Montrio Bistro, Monterey California, Spring 2011. While in search of a venue for our pre-wedding dinner celebration, we stumbled upon a cozy little red brick, two-story eatery called Montrio Bistro, tucked comfortably into a quiet downtown strip known as Calle Principal.
Envious is the first word that comes to mind when I think of anyone that lives, breathes and rides the surrounding areas that make up this vast state of California and has the pleasure of experiencing first hand the trifecta that is Monterey, Carmel and Big Sur, on a regular basis. For those who may not know, these (at least for me) are three of the most charming points in the shortest distance that line central California’s curvaceous Pacific Coast Highway and are truly spellbinding, each in their own way, in either direction.
There's something about the way Highway 120 rises above Lee Vining that immediately leaves an impression. It may be the backdrop of Yosemite, or it just may be the sheer immediacy of its rise into something we simply can't see from our vantage point. During our night's stay by Mono Lake we certainly had the next day's crossing over Tioga Pass on our minds.
As I rode through Leggett, the redwoods seemed to multiply and a turnoff for “Drive-Thru Tree Road” got my attention, leading me slightly off course. Was there really a tree that you could drive through? Of course, I had to find out.
Read about this Southern California resident's experience riding north all the way to Crescent City in KawaNow Rally in the Redwoods from Kawasaki Accelerate ROK magazine by Editor Teri Conrad.
In stark contrast to the 120°F weather we'd spent the day fleeing from in Death Valley, a storm was chasing us towards Yosemite and the Tioga Pass. On the map, Lee Vining and Mono Lake seemed like a perfect place to spend the night, wait out the storm and set out from, early the following day. We'd seen some pictures of Mono Lake while researching our two-month trip around the western US and the seemingly alien tufa tower formations that reached out from the water were definitely intriguing.
The back roads of the San Francisco Bay Area offer plenty of curves, but I’m definitely not throwing you a curve when offering up this list of the coolest, out-of the-way places to check out along your route. Whether you’re a local on a weekend ride or a visitor looking to explore the region’s amazing back roads while on two wheels, the below are the five must-do hangouts.
