Genuinely sorry to leave Springville, it's a lovely little town, off the beaten track and a hidden gem. If you like country music and farming - go there you'll feel right at home, there's a rodeo at the end of the month and that looks like a laugh.  If that's not your thing - go there anyway and it soon will be. 

Our trip took us down out of the high plains and into the green verdant pastures; cows were once again retained behind fences in fields where they belong.  Initially we cruised through orange orchards and I can report that orange blossom really does smell like the perfume. It's absolutely lovely and had me cruising along with the front of the helmet open inhaling deeply like a trainee asthmatic.  

Further on and we were into cattle country proper; not the stereotypical Texan longhorns but fresians just like at home but slightly more compact and leaner - and on an industrial scale.  Different country smell through this bit, significantly less deep breathing.

Unfortunately the next 250 miles involve simple motorway driving, heading north west (up and left ladies) on the I99 toward San Francisco.  Absolutely nothing of interest to talk about.  

So we think of ways to pass the time.... 

One of the things is spotting interesting signs.  My favourites were:

1.  Kern County Dump - No Littering $1000 fine

2.   Prostate Surgery - Experience Counts

3.  Pheonix Urological Robotic Surgery Centre

Another thing was to perfect the Harley Davidson wave; now that the bikes (and we) have a bit of dust on them and a 'lived in' air we appear slightly less like the tourist we did last week.  As the brethren of the bike pass us going the other way we are acknowledged as fellow knights of the open road.  It's a fairly simple gesture but very effective; it involves extending the left arm downward at 45 degrees and lazily extending the index and middle fingers in a sort of lazy, casual upside down peace sign.  This should be delivered with a direct eye contact with the other rider and a firmly set jaw - much in the manner of a firm handshake.  It's really helping us blend in with the biker crowd and gets a much more favourable reaction than my original method of arm extended fully above the head and full palm vibrated rapidly from side to side while mouthing HIYAAA with a broad smile.  

The road into San Fransisco is shite.  Not bike unfriendly shite but just shite.  In poor repair and full of potholes.  I know - it's hippy central and there's a maximum operational speed for a VW campervan but - note to the Governator - get some blokes out there with a bucket of tar and sort it out.  In fact Arnie - there's an army of Irishmen out there previously involved in the construction industry who are at a bit of a loose end at the moment.  Give them a bell.

Better still - we have an absolute glut of Irish travellers, all of whom seem to have a lorry load of tar and the time to do people's drives,  they say they're cheap and there may be a kickback revenue from a spin off TV series - something like 'Big fat Gypsy Living in a Country Where there Is No Welfare System and the Cops Have Guns'. 

But I digress - it was a long way up the road.

San Fransisco takes a long time to arrive - there are endless suburbs and satellite towns before you finally arrive.

When you do arrive you know it.  A truly unique town.  We got immediately lost and it just didn't matter. It's all San Fran man.  Hippy Mecca.

Firstly - nobody speaks English.  There is a massive chinese community, descendants of the original railroad workers I assume, who have managed to be born third generation Americans without ever learning the language. Shouting will do nicely.  There is a large hispanic community - see above.  There are others who are even funnier because they think they are speaking English but just aren't, they're either stoned or just to cool to communicate in anything other than modulated vowels.. Aaaite?

But what a town!  It doesn't really matter what your preconceptions of SF are, it will meet and exceed them.  The great hills down to the sea are there, the cool breeze off the bay, the wharfs, the victorian brownstone buildings, the three masted clipper in the harbour.

And the street cars.  Fantastic.  They make you behave like a complete tourist, hanging off the side even though it's empty and theres plenty of room inside.  Everybody knows what you are and what you're doing and it's fine.  They didn't even charge us for the ride - they were going that way anyway.   

It's not an easy place to walk - there's a lot of up and it's all steep, but the reward is breathtaking views of the city rebuilt for effect after the last destruction.  And eventually the down will take you to the bay to watch the sun sink behind the golden gate bridge.

I'll give up at that point.  It needs somebody with an GCSE in english.