West Coast Road Trip, Part 2

From left, Carol (Johnathan), Matt and Lucas at Crissy Field in San Francisco

In part 1 of my post on our West Coast road trip, I covered the stretch from San Diego up to Seattle. Since we spent that northbound journey inland, the plan was to drive back along the coast, all the way from northwest Washington through Oregon and California. Thanks to Lucas's temperamental Saturn, we made a few detours, but still managed to see most of the coastal highlights.

The night we arrived in Seattle, my buddy Mike flew in to join us on the return journey. Carol continued on his motorcycle, with me, Lucas, and Mike leading the way in the Saturn, which at this point had racked up over 315,000 miles (we probably passed the 500k kilometer mark on the trip). From Seattle we drove around the Puget Sound, then cut into Olympic National Park near Port Angeles. The park has few through roads, but at least we'd see a corner of it along the 101. Partway through the park, the Saturn got cranky. What started as a small buzzing noise eventually turned the normal hum of the engine into something similar to a motorboat. From his motorcycle, Carol said the Saturn sounded like a bumble bee.

Carol on his motorcycle in Olympia National Park,
just before our problems with the Saturn began

The sound itself would only have been an annoyance if not for the loss of acceleration. From a dead stop, the Saturn struggled to climb even a 2-3% grade incline. Unfortunately, we were heading along a stretch of road with a handful of small towns, none bigger than a few thousand people. As long as the Saturn got up to speed, she'd be fine. So we tried to stop as little as possible and hoped we could make it to an auto shop (preferably a muffler place). Late that afternoon we pulled into Aberdeen, the big smoke of nearly 17,000 people. By that point, the repair shops had closed, and would also be shut the following day (Sunday). We checked out a campground nearby, but it was full. So we ended up puttering along in the darkness, looking for a campsite or just a field to pitch out tents. After vetoing a few potential spots, we sucked it up and paid for an Econo Lodge back by Highway 5.

By the time we got to Aberdeen, I thought she was done for;
we could barely make it up the bridge in town. This is just before
we made our way to the campsite which ended up being full

Our internet searches for a muffler shop open on Sunday--even in Portland--proved futile, so we made our way down the 5 to Eugene. That night we managed to find an actual campsite with open spots, and on Monday morning we took the Saturn into a shop in Eugene. After a couple hours of work she was good to go and we were on our way back to the coast!

We took the morning to explore the University of Oregon's campus

At the muffler shop (the owner of the car fixes up old classics for resale)

Scenery along the coast of Southern Oregon

On Monday evening we lucked out with another campsite with an open spot, this one just outside of Brookings, in Southwest Oregon. The scenery along the coast was amazing, the Saturn was cooperative, and we were in good spirits. The next day, however, car issues returned. We first took a detour to the Avenue of the Giants, a picturesque stretch of road through a redwood forest, and things seemed normal. Once we were back on the coast heading to San Francisco, however, we again lost acceleration--no bueno on the hilly seaside route. Somehow the Saturn made it up the hills (there were a few I thought we'd have to push). At one point we contemplated just setting up our tents on the beach, but we persevered and rolled into Matty's place just before midnight.

Beach near our campsite in Oregon

Avenue of the Giants in Humboldt State Park


From left, Lucas, Mike, and Carol (Jonathan)

Back on the coast heading south to San Francisco

Matt's parents live in the Haight-Ashbury, a trendy neighborhood famous as the center of the hippie counterculture movement in the 1960s. When his parents bought their house back in the 1980s, the Haight, and much of San Francisco in general, had a seedy reputation. Today the neighborhood still has its fair share of bums, but good luck finding any cheap apartments or houses. Less than a block away from their house were dozens of shops, restaurants, and bars, so it was a great spot to walk around and explore after a much needed rest the first night.

We planned to stay for two nights--the 2nd and 3rd of July--but ended up sticking around for the 4th as well. Matt actually left on the 4th to go to Tahoe, but his parents were happy to host us for another night. A friend of mine from college also lives in San Francisco, so Mike and I spend time visiting him. Plus it was great to have one more night indoors with a proper shower. On the morning of the 5th, we grudgingly packed up the Saturn and headed south along the Pacific Coast Highway. 

View of downtown from the Twin Peaks; the Haight is
to the left of the small hill, just outside the photo

The rooftop of my friend Dan's apartment downtown

On Matty's roof for 4th of July; what a lovely San Francisco summer!

The PCH south of San Francisco was gorgeous, but swamped with tourists and traffic. It was for that reason I preferred the stretch to the north, especially in Southern Oregon. Despite the traffic, we still enjoyed the scenery, and although the Saturn wasn't on its best form, it certainly was happier after resting in San Francisco. By the evening of the 5th, we made it to San Luis Obispo, but again ran into the issue of campsites that were completely booked. After searching in vain we decided to set up out tents at a site near Santa Maria. The grounds were supposedly full, but we found an open spot with a broken park table (the office was already closed when we got there, so there was no way to ask anyone about it). Our plan was to leave at the crack of dawn before the office opened, but before we made it out the morning inspector found us. In the end, we just paid him for the night and went on our way, so no biggie; in that case we would have slept more!

Photos from the PCH:




Mike at a payphone at Big Sur State Park


It was a good thing we got on the road early. According to Google Maps, the drive from Santa Maria to San Diego should take less than 6 hours (this is even accounting for some traffic). On Saturday the 6th traffic actually wasn't too heavy, but it took us a solid 10 hours. We did tend to stop a lot even when the Saturn was on its best behavior, but on the last leg home she was uncooperative to say the least. The computer registered a problem, and forced the engine into what some call 'limp mode.' in other words, the Saturn refused to rev up into higher gear (not sure if it was an issue with the cylinders as well). To reset the computer and trick it into normal mode we started unplugging and reconnecting the battery. Some of the time it worked. Sometimes it didn't. Even when it did, it was only a temporary fix, so we were stopping repeatedly. 

Lucas posing with the Saturn on one of our many stops

We used a mini bat to prop up the hood

When we finally made it to San Diego I was as happy as a kid on Christmas. Maybe not happy as much as just relieved we made it. We were all exhausted, but to celebrate we met up with a classmate for his graduation party and then crossed over for a night out in Tijuana. Sunday I ended up having a few beers in Pacific Beach, so by Monday I was ready for hibernation. Since I had already moved out of my apartment, I crashed at Lucas's place until my flight Tuesday afternoon.

The last couple weeks on the West Coast were a wild ride, but a fitting ending to my nearly 2 years in San Diego. Once I got back to Ohio I was able to recuperate and then prepare for my next adventure: moving to Tokyo (more on that soon)!

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