Monday October 27th, 2014
Total Miles: 158

 In the morning we had a chance to take some amazing photos.  What an unbelievable place to pitch a tent.

We packed up camp and loaded the bikes.  Turns out Shelter Cove has a coffee shop.  In the same parking lot as the pizza place is the coffee shop.  Yes, both the pizza place and the coffee shop are located in a motel.  Galen pulled out the tool roll to tighten the mirrors which had come lose during the previous day’s drops.  As he inspected the bike he noticed the brackets holding the tool tube had broken.  He secured the tube with a zip tie but wasn’t completely happy with the fix.  He had bought those clips from Fastnel and never thought about packing additional ones.  Note to self, we will pack an extra set next time.  At the coffee shop we enjoyed a tasty crescent sandwich with a good cup of coffee California style (an extra shot of espresso).  We sat on their back deck which overlooked the ocean.  This is an amazing way to start the day. 

Chad had originally thought we would have made it much further then Shelter Cove.  That being said, nothing has been as memorable on this trip as camping on the ocean.  I am so glad we got held up a little.  It was getting late in the morning.  Chad showed Galen on the map were he had planned to take us.  Chad needed to head back and get some office hours in back at the shop.  He left us the Butler Northern California map which was a great resource for the next couple of days.  If you aren’t familiar with Butler Maps their maps hightlight the best mortorcycle rides.  G1 or the yellow roads are the best, G2 or the red roads are better, and G3 or the orange roads are good.  We followed Chad for a couple of miles through the twisties before Galen and I split off and headed North through the Lost Coast Road.  What an amazing morning. Most of the road is old pavement just a short run of gravel near the top.  Loved the twisties but just had to be aware of the road conditions.  When the road finally peaked a hill we had a great view of the ocean.  I had no idea how much of the coast line was still undeveloped.  We took some time to take some great photos of the views.  It was just us on the roads which made it feel surreal almost like something out of a movie.  

Soon the road cuts back East and we catch our last view of the Ocean in the rear view mirror.

We have traveled as far West as we can and it was time to turn the bike East.  What a moment as I take a little time to reflect on our journey so far.  We have seen so much countryside that I have never seen before and met so many wonderful people. It doesn’t seem possible that we had made it this far.  At this moment I am feeling so humbled and so blessed.  The road lead us into Ferndale, CA this was the first town of any size since mid-day yesterday.  This town was adorable.  Cute downtown full of specialty shops.  Clean and inviting.  One of the plaques talked about how this town was the home to many artists and creative minded people.  Yes, it was a little touristy but a great stop to get off the bike and explore for a few minutes.  Galen was concerned about the tool tube and we were on mission to find those clips.  We first stopped at the lumber yard, they gave us directions to the local implement dealer.  The implement dealer didn’t have any clips and he gave us directions to the Ace Hardware.  At the Ace Hardware we found the drawer for the p-clips but alas they were sold out of our size.  Since it was getting late in the day and neither of us were hungry we didn’t stop for lunch and headed to Fortuna.  In Fortuna we stopped at a NAPA.  They had p-clips but non rubber coated ones.  We asked and there was an Ace Hardware in town.  We stopped there and they had what we needed in the right size.  Galen grabbed 4 so there were two extra on hand.  We checked our beer advocate app and found that Eel River Brewing Company was located in town.  We swung into the back and asked if they had a garden hose.  The bike was full of dried mud and Galen wanted to clean off the area where the tool tube was before he installed the new clamps.  Got that area cleaned up, wheeled the bike out of the way and in a few minutes Galen had the new clamps installed. 

We stopped inside the brewery for a beer and it was surprisingly really good.  We had a great bartender.  Locals told us they were glad we did the Lost Coast Road in the morning because in the afternoon the “tweakers” wake up and run their trucks at crazy speeds and have been known to take out bikes and cars.  I had no idea just how bad the drug problem has become in Northern California.  We wanted to hit Avenue of the Giants before it got much later in the day.  We jumped south on the highway and in just minutes we exited and entered Avenue of the Giants.  Amazing!  When I think of Redwoods this is the type of tree I had envisioned.  I can’t believe there is no fee to drive this road.  I felt this was by far superior to the General Sherman Tree experience from just a few days prior.  We traveled down to the Visitors Center, jumping off and taking pictures along the way.

At the Visitors Center the folks said if you do anything make sure we hike the Rockefeller Trail.  It was JD Rockefeller who can be credited for giving a large sum of money to help preserve these groves.  Just amazing.  We traveled back North and found the trail head.  It was a short loop but well worth the stop.  Nothing is fenced.  You can climb all over the redwoods.  It was simply breath taking.

At the Visitors Center we parked next to another 1200 Adventure Bike.  Once in the Center we found the owners were a retired couple who were riding 2up.  John and Jamie Burghardt were from Chico, CA and had just come over for a long weekend.  We had such a nice visit.  They gave us their card and invited us to stay at their home and offered to cook us dinner.  Since we all knew we were losing day light we cut the conversation short.  They were going to be home later in the day on Tuesday.  We had planned to be in Chico for lunch that day and felt we needed to get further in our travels on Tuesday.  We thanked them but it just didn’t look like it was going to work out this time.  After we walked the small loop it was getting dark.  At night the temperature had been dropping and rain was supposed to move in.  Yes, we could have camped but I thought an evening at the Brewery watching Monday Night Football sounded like a much better plan. The Best Western was ranked 1 in Furtuna.  TripAdvisor was showing best price was $90.  This hotel was walking distance from the Brewery which we were told had great food.  We jumped on the bike and headed back.  In the 20 minutes it took for us to get back to the hotel they had sold 15 rooms and the $90 room was no longer an option.  Cheapest room Galen could negotiate was now $120 with AAA and the gal wouldn’t budge.  That was too much for us even though I am pretty sure it would have been worth it.  I called across the street to Super 8 and they were offering rooms for $80.  Super 8 it was for tonight and it was located even closer to the Brewery.  We checked in and walked across the parking lot to find dinner and a beer.  Food was fantastic and Monday Night Football went into overtime with Dallas eventually losing.  Great game to watch.