Goading him into sharing.
West Coast
Way up north in frozen tundra
They boy has bigger brass balls than me. Ahhhh youth.... wasted on the young.
From central Fla to Cali to PNW to NEB back to central Fla with a lot of side trips.
Just a preview. He swears the 10,000 mile road trip accounting is coming.
Looks like a most excellent adventure. And I thought I was cool doing 4,200 miles in one trip.
And the whippersnapper is a better photographer than my old arse.
I'm in the planning/dreaming stages of doing this in my '88 924S so this is of interest to me. though i'd rather do it in his car :)
My tentative route is Washington DC --> Michigan upper peninsula --> across the top of the country reaching the west coast in the PNW (probably northern California) --> down the PCH to LA vicinity --> Arizona for a bit of Rt.66 (though not too much) --> back up to Vegas and Colorado --> figure out how I want to go back to DC from there (either back across the north, or dive through Texas and then Tennsessee.
Jim, you're too kind. The full account is coming I promise!
In reply to irish44j :
That sounds like an epic trip! The northern part of the country was a bit too snowy for summer tires this time, but it's a much better trip than I-10!
It hard to start writing about a trip that has been so long in the making. I've known I wanted to drive a car up PCH before I had ever seen it in person. After years and years of dreaming (plus a healthy amount of hard work), I finally had the car, the time and the budget to drive all the way up the coast.
But where would I stop? And where would I go along the way? I had a few places in mind, but this was a trip with no real itinerary. In the end, it turned out to be everything I wanted it to be and more. But now I suppose it's time to talk about the beginning of the trip itself, starting where I live in Tampa, FL with a few bags and just under 110k miles on my odometer.
First Stop: West Texas
I travel for work and the company I work for typically flies their employees to each job. If you ask to drive, though, they'll reimburse you for mileage up to the cost of a plane ticket to and from the job. I was asked if I would be interested in a job in Big Spring, TX and I jumped on it because it would basically pay for the boring part of the trip to California.
Normally this sort of stop wouldn't be worth talking about much, but on my way to this job my office called to ask me to pick up some air cargo. I wasn't sure if it would work, but I am proud to say every item in the picture below fit in the car and I could still see out all of the windows!
Shortly after the job started, the weather was bad and I got off work early. Time for a trip to the Permian Basin Petroleum Museum. This museum has a bit of a secret as a whole wing is dedicated to Jim Hall's Chapparal cars. Just seeing the cars on display was great, but I got a special treat. The Chapparal 2J was listed as being in the collection, but I didn't see it on the floor. I found out it was being worked on and was asked whether I would be interested in seeing it.
I couldn't say yes fast enough! I got to see the car taken apart and talk with the mechanic who maintains the whole collection. This was much more meaningful than seeing the car on a display stand for a few reasons. Talking with the mechanic was extremely illuminating. He told me about lots of innovative details you can find throughout the car and showed them to me up close. The cable system for raising and lowering the skirts was particularly interesting. But, more than that, seeing the car taken apart reminded me of a basic truth. Every car, no matter how legendary or valuable, is just an amalgam of parts. I'm used to cars in this context and I think I felt more comfortable seeing it like that.
I don't generally love West Texas, but the work itself went very well and the job was over soon enough.
As long as you are going to wake up at 4AM, you may as well enjoy the view.
And as long as you have to climb 330ft, you may as well enjoy that view.
To be continued...
Second Stop: SoCal
After Texas, it was time to go to California. I almost got to the border before it was time to take a nap on some BLM land outside of Quartzsite, AZ.
After that I headed toward Pioneertown, CA, outside of Joshua Tree National Park. On the way there I met a rear-engined friend.
I made a quick detour through Joshua Tree NP, itself.
Pioneertown is an interesting place. It was originally built as a permanent set for Western movies, but now the surrounding area is starting to fill with people trying to get away from the high prices and grumpy neighbors further west. Suffice to say, there aren't too many 911's around.
After a few nights in Pioneertown, I was ready to see some friends in and around LA. Gardena is not exactly a glamorous town, but the food and depth of talent hiding in industrial parks around that area are absolutely world class. Now they have a new neighbor in the form of the Porsche Experience Center. Sadly, it was closed for a private event when I stopped by.
Soon after that, it was time to head further up the coast.
In reply to white_fly :
Where'd you go?
