Bodega Bay

Before our trip, I had never heard of Bodega Bay, California. It is a small coastal town about 70 miles north of San Francisco with a population of 950. I love Bodega Bay. You feel completely cut off from the rest of the world and it has provided some of the most magnificent views we have seen since being on the road.

Our first day here we jumped in the car and took a little road trip, well, if you consider 150 miles little, but again, that's how we roll. We took Hwy. 1 south and passed through an a little town called Tomales, known for their oysters. Tomales Bay, apparently, is perfect for harvesting cold water oysters, which we tried. They are smaller than the ones we get back East, but they are tasty. From there we drove all along the coast until we reached the northern part of San Fran. We stopped at Murr Beach, which was used during WWII after the attack on Pearl Harbor and there are still bunkers in the side of the mountain where the military posted up to defend our country. It was very interesting. The road hugged dangerously close to the edge of the cliff and proved to be a bit nerve racking for me at times, but the view was incredible.

Yesterday we decided to hang around Bodega Bay instead of driving around a lot...this was a wonderful choice. Early in the morning as we were sitting outside enjoying our coffee, our RV neighbor came over and told us that there is a pod of whales off Bodega Head and the sightings were amazing. Well, enough said! We hopped into the car, stopped at a very small and quaint coffee shop for Lattes and Sticky Buns then down to the harbor to see some whales. Ahhh. It was perfect. What an amazing thing to witness. I could have sat there all day long, and some do with their chairs, coolers, cameras and binoculars. We then walked around Bodega Head and just enjoyed the scenery and sounds. The ocean here is very loud, yet so soothing. We kept hearing seals, so we continued to walk until we reached the area where we saw a small island in the bay that housed many, many loud seals. They are so funny! Very loud and opinionated. It was great.

Our RV Park has a trail that goes through an adjacent State Park called Bodega Dunes and then leads to the beach, so we decided to try that out. Along the way we came upon a memorial called "The Children's Bell Tower." It is a metal tower that has probably 100 bells hanging from it, with a large one in the middle. The story is that in 1994 a family from Bodega Bay traveled to Italy and while there, they were caught in the middle of a highway robbery where their 7 year old son was shot and killed. The parents graciously donated his organs to seven Italians, which, saved their lives. The people of the town where the shooting took place, were so touched, they made bells, the largest one being blessed by Pope John Paul II and sent them to the family in Bodega Bay, where this memorial was erected. It is pretty powerful.

Off we continued to the beach. It was about a mile walk but the beach was really something to behold. Tons of drift wood, wide beach and crashing waves. We walked a bit with me taking tons of photos of everything and then found a spot to rest and enjoy the views. We found a long log and used that as a head rest and I immediately fell asleep. Not long, about 10 minutes, but it was great. The warm sun combined with the warm sand under me, made for perfect sleeping conditions with the cool breeze and lulling sound of the waves.

We then headed back to the RV to relax a bit. I did laundry (exciting, eh?) and then we were off to watch the sun set. Last night was also full moon, so we were blessed to see both the sun set and the moon rise at the same time. We drove up the road a bit and found a great spot to park on a cliff overlooking the ocean and behind us were those wonderful soft hills. As the sun was setting, James turned around JUST in time to notice the moon peaking over one of the hills. Man, I just couldn't believe it! So beautiful! What an amazing way to spend our last night in Bodega Bay. We will return to this wonderful little town by the sea, that is for sure.

Today marks the beginning of the primitive part of our stay, as I mentioned in the earlier post. We ask you all to pray for safe travels and sturdy equipment (RV and car), as the roads will be quite curvy, steep and narrow. We have spoken with other RVer's who have made this drive and they all say it can be done, but we have to go slow, slow, slow. That is easy, we are in no hurry! Our first stop is about 120 miles north of here in a state park that offers spaces on the shore, but again, we aren't sure if we will have cell/internet service, so please don't worry too much if you don't hear from us for a few days.

So, until then...stay safe, be happy and know we love and miss you all so very much!