Fortuna to Stockton

Just south of Fortuna, we came to the Avenue of the Giants. It is the old Highway 101 and it curves around over and under the current 101 but it goes through the Redwood Forest so you can enjoy more of the gigantic trees at a more leisurely pace. They were amazing! We stopped for another photo op at the Immortal Tree.
And, of course, we couldn't pass up a chance to drive through a tree. Mom did very well navigating her car through the tree! They had cute tree houses that you could play in, as well - and yes, of course I did!

We planned to enjoy some of the Northern California coast from Highway 1 but it was so slow going that we had to cut our intended route almost in half but we enjoyed what we could. It was so cold that we once again had to fix our sandwiches and eat in the front seat of the car just watching the ocean. I certainly hope it warms up as we head south!

We were going through Healdsburg which is where our good friends (& my God-parents) were spending the weekend so we decided to stop by for a visit. We caught them just as they returned from their day of biking and enjoyed a cup of coffee at one of the cute local shops. It was fun to see them out here even though we only live a few hours apart. Mom hadn't seen them for almost a year so it was a special treat for her.
The most amazing part is when Phyllis took us over to the local wine shop to show us our friend, Ginny's, picture on one of their prominent shelves. Ginny won a gold & bronze metal in the 1964 olympics in Tokyo and she was also my swim coach when I was growing up. She was in Healdsburg a few weeks ago during the Olympics and someone mentioned her medals and the owner gave her a bottle of wine if she promised to send him a picture of her with her medals. What a small world!

We made it to Stockton where were were staying with my PSCE buddies, Matt & Amy - and their four kids. Amy & Hannah made us a delicious pasta salad with all kinds of fresh fruit. It was a great dinner - and way better than peanut butter & jelly (again!) They are such a wonderful family and it was great to have the evening to visit!