Who knew the coast was so long?

Day 18: July 14, 2009 – Side of the road, CA to Side of the road, CA

Thank God for strange Wildlife

Mike slept outside last night. Melissa slept in the back of the car. A nut fell out of the tree and hit Mike while he slept. Melissa would occasionally wake-up worried that someone had stolen Mike in the middle of the night, they did not.

Thankful for rest and for morning, we made it back on the road safely. As with yesterday we enjoyed the vast and changing beauty of the California coast. Like yesterday, we also had the chance to enjoy wildlife in its natural and wild habitat. You are now asking yourself, “Who is the star of today’s Wildlife episode?” The answer, a seagull and a starfish.

We took a small detour off the main highway to again enjoy the ocean and a spot called Goat Rock. As is generally the case, it’s a bit chilly by the water, especially in the morning but we were anxious to be out of the car and see what we could see. At that moment, Melissa spotted a seagull, but not just any seagull. This seagull is the sole inspiration of the Pirates of the Caribbean character, Davie Jones.

Starfish in mouth, the seagull watched us with careful eye. Mike, the intelligent man that he is, went for his camera so we could forever remember this moment. Our friend, Davie Jones would not, for a moment let go of his starfish. Fifteen to twenty minutes he held that thing in his small beaked mouth. Finally, he threw back his head and began to swallow the starfish. By the time we were in the car, Davie Jones had consumed an entire starfish. Whilst all this was going on, we were also able to see a couple pelicans down some fish and a seal, not an elephant seal – something cuter, swim bye to say hello.

Loving the quirky nature of…Nature, we hopped in the car and continued on our journey. By now, our journey was nearing the coastal redwoods. Our no-fail sign that we were in a new type of coastal environment was not simply the large trees but the sign which claimed we could drive through a large tree! So, for the sake of our sweet little Nav-E, we paid our $5 to drive through a tree, sit in a park, write postcards, nap, and eat ice cream and a polish sausage.

Having rejuvenated our tired bodies with food and rest we made our way into the heart of the redwoods while keeping our eyes open for free internet. We found the internet, posted blogs and made our way into the Redwoods National Park. Driving through the park to the opposite side we found a road, less travelled than Highway 1 where we could pitch our tent (finally a night out of the car) and make our way into a deep peaceful sleep amongst the steep mountains which are densely covered in Redwoods and other vegetation – ridiculous, Mike says, ridiculous.