I woke up early again. Between the rain, the train, and the crashing surf, it was a restless night, but I still woke up eager. I was heading to Ventura to stay with Janeanne and Fred. I’m pretty sure I met them long ago, but that was practically in another life, so I wasn’t sure what I would find. Ventura was less than 20 miles down the road, and after the deep grind down from Monterey, that seemed like a hop and a skip. My legs didn’t entirely agree. With all the hard riding, and my new trick of going faster than ever before, I was about as sore as I had been since the first week. The difference, of course, was the knowledge that I could go as far as I needed, and then some.

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I may be riding a bicycle across the country, but that doesn’t change the fact that I am basically lazy. I hate the morning when I have to walk 200 yards to the restroom. I hate the packing and unpacking. I hate the beginning of each ride, and there’s a lesson in that. Every time I hesitated at the beginning, it was probably a mistake that made life harder later. Procrastination.

On this morning, I really resented the distance to the restroom. In some campgrounds, it’s no big deal to wander off into the woods and water a tree. In this one, wedged ungracefully between a farm field and a sluggish, muddy river, that wasn’t really an option. By the time I made it to the restroom, things were pretty desperate. I felt fortunate to make it in time. Ahhhhhh. Much better. My outlook improved radically in less than 60 seconds. That didn’t really improve the city park. It was grubby.

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I picked a good night to get a room. The predictions of heavy rain finally came true. I could hear it lashing the windows all night. The morning swept the sky clear and promised a day of puffy white clouds and tailwinds. I milked check-out time even more than usual since the daylight time shift occurred last night. I got an extra hour of goofing off. Nice.

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Once again, the sound of the space shuttle prodded me awake. That was after some kind of tarp flapping followed by rain incident before daylight - the general vicinity of Team Tim and Cindie’s tent. The large birds in the trees were beginning to stir, competing for airspace with the pair of owls that had worked the campsite all night long. Elke must have slept well, she bounded out of the tent in full-on play mode, knowing perfectly well that I don’t play for the first five minutes of near consciousness. Being a smart girl, she went after the team instead.

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The threat of rain never really materialized, but the wind was busy flapping tarps all night. Once again, I woke up early, most likely prompted by the space shuttle taking off from Tim’s picnic table. Cindie and I stared at each other with baggy eyes and decided that the three day crossing of the Big Sur coast had taken its toll on us. Fog, rain, mist, big climbs, long stretches between overpriced services. It all adds up to tired.

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Since Monterey, I have been waking up earlier. Today was no different. I got up in time to see the sun paint pink clouds all over the southern sky, and tint the northern coastline with a hint of warm peach light.

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I woke up early, just as the campground was starting to stir. I did my usual brainless stagger in the general direction of the facilities, waiting for my mental hamster wheel to start spinning, which usually happens on the way back to the tent. That’s on a good day. Some days, it never quite spins at all. I took advantage of my last shot at cell data for a while to post a quick note on the blog and check on things that needed checking. While I was doing that, I saw one, then two girls walk by wearing nothing but towels. Ok, that was new.

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Ok, I admit that it was hard to leave Monterey/Carmel. I was staying in a great house with a great view, and hanging out with a bunch of fine new friends. But, there’s a ride to be done here, so I packed it all up, coaxed Elke into her chariot, and bombed down the hill to rejoin the route and to travel south, ever south.

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Hi. I still don’t have time (battery power) for a full blog post, but I’m planning on getting a room tomorrow night so that I can catch up on the blog, charge everything, and post photos. I’m most excited about the photos. This is a beautiful place. I also met lots of new people and handed out lots of cards. Hopefully some new friends will show up on the blog. I’m camping in Morrow Bay State Park tonight. It’s the first place with cell or data access since Big Sur. More soon… Happy Halloween!

Jim

We’re in a campground in Big Sur, which means I finally left Monterey and started riding south again. Yesterday was an easy ride, along one of the most beautiful coasts in the world. Unfortunately, most of the time it was shrouded in mist, and that mist is cold. What I did see was very beautiful, and of course the photos are coming.

Some people have asked for status of the ride and funds to keep the ride going. The support from you guys has been great, and I have gone from the verge of having to quit, to being assured of finishing the Pacific Coast Route. My best estimate is that I can make it to Phoenix with what has been donated so far. That’s huge, and I thank you for it, but it’s only about 40% of the entire ride. When I get to San Diego, I’ll have to evaluate the situation and decided whether to attempt a crossing. Between you and me, I think it will work out just fine. Thanks for all the support and thanks for reading!