We are already more than a week into 2017. How? It seems like yesterday that Cole and I hopped in Mithy on a Sunday afternoon. It was Labor Day weekend. We had three days with no work. We wanted to see some of this beautiful state that we call home. So we did.

We, of course, hit traffic on our way through San Francisco. Then we darted north a little farther to snag a Jimmy Johns lunch. We are quite classy; we know. Then, we meandered west toward the coast until we hit Highway 1. Cole zigged and zagged Mithy along the coastal road while I stared at the steep cliffs and rolling waves.

At this point we were chasing daylight. We needed to keep chugging along to Mendocino and the Glass Beach. But, we had to stop and take a few roadside photos.

We drove along the coast on the way to the Glass Beach. We eventually had to stop to take in these views.

The waves roll in again the steep coast.

Cole heads off to explore.

We only stopped for about 10 minutes. That's all the roadside time we could spare. We had two more destinations to hit before the sunlight faded away.

Mendocino pulled us in next. It's a little coastal grouping of homes, no more than 1,000 people call it home. It's sleepy to say the least. We drove down to the edge of town, parked in front of some closed shops and walked over to the little beach spot. A small trail leads out toward the water and some wood steps cascade down to the shore. We explored the little beach. Cole threw some rocks and touch the water. I took photos. The usual.

We drove down the the edge of the seaside town of Mendocino. We parked along the quiet street, walked past the old homes and headed down to the beach.

A trail and wooden steps lead down to the little beach.

The water is far too cold to dive into, but it's pretty.

Cole snags some rocks from up on the land and skips them out into the water.

A little cave heads out to the open waters.

Oh, hey. :)

The main attraction still awaited us: Glass Beach. This park shoreline gets its name and fame from the weathered glass that coves the ground. The little glass pebbles glimmer in the sun, especially when the water rises the stones. What was once trash is now a pretty little tourist location, and we hit it right at sunset. Sure, the whole beach isn't covered in glass anymore, probably because people steal it, but it's still a fun sight to see. I'm not mad that we drove all the way to check it out. As the sun set, we explore the rocky edge to find a place to sit and see the fading sun. Eventually we climbed back up the hillside and waited for the sun to disappear. I definitely recommend any beach sunset.

We continued on up the coast to the Glass Beach. We parked and then walked down to the water's edge to find the glass gems the beach is known for.

Wave after wave eventually turned glass bottles and trash into shiny, smooth pebbles.

Cole shows off some of the glass pebbles.

If you wander away from the entry of the park, more and more glass covers the ground.

Cole explores to find us a place to sit and watch the sun set.

How did you get all the way up there? And no, I can't get up there. Come back!

Making it to the beach as the sun sets isn't the worst.

The farther the sun goes down, the cool it gets out here.

The long drive there and back was definitely worth the beach sunset.

The sun quickly ended out outing, but our journey wasn't over. We still had to drive all the way back home. And in these sleepy towns, everything was closed at this hour. Eventually, we made it back down the highway and hit up a McDonald's, potentially the worst McDonald's ever. Thank goodness I have all those beautiful beach memories to make up for my cold fries.

But, I can't reminisce on this 2016 adventure long. I have things to do in 2017. I've got stories to write, cards to send, and more adventures to plan. Here's to a 2017 full of more photo-worthy fun.