Day 27 - Yreka, California to Coos Bay, Oregon

Scrub a dub dub, there's a Harley in the tub. After leaving Yreka, the guys found a carwash. A clean bike just rides better. Eleven days and almost 2,300 miles later, the guys put California in their rearview mirrors and forge on to Oregon.
Mike, Stu, Fred and Ron at the entrance of Crater Lake National Park. The park is located in Crater Lake, Oregon.
The elevation at Crater Lake is 7500 feet. The park, just recently opened, was still covered in snow. The pavement was clear, except for some water running across it from the melting snow.
The first view of Crater Lake. This lake was formed in an old volcano. The water IS that blue.
This shows how much snow is still piled up. The edge of the road is visible at the bottom left of this image.

A tiny little island, Wizards Island to be exact, in the middle of Crater Lake.

Ron pulled over to put the chains on his Harley.

Mike, Ron, Fred and Stu stand in front of Crater Lake. They were overwhelmed by the beauty of this lake's water.

After leaving Crater Lake National Park the boys continued to head north towards the 3rd corner. Areas of clear cut logging are widely seen now. Sections of new pine growth, in variable stages, are peppered throughout the mountain sides. This is timber harvesting country. The guys found this extremely interesting.

The total miles ridden today - 325.

Day 26 - Garberville, California to Yreka, California

The first order of the day....see the giant Redwood trees. The guys rode to Humboldt Redwoods State Park.
The road through Humboldt State Park is aptly named, Avenue of the Giants. It is a 31 mile road through a Redwood Forest. Some of the largest Redwoods in the United States grow along this road.
Fred poses by an old truck that has a piece of old redwood trunk fixed to the back. This vehicle is not in the state park, but at a privately owned location.
Ron, Mike, Stu and Fred with the old truck in the background.

The Redwoods grow this close to this close to the pavement.Having no luck several days ago, Fred sent Mike to search for the Keebler Elves. Finding no elves or cookies, Mike said the entire experience was still "uncommonly good".

The 4 guys stopped in Downtown Mad River for lunch.

Downtown Mad River has this tiny post office.

This tiny little hamburger trailer with a few other trailers behind it.

Yet the town was packed with people. All kinds of people stopped here for lunch. The town was so small, Ron said, "you could throw a good size tarp over the entire thing and cover it."

Stu ordered lunch first, finished eating first, then used the excess time to nap on a picnic table bench.

Mt. Shasta in Northern California. Elevation 14,000 feet of beautiful snow covered splendor.

The 4 guys rode a total of 395 miles today ending their day just short of the Oregon border. They spent the night in Yreka, California.

Day 25 - San Francisco, California to Garberville, California

Just before leaving San Francisco, the guys headed to the Golden Gate Bridge. Having crossed it several times already in fog, they were hopeful the bridge could be seen clearly. Fred, Ron, Mike and Stu in front of the famous bridge.
The bridge just slightly visible above the fog bank.

Adios, San Francisco! The boys headed north east across the mountains towards wine country.
Sonoma Valley was the first wine region they entered.

Wine, in it's simplest form, up close and personal.

The valleys are beautiful, covered in grapes and wineries.

Beautifully manicured grape arbors are visible everywhere throughout Sonoma, Napa and Alexander Valleys.

The wineries are spectacularly landscaped. Behind the lavish entrances, winery buildings are either extremely elaborate or elegantly modest.

After touring the wine country the guys headed west again towards the Pacific Coast. Here Mike stands, with the coast in the background.

More beautiful Pacific Coastal scenery. The guys have reported that the photos simply do not do this magnificent part of the country justice.

The boys headed slightly east again in order to catch sight of the California Redwood Forests. Freddie drives his bike through the privately owned Chandelier Tree.

The guys zig zagged their way east and west, while going north along the Pacific Coast. They traveled about 280 miles total today, stopping for the night in Garberville, California. Tomorrow will be their last day in California. They are making their way to Oregon.

Day 24 - A full day in San Francisco, California

The guys took an entire day off in order to enjoy San Francisco. This is the skyline of the city. Coit Tower is the tall monument upon the hill.
Don't worry, none of the guys are being sent to the big house. They are just stopping by to view San Quentin State Prison.

A closer look at the frightening facility. The huge gun turret tower on the right is full of prison guards with extremely good aim.

Retired naval vessels are "mothballed" and float in what is called the Ghost Fleet. There was a time when hundreds of retired ships were anchored here. Now, only about 100 ships remain.

Ding, ding, ding went the trolley.....

Alcatraz.

Mike and Stu walking across the street into Pier 39. This famous attraction is full of markets, restaurants, shops and a carnival of sorts.

A fresh fruit market on Pier 39.

Mike gets a little crabby during lunch at the Pier Market.

Mike, Richard Novick - Fred's brother in law, and Fred enjoying their lunch at Pier Market.

After lunch, the boys went down to the dock to bask in the warm sunshine until lunch digested. No, not really. Those are California Sea Lions. The Sea Lions have been coming to this same dock for 20 years. Boats are no longer permitted to dock in this area. The Sea Lions have become celebrities in their own right.

A sailboat gets a little to close to the dock. The Sea Lions are up on their flippers to protest the disruption of their nap.

Mike, Stu, Ron, Fred and Richard Novick. Richard rented a van, took the Ron and Fred to the Harley dealership early in the morning. Having worn tires, Fred and Ron purchased new ones. Richard took the guys on a sightseeing tour of San Francisco. The guys thank Richard for his hospitality and the education they received on all of the great places to visit within the city. Thank you Richard for everything!!The guys crossed the Golden Gate several times. Unfortunately the bridge was always socked in by fog. They didn't get any good photos of the Golden Gate Bridge. This bridge is known as the Bay Bridge.

Since the boys took the day off to tour San Francisco, the miles ridden since yesterday were negligible.

Day 23 - Lake Tahoe to San Francisco, California

The guys prepare to leave Cal Neva Resort - Hotel & Casino. This is where they stopped yesterday evening. They were very impressed with the resort and it's history.
Ron sits in California, Fred straddles the state line, Stu stands in Nevada. The painted line is half golf and half silver. The gold signifies the gold rush to California. The silver represents the silver rush in Nevada. This line was painted all throughout the hotel.

Fred looks over the overlook. Everything looks a-okay in Emerald Bay.

Emerald Bay with it's tiny little island. This is still Lake Tahoe.

Ron, Fred, Mike and Stu taking a break at Emerald Bay.

After leaving the Lake Tahoe area, Fred began to have electrical problems with his bike. Luckily they found a very small motorcycle shop. The mechanic quickly diagnosed and corrected the problem. The guys were back on the road with very little down time.

The guys stopped in Fremont, California to visit some of Mike's family. Mike pictured with his Aunt Esther Ferrau and Uncle Joe Ferrau outside of their business. Mike's aunt and uncle used to live near his hometown in New York.

Group photo! Stu, Esther, Ron, Fred, Mike and Joe.

The guys prepare to cross the San Rafael bridge which will take them to the north side of San Francisco. The total mileage ridden today - 294 miles.