It is wonderful to be back on the road. Little, bitty things can become whole-day activities and we don’t feel even a slight amount of remorse over possibly getting nothing done on any particular day. It is joyous.
Today we drove up Stagecoach Road near our campground and continued under the Cold Springs Bridge, what was the longest steel girder span in the state when it was finished in 1964. CA-154 is carried on that span. Also up Stagecoach Road is the Cold Springs Tavern where, according to their ads, “Dusty stagecoaches stopped here 120 years ago.” It looks like they might be right as there are some tiny, rustic buildings with crummy foundations lodged in a sliver of a ravine. Parking here is at a premium if you are the fifth car to arrive.
We continued onto CA-154 back down the hill to the Santa Barbara area where we connected with US-101 to a Costco in Goleta. After some strategic grocery shopping, we sat down outside the store for Polish dogs and Caesar Salads before continuing with our drive. Unfortunately for me, almost as soon as I stuffed the Polish dog down my grocery hole, I was seized by an unpleasant and powerful gastric distress so we pulled over at a diesel stop where I was able to reach the john with only moments to spare. I’m glad it wasn’t one of those service stations w/o restrooms.
Explosion averted, we headed back over the pass to Rancho Oso with our loot, taking the Stagecoach Road detour a second time. It is a very nice albeit extremely narrow road but the scenery is spectacular for the passenger. The driver should mind his task because driving even a little off the road here would be fatal and there are no guardrails. On the last bit of Paradise Road near our campground we did get to see a group of about 7 big wild turkeys and they were all colored up in their best plumage. Seems pretty plain why Benjamin Franklin thought these birds should be our national emblem. They are gorgeous.
A couple pix are available if you click here