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A Month in California
ciel-007
I'm making plans to fly to San Francisco in mid April. I intend to lease a car, and spend a month touring the Golden State with my wife. I know that some HRO members are very knowledgeable about California. Might some of you care to offer a bit of advice to a pair of retired travelers?

More specifically, are there some things that we MUST SEE & DO while in California? homeroasters.org/php/images/smiley/smiley027.gif

Conversely, might there possibly be a few things that we should try to avoid at all costs?homeroasters.org/php/images/smiley/shock.gif

Ciel
homeroasters.org/php/images/smiley/forumsmiley2696.gif
Ciel... seeking Heaven in my cup with ................................................................................................................. EXPOBAR Brewtus II - MAZZER Mini E - MAHLK?NIG Vario - GeneCafe - RAF-1 Extreme (Modified B-2 HOTTOP) - BellaTaiwan XJ-101
 
boar_d_laze
California's possibilities are endless. There are few things which aren't here? What particularly interests you?

Presumably a drive down the coast will be part of your tour. All sorts of wonderful places to dally, eat, drink, etc. A day at Hearst Castle is a must do.

The more you tell me, the better tailored my suggestions.

Rich
USRC 1lb Roaster, Chemex+Kone, Espro, Various FPs, Royal Siphon Vacuum, Yama Ice Drip Tower, Bunnzilla, La Cimbali M21 Casa, Ceado E92.
CookFoodGood
 
ginny
Hi Ciel:

as Rich asked what do you like more in terms of sights?

you can actually cut the Great State of California in half and spend 1/2 time in both.

arriving in SF do you plan to keep the car for the month or drive North and the fly South or the reverse.

I do not think you want to drive north then back south again as you will waste time.

bit more info and if you have not decided I will simply add my must list. are you city folks or do you enjoy wilderness and deserts? art, funky places or conventional stuff.

are you a fan of tourist hangouts or do you prefer the real stuff?


ginny
 
Randy G
North along the coast through the redwoods.
Then east to Mt. Shasta and then through Lassen Park.
Then back west through Quincy and Hwy70 (one of the State's great roads) and back into the valley,
or
Continue south through the Gold Country to or towards Truckee and Tahoe
Then West to the bay area again and down Hwy 1 on the coast to Monterrey, hiurst castle, and San Luis Obispo.

Oh... And bring LOTS of water - we need it!

Life's too short to drink bad coffee.
 
snwcmpr
Endless list, but a few are:
San Francisco:
Chinatown, Fishermans Wharf, and more.

Death Valley in April is spectacular.
Lake Tahoe.
Yosemite valley (and Tuolomnee meadows and Tioga Pass).
Kings Canyon-Sequoia National Park.
Redwoods at various spots in the state. Coastal (Tall) Inland (Giant).
Big Sur
Camping on the beach (I know - so many places) at Carpinteria.
http://www.carpin...
Coast highway 1 (preferred) or 101 either north or south.
Mt Shasta and Mt Shasta city.
Ad infinitum.

Ken in NC
--------------
Backwoods Roaster
"I wish I could taste as well as I wish I could roast."

As Abraham Lincoln said "Do not trust everything you read on the internet".
 
Lawnmowerman
Hi. Ben here. I live in northern California. This may seem a llittle off the wall, but for some reason I occasionally have seen people stopped on the side of the road taking pictures of crops growing. Presumably they are tourists. But I really can't recommend anything in the central valley.
Bad coffee prevails when good coffee roasters stand by and do nothing.
 
Lawnmowerman
However, if you need to roast, my garage is available. Plus I have a new local specialty coffee source (green) .7 days a week. Just sayin....
Bad coffee prevails when good coffee roasters stand by and do nothing.
 
turtle
I grew up in so cal from the early 50's until I left for college.

Starting in SF you "should" take highway 1 north to Willits / Ft. Bragg and take the skunk rail line. Nice steam engine trip that is short and amazing as it winds through the coastal mountains.

http://www.skunkt...

Russian River is near by which is also one amazing area (have friends that live on the river in a "stilt house".

Heading south from SF take the coastal road and STOP at San Simeon and take as many of the tours as you can afford. One amazing place.

http://hearstcast...

by then you should be tired of the coast and you can head inland and take highway 49 through the old gold rush area of the state.
Mick - "Drinking in life one cup at a time"
"I'd rather be roasting coffee"

Roaster 1: San Franciscan SF-1
Roaster 2: Hottop B-2K+
Roaster 3: 2 kilo Chinese drum
Grinders: Mazzer Major - Forte BG (x3)
Pour over: Hario - Bee House - Chemex - Kalita - Bodum
Drip: Bunn CWTF15-1 & CW15-TC (commercials)
Espresso: Pasquini Livia 90 auto
Vacuum: Cona - Bodum
Press: Frieling - Bodum Colombia
 
threwitallaway
My 2 cents:

Agree with above post, Hearst Castle in Central, CA is a must-see. Take 2 of the tours offered (I think they have 4 or 5), they overlap somewhat but you will see different things on both.

