A busy day that started with a 745am alarm. We had to reach Monterey Bay by 930am to be
on board the Black-fin for our 3-hour whale-watching trip commencing at 10am. We had all agreed following our mildly
successful whale-watching trip in LA that another attempt was required! As per our last boat ride, Becky and I
selected shorts for our on-board attire – but I think we were the only ones
brave (or stupid) enough!
Before we had even left harbour, we saw sea otters, birds
and sealions galore on a spit (below).
As we moved out of harbour the going got pretty rocky, with lots of people getting sea-sick and feeding the fish off the back of the boat! Thankfully the three of us were fine. We were too busy competing to spot the first whale! Almost an hour into the trip we started getting worried that we were going to miss out again, especially when we saw a spout from a whale that promptly disappeared again completely. A short time later we spotted a couple of fins of Dall’s Porpoise (there were 3 there apparently). A fleeting glimpse - Were we going to miss out on whales again?!
As we moved out of harbour the going got pretty rocky, with lots of people getting sea-sick and feeding the fish off the back of the boat! Thankfully the three of us were fine. We were too busy competing to spot the first whale! Almost an hour into the trip we started getting worried that we were going to miss out again, especially when we saw a spout from a whale that promptly disappeared again completely. A short time later we spotted a couple of fins of Dall’s Porpoise (there were 3 there apparently). A fleeting glimpse - Were we going to miss out on whales again?!
But luck was with us.
A group of 3 gray whales were travelling together on their migration and
they put on a lovely show for us.
We travelled alongside them for what must have been 30-40 minutes,
people gasping and camera shutters clicking madly each time one surfaced, until
it was time to head back to shore. Becky
and I had to admit that our legs got a little chilly but it didn’t stop us
thoroughly enjoying the experience.
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| Now that's definitely a whale! |
Simon’s horse riding find from yesterday was at Pebble Beach
nearby. Talk about squeezing the
experiences in today! We got off the
boat at 1pm, I rang them as we walked back to the RV and booked Becky and I
onto the 2pm trail ride. Simon decided that our Texas cowboy experience could
not be beaten, so opted out of a second ride. A hasty drive across Monterey got us to the
stables for 145pm where we paid and it was hats on, let’s go!
I was
riding Lady A, Becky’s mount for the hour was called Ned. There were two other ladies, a mother and
daughter combo, on the ride and I was placed at the back again! The
beginning of the ride was particularly boggy.
A couple of the horses were reluctant to wade through the mud and I was
feeling a little sorry for them, but then we reached sandy tracks and the going
became easier for our trusty steeds. We enjoyed
views of Pebble beach’s golf courses and the ocean vista before heading
back in a loop towards the stables. My
favourite moment of the ride was when a hawk swooped right by me and landed on
a branch nearby, but sadly my camera battery had already died so I was unable
to capture the image. I was really
chuffed to be able to get Becky the horseback experience she was hoping for on
her trip, she really enjoyed it. |
| Proof we made it back in one piece! |
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| Simon making friends on Santa Cruz boardwalk |
From Pebble Beach, it was an hour into Santa Cruz. Our main reason for stopping here was to
visit the legendary boardwalk that was used for filming large segments of the
Lost Boys movie (in which it was called Santa Carla). This film is one of my all-time guilty
pleasure cult dark comedy flicks! Being
out-of-season none of the famous rides, including the carousel and
big dipper, were running.
But we were still able to wander along the boardwalk and get photos, imagining that we were following in the footsteps of Kiefer Sutherland and his merry band of blood-sucking vampires! We walked through the arcades. As it got later, the temperature increased. People were playing volleyball on the beach, enjoying the weather. We stopped for a beach-front dinner at Ideal Bar and Grill – just making it in time for happy hour and their ribs special for $11.95!
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| The famous, and shut, carousel |
But we were still able to wander along the boardwalk and get photos, imagining that we were following in the footsteps of Kiefer Sutherland and his merry band of blood-sucking vampires! We walked through the arcades. As it got later, the temperature increased. People were playing volleyball on the beach, enjoying the weather. We stopped for a beach-front dinner at Ideal Bar and Grill – just making it in time for happy hour and their ribs special for $11.95!
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| The beach volleyball at Santa Cruz on a lovely evening |
We left Santa Cruz just before 7pm as the sun was
setting. We had a site booked for the RV
in San Francisco for the next three nights.
So, the plan was to drive up route 1 for as long as there was enough
light to enjoy the stunning scenery, before making for the RV park in the dark. We nearly got as far as Half Moon bay before
we headed onto main roads into San Fran, reaching Candlesticks RV Park just
before 9pm. Another example of an
over-priced inner city RV Park - At $100 per night for the three of us, we
found ourselves in another car park where we only just fitted into our space! But we were there because it was the nearest
camp-ground to the City centre and we intended to leave Harvey stationary for
the whole visit so that trying to park an RV would not be an issue.
We were all exhausted after a long but exciting day. We had
crammed so much in!
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