July 18

Last night I stayed in San Francisco with the high school friend and we went to a Giants vs. Indians baseball game. We had a blast, we barely watched the game but we just chatted about life and family and boys and we just really had a great time together.

This morning I left early and headed north to Highway 1. This is a highway that curves and bends all up along the California and Oregon coast.

I knew this was going to be a long drive that would take a few days as it’s not a straight shot like an Interstate would be. I wanted to take the time to see this coastline, and wow. Good call.

I stopped at Bodega Bay for some of the best fish tacos, and I stopped for a little hike at Bowling Ball Beach. The tide was too high to see the large amount of big rocks shaped like balls, but still a nice time to get out and explore.

As sundown approached, I decided it was time for me to stop and find the place where I would sleep for the night. I have two Apps that I use. 'Camp & Tent' shows were all the campsites are in any area, and 'Boondocking' is the same concept. Boondocking is appealing because it is free, but as I pulled into an dirt lot along the coast with other vans and RVs parked up for the night, I thought I might like to see what the campsites have to offer. What I really knew was that I need to pull-off the band-aid on solo tent camping. I had never done it, and I was going to need to begin getting comfortable with it.

I landed north of Fort Bragg, CA at the Westport-Union Landing State Park. I drove around for a while, considering what I should do. Did I feel safe? Is it worth the $35 State Park charge? Can I actually do this on my own or get any sleep this way?

I found a spot on the coast and two sites down I saw an RV that didn’t seem to have people in it, but on their picnic table was a vase with an arrangement of wildflowers. I was also traveling with a vase and some flowers by my side in the cup holder of my van, and this felt like a warm and kind sign for me. I set my vase of flowers out on my picnic table and began to set-up my tent and watch the sunset. And as the sun went down, I climbed into my tent and fell asleep.