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.

Colin, Fritha (still not sure about the name), and Jonathon were heading for Oceana. I wasn’t sure where I was going, but I was thinking San Luis Obispo. I packed up, and said goodbye to Tim and Cindie. I went up the hill to the entrance. In the campground proper, there was no cell signal, but up on the hill, there were bars to spare. I wanted to let people know I was alive since I had been out of range for several days. I saddled up and rode into Cambria in search of an omelet. Sometimes, it’s just necessary. I found it in a family restaurant with Denny’s pricing. Decent omelet, great service by Lisa, and a good deal. Tasty.

While I was eating, I could see people trying to figure out the Big Dummy rig, so when I came out, I answered questions and talked to folks for a bit. Then I rode back through town to get back on the 1. The south entrance wasn’t finished yet. I found out how true that particular statement was when I rolled through the construction zone on the highway. I heard a clicking sound that I knew was a bad thing. I stopped and got off the bike and rolled it forward to find the source of the sound.

I had been wrestling with the lack of a kickstand since Carmel and without it every stop had been a huge pain. I was laying the bike down on its left side, which holds the stuff that wouldn’t be damaged by having the entire weight resting on it. Laying it down gently is a difficult job, and getting it back up is even worse. I miss my kickstand.

Anyway, I rolled forward until I saw the problem. It was the perfect tire puncturing device. A ridged nail pushed through a circle of sheet metal about the size of a silver dollar… Run over one of those things in the upright position, and blam! Perfect punctures. It was in the right-side trailer tire. My first trailer flat, yay! Actually that’s much better than a bike flat. I can pull the trailer wheel with one lever. The bike requires a complete unloading to get the tire off. I took about 5 minutes to patch the tube and get everything back together. Colin and Fritha passed by while I was patching and asked if I needed any help, which is nice. I started rolling again just in time to see them disappear over the hill.

Colin was touring a fixed gear bike pulling a BOB trailer. Those of you who know what that means should be suitably impressed.

The ride from Cambria to Cayucos was fast and easy. The most important thing that happened was when I stopped to take a picture of the bay. I laid the bike down and then stupidly set my sunglasses on the dry bag. I let Elke play for a bit, and then when I loaded her back in the trailer I forgot all about my sunglasses. They probably fell when I hoisted the bike back up. Dang kickstand!

I saw Tim and Cindie again in Cayucos. They were having lunch and charging cell phones at a nice local business. Tim used his magic mind bullets and immediately convinced me to stay in Morro Bay instead of going on to San Luis. Shorter, easier, ok. I followed them from Cayucos to Morrow Bay and then went ahead into town while they took a break. They caught up again at the top of a steep little hill, and we developed a plan. I was going to look for a bike shop, and they were going to buy beer.

I talked to a nice local guy for a few minutes, and then caught up with the team at a store, an obviously perfect store. A gentleman on a Segue saw us and came over to check it out. Tim and Cindie ended up taking the Segue for a spin. I didn’t because my rig was sprawled all over the place and I didn’t have an easy way of moving it at the time. I went in for some supplies, and got the lowdown on restaurants from the proprietor. The team went for the park. I went for the bike shop, which turned out to be a nail salon. They thought my nails were hopeless.

Following the lady’s advice, I rode on out to Morro Bay State Park, and found the cafe she had mentioned right across from the entrance. I talked to a nice couple from Monterey while I was waiting for my food. They were in Cayucos for a hot rod show. It was Halloween, and my waitress was dressed as a mildly sexy cat. When the dinner shift arrived, it came in the form of a hotter cat, and what I can only guess was the porn version of Heidi. I can’t believe the manager didn’t take one look at her and send her home to change. Not that I minded, but I’m sure somebody did. Most of us had our mouths wide open in shock.

After my fish and chips, and the dinner show, I went across the street to get signed in. Morrow Bay is a great park, probably the best in Cali so far. New Brighton Beach was close, though. I got tented up, and then sat down for a couple of beers, thanks to Tim and Cindie, a few shots of Jack, thanks to me, spreading the Tennessee love, and a whole lot of dog frisbee. Elke was in need of some exercise.

I rolled into the tent when it got dark, mostly because I was determined to finish the book I have been reading for the entire trip. I usually only get a few pages read before I conk out. It was so warm I stayed on top of my sleeping bag and finally finished that book, just before I fell asleep.