Part 7 - The Lost Coast Trail - Hikers, Record Abalone, Petrolia

START HERE - THE LOST COAST PART 1

...continued from Part 6

The name Shelter Cove to me is a real estate developer's dream.  It sounds so perfect.  Can't you just picture well built homes with green lawns and picket fences nestled in a seaside town with protected anchorage?  There is a station wagon with wood paneling in the driveway.  A gorgeous woman named Gladys watering colorful flowers in the front window boxes.  She waves to the paper boy who wears a baseball hat and blue jeans and maybe has a slingshot in his back pocket.  It sounds just like the fictional towns of Mystic Falls, Smallville, and Pleasantville.  But it is indeed real, and very pretty.  It does have a nice cove and it does provide shelter from storms at sea.  And all this loveliness is brought to you by my friend the San Andreas fault once again. 

San Andreas running through town.

See the red line running just to the right of the words Shelter Cove - that is the fault line that causes all the trouble.  The team spent our first night on the Lost Coast in a campsite not too far from this line.  We like to live dangerously.

After Flyrod and I stormed down the winding and treacherous Shelter Cove Road from Garberville, we located Whitey already setup for the night with his tent.  We pitched our tents in the fading light - and set off on foot for some dinner at the Shelter Cove Oceanfront Inn.  They have a nice restaurant called the Cove and for us - it was the only game in town - the last chance for some brews and someone else cooking our food before heading into the wilds the next day. But being a Saturday night they were busy.  There were no tables to be had (seems to be a trend for me) but for three guys, seats at the bar are just fine.  They had good burgers, fish and chips, and cold beer.

Seated at the bar near us were Kim and Theresa; enjoying themselves probably as much as we were enjoying ourselves.  I know I was gulping down some brews.  Kim asked right off if we were "hikers."  On the whole to me that sounded kind of odd - I mean yes there is a trail nearby but it isn't famous like the Appalachian Trail or the Pacific Crest Trail.  It turns out they were hikers too!  It was a birthday present for Kim that she and Theresa would hike the Lost Coast trail.  They were leaving in the morning like us - only they were a bit wiser in that they had a nice hotel room for the night and a shuttle driver to take them to trail head - we had tents and the Kia Forte!!  Oh well.  We had a blast chatting with them and playing some fun games trying to determine what each other did for a living.  Initially they thought we were firefighters.  It had to be due to our rugged good looks and fearless demeanor.  Other games we tried to determine each others ancestral background - somehow, and the details are lost in the fog from the cold IPA I was drinking, Whitey turned out to be a chocolate making Swiss Jew.  Enough said; we had too much to drink.

Sleeping in Shelter Cove that first night was a delight - perfect sleeping weather.  There was a distant buoy clanging with the waves, and rather than the neighbor's dogs barking endlessly at night, there were sea lions taking up the challenge.  It was very soothing and I did not stay awake long.

The next morning it was crisp and cool and we fixed up some oatmeal and coffee - Starbucks Via.  If I can gratuitously plug a product - it is marvelous as far as instant coffee goes.  Add a little non-dairy creamer and you are having a great morning. (Click any photo to enlarge)

Rise and Shine  Shelter Cove Campgrounds

Whitey checking gear - note shoes.

GEAR GUIDE
After the mental exercise of figuring out what you can leave behind in one car, while taking the gear you need for the trail in the other, it is time to fill the water bottles and CamelBak - I brought a 100oz CamelBak for my backpack (most packs now have a place to slide in a water bladder - very handy) and two small 16oz Nalgene bottles as backup. They make it easy to measure for cooking water and to have something to mix gatorade.  Also required is a water-filtration system.  The best one around in my opinion is the Katadyn Hiker Pro.  It is easy to use, keep clean, light-weight, and most important, the water tastes fantastic.  It also has fittings to fill the CamelBak and Nalgene bottles.

The next part of the trip was going to be a challenge.  Hikers can contact one of the many shuttle services (Google them as they change too much to supply a link) that will take hikers to the trail head at Mattole Beach so that their cars can be left at the end of the trail - Black Sands Beach.  Be warned it is pricey - around $200 for 2 hikers.  Since we had two cars already, we left the Nissan at the end and took the Kia to Petrolia.  It is a hair raising ride from Shelter Cove to Petrolia to say the least.  It will take about 2 hours to make the trip of 46 miles.  It is a slow tough and rough road - the first 31 miles are up and down - around seemingly endless switchbacks with washed out sections of road.  There are a few homesteads along the way dug into the hillside like ticks on a dogs back - hard living for sure.  The ride can make you car sick if you are prone to that.  But relief can be had at the town of Honeydew.  With 15 miles to go until Petrolia we all needed a break.  Even the poor Kia was starting to smell like hot brake linings and cooked engine oil.  It was here that we met the near-world-famous-almost-record-holding-California-abalone-diver.

Abalone is actually a large sea snail or Gastropod.  The large shoe or foot of the abalone is sought after by divers for its delicious flavor when prepared right, and the shell is often cleaned up and used as an ashtray (such indignity) or nice Mother of Pearl Jewelry.  Of course, people thought the bounty was endless, so the abalone have been over-harvested. Now there are restrictions on harvest dates, types, harvest technique and size.  All good for the abalone to recover, so I am for it.  But we encountered this ne'er-do-well abalone diver with his other buddies at the Honeydew general store boasting that he "almost" had the world record for an abalone.  He said it was 11 inches across and he only needed another inch or so to have the record.  Uh huh.  As I went into the store it sounded like he was telling the next customer who pulled in the same story.

Aaron Bassler on left - with curly wig and glasses on right

Honeydew - Bridge over Mattole River

The remaining 15 miles was not bad at all - the road follows the Mattole river valley to Petrolia.  I had to admit that I was pretty excited about seeing Petrolia.  It was the little town that started this whole thing.  The guys at this point seemed anxious to get going on the hike.  I was too.

Upon arriving in Petrolia we took a drive through the town.  It wasn't exactly like I thought it would be - it was smaller and seemed farther from the ocean than it appeared on maps and satellite images, but it was still cool.  There is a general store, post office and a very sad little gas pump that was neither digital nor equipped to handle the current price of fuel.  Charming to say the least.  We did not stop - I planned to stop in the store when we pick up the car - many days from now. 

Mattole Beach Parking Area

Whitey checking us in at trail head- map to left

We parked the car and unloaded our gear. To me the packs seem like they got heavier on the road to this place.  Just excitement I guess.  I looked around at the hillsides that fall into the Pacific ocean.  The dry grasses painted them tan and the green brush, shaped by the wind, added a dash of color.  Just fantastic.  The wind had picked up quite a bit from Shelter Cove and the air was still very cool.  High 50s or 60s - great hiking weather.  Whitey checked us in so they could notify next of kin if something got us - something nearly killed one of us the next day.  Then we posed for a picture, checked the car once more, and headed off down the coast.  It was incredible to realize a dream.  I was giddy with adventure - my camera was in my hand to capture the entire hike - so you may get to read less of my banter and see more of what we saw.  Be sure to click on the pictures to enlarge.
And off we go......

Inn of the Lost Coast Web Cam pic - what a sunset!!

Next - Lost Coast Trail - Day 1 - Mattole Beach to Punta Gorda Light