Pismo Beach - Santa Monica

All good things come to an end. Sad to leave Pismo Beach where we stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn, we took Foxen Canyon Road which brought us to Solvang. Solvang was founded by Danish pioneers between 1850 and 1930. We had some pastries and coffee and continued our trip towards Santa Barbara. The original plan was that Timo would lead a group up in the mountains and have lunch in Ojai; however, temperatures around 100°F (38°C) changed quickly our mind and we took Topanga Canyon Road back to the coast (it was significantly cooler there) where it took us another 30 minutes to arrive at the hotel. Here we met with Michael’s group with arrived a tad bit later. We celebrated a great vacation and the fact that not a single motorcycle was dropped with some beers. The bikes were dropped off and picked up and some of the riders went either home the same night or continued the vacation for a few more days. I hope we will ultimately meet again for another great time.

Carmel - Pismo Beach

We had to leave a nice hotel. On our way along the coast highway 1, we stopped at the Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park, which offered a gorgeous view of a waterfall and the bay bearing tourquise water. After a short hike we continued our journey to Whale Watcher Cafe (offering one of the worst coffee you can imagine) and then to see the sea elephants as well as sea lions at San Simon (a spot highly frequented by German tourists). Our next stop was Hearst Castle, a beautiful castle in the hills on a vast estate. We had lunch at the visitor center. In Cambria we split our group and we went different directions. One group went up to Paso Robles (which is "wine country", and we were not able to taste) then came back down to Moro Bay and Pismo Beach where we arrived at our night quaters.

San Francisco - Carmel

Unfortunately our trip is getting shorter. After a rough way getting the riding group out of the city, we found a nice side road which took us to Alice's restaurant. After a brief coffee stop we met another group of German Harley riders which were copycatting our route. Our way continued and took us back to the CA 1, which was way busier than our side trip. Lunch break was at Crow's Nest. A beautiful restaurant right at the beach in Santa Cruz. We had excellent service and fresh sea food. After lunch we continued our trip south, which led us to our hotel in Carmel. The hotel was newly renovated and very nice. As a surprise we went to dinner at a Swiss restaurant: Lugano. Even our Swiss riders approved the food (cheese, meat and chocolate fondue) and were man enough to play the rustique Alphorn, which was mounted to the wall (before we took it down). A great way to end the day.

Rest day San Francisco

Our second rest day gave us the opportunity to explore this beatiful city. We were not affected by the 6.1 earthquake which happened a day before. Based on the different interests we each went our separate ways. Basic maintance was required for our bikes, which was performed by Michael and Timo. Our bavarian couple (Monika and Klaus) went together with Ramon to explore the city. Pascal and Wolfgang went on a guided bus tour which covers most of the cities sights. Jaime and Dora as well as Andre and Patrick went on a guided tour of famous Alcatraz. Diane and John couldn' even stay one day off 2 wheels and got bicycles to tour the city. Jo, our ex Tahoe resident, too the GS1200 to Tahoe to refresh his memories. New Zealand couple (Paula and Michael) and Ohio couple (Michelle and Eric) took of on their own...pictures and more info to come.

Fort Bragg - San Francisco

We left Fort Bragg early am with 51 degrees Fahrenheit, drizzle and thick cloud layer. Even wiping the bikes dry briefly before departure left us with wet seats. A smaller group, which was lead by Timo took their own venture. A special person at the general store in Comptche gave us advice to take the road to Ukiah, it was a spectacular ride. The rest of the group went, lead by Ramon, southbound on the CA 1 towards Bodega Bay for lunch. All of us where excited when we reach, after a long twisty streach the Golden Gate Bridge. It was very windy and we saw any kind of boat/ship you can imagine in the San Francisco bay.

