West Coast, Best Coast

Growing up in California, I had a specifically spatial concept of cardinal directions. West wasn't so much a point on a compass but rather, West was were the ocean stretched to the horizon. When I lived in Maine, this unassailable sense of place tripped me up constantly. I had to really focus to remember that East Coast was an actual coast, on an actual though far inferior ocean. In Vermont, I could at least rely on Lake Champlain defining the state's western border; west is water, even if that water is sadly lacking in waves, salt and the demonstration of infinity.

This mentality of West Coastness is still so ingrained in me that in the cortex of my reptilian brain, I am subconsciously reassured that whatever weird places people are putting their oceans in other parts of the globe, California got it correct. Everything is normal in California.

So when I first encountered Oregonians and Washingtonians years ago, I didn't even realize my inherent bias. As far as I was concerned, the Pacific was California's ocean, and we were generous to let those other states park themselves near it. I was shocked to discover that people from Oregon and Washington didn't take too kindly to my Californiacentrism, which was reinforced without subtly when I tried to pump my own gas in Oregon.

Fast-forward to January 2018: I got my little car with Vermont license plates out of storage in the Pacific Northwest and road tripped down the entire West Coast from Seattle to San Diego. The new layer of geography personification was that I imagined that Vermont plate created instant goodwill around me. Who doesn't love Vermont?! And at the very least, it papered over my California roots. If I did something stupid, they wouldn't immediately curse the entire behemoth state to the south.

Two themes of my road trip emerged: 1) reconnecting with friends and family, and 2) camping and quality time in nature. I made fast tracks all the way south, but even without time to linger the days were filled with stunning sights and fantastic reunions.

WASHINGTON

Who parks a Lime Bike way out at the end of a deserted peninsula in a rainstorm? Seriously, who does that?

Very cool floating pathway that wiggles across water and scraggly bits of exposed land from Foster Point to East Montlake, Seattle.

And here at the University of Washington Boathouse and Montlake Cut, I could only think about The Boys In The Boat.

Huge puddles and slippery footing all the way through the Arboretum.

OREGON

Witch's Castle, Forest Park, Portland. If I lived here, I would run in this park forever.

I came *this close* to putting Lila the Cat in the tote bag and whisking her away on my road trip. What a sweetheart!

Vancouver, Washington. Not having any of it.

Star Trees in Salem, on the north edge of the Willamette University campus. Big time high school nostalgia here.

Lo, the only state capitol I saw on this trip. Not so much interested in architecture, are we Oregon?

Hayward Field pilgrimage. (University of Oregon campus, Eugene.)

Stop Pre. (Coos Bay.)

Native Oregonians.

Ok, it's pretty hard to deny that Oregon's coast is also pretty fantastic.

CALIFORNIA

Humboldt Redwoods State Park

Trail run in the Rockefeller grove turned into endless gawking at old growth forest.

Humboldt Redwoods State Park

These trees are not small.

Humboldt Redwoods State Park

Mini Cooper! With big trees!

Marin Headlands

My first return since attempting the North Face 50 miler. The hike this time was significantly easier....

San Francisco

California Street!

San Francisco

Incredible view, just before the sun dipped below the horizon.

San Francisco

Santa Cruz

New Brighton State Park. I hadn't planned for s'mores but the campground host gave me free firewood, and another camper gave me matches and it was like the universe was telling me something.

Big Sur

This funky promontory is home to a historic lighthouse, an rock jutting out from the coast, with red shaggy cows grazing in the meadow. I pulled over to to gawp at the sight of it, and decided in less than 45 seconds that I need to find a way to live at that lighthouse for a few months.

Big Sur

Cows! I haven't seen cows in so long!

Big Sur

You gotta be kidding me. Nearby a sign read, "Next gas: 40 miles."

Big Sur

This red arrow points to two campsites on a cliff overlooking McWay Falls, part of at Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. Major hat tip to my friend Walter who told me about this!

Big Sur

View from my campsite at Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park.

Big Sur

Notoriously, capturing distant images at night is not easy on a iPhone. But this near full moon was so crazy intense, it almost shows up in this picture!

Salinas

The woman who sold me an entrance ticket at the John Steinbeck National Center asked, "Is it your first visit here?" "No," I said. "It's more like visiting an old friend." (This particular mannequin of Steinbeck in the gift shop isn't his best look.)

Central Coast

Morro Bay! I had heard this name and seen it on a map, but didn't know what to expect. So pretty!

Central Coast

Another spectacular California sunset. This one was followed nine hours later by a lunar eclipse, with the full moon hanging high in the western sky above the ocean. All night it was so, so bright that it seemed like the lights were on outside my tent. And then in the hours between 3:00-5:00 a.m. the sky went dark and the moon faded and turned red.

Central Coast

Morro Rock at Morro Bay. (I have conveniently cropped out the power plant just to the left of this scene....)

Central Coast.

San Luis Obispo's bubblegum wall. Huh.

Central Coast

Tidepools in Goleta, Coal Oil Point. Anenomes everywhere!

Central Coast

A high school science class was there too, and found these "sea hairs." (I would call them enormous slugs, but tomato-tomahto.)

Central Coast

Anenomes out of water, all closed up and waiting for the tide to rescue them.

Central Coast

Evening run in Isla Vista: I noticed these orange trees and lavender shrubs are growing in the sidewalk beauty strip. How cool is that?!

REUNIONS!

Portland

One the funniest people I know, Bill Beadie.

Larkspur

Heidi and Robin, friends from Vermont, treated me to 16 scoops of weird ice cream, including olive tapenade. Curiously good!

San Francisco

Lisa, friend from Antarctica and many adventures since. Inspiring athlete, clear-thinking sorter of priorities, genuinely good person and general badass.

Goleta

Cousins! Jami and her mom Penny are the closest connection I have to the large, festive brood that I think of as "the Santa Barbara cousins." When I got in Jami's car, she asked, "What has been, 30 years?" Pretty close, I hadn't seen them in about 25 years and it was awesome to catch up.

Goleta

Fun two-degrees of separation: my cousin Jami knows my high school friend Yael through their kids' sports teams. I hadn't seen Yael since... 1992??? So fun to share brunch and JSA memories.

Washington, D.C.

1992, Yael and me at Junior State summer school at Georgetown. (Don't be jealous of the hat.)