Saturday 31 July 2010

Cold Springs Tavern, & Hot Stuff for Beth!




Saturday morning saw us leaving the coast & again heading inland on twisy, climbing roads towards the famous biker haunt, Cold Springs Tavern. Formerly an old coaching inn from the late 1800's, these quaint log cabins are now frequented by motorcyclists who relish the ride to & from the olde worlde cafe.
We stopped at another cafe before we got to Cold Springs, where Beth was delighted to find a collection of fit firefighters who'd stopped for a cold drink. She has a 'bit of a thing' for firemen, & was there like a shot. I'm sure she was drooling just a little as she posed for this photo amongst them!
We had arranged to meet Kevin, our friend from LA at Cold Springs, & he arrived on his Road King with Monica, his biking buddy & friend of 10 years, on her 1200 Sportster. After lunch, Kevin led the way back to the coast on more wonderful woodland roads, descending back to PCH 1 & Malibu. After several seaside miles, we again turned inland & upwards, heading for the Rock Store, yet another famous cafe on a favourite road for bikers. The twists & bends on this road are so good, professional photographers sit at strategic points with cameras at the ready, snapping away at the many bikes & fancy cars as they negotiate the curves, then post the photos on their websites for you to buy. On the downside, the road is also frequented by the California Highway Patrol out to catch any speeding bikers, or CHiPS to those of us old enough to remember the TV program.
Kevin led us to our Los Angeles hotel, where we had a scant hour to check in to our rooms & have a quick break. I parked the van, & quickly changed into boots & jeans before getting on the back of John's bike for a whizz of a tour around LA, Hollywood, Rodeo Drive, Mulholland Drive, Beverly Hills & the even more exclusive Bel Air. Someone up there must have been having a party, & the road was lined with dozens of fabulous cars; oh, how the other half live! We got back late & exhausted that night, but what a fabulous days riding & a great evening tour we'd had. We buzzed with both tiredness & exhilaration.

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