6. Morro Bay

A couple weeks before we left our house, I’d planned all of our stops up the coast & reserved our spots – Morro Bay, Big Sur, Santa Cruz, San Francisco, & Redding. I was feeling relieved & confident that we didn’t need to think about finding spots & making reservations until the end of March (ironically, an impending atmospheric river would change all of that). 

Morro Bay was our next stop. It was planned as a short two-day stop before heading to Big Sur for a week in the redwoods. We pulled into the campground, Morro Dunes RV Park, and we easily set up camp. After our less than successful experience just days before, we were ecstatic about this win. We headed into the little town of Morro Bay, a short walk along the ocean from our camp. There were sea otters – mamas and babies – floating together on their backs. We squealed all the way down the boardwalk, watching them swim & play among the docked boats. We got taffy at Crill’s & asked a local where we should have dinner. We ate fish & chips at an Italian restaurant on the water. As the sun was setting, we headed back to camp. 

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Our 5th wheel came equipped with a washer & dryer. The ease of the day boosted my confidence enough to tackle another first – using them. I pulled out the manual & read. And I figured it out! It probably sounds like I’m over-dramatizing this simple task, but my brain was stressed. Every Single Thing about life was new & required reading a manual, watching how-to videos, asking others, etc. This was yet another first, & it felt good to figure it out!)

The next morning I woke up feeling disoriented – first realizing that I’m in an RV. But where? What town am I in? What day is it? It was a strange feeling.

We headed out to Montana de Oro state park for a hike, & the weather was beautiful. The road into the park curved through fragrant eucalyptus groves.

We parked at a bluff overlooking the ocean & headed into the museum, which was the 1890’s home of the Spooner family & their ranch, Pecho Ranch. This blew my mind – that there were ranches & farms on the beach.

We headed out on a trail that followed the shoreline for a couple of miles. The trails close to the cliffs were craggedy & untrustworthy. It was a gorgeous hike, with dramatic rocks jutting sideways up out of the sand. Unfortunately, the tide pool area was closed due to mudslides. 

After the hike we spent some time skipping rocks on the beach in front of the main house. Still, my mind was blown that this was someone’s home – a ranch – on the beach. 

On the way home, driving back through the eucalyptus grove, we saw a family of deer. 

TJ was craving reuben sandwiches, so we stopped at the grocery to stock-up on food. Back home, we feasted & had a wonderfully normal night!