At Thanksgiving time in 2009, I had a chance to spend the holiday in San Francisco with my Lady, Diane and her eldest son. We decided for me to fly to Los Angeles, rent a car, then pick her up in Santa Monica where she was visiting friends. We then drove up the central coast to San Francisco.
I flew out via Denver and arrived at LAX on Sunday, the 22nd. I drove to Santa Monica, where we all went out to the pier to see the sunset.
The next day, Monday the 23rd, Diane and I left for San Francisco on route 1, driving through Malibu and Santa Barbara to San Luis Obispo.
On Tuesday, we visited Hearst Castle at San Simeon and saw elephant seals before stopping at Big Sur.
On Wednesday, we drove through Monterey and Carmel and completed our drive to San Francisco, arriving at her son's house in the evening.
The following Monday, we spent the day at the Golden Gate and visited Muir Woods, followed by Muir Beach to end the day. After a wonderful dinner in Sausalito, we returned to San Francisco.
We enjoyed an wonderful urban Thanksgiving at a local restaurant and spent Friday. Saturday, and Sunday seeing the sights of the city.
After attending concerts in San Francisco on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, we drove back to Los Angeles on Thursday and I flew home on Friday.
Denver and Santa Monica
The Front Range from my plane at Denver Airport
Santa Monica Beach and Pier
The west end of US Route 66
Bird of Paradise flower at Santa Monica Pier
Me at Santa Monica Pier
Sitting on the beach
Looking through the pilings
A photographer working on the beach at sunset
Walking on the beach at sunset
A bird flies by Santa Monica Pier at sunset
The sign at Santa Monica Pier lit up for the night
Monday's drive up the coast
A house built on a hillside in Malibu
Diane taking a picture at Zuma Beach
A surfer at Zuma Beach
The surf crashes against the shore at Mugu Rock
Me at Mugu Rock
A yacht in the harbor at Santa Barbara
A beach along the coast near Santa Barbara
Looking back on the route 154 bypass
A Pacific Ocean view from the top on route 154
Lake Cachuma from route 154
Tuesday's drive up the coast
Morro Rock at Morro Bay
Surfer at Morro Beach
Zebras at San Simeon with Hearst Castle on top of the mountain
The coast at San Simeon
The village of San Simeon across the bay
Stairway newel post at Hearst Castle
Casa del Sol, the guest house at Hearst Castle
A hellenic statue on the porch at Hearst Castle
The Neptune pool at Hearst Castle
Mermaid statues in the Neptune pool at Hearst Castle
An incredible view of the ocean from the west porch
The towers of Casa Grande, the main house
Another incredible view, this is looking east
The front door on Casa Grande
A statue on the left side of the door
A statue on the right side of the door
A statue above the door
The Christmas tree was made from stacked Poinsettias
The Roman pool is covered floor to ceiling with 1" tiles inlaced with gold, black in the pool, and blue everywhere else
The diving platform for the Roman pool
Elephant seals lying in the sun at Ragged Point
Elephant seals competing for supremacy
Cooling off by flipping sand over their bodies
A scene along the Central California coast
A scene along the Central California coast
A scene along the Central California coast
Sunset on the Central California coast just south of Big Sur
A house at sunset overlooking the ocean
Wednesday's drive up the coast
You just can't get to the Big Sur lighthouse very easily
The Big Sur lighthouse on a penninsula jutting out into the ocean
A scene along the Central California coast
A scene along the Central California coast
Bixby Bridge
The support piers for Bixby Bridge are attached to shear rock canyon walls
Feather Grass
The morning mist still hangs over this hidden beach below Bixby Bridge
A scene along the Central California coast - a sailboat shows the scale of the rocky outcroppings
A scene along the Central California coast
A waterfall forms when waves break over these rocks
Waves crashing against the rocky shoreline
Trees in the misty morning
Waves crashing the beach at Marina State Beach
A romantic couple at Marina State Beach
Surfing at Marina State Beach
I think this rock formation looks like an elephant seal
Feather grass along the trail to the rock formation
this beach is hidden below the cliffs at the end of the trail
Pigeon Point Lighthouse
A study of the movement of a wave as it recedes from a beach
Monday, Nov 30
The Golden Gate Bridge from Golden Gate Nat'l Rec Area
The Golden Gate Bidge from Fort Point
The former federal prison on Alcatraz Island
The Golden Gate Bridge from the north vista
The skyline of San Francisco
San Francisco Bay
Muir Woods
Muir Woods
Muir Woods
Muir Woods
The cathedral at Muir Woods
Wood Sorrel at Muir Woods
Rocks at Muir Beach
A wave recedes around stones on Muir Beach
A slough at Muir Beach at sunset - this light lasted about 5 minutes and it was gone
The full moon rising over the mountains from the parking lot at Muir Beach
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