Crescent City - Fort Bragg

We continued our trip with a visit to Redwood State Park which is the home to the tallest trees on Earth. We found a very special tree

where we almost could fit our entire group in the hollow stem! After taking pictures we continued through the lush forest back to CA Highway 1 to have lunch at Eel River Brewery. The weather was really sunny and sun screen was in order during lunchtime. For some of us being at the brewery without having a sip of beer was a punishment (names withheld). After lunch we split up the group with some of the more adventerous riders going on the extra loop (Andre, Joe, Patrick, Pascal and Wolfgang) accompanied by newbie Tourguide Timo. The roads were rough, with tight twisties and occasional missing asphalt. However, it was very well perceived by the riders and the scenerie was outstanding. The remainder of the group continued straight south and Michael took pictures on another twisty road. Some riders were more relaxed

while other saw the opportunity to get a picture of their riding style more competitive.

At the end of the day we reunited at the hotel in Fort Bragg for dinner.

Newport - Crescent City

Restday Newport

A day to sleep in if you wanted to. If you like riding a bike, today was your day. A small hardcore group went on a journey to venture roads which were made for motorcycle riding. We followed the rivers Alsea and Siletz which go along canyons and wide meadows. Monika joined Ramon who went whale-watching. Mother wales were coming bach from Mexico where they gave birth to their offspring.

After an eventful day were enjoing the quiet ocean view from the patio of our hotel. A great way to finish the day with an Alaskan Amber.

Aberdeen - Newport

After a huge breakfast at Billy's Restaurant we started a new day of motorycle riding towards Oregon. The "4.1 mile" spanning Astoria-Meggler bridge took us from Washington to Oregon. The Astoria Column gave us the opportunity to get a great view from the bridge at a high point. This gave us a hint how the inclined roads in San Francisco going to look like.

Pascal was really hungry at lunch time and finished up Andre's plate. After lunch we continued southbound.

We had the chance to get a glance at an vintage car show. A special treat was Al Capone's car which had original blood stains! After such a fascinating break we continued our tour. After reaching the coast of Oregon we arrived in Newport.

Finally we got around celebrating Dora 's bday. The cake was delicious. Dora was very excited about her surprise party.

Port Angeles - Aberdeen

When we woke up the sky was christal clear. After a short ride we exited highway 101 at Lake Crescent for a smaller road that led into the Olympic National Park. We could watch some wildlife (deer) and had a couple of nice curves.

Klaus, a retired teacher, explaning the Route to the Dora, Patrick and André at our first stop, the blueberry Café!

In the meantime his wife Monika enjoys a typical (watery) american Coffee. Did Paula and Michael choose better?

After a some more twisty roads we reached Forks where the Twilight movies were shot. From there we went to visit the Hoh national Forest where everyone could take a short walking trail after our Picnic. According to André it was his first (and probably last) walk during a motocycle tour where the destination wasn´t a restaurant.

While everyone was walking on the trail, Michael decided to "take care of the motocycle gears". I would say he wanted to take a little nap!

Seattle - Port Angeles

Today, after pickung up some Harleys stored close to the hotel, the group left at bright sunshine and comfortable temperature. Highlight of the day was a ferry ride from Seattle to Bremerton, where we had a splendid view to the skyline of Seattle.

After a great first day of riding the group arrived to the Red Lion Hotel in Port Angeles, where Michael was waiting for the group with a little surprise: The Edelweiss Boot Beer!

From left to right: Michael from Auckland, New Zealand, Wolfgang (Germany), John and Diane (US, California), Dora and Jamie from Mexico, Patrick (Switzerland), Monika from Germany, André (also Switzerland), Klaus (Monikas husband), and Jo (Switzerland).

When the group arrived the sky was a little cloudy and it was cooler than in Seattle, but the weather is still good. The weather forcast for tomorrow says there should be no rain!

Soon we´ll have dinner at the hotels restaurant, the Crab House!

Seattle

Yesterday a group from all over the world met for the MC handover and the welcome briefing for the Edelweiss Highway Nr 1 Tour from Seattle to Los Angeles. During a delicious dinner in the Sharps Roasthouse (right across the street) the members of the group introduced themselves. The atmosphere was relaxed and everybody seemed to be looking forward to the tour. The partizipants flew in from the US, New Zealand, Switzerland, Germany and Mexico!