Ending, Beginnings and Ladybird Books

The past week has been a bit of an odd week really.   It started with us finally reaching the Pacific Ocean at Fort Stephens, Oregon. Almost 3 months to the day since we landed in Washington. This was as far west as we could go.

 It was a significant moment for us because it meant we had driven the US coast to coast. Us...Lynne & Trevor from Reading...we've driven plain across one of the largest continents on earth.We finally stopped asking ourselves 'are we really doing this?' and instead said 'Look what we've done!'

It was a bitter/sweet kind of moment because it meant that the Coast to Coast part of our tour was done and for a while it felt like it was all over. The big destination had been reached, the major locations all behind us, only 1 state left to do and now it was just a long journey home. Dumb or what! We've over a month...a whole month...of our trip left to do. For goodness sake, if anyone else had a month of holiday time ahead they'd be jumping for joy. It was time for a shift of thinking. This was the beginning of the grand Pacific Coast adventure, south on Highway 101 and California 1 from the northwest tip of Oregon all the way down to the Mexican border. There's Yosemite to plan for, the Golden Gate Bridge to drive over, and the Redwoods.

The drive down the Oregon coast has been full of those 'Oh Wow!' moments

with more stunning views,

 cool histories and wildlife seemingly around every corner.

 We've walked on miles of sandy beaches, seen giant sand dunes,

 watched surfers

and lost ourselves just staring at the ever changing face of the Pacific Ocean. At night we listen for the beat of the surf on the shore, it has become a comforting rhythm.

So, what's this about Ladybird books?  There's one part of our trip which goes back further than 18 years, a powerful image from our own childhoods.  We both remember reading a Ladybird book at primary school that had a picture of Redwood tree so big that a car was driving through it. Neither of us then could believe that trees could grow that big but, having crossed into California, we found the Redwoods.

They are that big...and even bigger! (just for scale, Trevor is 6' tall) These trees can live for over 2000 years, grow up to 350 feet tall and can have a circumference in excess of 70 feet!!

The awe and respect the red giants inspire cannot be expressed. Entering a forest of Redwoods is like entering a cathedral.  The softness of the forest feels like carpet. The quality of light is as through a stained glass window. And the silence...oh the silence...a safe, warm, comforting 'hushed, quiet silence'.  You come away knowing what true stillness feels like.

The other effect is to make you feel small, like a child again. It made us giggle and want to play hide-&-seek.  We couldn't help but climb into the hollow trunks and look for places to make camps like we did as children.

We haven't found one to drive through yet but it doesn't matter, we've seen trees big enough and it's all we need to validate that childhood memory. Ladybird books don't lie.