Woodside RV Ft. Bragg Sunset at Woodside RV

Mendocino Coast
August 21-28, 2002

Joy and I traveled down to the Mendocino coast on Wednesday the 21st, for a relaxing week.

We stayed all week at the Woodside RV park in Ft. Bragg. Decent pull-throughs with full hookups for $150 for the week, plus $1 per day for the dog. Plenty of space between sites. They provide walking access down a private half-mile road to the shoreline. 		August 2002
The end of trail from Woodside RV, seen from the next bluff north (Botanical gardens) Abalone Divers off the bluffs
Below is a sunset panorama taken from the bluffs at the end of the private access road west of the RV park. It is large, 6386 by 540 pixels. When you click on the thumbnail, be sure to scroll the image that results.
Mendocino on a grey day.

Downtown Ft. Bragg Noyo Harbor Thursday we wandered around Ft. Bragg, visiting the small shops and the waterfront.
USCG Noyo River Noyo Harbor Bridge on Hwy 1

Friday we visited the village of Mendocino. It has been a number of years since we were last there, and I'm afraid the experience has gone somewhat downhill. Externally, not much has changed. The businesses, however, have skewed far more towards typical tourist boutiques. Seems like there were fewer galleries, and those that exist contain rather sparse offerings that were often rather bizarre. Gone were old favorites like the Mayhew Wildlife Art Gallery, and nothing similar to replace them. The scenery remains beautiful. Below is another large panorama, 8286 by 540 pixels. Again, when you click on the thumbnail, be sure to scroll the image that results.
Mendocino on a grey day.

Saturday was "Great Day in Elk." Elk, also known as Greenwood, is located about 16 miles south of Mendocino. They have an annual community celebration that includes a parade down Highway 1. The population of Elk is listed as 250, but I've seen reports that it is highly exaggerated. Great Day swells that population considerably. Here are some parade pictures:
Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk
Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk
Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk
Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk Great Day in Elk

The view from Elk The view from Elk Elk is located tight against the coast, and this is the view from the back of one of the local inns.
The view from Elk The view from Elk


Leaving Elk, we traveled another 20 miles down to Point Arena and the lighthouse located there. This one is used in a number of movies, so it is fairly recognizable. It is unique because it is vertical-walled rather than tapered - a design to resist earthquakes. The current lighthouse dates to 1907, having been built to replace one severely damaged by the '06 quake. A large group of motorcycles arrived on a charity run while we were there.
Point Arena Lighthouse Point Arena Lighthouse Point Arena Lighthouse Point Arena Lighthouse
Point Arena Lighthouse Point Arena Lighthouse Point Arena Lighthouse Point Arena Lighthouse


When we were in Oregon I took several pictures of Holly running in sand. This time I managed to get a series taken at half-second intervals. These pictures were taken in dunes one bluff north of Point Arena. She runs so fast it is hard to track her with the telephoto and get the shots, so there's only 5 here, but they illustrate the intensity of her running:
Holly running in sand Holly running in sand Holly running in sand Holly running in sand Holly running in sand


This house is located north of the sand dunes where I took the pictures of Holly running. The angle is bad, but I think it is the house from "Forever Young" (Mel Gibson, Jamie-Lee Curtis, 1992) Movie House?


Swimming at Little River Swimming at Little River At home, Holly swims in Little River at Moonstone Beach. She had never swum in the ocean, because the wave conditions at Moonstone are good only for surfers. At this Little River, south of Mendocino, conditions were right for swimming in the ocean, so this was her first time. She swam there Saturday, Monday, and Tuesday, finishing off with a swim in Little River to remove excess salt.

Tuesday was flower day. We started with a visit to the 47-acre Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens, followed by a trip to Fuchsiarama, north of Ft. Bragg.
Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens
Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens
Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens Fuchsiarama Fuchsiarama Fuchsiarama Fuchsiarama
Fuchsiarama Fuchsiarama Fuchsiarama Fuchsiarama

Wednesday we returned home to Arcata. We had travelled down via Highway 1 from Leggett, but that was not a great road to take in a 102-inch wide-body! After talking with other motor home owners in Ft Bragg, we made our return trip by Highway 20 to Willits. Doesn't look like much of a road on the map, but in reality is quite easy to navigate. Although we traveled more miles on the return trip, we took less time. CopyrightComments? Send mail to donb@arcatapet.net
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