Great to see a 996 in the wild doing it’s thing. Have fun!
Onward Up The Coast
After LA, it was time for the roads that were essentially the reason for this whole trip. After lunch with a friend in Somis, I headed toward the coast and started North up the 101 and 1. Most of the first day was not overwhelmingly scenic or fun to drive, but I did pass Pismo Beach.
After the sun went down I decided to get a little bit further from civilization and slept in a park near Hearst Castle. It was a bit chilly, but I was able to sleep on my cot with only the stars above me. The area is apparently very nice, but I arrived after dark and left before sunrise as I *really* wanted the next section of road all to myself.
In reply to white_fly :
How about a brief interlude and tell us about the car...and this pic.
Through Big Sur and Into The Bay Area
This day was always going to be a highlight of the trip, but it worked out to exceed even my high expectations. I wanted to get going early to avoid traffic and because the ethereal morning light on the coast is spectacular.
The light combined with the car and having the road all to myself made this one of the best drives of my life.
These pictures aren't bad for cell phone snapshots, but rest assured they capture an insignificant amount of the true beauty of that day and place.
After breakfast, I headed to Bruce Canepa's shop where I had the "museum" all to myself.
After literal hours looking around the cars upstairs I started talking to one of the employees in the showroom downstairs about 917/30's.
"Spectacular cars, aren't they? I think if I could have the keys to any car and an open track it would be a 917/30. *pointing at a convenient picture* Obviously, if I could have any of them it would be the Donohue car."
"Oh, we actually have that car in the shop right now."
"How nicely do I have to ask you to see that car."
Well, apparently, I was able to ask nicely enough.
What a car! The tiny aluminum chassis tubes are a shocking contrast with the massive tires, fuel tanks and engine. This might just be the best reason I know of to be rich.
After that, I drove up the 17 and into the bay area to take a look at the Blackhawk Museum. Its primary focus is concours cars which, while interesting, turned out to not really be my cup of tea. After that I was headed to see another friend in Sebastopol.
In reply to Ovid_and_Flem :
I need to post an update about the car in its own thread sometime. It's a stock 1999 911 C2 apart from intake, exhaust, lowering springs and some updated bodywork. The '99 is really nice because it has a cable throttle and there isn't even traction control to turn off. As a package it is about perfect for my use.
In Pioneertown I visited a friend who can be described as a bit eccentric, as folks who live in containers in the desert have a tendency to be. His property is down about 3 miles of sandy "roads" and we weren't sure if we were going to be able to get my car all the way there. After straddling many ruts, the car made it to an area I can safely say no Porsche has ever been!
Sebastopol
Sebastopol itself is an interesting community (apparently they outlawed microwaves for a while), but besides chuckling about the hippies my friend who I was visiting was especially eager to show me some of the natural beauty that surrounds the area. We planned on several hikes and the roads leading to said hikes were invariably windy and often quite beautiful as well.
One particular hike worth mentioning was the one to Cataract Falls. This hike is very near San Francisco, but worlds apart. It is true Pacific rain forest. Everything is an incredible green that I think is impossible to capture in pictures.
The road to the hike was also wonderful. It was all second gear; like an autocross with blind corners and elevation change and magical scenery, easily as good as some of Malibu's famous canyons or Mullholland.
In reply to white_fly :
Wow...just looked at google map link. That's like a 22 mile west coast Tail of the Dragon!
Out of California and Into Oregon
While I had driven through Big Sur before, this next section of coastline was going to be totally new to me. I was excited, but didn't really know what to expect. Again I left early to have the road to myself and it was so good that I didn't even stop to take pictures. Here is a link to the best road I've ever driven on. The sun was out, windows were down and the flat six was absolutely singing.
https://goo.gl/maps/pLQLE9JfWNP2
I made sure to drive Avenue of the Giants and drove my car through a tree. I kept driving up to Arcata and after spending the night there I discovered that somebody named a park after me ;)
The park was very beautiful, but I wanted to get to Portland for the night so I didn't spend long there. As the 101 crossed into Oregon, the coast seemed to get even more beautiful.
I planned to drive up the coast until the sun started setting. At that point I would enjoy the sunset and head to Portland afterward. Serendipitously I ended up at Agate Beach where I got the sunset of a liftetime.
