The road to Valencia

The leg to Valencia took about three hours with a stop to fuel up. We travelled along Highway 101, El Camino Real with its mission bells, then veered slightly inland along the Chumash Highway which we had travelled previously.
The Chumash Highway takes you along a scenic route through the Santa Ynez Mountains, eventually reconnecting with Highway 101 as it takes you down a steep 7% grade that drops you straight into Santa Barbara.
I had a knot in my stomach when we negotiated the hairpin bends in the Rialta, and I had the same knot in my stomach as the Alpine propelled down the steep turns.  I am of course, as the passenger, sitting on the side that is closest to the sheer drops at the side of the road.  And believe me, they are sheer.  We dropped from 2,225 feet at San Marco Pass to sea level in about 6 miles, along hairpin twists and turns snaking our way down through the hills.

capturing the mission bells is a feat in itself while
whizzing along at 60 mph  - this one is the best capture
of the several I actually managed to spot and shoot    

at one spot along the Chumash Highway, these "rock dollops"
suddenly appeared and about a mile later, just as suddenly
disappeared

perched in the hilltops is this vineyard with its adjoining winery
that I noticed as we whizzed on down to the coast along our steep
descent into Santa Barbara  - if this looks like it is far below,
 it's because it it really is, as you can see by the scale of the buildings 

Along the next section to Ventura, we were back on Highway 101, hugging the coast and enjoying the view.  The coastal road is flanked by the Pacific on one side and precarious sandstone cliffs on the other, the roadway a narrow black ribbon squeezed in between the two, following the coastline.

more mission bells along this stretch of  El Camino Real

breathtaking views of the Pacific

The rest of our route was along a stretch we had not yet travelled, route 126, heading inland and east towards Santa Clarita.  This portion took us through a valley, every available space taken up with fields and orchards.  Velvety hills loomed on either side. 

By mid afternoon we pulled in to the Valencia Travel Village RV Park. It was once again a thrill to see so many Alpines parked side by side in two rows.  There are in fact 32 coaches at this pre-rally.
The next several days will be active. It's like summer camp for the oldies! On the schedule are social hours, dinners, breakfasts and field trips. We never experienced summer camp as kids, but I imagine this must be similar. It certainly looks like we are about to have a lot of fun.
And of course, I will keep you posted about it all... as time allows.

setting up house for the next few days

That's us, in A-13, on the right.  The couple next to us got
their '99 Alpine in September,  a month before we got ours, and just arrived
here from a trip they took to Mexico.  You know the saying: Have Alpine.....