Day Three - "The Winding Road" [August 23, 2004]
Starting City: Fort Bragg, CA
Ending City: Monterey, CA
Total Miles: 280 (approx)

Woke up early and started off with high anticipation and lots of fog in the air. However, the first half of the day was the most uninspiring segment of the trip what with endless miles of sharp turns and a not-worth-talking-about detour that made us drive 40-miles roundtrip + hike 1 mile + climb down&up 30 floors of steep stairs. All of this (over 3 hours!) for a 2-storey-high non-functional lighthouse at Point Reyes!!!! The beautiful view from the hilltop must be appreciated though.

Quickly drove down to SFO trying to leave behind the bad memories of the day. The remaining part of the day (from San Francisco) was quite another story. Maanasa got to eat ice-cream at her favorite Ghirardelli shop. Next stop was dinner at what could be America's coolest Taco Bell. The restaurant in Pacifica overlooks an ocean cove full of surfers and beach-combers.
The drive south of San Francisco was even more dramatic with lots of beaches--each unique in its own way--one full of surfers, another full of sail boats and yet another full of wind-surfers.
We briefly stopped at the very pretty Pigeon Point Lighthouse in Pescadero which was far better than the previous lighthouse stop. Too bad we could not stay in the adjoining hostel since we planned to drive as far was we could that night.

Stayed that night at a very nice hotel just a couple miles from the Monterey wharf.

Lodging: Mariposa Inn, Monterey, CA
Cost of lodging: 69$


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