Day 39 - Earrings

Day of rest in Monterey CA - 0 miles

I was wrong about our route to church. We didn't have to go down the big hill. We had to go further up it. Oh well. This morning at church we met a man named John. He and his family moved to Monterey, CA to be near a place called Point Lobos. He is an oil painter and loves to paint the coastal landscape and the Cypress trees of this area. We plan to check out Point Lobos tomorrow. You can check out his work at:

www.burtonartstudios.com

The day of rest was much needed, but we didn't know what to do with ourselves towards the end of the day. We are excited to ride again tomorrow and finish the last stretch of this ride. We still have almost 2 weeks, but it feels like we're on the home stretch.

We met a couple in Half Moon Bay that we ran into again this evening. They are doing the same ride that we are, only they split the ride every day. He rides half while she drives it, they meet for lunch, then she rides half while he drives it. They were at our camp this evening and she gave me a pair of the earrings she makes out of bicycle tubes.

Day 38 - Fresas (Strawberries)

Santa Cruz, CA to Monterey, CA - 48 miles

Yesterday was pumpkin day and today was strawberries. It's not hard to see how California could supply strawberries for the entire United States. There were "strawberry fields forever." I wonder if this place was Simon and Garfunkle's inspiration. The strawberry fields were amazing to look at and even more wonderful to smell. We passed by some field workers packing strawberries near the fence and asked if they would sell us a flat. We bought 8 pounds of strawberries for $10 and didn't even mind the extra weight on our trailers.

The campground in Monterey is right in the city limits. The only problem is that it's up the side of a mountain. It was killer to climb! The only bad thing about taking tomorrow off to attend church is that we have to go down the hill then back up it. 

I am continually amazed at all the different people we are meeting from around the world. To date we have met cyclists from Australia, England, Singapore, Germany, Thailand, Canada, Spain, France, Russia and from all over the United States.

Day 37 - Pumpkins Galore

Half Moon Bay, CA to Santa Cruz, CA - 59 Miles

We struggled to get out this morning.  We have been trying to break camp by 8:30 am, but today we didn't get out until 9:40.  Before we were even out of the state campground, one of the bike trailers got a flat tire.  We don't have any extra tubes for the trailers, so we took the time to patch it, rather than just changing the tube and patching later like we do with the bike tires.  Then, we still had to stop at the store.  Yikes!

We knew we had a long ride today, so we had to make up the time.  Luckily, the weather was great, overcast most of the day, then pleasantly sunny towards afternoon.  We were able to maintain over 11 mph the whole day even with hills.

Our route was along the coast, but ocean wasn't the only sight that dominated our view.  Brussel sprouts and pumpkins are everywhere!  Nearly every city I've ever lived in has at least one pumpkin patch in the fall (hay maze, corn maze, pick-a-pumpkin, etc.), sometimes even a handful of them.  We saw dozens between Half Moon Bay and Santa Cruz!  Half Moon Bay even has it's own Pumpkin Festival.  This year at the festival they are showing a documentary about the 2013 world's largest pumpkin competition (check it out at www.riseofthegiantsmovie.com).

We stopped at a produce stand for some brussel sprouts, but decided to forgo the pumpkin for now.  Hopefully we'll finish this ride in time to carve at least one before Halloween.

Day 36 - Golden Gate Bridge!

San Rafael, CA to Half Moon Bay, CA - 54 Miles

There have been a few days on this trip that were truly significant.  By significant I mean that it really sunk in for me just how far we have come on our bikes.  The first such day was in Newport, OR.  For some reason, arriving at a place I have been before in a car and realizing that I am now there on a bicycle made the experience more significant.

Today was one of those days.  We made it to San Francisco!  We crossed the Golden Gate Bridge!  We have come 1200 miles without our car!  Compared to other bridges we have crossed on bikes, the Golden Gate was a piece of cake.  Although I've been to San Francisco before, I never crossed the bridge before today.  There is a dedicated lane, separated from motorist traffic, for cyclists and pedestrians.  Very nice!

Lets back up.  Here's a conversation from last night:

Me: We're going to see someone we know in San Francisco tomorrow.

Bins: Who is it?

