Year 5, Day 257 “Living the Dream”. Monday, 1/12/2026, Day 7 of 22 day California Zephyr cross country trip, followed by a California coastal drive, and then a 14 night Mexico Cruise – Today is Day 3 of our 4 day California coastal drive. It is really quiet this morning in the Hilton Garden Inn. We are the only ones in the breakfast area. After breakfast we packed up our stuff and checked out.
We are visiting the Pismo Beach pier before we head onto Arcadia, California. This is the nicest fishing pier we have ever seen. It’s free to visit, and no fishing license is required to fish from the pier itself. The parking lot was free until 10am. It was a win win morning. Beautiful sunny day to walk the pier. The view was amazing from the pier. It was also fun to watch the surfers. As you can see by the pictures the Pismo Beach sign was a fun place to take pictures. Yes – there are way too many pictures of it. Hey, but isn’t it great.
At home it is a beautiful day also.
With much regret we left the pier and headed to the Los Angeles area. Todays drive is through the mountains and along the water on Route 101 and route 154. Along the way there were fields of hoop houses/tunnels/greenhouses. I understand that in this area they are primarily used for growing raspberries and other berries. The views of the mountains, and oceans on the ride were wonderful.
Along U.S. Highway 101 we did see planned, prescribed burns going on by the fire department. These burns manage vegetation and reduce the risk of future, larger wildfires
Around Santa Barbara we started seeing the Santa Ynez Mountains. They were just so incredible. Would love to explore them.
Then it was down along the coast for some beautiful ocean views.
After the beaches our drive headed inland to Arcadia. We ended the day checked into the Hilton Garden Inn Arcadia/Pasadena. People often ask how do you pick hotels. I spend a lot of time looking at online reviews. We usually stay at a Hilton Hotel and a lot has to do with price also. Laying in bed tonight I am thinking about our time in California and the different climates we have been through. On the train we went through really deep snow and now we are in warm nice weather. Did you know that California has more climate types than any other state.
Here’s a little something to ponder.
Here’s a link to today’s Amazon recommendation: https://amzn.to/4bAtYWS 40×60 Monocular Telescope with Smartphone Adapter: A must for traveling. Don’t miss that far away detail. Great for viewing wildlife.
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. #CommissionsEarned
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