp in for the night.
From the conversation, the motel manager surmised Kim had ridden south to Laytonvile and then taken a county road over to the coast - his comment being that it was a very bad one to have taken. We asked if there was a place to get any food, since we were starving. He said no, but felt pity and offered to make us peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. It sounded like steak and lobster to us and I offered to pay him for his kindness but he refused. He finally loosened up a bit and the conversation drifted to the marijuana growers in the region, telling me this was the hot spot in California for pot growers. In fact he told me where there were fields of plants across the road, pointing out into the darkness, and how many were there, commenting that there were far more than “personal use” could account for.
He said there was an unspoken agreement between the growers and he, that as long as they left him alone, he left them alone. In addition, several big ranches in the area had just been bought by tobacco companies in anticipation of California legalizing pot the next year.
We finally got into the rooms, our host bringing PBJ’s and chips as well as a couple of Cokes to the room. It was a major relief to know The Butterfly was okay and the long day hit hard. Sleep came easily to say the least.