How to Hide from 8 Million People

The San Francisco Bay Area is home to about 8 million people. In spite of that, the Bay Area is also home to some of the most beautiful and pristine stretches of desolate open space. So actually, it can be easy to get away from all of those people.

Recently, Elisa and I decided to find our little bit of desolation by heading west toward the little town of Half Moon Bay. Its pretty amazing how quickly, the hustle and bustle of the Bay Area melts away into a rural idyll once you keep heading east on State Route 84 and connect with State Route 1. Once we hit the little town of Half Moon Bay we head south on the highway 1, which hugs the rugged coastline of the Pacific we head to the little town of Pesacadero. Pescadero boasts a population of about 600 people.

We are staying at the Costanoa KOA campground just outside of the town of Pescadero. It is situated adjacent the Ano Nuevo State beach. The photo above gives you a sense of just how desolate this area can feel. In actuality, a lot of visitors make their way to the coastline that is easily overlooked in the Bay Area. When we arrived, we were shrouded in the typical coastal fog that often blankets the coast. By early afternoon, the fog is burned away revealing a beautiful landscape lying under azure skies. Here we are on the Franklin Point trail which winds its way through natural coastal grasslands. After about 3/4 mile walk, the sand dunes open to a beautiful beach. Unfortunately, Elisa’s sore knee prevented her from making her way all the way down to the beach due to the steep approach.

The popular beach town of Santa Cruz is just 15 miles further south on Highway 1. It is home to the university of California Santa Cruz and the beach boardwalk that Elisa would go to with her parents as a child growing up in the Bay Area. Our plan is to stroll the Boardwalk and to make our way out to the Wharf where Elisa recalled there are a number of restaurants.

The Boardwalk is bustling, reminding us that the Bay Area is home to 8 million people. On this day, the weather was great; sunny but not too hot. We are both surprised to see just how much they have expanded the boardwalk. We can’t wait for our Grandson Kainoa to get older and we can take him here to enjoy the rides.

As the day wore on, Elisa and I began to look for someplace to have dinner before we headed back to our campground. Elisa remembered that there were some good seafood restaurants on the pier. So we headed over there. There weren't as many places as Elisa remembered, but we wandered into Gilda's. It was a lucky choice for us. Gilda's has been operated by the Stagnaro family since 1879. The family descendants still own and operate this restaurant along with a sport fishing business. On this particular day Gilda's was featuring for only $12.95. I was leery of a $12 prime rib. so I opted for a grilled seafood combo that was very good. However, I was shocked and a bit envious when Elisa's prime rib came out. It was a very generous cut and it came complete with baked potato, veggies and a salad. She ate half for dinner and we enjoyed steak and eggs for breakfast the next morning.

The place is nothing fancy, but it was packed and the food was delicious. Next time you're in Santa Cruz check out Gildas.