MotoWolff

Fall 2022

Generally each year I take a ride down the coast on one of my bikes. This year the old 1200RT gets the call to ride! This bike gives great protection from the weather so when there is going to be mixed weather this is my go to bike!

Leaving Oregon City at about 8:30 am I headed south through the Willamette Valley. There are a number of ways to get across the river but on this day I took the Buena Vista ferry across the Willamette. A $2 boat ride keeps you away from the traffic!

The are lots of way to get over to the coast and some of the lesser known routes are often the best. Going south to Hwy 36 out of Eugene is one of the better routes. Lots of twisties, light traffic and great scenery. After a quick rest at Triangle Lake I was on my way, passing through towns like Greenleaf, Deadwood, Swisshome and Mapleton and arriving at the coast in the town of Florence.

Once you hit the coast in Oregon you are on Hwy 101 and heading south which can often be busy. I happened to be there on a Saturday and was expecting worse, but tourist traffic seems to subside a bit in October.

I love stopping for lunch at this Fish and Chips shop but it was pretty busy this weekend so I gave it a pass and decided to find something else down the coast. I know a few other places!

At the end of the first day I made it to Eureka Calif, about a 450 miles ride. The weather had been great all day on this Saturday which is often the case in October at the coast. The next morning though with an early start the sky was grey and a heavy dew covered everything, making it appear as if it had rained.

Hwy 101 south of Eureka is actually a nice stretch of road which winds through the Redwood forests of the region. With an early start on this Sunday morning I had it virtually to myself! About 90 miles south of Eureka at the Town of Leggett you come to the northern end of California Hwy 1. This pic above is where Hwy 1 first hits the coast south bound.

I made it down as far as Mendocino before I started to encounter any real traffic. From there on it would get worse with each mile I got closer to the Bay area. I crossed the Golden Gate Bridge in heavy traffic so did not get any pics this trip. Timing is everything! I finished the day in Marina California, a coastal town just north of Monterey.

It’s 7:00 am Monday morning when I leave south bound on Hwy 1 again, and this time the timing is perfect. The 120 mile run from Monterey to Cambria down the Big Sur coast and beyond is why I come this way. It is a world class, bucket list, to die for kind of ride. Having it virtually to myself is not by accident but by design. It is a little overcast but the roads are dry and I have it all to myself.

The little towns along the way become my mile markers. Carmel, Big Sur, Lucia, Gorda, Ragged Point and San Simeon all pass by in turn. I generally try to ride at a “sporting” pace and maintain a good margin for safety. Still, this 120 miles took about two and a half hours with stops. The part of the coast is remote which is reflected in the price of fuel.

The Elephant Seal viewpoint is a must stop along the way, just north of San Simeon. They are always here but it it early enough in the day still that there are not many tourists here yet. The seal watchers can outnumber the seals by 2 to 1 on some days.

Farther down the coast in Solvang I turn away from the water and ride over San Marcos Pass on Hwy 154, which drops me into Santa Barbara. Then on Hwy 150 to Ojai, the back way. I’m getting closer to the end now and it is more challenging to find the good roads and stay off the freeway.

Circling around greater the greater Los Angeles area on Highways 126, then 14 and 138 I find my last refuge from traffic and freeways. Taking Valyermo Rd in the town of Pearblossom leads to Big Pines Hwy on the north side of the San Gabriel Mtns for another 30 miles or so of twisties! After that its Interstate 15 the rest of the way to North County San Diego and another successful lap on the coast!