Wooooooo!!!!! I’m so happy to report that the boys have been given the big OK to fly. Although they later tell us that it was shockingly close to going horribly wrong as the ash cloud was heading south meaning some airports down the country were closing only hours before the guys were set to depart. Ross calls to tell us that up until a couple of hours prior to departure they did not have even have a new flight plan! It was constantly being worked on right up until the last moment…
Gino tells us that some boys back home in Clevedon are heading out directly to Vegas just one day after them. As of this writing I am told that they will not be flying! So yes, it was really that close for them! And us!
Anyway, there’s a small matter of two hundred coastal miles to get through before we’ll see them…
So continuing north up PCH1, we head from Monterey bay to Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz has a famous promenade that includes a rollercoaster ride amongst the oldest in the entire United States. Also the beach was used in the film Lost Boys.
Having completed the fairground rides in Santa Cruz (and yes, another session of crazy golf), it’s time to head in-land to reach Redmond where we will be staying later tonight. We figured this part of the journey, just like the coast, would also be wonderfully picturesque and it really was.
Before starting our gradual accent of at least twenty miles into the Santa Cruz mountains, hairpin after hairpin, practically reaching the summit, we take a few snaps in the woods.
We stumble upon this random but captivating scene of endless Christmas trees being grown.
We make it to Redmond and check into our hotel before heading off to collect Gino and Ross at San Francisco airport.
It’s going to be an emotional moment when we all see each other as we’ve all battled so many challenges recently to actually get here. It will also mean that our last three days on the coast were indeed timed to perfection all needing to neatly come together on-time for this moment.
Check out the disturbed faces of the on-lookers…
Here they are having just landed in their slightly worrying dress-sense
Mad buggers!
As Hannibal Smith said “I love it when a plan comes together”.