Me: Her name is Cindy.  She's a friend of your MaJu.  She met you when you were a baby.

Bins: Sidnee?

Me: Cindy.

Bins: Sandy?

Me: Cindy.

Bins: City.  Cindy.

Me: Good job.

Bins was very proud of himself that he remembered and said her name correctly when we saw her today.  Cindy was on the Golden Gate Bridge to take pictures of us when we neared the other side.  The last time she saw Bins he was 2 days away from his 1st Birthday and she held him on her lap.  Now, 8 1/2 years later, they look each other in the eye; he's tall, she's not so tall.

Cindy picked us up at our campsite in Half Moon Bay this evening and took us out to dinner.  When she asked us earlier in the day what we wanted to eat, Tanner said, "Macaroni and Cheese."  She found a great restaurant with fresh sea food, local produce and...homemade mac and cheese.  Thanks Cindy!  You are wonderful!

Day 35 - Petaluma

Petaluma, CA to San Rafael, CA - 30 miles

I love Petaluma, CA.  If I lived in California, I would want to live in Petaluma.  I've never even heard of Petaluma before this trip, but it seems wonderful.  After leaving camp this morning, we drove right through the historic downtown and were assaulted by heavenly aromas wafting from the cafe's.  I wanted to stop at every antique store and clothing boutique.

Our route led us through an adorable neighborhood where victorian style homes were neighbors to spanish style stucco and tiny cottages.  It had so much character!  Further down the same road we found a farm selling local produce, honey and pasture raised eggs; our kind of place.

Although we only went 30 miles today, they were tough.  Staying away from 101 means less traffic, but more turns, intersections and stop lights.  The towns are bike friendly though, so that's nice.  I never paid much attention as a motorist, but now I'm grateful for every bike lane, bike route, bike path and "share the road" sign.

Day 34 - A close second

Cloverdale, CA to Petaluma, CA - 47 Miles

My favorite section of our Pacific Coast ride so far was Manzanita to Florence, Oregon.  The whole section was right on the coast and the weather was beautiful.  Sonoma county is running a close second.  Morning fog over the vineyards is incredibly picturesque.

We are no longer riding on the 101 due to heavier traffic and road construction.  We followed the frontage road most of the morning, then cut through the city of  Santa Rosa.  At one point, a main road was closed due to construction, so we had to take a detour.  The closest route was over an unused rail road bridge.  It was a bit bumpy, but of course that made it even more fun for the boys.

We are staying at the KOA in Petaluma, CA  tonight.  We arrived at 3:30pm, so there was plenty of time    to play.  The boys met some other kids on the jumping pillow and jumped for 2 hours.  They deserved all the play time after riding a total of 107 miles in the last 2 days!

Day 33 - Distance record

Willits, CA to Cloverdale, CA - 60 miles

Thanks to the Warner's who prepared breakfast and wouldn't let us wash the dishes, we were able to leave by 8am this morning.  It was another very chilly morning, but we were climbing a mountain before long and all additional clothing layers were shed.  We made it to the summit, then enjoyed a loooooooooong downhill.  We completed 30 miles before 10:30 am.

We are in Sonoma county now and the famous California wine country. Just because I'm not a wine drinker doesn't exempt me from adoring vineyards.  I think it's the math-wired side of my brain that enjoys the symmetric spacing and perfect pruning of all the impeccably straight rows.  I wonder if I stopped at a vineyard if they would let me taste the different kinds of grapes?  I know that grape lovers aren't their target audience, but who knows?  I might get lucky.

When we left this morning, we were anticipating a nearly downhill ride all the way to San Francisco.  That's what Google said anyway.  Their elevation map feature must still be in beta, because it was horribly wrong.  We mentioned to the boys that if it really was all downhill, then maybe we could go 100 miles today.  At 50 miles (2:30pm) we stopped and asked them if they were still up for 100 miles.  Tan answered in the negative almost immediately, but Robinson was actually deliberating!  "How many hours did it take us to go 50?  What time would we get to camp if we went 100?"  I love the enthusiasm!

We knew that taking this inland route would mean fewer campgrounds, so we are staying in a hotel tonight.  This makes 3 nights in row of sleeping in actual beds.  We better be careful, or we might get used to the luxury.