Before we started out on this road trip, I seriously pondered, am I brave or foolish not to have rung ahead and booked hotel rooms?  After all not everyone is dog friendly. Luckily we had no problems getting rooms and only had to sleep in one seriously dodgy place. It was the stuff of horror movies, the type of roadside motel where putting a chair against the doorknob didn’t quite feel right. I pushed the desk across the door. Ted naturally went into full guard dog mode and barked at every bat, cricket, and night creature that went by. It was a long night, but now free of Oregon’s fleas, we were in the land dreams are made of. When we got to Northern California we had to stop to see the Giant Redwoods.

There is not one single photograph that man can take that can possibly match or even come near to the breathtaking glory of these trees that have lived hundreds of years. You want to hug them, but that is physically impossible.  To circle the width of the tree, it would take four people with long arms all stretched out. All you can do is put your hand on the tree and feel the power of history.

Nature’s Giants

Of course we had to do our touristy bit and drive the red beast through a tree! Ted suck it in! I swear, I held my breath going through this, even though it was wide enough for my car to pass through.

Crumbs will I fit?

We wanted to hike in the Redwoods, but a Forest Ranger quickly spotted ferocious and terrifying Teddy. He strode over and firmly told us,  Ted was not allowed on the trails! I protested, he’s on a lead and I have a hundred potty bags on me! We pack out what we pack in! But nothing could persuade him to let us on the trail.  We were gutted to say the least! According to the ranger,  deer attack people more often when they have dogs with them. So no trails for us.  Mean and awful Teddy got into a little ummph, and off we set for the Californian coast.

I loved California’s early morning sea fog that burns off by midday. But there were times driving down the Californian Coast, that I thought, this is it. I am going to crash off the side of the road. When you come down out of the woods on to the coast line there are stretches where literally, you are driving on the coast! Look to your right and vertigo sets in! To make things more exciting, Ted got super antsy. He hates motorcycles and we were being passed by a pack of a hundred roaring bikes. The bikers were all going to an event and some of them, I swear had a death wish! At one point it looked as if one of the bikes had gone off the road. But when we turned the bend, the puff of dirt was still in the air, but the whine of the bike was way ahead of us. I was well pleased when we left the bikers behind. No doubt scared off by Ted’s awful growls!

It was time for a break and we stopped in Eureka and fell in love with the Victorian architecture that so reminded me of Cape May New Jersey.

I was eager to push on and get to Cannery Row and Monterrey but along the way, Ted poor Ted, got the fright of his life! He was terrified.

Too Much for Teddy!

Ted, at the first smell, let alone sight of the seals sunning themselves on the beach, fell into a quivering mess in my arms. The roar of the seals on the beach and the ground shaking beneath our feet was too much for him. Trembling from the tip of his tail to his ears, I cuddled him in my arms, and we took off.  He’s not keen on big fishy things!

By the time we got to Monterey, we decided to just drive to Santa Barbara via the motor way, without little side trips.  It was getting too hot for a little dog. At Santa Barbara we stopped long enough for something cool to drink and then  it was time to get on the motor way and head back to Seattle. I would like to see Santa Barbara properly as it looked amazing.  Another time perhaps.  It was a fabulous trip and Teddy, although he never was brave enough to tackle a seal,   he was brave enough to try to carry a big stick!

Sometimes you just have to bring it home with you!