Day Ten – Gimme Shelter (Cove) – Monkeybutt Chronicles

After our publication last evening, we went down to the lobby to enjoy dessert but the room was locked tight. We asked the front desk why they weren’t serving dessert and she said, very indignantly that it was from Thursday thru Saturday. When we pointed out that the sign said Sunday, she said we didn’t want it anyway because it wasn’t very good. That’s selling it!

We hit the road at 8:30 and asked the Garmin to take us on an Adventure route. It took us through the mountains above Applegate. At one point we even had the dirt road we had wanted to try. After about a mile of it, we returned to tarmac and rode into Jacksonville.

In Oregon, marjiauna growing is legal with some limitations attached. We would often get a whiff of the skunky smell and then see a twelve foot fence or covered greenhouse.

At Grants Pass we hopped on Hwy. 101 South. We stayed on 101, also known as the Redwood Highway, for over 200 miles. This road winds through the Redwood National and State Parks in California. The redwood groves are dark and imposing but absolutely beautiful.

We crossed over the Smith and Eel Rivers and traveled through forests of redwoods, wild rhododendrons and pink pampas. It was such a beautiful ride.

Finally we broke through the forest and saw the Pacific.

We stopped in Crescent City for lunch at a brewery called SeaQuake. We had a hot bowl of clam chowder and split an order of fish tacos. Delicious!

Soon, we were on a very winding road that was under construction with a lot of loose gravel. Ugh. We had about ten miles of loose gravel with much of it downhill and on sharp turns.

With Tom’s expert riding skills, we made it to Shelter Cove with no problem. We checked in to our hotel and sat on the deck to enjoy the beautiful views.

We looked into alternatives to getting back to 101 tomorrow and discovered that there is only one way in and out so we will white-knuckle it again tomorrow and we can’t blame Zumo, because this is the only road.

We took a walk to the only restaurant in the cove and stopped to look at the lighthouse that was relocated from Cape Mendocino.

Over dinner, we enjoyed the sunset while watching deer graze on the air strip near the restaurant. And, Tom finally got his root beer float!

Tonight we will fall asleep to waves crashing on the shore outside our room. We will take our time getting out tomorrow since it’s a relatively short day.