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beautiful beach
southern Oregon The last few days of our trip certainly had their challenges. I think we were all getting a bit road weary. All this outdoor living had me suffering from California allergies as well.
After a full day of riding through farmland and redwoods, Derek was disappointed that he needed to get back off the bike again for the sake of his bruised knee. In the meantime, Lisa, Bryan and I powered up to face the hills of northern California.
Those hills were somehow not nearly as bad as we had expected. I suspect that we were actually all in pretty good shape by that point.
We climbed into the mountains and spent a night at a gorgeous, warm, dry spot in Standish-Hickey State Park. It was so inspiring after days of fog and cloud that we sort of over-did the Peppermint-Schnapps-in-the-Fair-Trade hot cocoa that night. Lisa and I even braved the nearby river for a swim in the morning.
The next day was gorgeous, but brutally long at 87 miles (nearly 140 km) with at least a few solid hours of hill climbs after a late start. Bryan, Derek and I dragged ourselves into Manchester State
Park as Lisa was cooking up a storm in the looming darkness. It was a cold night!
We continued to roll along the stunning, hilly coastline to Bodega Bay where we were greeted by fellow BALLErs: Kelley, Dave and Derek. Beautiful food and drinks awaited us at Kelley's little piece of paradise across from the Salmon River estuary and next to a lovely section of dunes and surf. What a wonderful treat to be warm, dry
and fed!
Culture shock was theme of our final day as we hit the busy, mammoth Bay Area of 7 million or so inhabitants. We had spent 18 days on small highways, country roads and in small towns. The route we had taken avoided Seattle, Portland and pretty much any other big town.
The day started typically enough, peaceful rolling agricultural land giving way to sleepy coastal towns. As the suburbs of San Francisco began, however, the pace quickened significantly for the seemingly endless cycle and transit ride through to Berkeley.
It was a nice change of pace to put the bike and camping gear away for a few days and enjoy the numerous amenities and personalities of Berkeley.
me back on the coast
Rockport, California
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Anna
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Congrats!
Way to go to all of you!!! I'm very impressed by your journey.