10 Mar 2011
Chris reports:
For all you hardy enthusiasts who ‘whimped-out’, two enthusiasts gathered at the Golden Gate Bridge view area as designated and departed for the breakfast rendevous in Novato as planned, arriving just before the designated time. Given the weather forecast for a weak front we abandoned the initial plan for some southern Sonoma coastal countryside. We rode up into Petaluma and turned west on Red hill Road.
Next, it was a NE turn onto Wilson Hill and a left at the ‘T’ for Marshall on the Marshall-Petaluma Road. It was along in here that we jumped on the binders as this most interesting old dump truck was adjacent the roadway. Dick Zunkel identified the vehicle, saying it was most likely be a ‘32 Ford Model ‘B’. Once back underway we saw two large clusters of wild turkey and some very different views of Tomales Bay. We turned west once again in Tomales and shortly thereafter, north on Middle Road into Valley Forge on CA Hwy#1. We road through Bodega Bay and were leaving when Dick signaled for gas - this required a ‘wendy’.
It was a steady light rain now, having started a quarter mile from downtown Marshall (wrap your head around that concept [downtown Marshall])! I left home dressed for rain, but not Dick. Dick was getting a little damp around the edges and his sponge-like leather chaps were getting heavy.
Where oh where was Dick’s raingear? Would you believe in San Jose? This is one of the problems of owning a slew of motorcycles and but one set of raingear. You think ya got it but ya don’t!
We turned-up Coleman Valley for Occidental, a road known for spectacular views. However, today, visibility was not much more’n 100 yards. We paused in Occidental for a dry-out’n lunch at a place I was unfamiliar with, ‘Howard’s Cafe’. The locals had the place jumping. Good food and lots of hot coffee. We re-dressed, only now Dick was sporting a spare set of rain gloves that I had packed, these consist of glove liners worn inside painter’s green rubber gloves which cover most of the forearm. We rode out of Occidental on Occidental Road for Santa Rosa but opted for a turn (R) at Hwy #116 and down through Sebastopol, riding right on through for Stony Point Rd (past the Washoe House, Est. in 1859 - good food and unusual decor - several thousand dollars stuck to the ceiling - every inch covered), and back onto Hwy#101 just north of Petaluma. We hot-footed it for Pacifica and a cocktail.
It was 185 miles for me and I was home about 2:40 in the afternoon. Tin Barn, King Ridge and Stewarts Point-Skaggs Spring are roads that are all still calling us.
32 Ford Dump
Barn for Truck
Before Rain
Country Sweepers
Dick-Star King
Photo of Dick on Star King was taken last Saturday after breakfast.