California is sand, surf, sun and fun!

Today, we are hitting the Fun Road!

Our first stop on the Fun Road is Alice’s Restaurant, a “little slice of bliss among the redwoods.”

We went to Alice’s Restaurant 10 years ago

We had fun then and fun on this trip

Alice’s Restaurant is about 30 miles south of San Francisco. It is a beautiful drive through the redwood forest.

Here is the description from Alice’s website:

Alice’s is a little slice of bliss among the redwoods. It’s a place where families, motorcyclists, hikers, equestrians, Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, writers, musicians, locals, and visitors can all come together to enjoy a great meal.

 

We’ve got several local microbrews on tap, as well as local wines.

The building was originally constructed in the early 1900’s as a general store to support the logging industry.

 

Sometime during the 1960’s the restaurant was bought by Alice Taylor who renamed the restaurant after herself and the now famous Arlo Guthrie song of the same name. Already, a world famous stop for motorcyclist, hikers and tourists,

 

Check out a history of the restaurant and the surrounding area here: Mobile Ranger’s Skylonda History

You can get anything you want at Alice’s Restaurant

The walls at Alice’s Restaurant are festooned with great memorabilia, including this Newsweek Cover of Arlo Guthrie singing his classic song, Alice’s Restaurant.

Alice’s Restaurant is a famous hangout for motorcyclists and car enthusiasts

A walk through the parking lot is a must for this stop on the Fun Road.

Sand, surf, sun and fun!

After a delicious lunch at Alice’s Restaurant, we were back on the Fun Road for a short drive to Half Moon Bay on the Pacific Coast.

This is a famous spot for surfers.

We had fun running into the wind on this blustery day.

A Rive Runs Through Half Moon Bay

San Francisco was hit by torrential rains a couple of days before our road trip. The beach at Half Moon Bay was cut off by a raging river.

If the droughts return to California, people can reminisce about the time when a raging river flowed across the beach at Half Moon Bay.

These little birds were happy to play in the surf, but we kept a safe distance away

Winter Showers bring Spring Flowers

I wanted to see the Desert Bloom in California. We were too early in the season but I was happy to find one early bloomer.

This is a link to the Wildflower Reports, updated daily by Desert USA. If you scroll through the site, you will see the photos that I had hoped to take!

With all the rain in California this year, this is a super-bloom year for wildflowers in the desert.

Take the Fun Road to Fitzgerald Marine Reserve

Our next stop on the Fun Road was ten minutes up the coast highway to Fitzgerald Marine Reserve. You need to visit at low tide in order to see the sea-life in the salt water pools in the coastal rocks.

You need to get up close to see the marine life

I saw lots of crabs and coral in the protected pools

Could you sleep in a house if you thought you could get washed into the ocean?

There are beautiful oceanside houses just outside the boundaries of Fitzgerald Marine Reserve,

If you look a bit closer at this photo, you will see that one home owner paved the cliff with a giant slab of concrete.

These wind-swept trees are hanging on to the last bit of soil at the top of the cliff

We did not get too close to the cliffs at Fitzgerald Marine Reserve.

After a short flight to LA, we were back on the Fun Road in Santa Monica

We had a wonderful and special evening at the home of a friend in Santa Monica. Every month, he hosts an art evening where an artist gives a short presentation on his work.

We were enthralled to meet British graphic artist, Paul Whitehead. He is most famous for his album covers for Genesis. He knew all the British bands from back in the day. This is his Mount Rushmore/Beatles design.

This is a Paul Whitehead design for The Beatles

Even the police are surfers in California!

After our wonderful artist’s evening, we had time for a stroll on the Fun Road to the famous Santa Monica Pier.

Do you want a ride on the one-of-a-kind solar-paneled Ferris wheel on the Santa Monica Pier?

Do you want to head west on Route 66?

The famous Route 66 ends at the Santa Monica Pier.

This is the end of the trail for Route 66 and the end of the trail for the Fun Road

Next week, we head north to Vancouver