Extreme Organic, Pigeon Point Lighthouse & the Golden Gate Bridge!

Our travels Friday took us just 40 miles north - but directly through downtown Santa Cruz. A bit tricky, but we made it onto the famous California coastal highway 1. Our destination is a new KOA that is in the process of converting to a KOA. The camp has been around for years - also known as Costanoa Lodge & Spa. We arrived to find a new manager of only 3 weeks in place and a lot of construction in process, as they work to add camper amenities to the property. Their 'claim to fame' is being the first 'totally green' KOA. Nothing is wasted here for their water is recycled, their sewage is treated and processed and used to water the lawns. Everything in their camp store is organic - and I mean everything! Which, of course, means pricey! We found it to be a lovely property, with a unique charm of its own, but still some work to do to make it truly. . . KOA. A very nice upscale restaurant on site, and we were treated to dinner 'on the house'. We both chose the Braised Pot Roast and finished the meal by splitting a Chocolate Lava dessert! It was superb!

Some of the most beautiful landscaping we have ever found on a park. The shrubbery and flowers were all blue & lavender - and, wow, was it striking!

Plans are in the works to actually plant gardens on the property to grow the vegetables for the restaurant and the store. BUT in spite of their 'totally green theme' (we call it organic to the extreme) - I couldn't help but note that all their 'souvenirs' where still "Made in China'!

An added treat was finding the Pigeon Point lighthouse just a mile or so up the road. We took time to drive up and explore it, but had to break out our coats for the outing. The sun was shining, but it was COLD and windy - but oh, so beautiful! It's the first California lighthouse we've discovered so far this season. Roger always does such a great job of snapping picture perfect postcard snapshots for me.

We decided on an early departure this morning, for we had about 4 hours north to drive and Roger wanted to catch as much of the basketball games as he could. We had deliberately planned our trip through San Francisco for Sunday morning, to avoid as much traffic as possible. Our trusty (somewhat) "Sylvia" guided us through without a hitch, although she took us clear through the city on Highway 1 - complete with the curving roads along the coastal cliffs.

It also took us through a portion of the actual city of San Francisco, and Roger and I both expected to see Steve McQueen come barreling through each intersection as we approached. The streets & scenery were right out of the early 70's action movie "Bullet". We even crossed paths with a streetcar! No time - or place - to stop for pictures, but perhaps one of these seasons we'll stop in the area long enough to take a tour of the city.

Of course, traveling Highway 1 through San Francisco takes us right across the Golden Gate Bridge. Again, no place to park for a yellow truck towing a 38 ft. fifth wheel, so I snapped this shot as we drove. And sure enough, there sat Alcatraz right out in the middle of the bay.

We arrived in Willits right about noon, to find it windy and very chilly. A bit chillier than it has been, for today the heater ran all day long.

We have cell phone service and internet here, so I spent the afternoon catching up on paperwork, while Roger caught up on his basketball.