Night Two… And Beyond :)

Stars, Engines, Lighthouses,
Beauty, Monks… And More!

Last I left you, I’d just got my car running… Barely.
It coughed, sputtered, and complained it’s way to Cambria, CA
where I finally found a safe place to sleep.

And boy, oh boy was it lovely!

There’s nothing like listening to the rushing roar of the Ocean, smoking
a fabulous cigar and feeling the chill of the night wind; all as you capture
bits of the beauty God’s put before you.

The stars that night were absolutely INCREDIBLE… The only light came from
the dim row of bed and breakfast’s that flanked the cliff and they left plenty
of room for the Milky Way’s glory to shine through.

Oh, the surf was definitely “up” as well… 6′-10′ high and positively CRASHING
onto the rocks just below where I shot that image.

After an hour or so of positively freezing my fingers off attempting to capture
some crazy long exposures (I really need to buy a cable release) I called it
a night and curled up in my sleeping bag beside the bug.

Morning…

You can’t quite see where I slept, on the other side of that log barrier
but I must admit… It was one of the loveliest rests I had!! The only problem?
DEW… Everything was SO wet!

MY sleeping bag was soaked, pillow was drenched, and my car had an 1/8th
of an inch of STANDING water all over it! Soooo wet.

Oh, did I mention that it was bloody cold too? I was frigid from the moment
I summoned up enough courage to get out of my sleeping bag.

Regardless, I quickly warmed after my drive back into town was greeted by a
delicious cup of espresso, a mango juice and an incredibly good fresh donut

After wandering around Historic Cambria a bit in my ailing, backfiring Bug,
I headed North again on Hwy 1… About to cover some of the most beautiful
country of my entire trip.

I remembered this countryside well, it was where Ethan and I finally began
to cross back into civilization again after our Alaska trip, where we paid 3x
more than we should have for fuel, and where we both admitted that though
the countryside was beautiful, we were simply too jaded by Canada and
Alaska’s ruggedly Utopian atmosphere to even notice.

This time though, things were very different…

(Not sure which one I like better… What’s your opinion?)

Everywhere, the beauty surrounded me… To my left, the mighty Pacific
who only yesterday reminded me of it’s great power by attempting to sink
my car… To my right, the hills and mountains rose above me and before me.

ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE!
I was constantly blown away by what an incredible State I live in.
These are some of the very reasons I chose to move to California in the
first place… SO glad I did

Admittedly, I didn’t stop as much on this drive as I might’ve… My poor little
Bug was running like absolute trash, backfiring, squealing, shaking, and
just generally reminding me how angry she was that I’d allowed her to be
drenched by the Pacific the day before.

That didn’t stop me however, from flipping a quick u-turn (have to love the
turning radius on that lil’ VW!) and heading back toward a sign I’d seen
by a narrow little lane that heralded a Hermitage somewhere up on the hillside.

I turned onto the road blindly and began a trek that I wasn’t quite certain
my car would survive… But boy did it pay off.

http://www.bigsurhermitage.com/

The monks had a lovely bookshop where I met a fellow photographer who
was there to spend a couple of weeks in solace and offered me a hose to
help wash some of the leftover salt off my car.

After stopping by their incredible chapel for a few quiet prayers I washed
my car, took some pictures of the view (to follow) and headed back North

The View From The Top…

Large Version HERE

If you’re a photographer, you know that image breaks a plethora of “rules”
but you can probably also figure out why I adore it so much

The land behind my car, off in the distance had almost all been burned
in the fires from earlier this year, in fact they burnt right up to within about
10′ of where the little Bug is parked… Wild.

Funny Face…

I’ve always thought my little Bug had some delightfully silly angles…
I’m sure you can agree!

After snapping the above photos, I took off back down the mountainside,
headed North once again, toward Big Sur, and onward to Santa Cruz
where I knew I could have a roof over my head, and possibly even a mechanic
to work on my car further.

Coast Highway…

Shockingly enough, I didn’t even stop to take a single photo when I was
actually IN the Big Sur… I was too busy trying to get my poor car to run properly
enough to take me all the way up to Santa Cruz.

I did however meet some interesting characters along the way.. The Scotsman in
his Miata (complete with a set of snow ski’s poking out from his passenger seat);
the German who was in search of the Hermitage I’d just visited, but had no clue
what the proper word was; and of course the hitchhiking family who nearly got
me run off the road by a motorcyclist.

Oh, and I bumped into a guy who yelled at me from across the gas station:
“Yo! Drowned Bug guy!” Apparently, he’d been at Pismo the day before and
had seen my Bug in the water… Even taken pictures! He promised to email
them to me and I’ve been waiting for them excitedly, ever since!

All good peoples…

The best was yet to come though, as would soon be stopping in with some
of my favorite people; “mommyfish” and her family. Ethan and I had actually
stopped by there on our trip down from Alaska also, and though it was a brief
visit, it left all of us with memories of great times.

This visit certainly didn’t disappoint…
The first item on the agenda when I arrived?

APPLE SAUCE!

(Photo By Barbara)

SO much fun
Then their family each had a turn first:

Tommy…

Barbara…

Then, Mommyfish (Nancy) herself:

Finally, it was the Patriarch’s turn (George):

And time for a quick family portrait…

…Before I’d shower up and head off to downtown Santa Cruz for some
killer hot chocolate and shopping with Barbara. A tremendous way to
unwind after some of the most incredibly stressful days EVER!

I planned to stay the night, and work on the car hard and heavy the next day…
Little did I know what would happen next, and just how insane it’d become
to work on my little 38 year old runt of a car.

Whew.
But that’s a story for another day!
For now, it’s 2:10AM and I’m desperately low on rest… Bedtime!

P.S. If you’re enjoying my adventure so far… Just you wait, it gets even better!
Also, don’t hesitate to leave a comment, digg, or recommend this post to your
friends… I figure that’s the least you can do for the crazy guy who’s busy sinking
his vehicles for your entertainment

Plus, as soon as I make it (fully intact, Lord willing) and get settled into my
destination in Seattle, I’ll be releasing some killer marketing techniques that
your friends may enjoy as well.. Again, just you wait!

Talk soon….