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Highway 1 between Fort Bragg and Bodega Bay
A completely different experience than the desert landscapes of the American Southwest.
And honestly? We may be a little more into the desert.
Don’t get me wrong: the views were impressive and the coastline has its undeniable charm.
Still, the long, winding road along the ocean, the distinctly touristy and therefore unavoidable commercial character of the Highway and the limited accessibility of large parts of the coast detracted somewhat from the experience here and there.
Clearly not for others, given the many tourists who come here.
But the desert feels different to us.
There, the space seems endless and you get the time to let the landscape work on you quietly.
There is silence, emptiness and a feeling of freedom that is difficult to describe.
You are not only looking at the landscape; you are part of it, as it were.
And although the temperatures often rise mercilessly high, the dry heat feels very different from the oppressive, humid heat that we know so well in Europe.
Glass beach
Much of California’s coastline is not freely accessible. Some pieces are privately owned, others are part of paying state parks.
Fortunately, in Fort Bragg you can walk freely to the coast.
The most famous attraction is undoubtedly Glass Beach, known for pieces of sea glass that have been smoothed by the ocean due to years of erosion.
But as with our search for trilobites and garnets, the loot here was extremely meagre.
Many decades of beachcombers have already thoroughly combed the beach…
But the stretch of coast here is beautiful and several families and day trippers spend a beautiful day at the sea here.
Fort Bragg
Fort Bragg itself felt remarkably accessible and casual, especially compared to the somewhat mundane character of places like Mendocino and Bodega Bay.
There is an exclusive atmosphere there that also translates into the prices.
Overnight stays often only start from 250 dollars per night, while gasoline, shops and farmers’ markets are also noticeably more expensive.
And yet nowhere during our trip did we see so many tourists as along Highway 1.
Mendocino
We also stopped in Mendocino and Bodega Bay, for a stroll through the farmers’ market and a healthy muffin, made with 6 types of flour and blueberries.
The taste took some getting used to, but the mouthfeel was good.
Point Cabrillo
However, the places that stayed with us the most could be found elsewhere: the quiet walking area around the lighthouse of Point Cabrillo for example:
Point Arena-Stornetta
Or the Point Arena-Stornetta Public Lands area, where the ocean crashes against the rocky coast with impressive force.
Greenwood State Beach
At Greenwood State Beach we collected pieces of driftwood, with the idea of making something creative with them at home.
Diagonally opposite the parking lot is a beautiful bookcase. The books in it were also interesting.
For a concept that would have come from America, I strangely enough encountered very few during our trip.
Highway 1
The Californian coast is known for its misty character and does not always show its most beautiful side.
We were lucky. In the course of the afternoon, the sun broke through the cloud cover, causing a series of beautiful views to unfold along Highway 1.
Jenner
One of the most beautiful we found was the view near Jenner, where the Russian River flows into the Pacific Ocean and river, coast and ocean flow into each other.
Bodega Bay
At Bodega Bay (where The Birds was filmed) we finally left the coast and drove inland towards Sausalito.
If you were to follow Highway 1 further to San Francisco, you will pass some of Northern California’s most famous nature reserves, including Point Reyes and Muir Woods National Monument, famous for its impressive redwood forests.
Emma
And where San Francisco is known for its flower-power vibe, Joshua National Tree Park is known for its christ trees. Read more about this in our next story.