Good Morning! Wed May 12, 2021
I hope today finds you galvanized with the gumption and gratitude!
Yesterday was a fantastic day. It started with Sahale’s cousin Tomas coming over. He is three weeks older than Sahale, and before he showed up, I asked Sahale what he was like. She said he was crazy, and I teased her and said he couldn’t be much crazier than her. I was wrong. Think of a blonde Tasmanian devil that is super sweet but doesn’t stop moving and talking. Within 1 minute of showing up, you would have thought that I was his favorite adult in the whole wide world, and it wasn’t even because he thought I was Santa (although, he did point out that my beard is way bigger than his Dad’s)
Katrin, is married to Maggies brother Sam. Katrin doesn’t like to drive, so it was a big celebration when she got her to drop off Tomas. I hung out with Tomas for a little bit before Eric took me out to Point Reye’s national seashore and gave me a grand tour. It is hard to grasp just how big and remote the park really is.
The drive out there was beautiful on twisty country roads and through pretty little towns. The weather was so warm and beautiful, and the scenery fantastic. We drove through the park, and Eric showed me where the KPH radio station was where the US received the first news of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
I also learned that this park is the result of ranchers and environmentalists working together to protect the area from development. Resulting in a national park that has several Ranches that are still operational in the park.
When we crested the hill after the radio station, it went from sunny and warm to cold and foggy within a matter of moments. We stopped by the north beach and then went out to where Eric lived for two years. He showed me the lifesaving station, which still has the original motor-lifeboat in it from when it was built in 1929. We saw a bunch of Elephant Seal pups lounging on the boat ramp.
While we worked our way back, it was time for lunch, so we stopped at a fantastic little store to grab some excellent sandwiches. Eric knows the owner, and we chatted with him for a while. He has had the store for 41 years. We took our sandwiches to bear valley and had a pleasant lunch, and then we took a walk along the Earthquake Trail. The San Andreas fault defines point Reyes. And in the 1902 earthquake Point Reyes moved 18 feet north in an instance. There is a fence that demonstrates just how far the earth moved that day.
From there, we headed up Tomales Bay (The fault line runs right underneath it) and stopped at Hog Island Oyster company and picked up two dozen oysters.
When we got back, we chilled at the house until Tomas showed back up with him Mom, Katrin, and Dad in tow. We hung out and had Grilled and smoked Bison Burgers. They are just in the process of moving back to the States from France, where they were living for the last four years. The conversation with them was free and easy, and I enjoyed them. And, they appreciate oysters, so after dinner, we ate up all of the oysters.
While Sahale was getting put to bed, I watched some videos of Maggie’s Stepfather, Everett Raymond Kinstler. Before crawling into bed.
Well, Sahale is up and waiting for me to finish reading this Captain Underpants book, so I am going to get this off.
Love Ya
Dan W
Weaties RoadTrip 2021 