West Coast 2018

Having now formally adopted Spencer we are a party of four. We set off in the fog (this very chilly and wet) for our final 22 miles of the Big Sur. The views would probably have been impressive but we were in the mist so saw very little. By the time we stopped for breakfast after 22 miles and almost 600m of climbing we were certainly ready for a break. We stopped at Raggged Rock hotel and whilst expensive the hour we spent there gave us a chance to charge our various devices and drink our own body weight in coffee (most places here sell bottomless coffee for a few dollars – and we always consume as much as we can). Once past Ragged Rock the road evens out and the miles come much easier and we saw a groups of elephant seals - it was like looking in a mirror By lunchtime an hour and a half later we had covered 42 miles and enjoyed a very relaxing time at Cambria, where they had WiFi and we could reconnect with the world. Time slipped by and we did it leave Cambria u...

The Big Sur! It’s a famous stretch of road which hugs the cliff along a very remote coastline. The Big Sur itself is a river – which neither surges nor is big. Nevertheless the scenery is exceptionally dramatic with magnificent waterfalls, immense bridges and winding roads that are carved into the hillside. None of which I was able to do justice with the camera on my phone. The day was, unsurprisingly hilly but we made the 60 miles we had expected to quite easily and ended up at a small campsite with no tap water or electricity- Kirk Creek. We had by this time adopted Spencer – a 27 year old aerospace engineer from Oregan. Given that the campsite was by the sea we went for a swim – the water was still hideously cold but had the added quality of being filled with dense seaweed – we were daunted and enjoyed our (brief) dip, following it up with washing off the seaweed in the creek.

Today was one of those days that feels like several days rolled into one – for the best reasons, not just an epic riding day.More thanks to extra Whale watching trip We only covered 44 miles (from Santa Cruse to Monterey) but there is much to report. We stopped at Moss Landing as per usual for some breakfast (although given that it was 11.07 they had stopped serving it – I had a flashback to that movie when the guy threatens the staff at gunpoint because they wouldn’t serve him breakfast at a couple of minutes past 11am a I resisted the urge to reenact the scene and had a burger instead). The stop was well worth it – we saw two sea otters playing in the harbour (sea otters are a fair bit larger than normal otters but equally playful). ) We couldn’t resist the motorbike sculpture on the roadside a little further on… The ride was very flat and passed through clearly very productive land – but we were surprised by the amount of labour that was required to till and harve...

61 miles This was intended to be a short day so we could surf at Santa Cruz. In the end we didn’t get to surf – but still had a great day. The morning started exceptionally cold – I was wearing my winter jacket and was still cold! The sea mist here puts the temperature into single figures as well as being very wet (not raining just misty like being in cloud/fog). We stared the day at a very slow pace – yesterday’s hills and slow pace through town alongside the very cold temperature was taking its toll. We stopped after 18 miles at a small town just inland from the coast – 2 miles inland and we got away from the sea  mist. It was lovely to sit in the sun! By the time we had finished our coffee and danish we set off back to the coast prepared for more freezing temperatures – but the mist had cleared and better still the northerly wind had picked up – that’s right we spent the rest of the morning being pushed to Santa Cruz! We ended up ticking along at 20 miles an hour or ...

We made it to San Fransisco!! After another cold start and a dozen or so miles we entered the northern metropolis of San Fransisco- they don’t see it like that though. Instead each area is identified very differently. Fairfax was the first built up area we came to and the route through it was lovely – as with Vancouver it seems to take us through the nicest parts of town. Maybe it’s all like that in Fairfax…. After what seemed a very long way after over 30 miles and more hills than we had hoped for we made it to the Golden Gate Bridge. I knew that it was a tourist attraction in its own right but oh dear me what a lot of people! It seemed that everyone visiting San Fransisco was determined to ride over the bridge – whether they could ride a bike or not. And the proportion who could ride was definitely in the minority. We’d decided to wait for our usual breakfast until we had arrived at the San Fransisco side of the bridge – which actually meant around 12pm. By the time ...

87 miles and 1,680 meters climbed – another very long day! We knew it was going to be a big day so set off fairly early (despite having been given a few lagers by some generous RV campers last night (it would have been rude to refuse). The morning was freezing - the choice to only have sandals to cycle in was severely tested. Simon and I couldn’t get our toes for two hours! Our breakfast stop, after 27 miles and almost 500m of ascent was at a posh hotel – Timber Cove. I don’t think they usually get cyclists rock up in their Lycra but they have us a great breakfast and after almost an hour regained feeling in our feeet. After breakfast ascended quite a way until we were above the cloud (sea mist hanging 200’ above the ocean). It was beautiful – especially when circled by eagles soaring on the thermals. As we approached Bodega Bay we were met by views of the ocean to which we have now become accustomed but are nevertheless awe inspiring. Bodega Bay proved a pleasant ...