Part 5 - The Lost Coast Trail - Westward Bound!

Sunrise heading to San Francisco - love this pic

START HERE - LOST COAST PART 1

Continued from Part 4......

"Go West, young man," was once said.  Perhaps to a man without other options or who had to get someplace big and vast and away from the father of the young lady he took a few liberties with.  Either way, that is where I was headed.  To the land of my birth - California.  To me, there is something very intrinsic about returning to where you are from.  The land, the air, the sky; they align with the elements that make up your being.  Perhaps there exists an inner compass that these elements suddenly feel a pull toward - like salmon finding their river of birth.  Are we humans so conceited we feel that this force can not exist within us?  I don't think so, but enough philosophy, I was westbound - Californication!!

Ironically too, a month before leaving for California, the land of earthquakes, Virginia was struck with the most powerful quake East of the Mississippi since 1897.  A 5.8 magnitude rumbler shook virtually the entire east coast.  The Washington Monument was damaged along with the National Cathedral - winged gargoyles fell from the sky.  Even a nuclear power plant in Virginia shut down from the shaking.  And here I was heading West - to the San Andreas Fault line - the irony was so pure.  Funnier still, I was planing to sleep in my tent that night.  My neighbors probably thought I was afraid to sleep inside..hey, I had to check my gear out!

Cold outside - at +40, my sleeping bag would come up a bit short

When the quake hit, I was chatting with a co-worker in front of my office building.  It was such a gorgeous day - earthquake weather - and it initially seemed as if a large truck was careening out of control down the street.  The awning in front of the building was moving back and forth and the windows were trying to pop themselves free of their frames.  We both ran clear just as the shaking came to a halt.  We waited in wonder as the building disgorged our co-workers - we got to go home early that day!  It was so cool!!!

As I flew to San Francisco, I looked out the window at the land below.  The West seemed so infinite that day; exposing to me its raw beauty.  Unlike the East coast, the western lands show more texture, colors and scars from the life they have lived.  From this elevation, there are signs of mighty ghost rivers that once cut the land, leaving fissures like wrinkles and haunted river valleys barren of past life.  The arid land is continually sculpted by water and wind and as would be expected, water seems to be the most important element.  It was over Utah that I could see the striving exploitation of the land. Melt-off from snow that falls upon a shallow peak is captured into irrigation ditches and channeled into sprinklers that fed three large circular green swaths that stand out like errant drops of paint on a grey-brown terrazzo floor; it was striking in contrast. 

Yosemite Valley - Half Dome at top.

We flew over Yosemite before descending toward the Bay area.  If you are lucky and the plane is low enough you can make out the Yosemite valley that is guarded by the great half dome mountain that Ansel Adams made so famous with his pictures. I still have yet to visit this gorgeous park - it is on my list.

When I landed and collected my duffle bag, I took a seat and waited for Flyrod's flight to arrive - Whitey had arrived the prior day and headed up coast on his own.  An entry in my journal indicated I was very excited about the hike and made a comment that I knew nothing about what was in store - so true.  I then relaxed and looked around at everyone with an odd sense of pride.  I had come West, this was my state and I felt that I could tell them, the "tourists", about things they should know - about the scents and sounds in the air, and the way the sun hangs in the sky at a different angle.  How all this can align your elements if you pause to let it.
Tonight's Inn of the Lost Coast Web Cam picture - look at the huge wave that just exploded on the rocks off Black Sands Beach - fantastic!!

Part 6 - The Lost Coast of California - Rental Cars, Convicts and Hippie Chicks