I’m sitting in the lobby of a hotel in Oakhurst, California, basking in the first free wireless internet I’ve had all weekend.

Stephanie and I knew we wanted to do something over Labor Day, but we couldn’t decide on what. The crowdedness factor of many popular destinations (Yosemite for one) and our mutual desire not to be too planny contributed to our indecision.

After work on Friday we decided to head down the coast (towards Big Sur/Santa Barbara), packed, and made a reservation in Watsonville—all in about 30 minutes—before heading out of the city on Highway 1.

It was overcast, foggy, and dusking along the way. Sometime after 8 we got off in Santa Cruz for dinner and drove by the Beach Boardwalk amusement park. Stephanie very much wanted to check it out, so we bought 60 ride tickets (good for ~10 rides) and tried to do as much as we could in the hour before they closed, including two rides on the Giant Dipper. Built in 1924, it’s America’s 7th oldest.

And here we are on the Fireball, possibly upside down:

Afterwards we found dinner at the amusing (and open!) Charlie Hong Kong, thanks to a bartender’s recommendation and a waiter’s exquisitely detailed directions. Then we got on our way to Watsonville, to crash and decide where next.

Next: Towards Big Sur via Pebble Beach

• Towards Big Sur via Pebble Beach
• The long way to Yosemite
• Au revoir Nice, à bientôt!
• We did not tour Hearst Castle
• Driving down the Big Sur coast

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