This past summer’s road trip took us north to Anacortes and back. On the way north we went up US-395 to Reno, then to Ontario, Oregon via US-95. From there we took US-95 and US-195 to Spokane. After a couple of nights in Spokane and a visit to Gonzaga University, we drove across Washington State to Sammamish for a couple of nights and a visit to Seattle University. Then it was on to Anacortes.

After a pleasant week with family, we set off for home. I-5 took us to our first night’s stop in Roseburg, Oregon. The next day we turned off I-5 in Grants Pass, taking US-199 to Crescent City, picking up US-101. This is where the scenic part of the drive started. The highway takes you down the coast and through groves of huge redwood trees. South of Humboldt Redwoods State Park, we turned onto CA-1 to go to that night’s stop in Fort Bragg, California.

Our next planned evening stop was in Monterey. We decided to stick with the coast route for most of the drive south from Fort Bragg. CA-1 in this stretch is a winding road that travels right along the coast. While the drive isn’t fast, the views are beautiful. Our first stop on the drive was at the Point Arena Lighthouse where we were treated to this view. Click on any picture for a full-sized view.

The privately-maintained lighthouse has a small museum, gift shop, and lodging. For an incremental fee you can tout the lighthouse itself. We did not take the tour.

Built in 1870 and destroyed by the 1906 earthquake, it was rebuilt two years later. It is a notable landmark along the coast.

There was a pod of humpback whales breaching off shore which was a real treat to watch.

You can see in addition to the scenery being beautiful, the weather that day was perfect.

From Point Arena, we continued south along the coast. Our practice on this trip was to find a place to stop each day for a picnic lunch. Not only does this save money, but you also get a chance to see things you would not otherwise see. Our lunch stop that day was at Salt Point State Park. The ranger was nice enough to give us a courtesy pass for our 30-minute stay for lunch. We ate looking across the Gerstle Cove Sate Marine Reserve.

The waves were active and it was fun watching them crash on the rocks and throw up spray.

Gerstle Cove had its share of wave activity.

If you are patient, you can see some really big splashes.

Here is a frame-by-frame capture of that last wave hitting the Salt Point rocks.

After our lunch we continued south, turning in toward Petaluma when CA-1 went south to Point Reyes. We had a bit of excitement near Bloomfield when a buck dashed in front of the car, but thankfully we did not hit him. We had a nice night in Monterey and got home mid-afternoon the following day.