My parents just celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary! My dad’s advice on making it that far? “Start early!” Haha. So, to celebrate this huge milestone in their marriage, Mark and I went along with them on a little trip to the coast. Our plan was to start in the Bay Area around San Francisco and head up to Fort Bragg with little stops along the way.
Sausalito, CA
We’ve traveled through Sausalito plenty of times, but this time we actually stopped there for lunch and exploring. It’s close to San Francisco and it has amazing views of the city. It’s definitely somewhere I want to spend more time in the future.
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| View of San Francisco |
Santa Rosa, CA – Charles M. Schulz Museum
We stayed the night near Sausalito and had a few-hour drive to Fort Bragg ahead of us. We needed a break in between the long drive, so we made a stop at the Charles M Schulz museum to see the history of the Peanuts comic strip. It was a small museum, but it was pretty cool to see how the comic strip evolved over time and learn about Charles M. Schulz too.
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| Just chillin with Snoopy and Woodstock |
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| At your service! |
Fort Bragg, CA
Fort Bragg is pretty far out there. To get there we drove through wine country with very little life and no cell reception. We knew we were getting close when the sun disappeared and we came upon forests of tall redwoods. When we finally got to Fort Bragg, it was gloomy and cold. We went from 90s (back at home) to 60s and it was a bit of a shock. The views were amazing though. The town sits right on the ocean.
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| My mom and dad at the beach |
Glass Beach
We were a little concerned that we wouldn’t get to see Glass Beach (which was one of our main points of interest) because the road leading to it was under construction. We found out that we were still about to hike over to it. We followed sandy trails above beach areas to make our way to the famous beach.
We found Glass Beach after awhile and it was pretty cool to see the smooth, colorful sea glass resting among the rocks and sand.
As a kid, I loved hunting for cool rocks and collecting them, so looking through pieces of sea glass was right up my alley. I collected a handful that I could take home with me. It was just a cool experience!
Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens
We read about the gardens and saw a few pictures, but had no idea how big and magnificent it was. We thought we were just going to stop in, look around for a bit, and head to our next adventure. Not even close. This place was massive (over 40 acres!) and had the most amazing gardens. There were a couple main paths that went around the land and also little trails that took you into little jungle areas. We didn’t even get to see all of it. My favorite part was the Dahlia Garden.
Skunk Train from Fort Bragg to Northspur
We got tickets for this train ride before the trip. I was a little nervous about it because I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew it was 4 hours long, on a train, way out in the redwoods, with one stop for lunch. We took off at 10 AM on our last full day of being in Fort Bragg. There was a train car with snacks and also an open car you could stand on to get the full experience of being out in the woods. The open car had no top – you could basically reach out and touch everything as we rode by, although I wouldn’t advise it. We walked back and forth between our seats inside and the open car several times. The open car was the place to be. It was incredible! The scenery out there was unlike any I’ve seen (and I grew up in the mountains/woods). It was thickly forested with redwoods, ferns, rivers, ponds, and a few scattered cabins that you could only access by train. We even passed by a 1000-year-old redwood!
This was the highlight of the trip and one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. It’s something everyone should do at least once if they get the chance. I can’t wait to go back and do it again someday!
This trip was awesome. I enjoyed every single thing we did. We had tons of fun and plenty of laughs. I could not have asked for a better trip! It was a great getaway, but I was also happy to come back home to all the luxuries of our bigger city, like Target!
Contact: ashley@peekandponder.com
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