{"id":962,"date":"2013-02-22T05:53:09","date_gmt":"2013-02-22T05:53:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?p=962"},"modified":"2014-01-30T16:13:47","modified_gmt":"2014-01-30T16:13:47","slug":"february-21-2013","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?p=962","title":{"rendered":"February 21, 2013 &#8211; California Highway 101 Driving Through the Redwoods"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>I love driving in California\u2026most of it anyway. If you don\u2019t like the terrain, drive a half hour and it will change. We started out driving the freeway through the rice fields, some still green, some brown with piles of brush burning in the distance, some full of water waiting for the green to pop up. For almost an hour is was almond trees. Some young ones being held up with posts while the owners no doubt prayed that they took hold. Then mature trees that are most likely producing a crop. Scattered throughout were very old, pruned mature trees. I remember my grandfather\u2019s almond orchard had a few very old trees left to provide shade for the workers. Another hour and we were driving\u00a0past neat rows of fruit trees covered with blossoms. When we reached the mountains and wound down to the lake, the grassy area was dotted with buffalo.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?attachment_id=970\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-970\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Rice Fields\" src=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Rice-Fields-150x99.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"99\" \/><\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?attachment_id=968\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-968\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fruit Blossoms\" src=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Fruit-Blossoms-150x99.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"99\" \/><\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?attachment_id=972\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-972\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Snow on the mountains\" src=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Snow-on-the-mountains-150x99.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"99\" \/><\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?attachment_id=964\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-964\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-964\" alt=\"Beginning of the sharp turnes\" src=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Beginning-of-the-sharp-turnes-150x99.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"99\" srcset=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Beginning-of-the-sharp-turnes-150x99.jpg 150w, http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Beginning-of-the-sharp-turnes-300x198.jpg 300w, http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Beginning-of-the-sharp-turnes-452x300.jpg 452w, http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Beginning-of-the-sharp-turnes.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?attachment_id=969\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-969\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Lake Mendocino\" src=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Lake-Mendocino-150x99.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"99\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?attachment_id=966\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-966\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-966\" alt=\"Buffalo through bugs on the window\" src=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Buffalo-through-bugs-on-the-window-150x99.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"99\" srcset=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Buffalo-through-bugs-on-the-window-150x99.jpg 150w, http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Buffalo-through-bugs-on-the-window-300x198.jpg 300w, http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Buffalo-through-bugs-on-the-window-452x300.jpg 452w, http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Buffalo-through-bugs-on-the-window.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?attachment_id=967\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-967\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-967\" alt=\"Clear Lake\" src=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Clear-Lake-150x99.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"99\" srcset=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Clear-Lake-150x99.jpg 150w, http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Clear-Lake-300x198.jpg 300w, http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Clear-Lake-452x300.jpg 452w, http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Clear-Lake.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?attachment_id=975\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-975\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-thumbnail wp-image-975\" alt=\"Up and down the hills\" src=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Up-and-down-the-hills-150x99.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"99\" srcset=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Up-and-down-the-hills-150x99.jpg 150w, http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Up-and-down-the-hills-300x198.jpg 300w, http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Up-and-down-the-hills-452x300.jpg 452w, http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Up-and-down-the-hills.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>By the time we reached Hwy 101 anticipation of a smooth highway and the end of narrow roads brightened my thoughts. Then I realized that this was the exact same highway that Liz and I took to my fathers about six years ago and I remembered an insanely narrow and twisty road through huge Redwoods and then winding around vertical ocean cliffs. Steep grades up and down, narrow areas that warned \u201c 20 mile an hour curves\u201d and \u201croad narrows\u201d followed by a big sign that read \u201cshare the road\u201d and a picture of a bicycle. Huh? Who are they kidding? Six years ago I was uncomfortable driving a full sized car through this area and now I\u2019m maneuvering 65 feet through the same road? Pit in my stomach, white knuckles, stiff neck but not wanting to stop and prolong the agony, I drove from 11:00 am to 6:00 pm, one stop, while John snapped pictures and ooed and awed over the scenery.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?attachment_id=971\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-971\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Sharp turnes and narrow roads\" src=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Sharp-turnes-and-narrow-roads-150x99.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"99\" \/><\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?attachment_id=974\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-974\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Twisting roads\" src=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Twisting-roads-150x99.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"99\" \/><\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?attachment_id=973\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-973\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Tiny towns tucked into the shoulders\" src=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Tiny-towns-tucked-into-the-shoulders-150x99.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"99\" \/><\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?attachment_id=965\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-965\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Big Foot\" src=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Big-Foot-150x99.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"99\" \/><\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?attachment_id=963\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-963\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Around the redwoods\" src=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Around-the-redwoods-150x99.jpg\" width=\"150\" height=\"99\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>When I finally pulled into our RV Park and we set up for the next two nights, John toasted the trip with a bottle of Zinfandel from our Harvest Host visit, claiming it was a relaxing drive with a spectacular view. Thoughts of bopping him over the head with the bottle were hard to suppress.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I love driving in California\u2026most of it anyway. If you don\u2019t like the terrain, drive a half hour and it will change. We started out driving the freeway through the rice fields, some still green, some brown with piles of &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/?p=962\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-962","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-lilypad"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/962","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=962"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/962\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":977,"href":"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/962\/revisions\/977"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=962"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=962"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/perrellas.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=962"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}