The Cal-look Lounge

Please tell us all about it in your magical narrative style Mr. Ratto.  ;D  Here's some pics to jar your memory (many more if you need to see more)

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one of the best weekends of my life.

Let me think of the vivid details of Geoff's digestive issues, Aaron needing to wash his Golf every 50 miles and the Binding Agent Cajun salami.

be back later...

That first picture was taken up at Sierra Buttes, I think that is Sardine Lake, somewhat near North Lake Tahoe, we camped here our second night of the outing. More about that later....

Second picture is my blue '02 Subaru WRX (RIP :'() and Derek's 2001 (?) GTI (278hp at wheels, right Derek?) parked at Gold Lake, also in Sierra Buttes.

Same with 3rd

fourth pic is same location, but now we see Aaron Johnson's 1997 Golf VR6 (third car that went on 3 day trip)

Fifth picture is me in red shirt and hat and Geoff Ball, former owner of Buggy House (after Jerry) with hairdo.... enjoying a liquid breakfast @ Sardine Lake

Sixth picture is us parked along Meadow Valley Rd up near Buck's Lake, just west of Qunicy CA, where we stopped for cheeseburgers and beer....mmmm

Seventh pic is a funny story... I got us lost southeast of Bakersfield, trying to get to Kernville, north of Lake Isabella, from Highway 58. Somehow we ended up on a gravel road in the middle of nowhere, amid a million bobbing oil pumps, nobody had an idea of where the F we were, or where we were going, but man was the gravel fun to play on. You can see how arid and dusty it was down there... this was first day of the epic drive... what a contrast from the lush Sierra forests. ....

which brings us to eighth pic... first campspot, up in Sequoia, off of Western Divide Hwy, just south of Camp Nelson... some of the prettiest country in CA if you ask me. We camped @ 7000' elevation and 30 degree weather.

Last pic was our last stop after 3 days of driving, just west of Berry Creek Ca and east of Oroville. That bridge is Hwy 162 crossing Lake Oroville. Perfect spot for a final picture Derek.

This trip was so flipping cool..   I'll have to write more later when I am not being spied on.

i like the scenery  mucho :P

if anybody cares....

the whole idea behind this trip was to encircle a major portion of California, and avoid major interstates as much as possible. I had done a few "mini" trips like this in the past, but they were always confined to kind of localized little corners of the state. This trip was planned to encompass as many good driving roads, cool camping spots and wierd little areas as possible in 3 days (no the trip had nothing to do with the Jane's Addiction song by the same name). I had spent time in all the areas we visited in the past, so I had a good idea of places to stop for rest and a bit of partying. It took me about 2 weeks to draw up the route, and it basically went something like this, leaving the major freeways in Hollister, CA:
From Interstate 101 we got on local highway SR25 that runs through the small city of Hollister (sitting right on San Andreas Fault), then turns east, then south as it leaves the urban portion of Hollister. The road turns wild and remote very soon, beginning with a 5 mile + long arrow-straight stretch in a small valley. Our buddy Aaron of course, being him, nailed the gas in his VR6 Golf and had to "show us up." Later he claimed he reached 130mph. The road soon turned to long, 3rd and 4th gear sweepers. I had Geoff in my WRX and i think we filmed this portion of the trip (I have a DVD of the weekend somewhere). About 35 miles south we stopped for a snack break, in the middle of Bitterwater Valley, about 20 miles north of the junction of 198 and 25. Derek, remember my "troubles"?... I thought the banana would help... nope. From there Geoff got in Aaron's Golf (last time for the entire trip and we were only 2 hr into the 3 day weekend) and we caught 198 east into the San Joaquin Valley. Upon arriving in Coalinga, we stopped for fuel. Some guy outside of the gas station was slow cooking pork ribs over wood embers... oh man, even though my gut was saying no, my eyes were saying "do it" but common sense prevailed and I passed. We jumped on SR33, just south of Coalinga proper, and soon were blasting down the road, due south, at over triple digits. We flew through this bleak, parched vast sinkhole valley, through Avenal, past their federal prison and soon into some hilly country just west of Kettleman City, a small locale known as Devil's Den. After some more mountainous windy two lane stuff, we came upon Hwy 46, in between the spot of James Dean's death and his last stop to the east, where he bought some apples. Off of 46, there is a very small, remote and patchy road, that really it is amazing it hasn't been overgrown with tules and weeds, which takes its traveler over the Diablo and Temblor Ranges, back into the no-man's land of Bitterwater Valley. The road was too rough for any real high speed work, so we took it fairly easy, stopping for photos in a fork up the road about 15 miles. Aaron had to display his Finnish heritage and perform some world-rally-style handbrake turns in the gravel....  proving his worth as the Flying Finn.
More later....

NAH...........not really!!!

wait until we get to the part where we came upon Nachotown and burn it to the ground...

More Jim, More!!

That really was one of the best weekends that I can remember.   :)