We have two days to get from San Francisco to Medford, Oregon.  We came down I-5 at the start of the trip, so we wanted to go back some other way.  We decided on Eureka as the way-point so we could drive US 101 through the northern half of the state. 

For the first two hours, it looked like a bad decision.  We were in stop-and-go traffic for sixty miles.  At one point I shot this picture.  We were in a 65 mph zone!  And this was the fastest we’d gone for a while. 

Finally things began to move and we made better time.  We found an adorable town called Healdsburg in the heart of the Alexander Valley.  Being one of the bigger wine grape growing regions, the town is loaded with tasting rooms.

Beyond that the road is fantastic.  For the most part, wide, fast highways that run through redwood forests.  We saw trees that were six and eight feet in diameter right next to the road.  It was an awesome drive.

Eureka is a fun little town.  We had a great dinner at a restaurant called Avalon in Eureka’s Old Town.  Very  nice – good food, good service, nice people.  Then off to Starbucks for some coffee, reading and a six-star Sudoku puzzle.

We’ve covered over 2,600 miles with about 700 plus-or-minus to go.