Mike and Beth's Adventures

San Simeon: California's Alluring Central Coast The beach near San Simeon The next leg of our van odyssey took us to San Simeon and Hearst Castle.  Getting there was more difficult than normal as a landslide, in January 2023, closed Highway 1 between Big Sur and San Simeon forcing us to backtrack from Big Sur to Monterey and then Salinas, to access Highway 101 south to Paso Robles, then west to the coast, and north on Highway 1 to San Simeon State Park.  The slide, which interdicted the coast highway, turned an 80-mile drive into a 180 mile journey.  John Steinbeck Truck & Camper from his book "Travels with Charlie" The detour gave us the opportunity to visit the John Steinbeck Museum in Salinas California.  The Citizens of Salinas are rightfully proud of their native son.  He was a prolific writer who realistically portrayed the struggles, loneliness, social isolation and violence that accompanied the Great Depression.  During World War 2 he served a...

What could be better than docking in front of the Empress Hotel Approaching Victoria from the water is an interesting exercise.  The city is located on the southeast corner of Vancouver Island and just off the Straits of Juan de Fuca.  This is an area notorious for strong currents, confused seas, and wild winds.  It did not disappoint.  We experienced all three as we rounded the corner and wove our way through the Chatham Islands towards the inner harbor.  The sea conditions could be compared to boating inside a washing machine.  There were no waves.  That implies some semblance of order.  Instead, the water was jumping and spinning randomly.  We followed two fishing boats, on the assumption that they were locals and knew the best route through the islands, rocks, and reefs.  They were also much larger than us.  If they didn't hit anything, then we would not either.  The plan worked.  We turned to starboard, passed the cru...