Morro Bay, CA to Monterey, CA
October 2003

We have really been looking forward to this trip.  We came to Morro Bay last year in September, but my wife really didn't get to enjoy it  much as she suffers from a terminal illness.  This year she has been on some new meds and we were pretty sure she'd be able to enjoy this trip, so we loaded up the RV, put LittleDave (6 year old) up on the bunk & took off to California.

It had been sunny for 3 days before the ride.  Today pretty much foggy.  Not real cold though.  About 7:00 I head out from the RV park in Morro Bay.

On the Friday that we left Colorado, I traded in my Tiger & got my new 2004 BMW R1150GS from BMW of Denver.  Ran it home & stuck it on the RV I think I had 30 miles on it at this point.

Headed up highway 1.  It was a beautiful day even though somewhat foggy.  I had all my gear on, heated grips on low, camelback filled and the GPS fired up as I start to get a feel for what this bike feels like on the twisties.

I can't believe this bike.  No effort is required in the corners.  Don't have to pull it up or freak out cause your forks take a nose dive into who-knows-where.  Here I thought I was going at a snails pace as I look down & see 70mph though a few turns!  Wow, what a surprise.  Was I really going that fast?  Didn't feel like it.

I had no intensions getting off of highway 1...till I saw this...

OK, lets go!  Hope is doesn't rain!

This is a great ride up this road.  Just a fairly rough SUV road.  Narrow in spots, full of holes here and there and sand out of nowhere.  I definitely learned that I need to read my manual on turning off ABS.  2 or 3 times did it feel like my brakes were totally gone. Both times on washboard going into turns.  No tip overs for BigDave today though.  Not ready to "break-in" the big GS quite yet.  I only went up about 5 miles and came back out.

My obligatory "Ghost Rider" shot w/bike on centerstand.

I continued on Highway 1 North from Gorda where I spent $18 dollars on sausage and eggs.  I guess when you are the only place in 50 miles or so you can charge like that.  At least it was good.  Next I passed through Big Sur then Carmel.

I Arrive in Monterey around noon. Walked to the Warf where I was seriously hungry for fish & chips and clam chowder!  Talked to the kid in the General Store & he said to go to the Old Fisherman's Grotto.  Food was excellent!

You just have to have at least one shot like this on an Adventure ride.

The sun started to burn off the cover.  At least for a bit.  The Warf is nice as you get a good view of the harbour.

On the way back the sun reviled the rich colors of the coast.  

Some ladies stopped and asked if I'd take their picture. Sure I said as I parked my new bike 3 feet from a 200 foot cliff.  I just asked that they do the same for me.

As traffic became thicker, it was time to pass cars every few minutes.  Then the sun started down and it gave me a woderfull opportunity to take some nice pics.  So I'd stop, take some pictures and take off. I think I passed the same RV 6 times on the way back.  He probably thought I was nuts. 

This is North of Gorda.  I took about 6 shots before I caught the light from the beacon in the shot.  The ride definitely moved into a more relaxed mode by now.

I think this pic will be my desktop wallpaper for some time.  

I got back about 4:30. I was in awe from this ride.  Spectacular views, great roads, good food and a chance to put 300 miles on this bike in a perfect environment for its run-in period.  I can tell that this bike really does fit me well and I look forward to many adventures on it.  Most of all, this ride was a nice time to relax and think about the more important things and how thankful I am for my family and things I have.