THE MENDOCINO COAST AND THE SKUNK TRAIN
Summer 2017
Normally when the temperatures start setting records and the western fires begin, we head for the mountains and Lake Tahoe but Nancy heard a train whistle so this time we were off to the California coast.
California State Route 20
SR20 starts at I-80 just west of the crest of the Sierras and goes due west to Fort Bragg and the Pacific Ocean. We joined the route at the Yuba Gap where it begins and drove west to where SR49 crosses the road at Nevada City. Here SR20 turns into a four lane freeway for the short ride through Grass Valley.
These two towns preserve the history and the look of the Gold Rush era and are a popular destination for tourists, especially at Christmas time. Nevada, of course, is the Spanish word for snow-covered, so these twin cities are really Snowy City and Grass(y) Valley and I have never been clear on whether the names are 49er humor or simply a lack of imagination.
SR20 continues west down through the foothills to Marysville and Yuba City crossing the Feather River by way of multiple turns on city streets. Marysville's claim to fame is that is home to Beale AFB.
Continuing west we crossed the Sacramento River and then I-5 well into the Sacramento Valley. Further on we reached the north shore of Clear Lake which is a totally fascinating place.
It is billed as "the largest natural freshwater lake entirely in California," which is really making a fine distinction -- Tahoe is on the border with Nevada, Mono is saline-soda, Salton Sea is neither natural nor freshwater and Shasta, Oroville, Trinity New Melones, San Luis, Don Pedro, Berryessa, and Almanor, while all larger, are also all dammed reservoirs.
But still, Clear Lake is well-known for its bass fishing ("Bass Capital of the West") and seemed a very pleasant place. We stopped for an excellent lunch at the Blue Wing restaurant in old-town Upper Clear Lake and were struck by the fact that in the middle of July there was hardly anyone around.
We
knew the area had been hard hit by the recession and the drought, but
the lake was now full and inviting and it wasn't until we looked further
into it that we discovered that none of this overcomes its biggest
problem which is mercury.
It seems that a now-abandoned mercury mine at the end of one of the forks of the lake is still contaminating the water.
Pregnant women and children are advised not to eat the bass, and given that this is California, the result is that many people are now reluctant to even boat on the water let alone enter it. And a further result is the supposedly growing social issues but we really didn't see a lot of that on the north shore.
Beyond Clear Lake, SR20 joins with US101 north to Willits where it split off again to continue west. We drove under the Willits' arch in the center of town and were surprised to learn its history.
Reno has had three arches. The original was moved to Lake Street where it still stands and the third is the current and official arch over Virginia Street, but the second was donated to Willits where it was slightly modified with the town name and the slogan "Gateway to the Redwoods."
A left turn just after the arch continues SR20 through old growth redwoods on the way to Fort Bragg and the California coast. There was little bit of excitement on this section of SR20.
First, we were forced to slow down and drive off the road to get around an accident involving a Brink's Armored Truck and two cars. It didn't look like there had been any injuries but they were going to have to wait a while for a tow truck able to deal with that Brink's vehicle.
Later we were surprised to see a hawk swoop down across the road in front of us, snatch a mouse in his talons, and then soar back into the trees across our hood. We could see it all clearly as he carried the poor mouse with its tail hanging down.
We now own a dash cam to be ready for future surprises and I only wish we had had it for this trip!
The Skunk Train
We have been trying to ride this former logging train for a few years but they seem to have continual natural and financial problems. Even now, one of the two tunnels is closed so it is not possible to make the entire journey from Redwoods to Seashore like Roaring Camp.
Even their concessionaire was out of commission so we were advised to pack our own lunch which actually turned out to be a fun thing to do as we ate among the giant redwoods.
The trip itself was quite enjoyable as we traveled into the backwoods passing some of the off-grid homesteads that Mendocino county is so famous for. Not my style but it was interesting to see some of the remote cabins.
(Later we visited the Real Goods Store and Solar Living Center in Hopland where you can fully outfit your escape from the hassles of modern life if your trust fund is big enough to afford it.)
The Skunk is a flag-stop route like the Alaska Railroad but the only passengers we picked up were fellow tourists from the KOA Campground just outside of town (and a very nice KOA it was, with two swimming pools and an outdoor movie theater).
Fort Bragg
We once camped on the Sonoma coast in June so we were well prepared for heavy, all day fog in Fort Bragg but we really had good weather there. There was the typical morning fog, but the sun broke through well before noon and we had warm temperatures and blue skies and enjoyed exploring the Mendocino coast. Public access is really quite extensive and coast trails are well-maintained with some great vistas.
We explored south to the Point Cabrillo Lighthouse which went into service in 1909, more than 50 years after the first of many wrecks on the reef just north of the point. The first and most famous wreck was the square-masted brig, the Frolic. It went down in 1850 and was only found a hundred years later and one of its recovered cannons is now on display in the lighthoue.
The 240 gallon seawater aquarium on the property was a fascinating surprise for us with star fish and anemones and a caretaker who really enjoyed his job. The Lighthouse Keeper's cabin is now a museum, but two other cabins and two out-buildings are available for rent and these are quite popular destinations in early spring at the height of whale-watching season.
Swooping hawks and aquarium residents weren't the only wildlife we spotted on this trip. As we drove down to the lighthouse, we saw three wild turkeys trotting across someone's lawn. This was the first time I had ever seen them in California.
We returned to Fort Bragg for lunch and ate at an outdoor fish shack at the mouth of the Noyo River. The port here is an active hub for commercial fisherman and just a little farther upstream was the Caito Fisheries, one of the few remaining fish processing plants on the west coast. Picturesque and a working port, Fort Bragg has it all.
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(All photos are Nancy's great work. Tim forgot his camera.)