This area of the Oregon coast impressed me so much that I found my nomadic self casually looking at property in the area!
After that it was on to Portland.
In reply to solfly :
Hard to believe you fit all that gear into the car. I have a 996 too and I'm not sure how it'd fit
In reply to docwyte :
I could hardly believe it myself! That's why I had to document it for posterity.
Portland
My first night in Portland I met up with a fellow 996 owner I met on instagram as @996roadtrip. It was fun to meet up with him and contrast our cars, his a late C4S and mine an early C2. After that I checked into a hostel. Unfortunately, my car was broken into overnight. Rear window broken, side window smashed out, laptop and other items stolen. 996roadtrip found out and his immediate response was "What can I do to help?" Very impressive and a great example of the kind of friend to be and to have.
What to do in a situation like that? Go for a hike!
After taking some time to calm down on the hike, it was time to figure out a plan of action. The car was not going to get fixed before the weekend and I had planned to go to Seattle. Time to visit a hardware store...
I discovered that the patch worked much better with the sunroof tilted to create a bit of suction in the car. With the patch in place, I visited the Evergreen Aviation Museum and Palatov Motorsport. In Palatov's shop was the original D1 with the Hartley V8. What a contrast to the Can-Am cars! It was positively tiny but a joy to see nonetheless.
In reply to white_fly :
That sucks
Seattle Pt. 1
I got to Seattle ready for a fun weekend and I have to say, Seattle delivered in ways both expected and unexpected. I got to meet up with yet another friend and she served as an impromptu guide to an incredible culinary destination.
After eating better than I have in years all over the city, seeing the Space Needle, and visiting the Chihuly museum it was time to make plans for the week. Somehow there was snow in the forecast. How bad could it be?
Historically bad, it turned out. With a missing window and 8" of snow, I decided to get my car serviced and drop it off at a glass shop while I went back to Florida for a few days.
Seattle Pt. 2
After returning to Seattle I decided to explore the area outside the city a bit. I was rewarded with this view from Seabeck.
Vancouver Island
While I had been in Florida, my grandfather told me I should visit Victoria. I had planned on going to Vancouver, but I decided it would be fun to take a ferry to Victoria first. Canadian customs decided that a man with no real plans or reason to be in Canada was quite suspect, but after a lengthy search, they decided I wasn't so interesting after all.
In the process of getting my car searched, it seemed I lost some headroom. This was rather perplexing as I didn't think my seat could be adjusted for height. Well, only after I got back to Florida did I discover that I had indeed lost some headroom and my seat is adjustable. You pull up on the front of a little knob and it releases a charged strut that allows you to move the seat. Lesson learned...
Vancouver Island was a joy to visit, but I really need to go back with snow tires. I drove up to Port Renfrew, but that was as far as I could make it.
Vancouver
After Vancouver Island I took the ferry to Vancouver. I really liked the city and had a brief but good time there. I couldn't use my cell phone which made planning a bit more difficult, but I was hardly suffering. I drove back to Seattle to catch a flight to Nebraska for work.
To Tahoe via Kennewick and Reno
After getting back from Nebraska I intended to spend some more time in Seattle, but I saw snow in the forecast. In my hurry to avoid a repeat of the previous snowy adventures, I ended up driving right into the storm that was bringing snow to the city. Note to self: just because one storm came from the North and West, doesn't mean the next one can't come from the South and East! After a few frightening moments, I decided to stop short of my grandmother's home in Kennewick, WA.
The next day's drive was very pretty and I had a good visit with my grandmother.
After that it was time to head further south, through Bend and into Reno on my way to Lake Tahoe.
The car looked pretty funny with all the road grime covering the Florida plate.
Lake Tahoe
My visit to Tahoe was a highlight of the trip. The roads were too snowy to have much driving fun, but every day was filled with hiking, snowshoeing, snowboarding, hot springing and great food.
Back to LA
Getting out of Tahoe proved a bit challenging as a storm brought on road closures very quickly. In fact, my first attempt had to be aborted as I simply didn't have enough traction to push the car up the road. Once out, though, I took 375 down to LA and what a beautiful drive it was.
Time to Go Home
By this time Sebring was coming up and it was time to head home. The roads got a bit less exciting, but the 911 hit a fun milestone only six months after I bought it with 101k miles.
That's pretty much the end of the adventure this time. Surely there will be another soon.
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