Tues 19/6 – 7859 steps and a good cycle (16 flights of stairs)
We drove a short distance to Monteray, where we stopped to walk along the pier and visit some museums and have lunch. It was very interesting. David reckons maintenance of the pier is not great if you look at columns below.
All the restaurants display their wares and offer free samples of chowder. We had lunch at one of them who had the most delicious sample, (I think it was the added bacon). We order a small bowl of chowder to share and also got a complimentary side of calamari. And this was just the starter! We obviously boycotted the restaurant which did not allow the high chairs. Not all little ones are badly behaved.
What amazes me is the amount of candy stores here. Not sure where USA stands on sugar tax, but eating sweets seems to be a way of life. Along the short pier, there were at least 3 candy store. The cherries in chocolate were delicious.
I also love the wooden fisherman you find all over the place.
We also saw the first brick house in California and went to Cannery row, which is the old sardine factories which have been transformed into trendy stores and vibey restaurants. We had great fun in a mirror maze. I am sure the whole space was only 3m x 4m but it took at least half and hour to find our way out.
The route we travelled on covers part of the original route between the 11 missions of California. There are commemorative bells all along the way – very interesting history. Again the scale of farming was amazing. You often see long lines of cars parked along the fields. All the workers who pick and pack strawberries, lettuces etc, drive to the field they are working on. There are also trailers with portable toilets.
We also came across Camp Roberts, a military not a party place. We did not visit.
Finally we arrived at our camp and it was early enough to still go for a cycle. They have an awesome cycle track which took us through a forest, along a golf course and onto the beach. We did a great cycle and I beat David up a hectic hill. I did have to pedal very hard in lowest gear with highest motor power and I am sure my heart rate hit the roof, but I got to the top first! We cycled out on a wooden pier that loads ferries and found Fatcats and lazy, noisy seals. Epic day.
What I learnt: We were surprised to see oil wells, but apparently California is the fourth largest provider of oil in USA.
It is hard to get David out of a museum!
Kim's journey 