At the last update we were heading into San Francisco. While the weather has been cooperating lately, I never realized how much fog and how cool it is along the northern Pacific Coast. When we set out in the morning we need long sleeves and some people are wearing jackets and leg warmers.
Here’s a day-by-day update of what we’ve been doing:
Day 13 – Petaluma, CA to San Francisco, CA – (51 miles) – While the day was short in distance, it was not a short day in time. We headed out of Petaluma and had some pretty good hills to climb before we got to the more heavily populated areas near San Fransisco. Getting through Sausalito was a challenge because of all of the turns and the traffic. We finally made it to the Golden Gate Bridge. It was a clear, beautiful day with great views of the entire surrounding area. It probably would have been a rare, perfect day except for a fire that caused a bit of a haze over the area. Getting across the bridge is a head-up experience. While there are pedestrian/bicycle lanes on both sides of the bridge, only one side is open on weekdays. It was Friday so we had to make our way through pedestrians and bicycles going in both directions. Everybody made it in safe and we had a nice group dinner at Ghirabaldi Square. I topped it off with an $8.00 sundae that tasted like it was worth it.
Day 14 – San Francisco – (rest day) – The operative word was “rest’. While I did some walking along the shore I really wanted to relax so I avoided taking on anything really touristy.
Day 15 – San Francisco, CA to Santa Cruz, CA – (85 miles) – I think this was our longest mileage day so far. We wound our way out of San Francisco. It’s helped that it was Sunday morning so the traffic was light. The Bridge was almost totally fogged in. We were thankful for the great views when we came into SF. There were some significant hills to be climbed. Most of the route was along the coast so we were treated to some magnificent ocean and shoreline views. The temperatures remained cool, which is good for biking, but no one was sunning themselves on the beaches. The surf was up but all of the surfers were wearing wetsuits. We biked into Santa Cruz which is someplace I have never been before. I was surprised to see a Coney Islands style boardwalk and amusement park.
Day 16 – Santa Cruz, CA to Carmel Valley, CA – (74 miles) – Today’s ride took along Monterey Bay and the Monterey Peninsula. Of course this made for some spectacular scenery. After a quick lunch on Fisherman’s Wharf in Monterey we followed the route along the peninsula and into the affluence of the golf course around Cypress Point and Pebble Beach. The scenic road is named “17 Mile Drive” and is a toll road. While it is free for bicycles I was told that the toll is $9.25 for cars. I guess that keeps out the riff-raff.
Day 17 – Carmel Valley, CA to King City, CA – (57 miles) – The day started with an 18 mile, 2000 ft. climb. While not horribly steep (except for a few sections), 18 miles is a long time to continuously climb. It was very cool when we left the hotel but we headed inland. By the time we got over the ridge and into the valley, the heat had set in. By design we got an early start to get ahead of the heat but by the time I got in, about 1:30 pm, the temperature was in the 90’s. The valley is a major agricultural area. There are thousands of acres of vineyards and vegetable fields. Crops are being planted and harvested on a massive basis. It is impressive to see.
Tomorrow we head for Paso Robles, CA. Again there will be some serious hills to conquer and the heat will be a factor. So far I am holding up to the challenge and hope you are all doing well.
Sunrise over San Francisco.
The lone cypress.
The “Adopt-A-Highway” program is very successful at attracting volunteers.