NorCal holiday loop: Santa Cruz -> Mendocino -> Eurika and back!

[JRD]

Santa Cruz to Mendocino today.

First leg was hw1, up Half Moon Bay to Pacifica. Strong headwind but beautiful. Pumpkin patches and artichokes. Mustard and wild radish. California poppies and pampas grass. Lines of Brown Pelicans over the water. Peered at the ruins on Ano Nuevo island. Stopped by Pigeon Point lighthouse to spot migrating humpbacks. Coffee in Pacifica before turning inland, through Daily City and across the Golden Gate.

The Golden Gate Bridge, like the Taj Majal or Yosemite Valley, is one of those places that everyone has seen a million times in photos, but you can't actually know until you see it in person. You just can't appreciate the scale and artistry and presence of it until you're there. The bridge is loud and cramped as you cross it, but you can see kite surfers jockeying with freighters on the bay, The City over your right shoulder, the bridge pilons towering above you in art deco iron.

Temperature started ratchetting up as I moved from Merin to Sebastopol. There is some nice country up there, but I mostly saw freeway sliding by at 80mph. The CB ate up the miles. The weight and smooth power of the bike inspire confidence, even among the cars and trucks. I was glad for my new freeway pegs that let me shift around in the saddle a bit.

Stopped in Sebastopol to say "hi" to some friends. Cute town. Was expecting more dreary freeway as I continued North, but was happily surprised when, instead of sending me back up the 101, Google routed me due North up some beautiful rural backroads (116 -> Laguna Rd -> Trenton Healsburg -> Eastside). Straight runs past vineyards and rolling curves along small waterways and through groves of California Bay Laurel and Tan Oak. Goats and turkey vultures. Horses and quail.
   

Turned off onto 128, angling back towards the coast. The road rose into golden hills and chaparral scrubland. Windy and one-lane. Very few other cars on the road, and all conscientiously scooted over to let me pass when safe. Road condition was excellent for as remote as it felt. Red tailed hawks watched me from every power pole and dead oak.  

Stopped for an amazing burger and an interesting pickle beer at Jumbo's Win Win in Philo. Highly recommend that spot. Great food. Great vibes. From Philo it's a hard turn to the coast. I could choose between Greenwood Rd., the 128, or Comptche Ukiah. Asked the server at Jumbo's which way was the prettiest. She said Greenwood.
   

Greenwood was a ridge road up, then down, through the coastal range. Mixed woods intermingled with the occasional redwoods grove. Occasionally the trees would open up on a field or vineyard, granting a view to the next ridge over, across the river valley. A rabbit crossed the road in front of me. A raven flew off, carrying a snake in its beak. A coopers hawk deftly navigated the trees, parallel to the road. Madrone and poison oak. Ferns and costal redwood. Oak and wild blackberry. 

Greenwood took me across Navarro River and back to hw1 for the brief jog up to Mendocino. Nor Cal cliffs dropped down to a choppy Pacific Ocean. A red shouldered hawk hovered 10 feet over the grass on the cold updraft, head down, hunting. Wind-whipped grasses and gnarled Monterey cypress. Boulders, stained white with sea bird droppings. Bull kelp and crushed abalone shell.

Got in after about five/five and a half hours of saddle time. I have ridden to Mendo a few times on my RE Int650. It was doable but uncomfortable. The relative ease of the ride on the Honda reaffirmed that the upgrade was well worth it.