California!

A little Saturday fun at the Oakland Zoo

Late Wednesday morning we said our goodbyes to Ben at the Tampa Airport.  He headed back to Texas while we made our way to California.  Southwest doesn't currently fly nonstop to Northern California from Tampa.  We usually route through Denver, Phoenix or Dallas, however this time we went through Atlanta.  Usually we fly into San Francisco but this time we flew into Oakland.  Sarah, Joey and James live in Novato, which is north of San Francisco.  There's plenty of traffic to go around but my preference, especially if we're going to have a rental car is the Oakland airport. Getting a rental car out and back into SFO is a little challenging.
Although we had seen Sarah, Joey and James just a little over a month ago in Florida, it's always exciting.  We really enjoy watching his face light up when he sees us.  This time Beth decided to "surprise" him once we got to their house.  Beth jumped out of the car (after I stopped it) and hid.  I blew the horn, which brought Sarah and James out of the house.  Beth jumped out from behind the garage which was a big joyful surprise to James...…..and Sarah.  Thankfully she didn't drop him!
Sarah and Joey had work on Thursday and James had "school'.  We had a few options that we discussed for the day before deciding on driving up the Pacific Coast Highway through Sonoma Coast State Park to the small community of Jenner (not named after Bruce or Kaitlyn).
It was a beautiful sunny day, which has been rare out here in recent months.  The "drought" that had lasted for several years is officially over for now.  In this part of California that means that the wildfires have been replaced by mudslides.  Thankfully there was no mud sliding, although we did see a couple of coastal houses that unfortunately have been condemned.  It's not a question of "if" they are going to slide into the ocean, only a matter of "when".
The drive from Novato to Jenner goes through Petaluma before hitting Highway 1 (Pacific Coast Highway).  We've driven this before but are always surprised by just how rural it is, both inland and along the coast, even though San Francisco is only about 60 miles away.  The other thing that we always marvel at is the beauty of the California coast.  We're pretty much fans of any coast, but this one really is spectacular.  We enjoyed stopping at the Jenner Visitors Center, which is located on the Russian River just before it reaches the ocean.   The friendly volunteer offered several suggestions for lookouts, hikes and even a recommendation for lunch.  The overlooks were great, unfortunately the trails were still a little muddy from all the recent rains so we weren't able to take full advantage of them.  Hiking a little less than normal simply meant that we got to our lunch destination, Fisherman's Cove, which is located in Bodega Head a little earlier.  Not a bad trade off!

I think we're at the entrance to the Jenner Headlands Preserve

Waves and wildflowers!

Goat Rock Beach

Lunch at Fisherman's Cove......Clam Chowder, Fish and Chips and a Crab Sandwich

Bodega Head Trail

Along the Bodega Head Trail

We enjoyed keeping James Friday morning (his school is M-Th) while Joey ran some errands.  It was a chilly, rainy day so we weren't able to get outside, however, today (Saturday) has been a repeat of the sunny skies that we had Thursday.  All of us enjoyed spending the day at the Oakland Zoo, which is a very nice zoo.

MiMi and James with a rainy day activity!

Sarah, James, a goat and a kid sitting in a way I'll never be able to sit

The Martin's!

On the sky ride to the recently opened upper section of the Oakland Zoo

Animals to see + Things to Climb On =A Happy Boy!

Buffalo James...…...

We've said our goodbyes to Sarah, Joey and James.  It was a fantastic four days that passed quickly.  We are now at the hotel near the Oakland airport.  Tomorrow morning we fly to San Diego.  First up is a seven night Mexican Riviera cruise before we have a few days in San Diego.  I honestly can't tell you where we're going other than Cabo San Lucas.  I guess it's a good thing I'm not piloting the ship!