If you get to Central/Southern California (Santa Barbara and south), stop in Santa Barbara for a day, drive up the mountain and look around. Solvang is interesting also.

Further south in L.A. you could hit Hollywood of course, Griffith observatory, Rodeo Drive, etc. The Getty Museum; both Malibu and especially the one in L.A. are a must-see. Check ahead online if you go to the Getty I believe there is something involved there.

San Diego has Point Loma/Cabrillo National Monument, The coast drive between La Jolla and Oceanside is very nice. Oh yes, eat great food. Stop at small Mexican joints and get the tacos and burritos-if you like Mexican that is- and enjoy all that the state has to offer. I lived there for 22 years, gotta admit, I'm jealous you get to spend a month touring it! Have an excellent time! (Oh yes, bring lots of water like Randy said, perhaps 10 billion gallons or so.....)

-Nate
__________________________________________
Hottop B-2K w barryR thermocouple mod, Mazzer Mini /Super Jolly burrs, Salvatore E-61 group machine, Aeropress, French press.
 
ciel-007
A big THANK YOU to all who took time to offer such great suggestions.

After landing in SF, I am thinking of driving all the way South along the Ocean. I would likely return (Northward) inland towards Lake Tahoe and beyond. I would then try to head (Southward) along the Ocean back towards SF. If time permits, the above circuit would likely allow me to take in practically all of your wonderful suggestions throughout Southern and Northern California. Your suggestions are greatly appreciated, and I thank you for them.

Ciel
Ciel... seeking Heaven in my cup with ................................................................................................................. EXPOBAR Brewtus II - MAZZER Mini E - MAHLK?NIG Vario - GeneCafe - RAF-1 Extreme (Modified B-2 HOTTOP) - BellaTaiwan XJ-101
 
ciel-007
PCH

For those of you who may have a penchant for motorcycle touring, here is a look at my PC800. When I bought the Honda in 1989, my fantasy was to cruise the length of the Pacific Coast Highway... riding the PC800... someday.

Alas, too many years have elapsed since that early dream. Although I still intend to tour a portion of the Pacific Coast Highway in a few weeks, I will not be on the back of this trusty PC800.

Ciel
ciel-007 attached the following images:
a_pc800.jpg b_pc800.jpg

Ciel... seeking Heaven in my cup with ................................................................................................................. EXPOBAR Brewtus II - MAZZER Mini E - MAHLK?NIG Vario - GeneCafe - RAF-1 Extreme (Modified B-2 HOTTOP) - BellaTaiwan XJ-101
 
turtle

Quote

ciel-007 wrote:

PCH

For those of you who may have a penchant for motorcycle touring, here is a look at my PC800. When I bought the Honda in 1989, my fantasy was to cruise the length of the Pacific Coast Highway... riding the PC800... someday.

Alas, too many years have elapsed since that early dream. Although I still intend to tour a portion of the Pacific Coast Highway in a few weeks, I will not be on the back of this trusty PC800.

Ciel


Back when I was immortal (late 1960's) my first wife and I road this beast from L.A. to S.F. up and back US 1 (coastal highway). Four day adventure that took months to recover from as it was a 1951 ridged frame EL. Oh, and yes, those ARE mechanical brakes.

i1066.photobucket.com/albums/u414/turtle-web/misc/51-el.jpg
Mick - "Drinking in life one cup at a time"
"I'd rather be roasting coffee"

Roaster 1: San Franciscan SF-1
Roaster 2: Hottop B-2K+
Roaster 3: 2 kilo Chinese drum
Grinders: Mazzer Major - Forte BG (x3)
Pour over: Hario - Bee House - Chemex - Kalita - Bodum
Drip: Bunn CWTF15-1 & CW15-TC (commercials)
Espresso: Pasquini Livia 90 auto
Vacuum: Cona - Bodum
Press: Frieling - Bodum Colombia
 
ciel-007
Mick, although our bikes are different beasts, they have one thing in common: they are powered by a V-twin. Yours is probably about 60 cu.in, and has a bit more displacement than my PC800.

I believe the EL was a high production model. Was it not built around the time when the last of the original founders (Arthur D) passed away?

Ciel
Ciel... seeking Heaven in my cup with ................................................................................................................. EXPOBAR Brewtus II - MAZZER Mini E - MAHLK?NIG Vario - GeneCafe - RAF-1 Extreme (Modified B-2 HOTTOP) - BellaTaiwan XJ-101
 
turtle

Quote

ciel-007 wrote:

Mick, although our bikes are different beasts, they have one thing in common: they are powered by a V-twin. Yours is probably about 60 cu.in, and has a bit more displacement than my PC800.

