Day 5 – Monterey to Thousand Oaks, CA

First off, I have to make a correction on my last post.   I actually ended up in Monterey, not Carmel.  Sometimes having a one track mind gets me into trouble.  A few of my stops were scheduled through Hotels.com to keep my expenditures under better control.  The room in Monterey was very nice and comfortable costing about $55.00 for the night.  It was very convenient, had free internet, an quiet considering the traffic and businesses near by.  I had everything packed and ready to go all I had to do was one more task.   I spent a couple of minutes to reattach the mended footpeg on the Wing.  Everything looked good and sturdy so figured that riding would be more comfortable this morning.  I got everything loaded, programmed the navigation for the mission in Carmel, and headedout into traffic.  The location of my hotel was very good since it was only two blocks away from the entrance to Highway 1.  No sooner had I gotten on the highway, I was instructed to exit.   There was a deja vu moment since I was on neighborhood streets wandering through Carmel.   I expected more major streets as I was moving along.  It was a few moments later, the repaired footpeg decided to depart.  Pulled to the  side of the road and retrieved the peg about 200 feet back and glad I wasn’t in a high traffic area.  On the way again arrived at the mission a few minutes later.  The trouble with early morning travel, a lot of places are not open for business.   I managed to take a few photos but could not go inside until much later and possibily more sunshine. There is more information about Mission Carmel here:  http://www.carmelmission.org/   I finally discovered why the navigation was so frustrating, not looking at the parameters “avoid highways” before calculating.   Getting back on Highway 1 was easy just a few blocks away.  Rolling through the Point Lobos area was nice but overcast was turning into fog and drizzle.  The windshield was getting more difficult to see through and concerned with traffic behind me as well as oncoming.   I managed to get behind a car and follow rather than pretend I was Superman with the x-ray vision.  There were a lot of drivers this day that didn’t like me behind them because I always have the high beams on during daylight hours.  I admit it is a pain, but at least THEY know WHERE I am.    When the fog cleared, they would pull over and let me pass as I could ride the twisties faster.  I always waved for their courtesy to let me by as I went around them.   Sometimes we would leap frog after stopping to take pictures or just look at the breath taking scenery.    The photos here were taken just south of Big Sur where I found a good enough place to pull off the highway.   Some spots along the way were loose dirt and gravel which made for questionable navigation.   I did take the opportunity to spend a little more time and use my tripod and take some better quality photos as well as putting myself in them too.   I had to at least PROVE I was there!   My monkey puppet traveling companion became a photo subject occasionally.  We decided to name him “Milo”.  Don’t know why, just needed a more distinct name.   For all this trip, Milo never bitched about the accomodations even though it was spent in the trunk.  He wouldn’t have been much use as one of those “Trunk Monkey” commercials used by a car dealer in Oregon. 

Highway 1 south of Big Sur,CA 5-15-09

The Wing and I on Highway 1 south of Big Sur

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I really enjoyed this stretch of Highway 1 with all the twisities, climbs, an terrain.    In this area, there is an abundance of wildlife to be encountered.    At least there was plenty of time to react to a situation.   Out in the middle of the highway is a fawn, the mother is behind the guard rail on the shoulder.   My question was,  which one was going to jump first?    I really expected “mom” to join the baby.    When in this situation, expect the unexpected.   Luck was with me this morning as the fawn was in motion towards its mom but the legs had no traction.   It finally go moving only to lose traction and fall on its side.  Then it got up and back to mom’s side behind the rail.   The whole process was five seconds but sure seemed longer waiting for it to all unfold.  Once past, I was only hoping  that mom and baby were not going to become a fatality with traffic from behind.  This is one time that I really wish the camcorder was mounted and running.  

The Big Sur area is a place that I’d love to spend more time later on.  It’s very beautiful and glad I got to finally see it.  Further down the way is the Hearst Castle at San Simeon.    If you haven’t been there, go see it.  I would like to plan a trip there again to see the night time tour.   I’ve heard that is very special and gives the grounds a different feel than during the daytime.   As I was passing by, there were many people there queuing up for the tours.  If I could make it happen, a meal in the dining room and a swim in the indoor pool would be spectacular.   The big gut was eating up the little.  Translation:  I’m getting hungry.  Cambria was just ahead so that was going to be the destination for breakfast.   Cambria is a neat little place with lots of shops and things to see.  This particular day the construction crews were disturbing the ambience of the town.  Lots of rock and other materials in the road to make one wary.   I found a place called the Pine tree Inn that was easy to get to and refueled with breakfast and LOTS of coffee.    Before taking this trip, I was hoping one of my cousins would be at their place in Cambria.  Unfortunately, Gary and his wife Wendi were back in Las Vegas and wouldn’t be there when I passed through.

When I got near San Luis Obispo, a thought occured and the light came on.    I got off the highway and decided to call a local Honda dealer to see if I could get a new footpeg.   I finally got in tough with San Luis Motorsports and inquired about the footpeg.  Again, would have to be ordered and would not arrive until the next week.  I then spoke to the sales manager and asked if there was a new Goldwing on the floor. If so, could I have a footpeg off of it?  I’m on the road traveling, and don’t reside in the area.  Most dealers will go above and beyond for those riders in this situation.   I was told that could be done.  However, since it was on the floor a new one had to be ordered and “next day” it from the parts warehouse.  The charge would be an extra $40.00.   WOW!   The cost of the footpeg is $17.00.   This was a Friday afternoon, no was was it going to get there next day.  The dealers are usually closed on Mondays and Tuesday would be the next logical day to receive it.  I told them if I paid an extra $10, I was willing.  $40.00 was TOO much since it was only coming from Torrance about 200 miles to the south.   I will make do even though my ankle will not really like it. 

I guess there were enough things to handle on this day.   I really wanted to stay out on the coast but cost and availability got me into Thousand Oaks.   Don’t ask me why, that’s just where I landed.   For about $60.00 I got a fairly nice room at “America’s Best Value” motel.  It was a ground floor room a few doors down from the office.  Most everything was nice except for the rear of the room and the bathroom.  Whoever painted it either ran out or failed to cut in at the corners where the dressing area is.  The bathroom was OK, but the shower floor was coming apart or had a layered mat.  Never saw anything like that before.  If someone out there is more educated on this, please enlighten me.  The shower control had “inpatient surgery” and the wall around it needed some plastic surgery.  The wall repair must have been handled by a person of dubious qualifications.  I guess you could say it had some “third world charm” to it.  This was not near the room I had the previous night but was more costly.  It was functional and the room came with free WiFi.  Woo Hoo!   The real advantage was being near the highway for the next day and two restaurants within 500 feet.

 

Shower floor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Did I mention the overhead light fixture?

 

 

 

 

Ride safe.  I look forward to your comments.     Jim