Dave, let me share with you what the Northern California Mog club did
over this past week-end. It may cheer you up while waiting for the cold
spell to pass.
Twenty Mogs gathered in the eastern part of San Francisco Bay at the old
town of Niles (where Chaplin made many of his movies) to mount an
assault, Northern California style, on Mount Hamilton, a peak 4,500 feet
up and the site of Lick Observatory, one of the oldest astronomical
sites in the country. Like everything else California Moggers do, this
was going to be a laid back affair, complete with the requisite stop at
a winery where we were to sample the local fare.
We started off at around 10 am meandering through beautiful
country-side admiring the radiant fall colors (they don’t rival what you
have in the East, but they are still grand). I’m always amazed how, not
far off from the infamous freeway grid-locks for which we are well
known, you can find roads that seem designed for Morgans: twisting,
narrow ways that can only handle two-way traffic only if one of the
cars is a Mog or smaller. The temperature was a balmy 74, and after
about an hour and a half we arrived at our first stop, a winery where we
could sample the fruit of their harvest. Under the Oak trees and among
the fading vines, we had our lunch of sour-dough french bread , cracked
crab, fresh cheeses, and, of course, the essential bottle of Chardonay.
After a leisurely lunch, we headed back to our cars and began climbing
in earnest. We approached Mount Hamilton from the East, where the
grades are steep and 365 curves, many of them hair-pin, make driving
quite interesting and fun. But what glorious vistas! All twenty of us
made it to the top with only a lost license plate left somewhere between
the base of the mountain and its peak. After touring the astronomy
exhibits and taking a peek at a couple of their six telescopes, we
headed down the west side of the mountain, an easier drive since the six
percent grade was designed so horses and mules could carry supplies to
the scientists working above.
We finished the day with dinner by the Bay, watching the sun go down
behind Mt. Tamalpais in Marin County, after 175 miles of glorious
driving.
Sure, we have great weather. We also have fires, and earthquakes, and
riots, and…
Hang in there Dave, Spring is just around the corner.
Armando Picciotto
’63 +4
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