I believe the EL was a high production model. Was it not built around the time when the last of the original founders (Arthur D) passed away?

Ciel


The EL pan head model was the precursor to the Sportster (61 CID not 74 like the larger twin) and followed the EL 61 knuckle head engine.

It was a very short run motor that was built between 1950-1952. Harley would not build another smaller twin OHV engine until the release of the sportster in 1957

Small and light weigh. The EL pan head was the preferred choice of engine for the early chopper builders because it was small and delicate looking yet powerful on a stripped down frame. It used the pan head OHV covers and modern valve assembly that the FL did only scaled down. Mine was a stock EL before I took the torch to it and ended up with a bike that had the wheel base of a VW bug. Had to be careful in corners as once the forks got past 2/3 turn the bike came down and the arm/muscle exertion to bring the wheel (and bike) back to center was enormous without using engine acceleration to help push it back to center. U turns were out of the question as it took 4 lanes to get it turned around as the front wheel flopped back and forth more than turned. To turn around I had to stop, walk it backwards with the wheel at full turn, turn the wheel full the other direction and drive it away letting the engine pull the wheel and bike back to center.

Great freeway cruiser that I commuted back and forth to work the 80 miles each way on from Sierra Madre Canyon to down town L.A (If you get to L.A. try to make it to Sierra Madre Canyon. SMC is a "bohemian" community of artists that has remained unchanged since 1910-1920's. Park at the "canyon store" and walk around as it is difficult to negotiation the one lane streets in a car). I had to stop for fuel each direction but by that time I needed to get off anyway as the only "spring" was the air in the tires. Tank held about 1.5 gallons of gas. It would wear you out in the mountains on a curvy road but get it in a straight line and you did not even need to hold the handle bars. Since it was a foot clutch hand shift most of my riding was done single handed anyway as I tended to keep my hand on the shifter which was below the seat on the left side.

California went to a required "bike" license when I owned that motorcycle so I had to go and do their "test course". That entailed a zig zag around cones. No way would that bike do it so I rode straight through the course with my leg extended and knocked the cones down, took most of the parking lot to turn around and came back. The tester just sighed and passed me as I had been riding for a long time, built the bike from the ground up, and had no issues with the foot clutch and hand shift.

The tank I used on that build was off of an early 125cc Harley "Hummer". Had the fill on the right side and the stock super glide key switch (on/off/headlights with a key lock) on the left side. It was a teardrop shaped like the later sportster tank.

That was my last chopper build (and my last motorcycle).

What a Hummer tank looks like (in case anyone wants to build an "old school" chopper LOL)

i1066.photobucket.com/albums/u414/turtle-web/misc/hummerTank_zpspfcpsdtg.jpg
Edited by turtle on 04/04/2015 10:37 AM
Mick - "Drinking in life one cup at a time"
"I'd rather be roasting coffee"

Roaster 1: San Franciscan SF-1
Roaster 2: Hottop B-2K+
Roaster 3: 2 kilo Chinese drum
Grinders: Mazzer Major - Forte BG (x3)
Pour over: Hario - Bee House - Chemex - Kalita - Bodum
Drip: Bunn CWTF15-1 & CW15-TC (commercials)
Espresso: Pasquini Livia 90 auto
Vacuum: Cona - Bodum
Press: Frieling - Bodum Colombia
 
ciel-007
I plan to spend a few days in SF, and look forward to savoring some great espresso. I have heard favorable comments about shops that roast their own beans such as:
-Blue Bottle Coffee (Soma, Hayes Valley, Embarcadero)
-Contraband Coffee (Nob Hill)
-Peet's Coffee & Tea (Soma, Financial District)
-Emporio Rulli Il Caff? (Union Square), and
-Caff? Trieste (North Beach).
Can anyone vouch for some of the above, or perhaps recommend better establishments that roast their own?

Ciel
Ciel... seeking Heaven in my cup with ................................................................................................................. EXPOBAR Brewtus II - MAZZER Mini E - MAHLK?NIG Vario - GeneCafe - RAF-1 Extreme (Modified B-2 HOTTOP) - BellaTaiwan XJ-101
 
renatoa
Big Sur would be my first place to see if ever arriving there...
Roasters: DIY: TO based IR 200-640g
Moded commercial: Skywalker, Dieckmann RoestMeister, Nesco, popper(s).
Electrics: TC4ESP, MS6514, USB/Artisan/Apps, PID controllers
Grinders: Arco, Xeoleo ghost burrs, Krinder, vintage PeDe Dienes, MBK Feldgrind
Brew/presso: ALM pour over, Arin lever, Staresso Mirage, Hario Cafeor dripper, Flair, Kompresso, Rota Aeropress, Gaggia Mini
 
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