Homeward bound

The final state line crossing and my arrival to the next place I’m going to call home! I FaceTimed my parents and English grandmother as I rode past the sign

First fast food of the trip — riding the drive-through at Jack in the Box. As I was eating I met a curmudgeonly cyclist who was riding randomly around the coast. He recommended I didn’t stay at the campsite I was planning on, which I thankfully ignored because it was one of my favorites

Seeing the first signed distance to SF

Del Norte Redwoods state park. This is what the guy said I should avoid! Turns out California has even better hiker/biker campsites than Oregon — $5 a spot in the most beautiful campgrounds of the journey 

It’s amazing to see the redwoods again — each tree is awe-inspiring and combined the forests are so serene. I think these parks are up with Zion National Park as my favorite places in the world

Jeremy and I arrived at the hiker/biker campsite at the same time. The bear boxes there had some free provisions for us, including marshmallows and skewers! We roasted them on our gas stoves in the evening and contemplated making tortilla smores, but only got as far as putting a piece of chocolate on a marshmallow before eating it. Also, check out the pink grip tape on his bike!

Incredible section riding Highway 101 the next morning

Further south the fog became very thick and I was glad to have bright lights with me

At Elk Prairie campground I nabbed the most photogenic tent spot. Despite the name and the signs warning you not to approach the elk on the prairie, I never saw a single one

I finally swapped out my front brake pads. The dot on the bottom right corner is the wear indicator, so the fact it was ground down means I changed them wayyy too late. It’s nice to be able to stop properly again though 

Attended a ranger “fireside” talk — I don’t think a more scenic lecture theater exists!

A Highway 101 rest stop — it’s almost unfair how beautiful costal California is

Sea lions! I thought they were logs until I saw them moving

Big ol’ pile o’ logs in Eureka

The house where my grandfather spent his first years. When I pulled up the owner was out front — he was renovating the place and invited me to take a look inside! He said he had wondered about the people that lived there before, so it was probably a very odd experience to have me show up out of the blue 

Diner breakfast 😋 Expensive but fueled me up

Riding the Avenue of Giants — it runs parallel to 101 through Humboldt Redwoods State Park. It’s up with McKenzie pass and that tailwind road in Montana as the best roads of the trip. There’s very little traffic and it cuts through the middle of the forest, so you’re surrounded by redwoods the entire way down

My bike garage at the campground

I love how small you feel next to these ancient giants. It’s like a fantasy world

The campground information board has a lil’ bat living in it! The camp host said there’s lots of bugs in there so it’s nice digs 

 

Riding down a freeway section of 101 I had to get out of the shoulder because of gravel, and a redneck passenger in a passing pickup shouted at me to get off the road. His wish was granted a couple minutes later when I heard and then saw my rear tire deflating. Mercifully it was just at the edge of an on-ramp, which I walked down and then discovered was next to a day-use park! It was a perfect place to swap inner tubes, with shade and water

The culprit nail 😡 This is the first flat tire I’ve ever had on this bike after almost 4,000 miles and riding over gravel and countless broken window shards, so I can’t be too upset. I also found a staple in the tire which didn’t go through to the tube — thank you Schwalbe for making such incredible tires!

After spending the night in the worst campground of the trip (packed sites, big groups of people making tons of noise including using an electric pump at midnight) I turned onto the road I’ll be following to LA, Highway 1!

Paid for the privilege of riding my bike through a carved-out redwood tree. Was a funny experience though

Some of the first California poppies I saw (thinking of you Ma) 

Highway 1 is the hardest “flat” (non-mountain pass) road I’ve ridden. It usually has no shoulder, so you have to be ready for a car to pass any time, and it undulates so much that I constantly have to shift gears and keep needing to power up super-steep mini hills. With the cold and fog it’s awkward to dress so that you don’t get hot on the ups and cold the rest of the time. My windbreaker unzipped was the best I came up with but a fleece is on my shopping list 

A moment of “trail magic” — I was stopped by a fire station and a car towing a camper and with a bike on the roof pulled up and gave me a muffin! It really helped lift my spirits on a dreary, gray day 

The clouds did eventually go away, and I had a great end to the day’s ride

The next day was a big one — I had 85 miles and 7000 feet of climbing to do to get to my grandparents in the Bay Area. I set an alarm for 6 AM but woke up at 4:30 and couldn’t get back to sleep, so ended up hitting the road at 6:45. With such a strong motivation I was able to access all the strength my legs now have and rode hard with few breaks. Once I was approaching Point Reyes I knew I could make it the full distance

After Mendocino and Sonoma, I made it to Marin County (MRN) where my grandparents live 

My first sight of San Francisco — Sutro Tower, a massive antenna structure overlooking the city 

My turning off Highway 1. Panoramic highway took me up 1400 ft over 4 miles — one of the steepest prolonged climbs of the trip and at the end of a massive day!

The peak is there!

The reward — a view from the top of my grandparents’ street

Dusk in the bay

I’ll be in the Bay Area for a week so I don’t spend my birthday alone in a random campground, but afterwards I’ll be on the road again, headed for LA 🐜