Half Moon Bay
After two days on the road and finally getting to Silicon Valley, I was deep in DreamLand when the alarm rudely went off at 6.40 am.
DH was back in full work mode and he had an early start, as his meeting kick-off was 8 am.
His alarm had woken DS as well; so, with no chance of a sleep-in, we got up, got ready and I faced the perplexing conundrum of….
What the heck were DS and I going to do today?
In any event, DS and I decided to join DH for an early breakfast and send him off to work properly.
Unfortunately, there were a number of DH’s work colleagues at the breakfast room and I didn’t want to embarrass DH; so I chose to eat breakfast rather than shoot it.
After breakfast, we said our goodbyes and headed back to our room. It hadn’t gone 8 am yet and I knew better than to rush out into Silicon Valley peak car parking period on the 101 going no where fast. We hung around the room for a while and when I figured it was safe enough, DS and I headed out.
We had decided to go to our favourite beach in this part of the world….Half Moon Bay State Beach - specifically Francis Beach. It takes us about 40 minutes to drive over the Coast Range to this beach.
The beach never disappoints; whatever season or weather conditions I’ve gone in, particularly if you are looking for a bit of
solitute. The only issue I have recently had with the outing is the $10 parking fee that the State Park charges for the pleasure. It used to be $5 not that long ago. But today was not a day I was going to quibble about parking fees given that we had not yet paid for parking for any of the stops we have made along the Cabrillo (I was just following the rest of the pack and watching what the others had done). I’m a firm believer in Karma. I figured I was happy to pay $10 parking for this entire trip duration and was relatively guilt-free about all the other times (and times to come) that I hadn’t coughed up any dough.
Whilst it was a beautiful day, it wasn’t quite ocean swimming weather. We rolled up our pants and took off our socks and shoes and headed for the surf. We messed about on the beach, building sand clumps and jumping the waves. I figured that the temperatures must have been in the high teens, pushing the low 20’s….er…that’s in Celsius….about low 70’s Farenheit.
We had a ball playing footsies with the surf and although we did find that the occasional high roller got the better of us, by and large, our clothes remained dry.
It must have taken all over 20 minutes before anyone else showed up on the beach. And then I noticed something else….
…. I had spotted a couple of surfers in the ocean and that was enough for me to resume my favourite activity – stalking – because I needed a picture for wipeout!
So, I left DS to mess about and set up shop with the camera.
I was thankful that I picked up the camera when I did because this group of beautiful Brown Pelicans happened to be flying by
in unison.
The Brown Pelicans are the smallest in the pelican family. Like a lot of birds in this part of the world, they were driven to near extinction in the 70’s from the use of DDT and Dieldrin. I was happy to see them as this species is once again thriving in their native environment.
As the pelicans flew off in search of prey, I patiently waited for one of the surfer dudes, my prey, to catch a wave.
It turns out that the waves weren’t of the sort the strong silent surfer dudes wanted to catch at all. One of them spent a long time fishtailing into the rollers; whilst the other gave me a neck crick watching him paddling backwards and forwards in the ocean. I could see my chance of a wipeout evaporating in the wind.
In the end, I waited for over an hour. DS had happily played in the sand and surf for this time but he was getting hungry and thirsty. I checked my watch. It was close on lunch time and I knew he was right…but I still hadn’t gotten my shot. When it was obvious that I could delay no more, I was about to put the camera away when….
Finally! Some action! The surfer dude must have gotten unlucky and he ended up in the right place at the right time. And I could see it unfold right in front of me….and that surfer could see it too. He paddled hard, stood up and surfed….
…and surfed….
…and surfed. I could sense possibilities……only to be disappointed. He stayed on his board. The tension kept building…
…as he stayed on his board.
I waited and waited ….and finally!
My
wipeout!
I was delirious and light-headed!
It was definitely time to head in search of food.
The great thing about a morning on Francis Beach is that when we’re done, the wash up amenities is reasonable and we fully make use of them.
The Park Services include outdoor showers and taps for that quick rinse off for sand and surf. You just have to remember to bring a towel.
One of the other benefits of taking the trouble to go to Francis Beach is that when we are done, we are a 2-minute drive away from the quaint town of Half Moon Bay.
I was last here in October 2010; and was happy to be back again. DS felt the same way.
Half Moon Bay is not a very big town. It probably consists of about 50 or 60 shops, all along one main street. There are a number of very nice eating establishments, cutesy shops and a couple of clothing shops. And for a small town, it sure has very eclectic street art.
DS and I have been visiting this town together for the last 8 or 9 years and we always make it a point to take a stroll up and down the streets, admiring the windows and occasionally going into a shop of two. We also have this favourite café in town.
On the walls of the café, the owner hangs artwork from local artists, which are for sale. One of these visits, I’m sure I’ll see the one that is destined for my wall at home.
And the bay window looks out on the incredibly busy and bustling street life of Half Moon Bay.
It is a place where locals hang out and everyone knows everyone else’s name.
And the food? Well, we love their killer milk shakes.
We also love their toasted sandwiches, and DS ordered this cheese, avocado and tomato
deli sandwich, with pickle.
I decided on a roasted vegetable panini with eggplant, red onion, peppers and pesto; and my favourite A&W Rootbeer.
For me, the food is always delicious and fresh here. And at a total cost of under $20 (including tips in the tip jar) for lunch, I think it is reasonably priced.
After lunch, we lingered in town for a little bit longer. There are a couple of bookshops and a toyshop that are firm favourites with DS. Despite looking hard, we didn’t find anything to buy this time. And after a while, he wanted to head back to the hotel for a swim.
[Up Next – The afternoon is for the birds]
Yes, I hit the Dis Twilight Zone. 
I need to find out if there is such a thing as Kangaroo bacon 
Yay Kimmar made it over to find the bacon!
