The Cannonball Run – the famous outlaw road-race from coast-to-coast in the 70’s – may have had its finish line at Redondo Beach, not far from Los Angeles, but it was the same Pacific Ocean that greeted the participants when they completed their gruelling journey across the wide expanse of the US of A.
In our case, it was the San Francisco bay that gave us our first glimpse of the Pacific after crossing the entire width of North America. And there’s no better view that can await you than the shining Pacific under the Golden Gate. Now we may have seen some pretty impressive sights on our journey – from the Fall colours of the East coast and Mid West, to the Rocky mountains of Colorado, to the stark landscape of Arizona, New Mexico and Nevada – but there’s really nothing that compares to the sheer beauty of San Francisco in particular, and the Pacific coast in general.
I’ve been fortunate to spend about six years on the West coast – split between Northern and Southern California – and yet the novelty of seeing the blue waters of the Pacific never really wears off. Driving up Highway 1, from Los Angeles to San Francisco, is one of the most memorable drives I’ve ever done. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the time to squeeze that into the itinerary this time, but we did get a chance to spend some time on the Pacific Coast highway just south of San Francisco.
In fact, we also got the chance to explore my favourite stretch of road anywhere on this planet. We hit Highway 1 at Pacifica, in South San Francisco, and headed further South towards Highway 92 at Half Moon Bay. From there, we took off East towards the San Mateo Bridge briefly – before turning right towards Skyline on Highway 35. This climbs into the hills alongside the coast, and not only offers stunning vistas but also some of the best driving roads in the world. The 35 leads to an even more spectacular stretch, the 84, that ends up at Woodside – but not before it winds its way down a tight and twisting ribbon of tarmac that’s an absolute test of man and machine.
The college, during my undergrad years, wasn’t very far – so this was a regular loop whenever I wanted to stretch my legs (or that of the motor powering the 25-year old car registered in my name). Typically, this run was done in the wee hours of the morning, so that I would have the roads greedily to myself. Needless to say, this became such a common occurrence that I virtually knew every bend and bump in the road. So it was only fitting that our journey across the US should end on this stretch of tarmac. The road had lost none of its appeal – both in terms of the views of the Pacific on one side and the valley on the other, and of course the challenge it offers to the driver.
It was the perfect end to what was an incredible journey across this beautiful land. I’m not sure if and when I’ll be able to drive across the country again, but I certainly hope that I’ll be able to revisit this stretch of incredible tarmac sooner rather than later.
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