california road trippin': mendocino

California Poster by Paper Parasol Press

One thing I loved about living in California was the endless amount of possible road trips. It is such a large, diverse, visually beautiful state with so much to see that I truly believe it'd take a lifetime to see and experience it all (not to mention the possible road trips into the neighboring states).

I was in a relationship with a very restless adventurer (much like myself) for most of my years in Cali, so we definitely took advantage of the road tripping opportunities. Our "thing" was to climb in the car with no plan for where we were going, and just drive. It could be for hours or days. I can't claim that I was always entirely uninhibited in this practice, but I think my life needed an infusion of that kind of free flowing, paint-as-you-go spirit. But, I digress, back to California....

I tend to believe that moving West still symbolizes the same adventurous spirit that it did when Americans first began to migrate across the United States. That spirit was certainly alive in me as I boarded a plane back in 2005 to San Diego, a place that was completely foreign to me and devoid of any familiar faces. My head was filled with the excitement of all the possibilities and the beginning of a new life....a life so different than the one I had known in New England.

2005, Ventura.

I moved up to San Francisco a mere 4 months after landing in San Diego, having discovered Southern California didn't quite fit me. And my move North began with a long road trip up the west coast, setting the mood for years of the same.

I have many California road trip favorites! I'm going to feature one each week until I run out....I think the cold, snowy weather has got me reminiscing about my days living sans long underwear and down jackets. So to start off the road tripping: Mendocino county. Mendocino is North of San Francisco, and well known for its beautiful coastlines (but really, isn't all of California?). What I enjoyed about it? It is quiet, remote, and has some lovely hiking....not to mention the spectacular cliffs.

"A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving." ~Lao Tzu