a cycling adventure: day twenty seven

July 6th

Wrights Beach Campground to Samuel Taylor State Park

45 miles

Up at 6 as usual. Broke camp early with plans to stop in Bodega Bay for breakfast, 5 miles away.

Hit the road around 9AM, completely socked in with fog. Can hardly see the beach to our right. Large group of supported bike tourists heading north.

Arrived in Bodega Bay. Ran into Caren and Bernd again, who had successfully made it to Bodega Bay, where we had tried to go. Talked for a bit, they were planning on going to Samuel Taylor S.P. as well, so we would probably be seeing them tonight. They took off and we walked into a nearby breakfast joint. Had french toast, eggs, bacon. Good but very small serving size. Got my caffeine fill for the day, though.

Headed out of Bodega Bay, HWY 1 cuts inland. Lots of rolling farmland and grain fields, scenic and low traffic. Some pretty good hills and getting very hot, though. Cruised through Tomales, which ended up being a fun looking little town, which was surprising with a population of 210. Spoke with another touring couple, from France, going north. Didn't seem too friendly.

Rode along Tomales Bay, very nice. More perfect weather. Mostly undeveloped, which is surprising for such a nice waterfront area. Sailboat race going on across the bay, looks like a one design but too far away to tell. Passed what looked like an abandoned boat yard, with tons of classic sailboats. Saw one that looked like an old Carl Alberg, which are super rare and people pay big money for them. Need to come back here some day.

Arrived in Point Reyes Station, another lively little town. Still very hot out. Decided to get a big early dinner, then snack tonight. Mark and Chip set out to look for a bike shop while I went to the bank. Heard my name being called while at the ATM, Caren and Bernd across the street eating outside a cafe. Fun running into the same people throughout the day. Talked for a bit then rode down to the bike shop. Chip had them look at this shifters and lubed his chain. Bike mechanic recommended burrito shop in town, so we headed there.

$7 pork, bean, rice and avacado burrito - huge and very good. Had some ice cream afterwords, more goodness.

Rode the remaining 6 miles to the park. One last long climb past Olema. Rolled the dice and decided to take a "shortcut" which ended up taking us over a large hill.

Arrived at the state park around 7:30PM. The most bikers in camp yet. The fun part is almost all of them we had met at some point along the road. There was Caren and Bernd; the lone German who started in New York who we met in Legget (unfortunately can't remember his name); an older gentleman who I first met on the Avenue of the Giants, who I call "red pannier guy" and had seen regularly since then (didn't get his name); and Jon (?) who we had met a day or so before in Gualala.

Wasted 50 cents on a cold shower, walked back to camp to see Bernd had started a fire. We all sat around the fire and visited, sharing stories about all our journeys, our lives, and everything in between. The German guy, who ended up being really funny, made it from New York to Crescent City in 8 weeks, with 110 miles as his biggest day. Red pannier guy regularly climbs 2500 feet at home, which explained how he averaged 80-90 miles a day (he took a few rest days since I first saw him). Jon had seen Alex on the Lost Coast - he made it! Said he looked "bewildered".

Everyone had great stories to tell, I had a blast. Caren and Bernd, the lone German, and red pannier guy where all ending their journey in San Francisco tomorrow. I felt incredibly excited for them, since I know exactly what they've been through. You can just see how ecstatic they are.

Tents packed into hiker/biker area. Very excited for San Fran tomorrow. Staying with a friend of a friend, Lisa, who is letting me crash at her place. Nervous about the big city - should be a shock after nearly a month of living in the woods. Easy 30-ish mile day, we can take our time.