Thursday

Today we had our long ride down to San Simeon State Park. (About 70miles) Mark, once again, drove the RV then rode back to meet us. It was a BEAUTIFUL ride! We took the 1 all the way down the coast. When I think of riding down the coast, and imagine what the route should look like, this is what comes to mind! The jagged cliffs, the blue water, the green hills, it was stunning. I could have ridden all day. We passed a group of 4 guys on beach cruisers towing a mini trailer with sleeping bags and supplies that had a cardboard sign that read: “L.A. or bust!” I am SO not that hard core. If I’m going to ride 500miles, I want a bed to sleep in and hot shower waiting for me at the end of the night!!

Jamey and I stopped for lunch at a place called Lucia’s, which was the only restaurant for the next 30miles. It was a great stop. The deck overlooked the cliffs and there were sea lions playing down in the water. The sun was shining and it was so peaceful. We had lunch and drank our coffee out on the deck soaking up the sun and watching the wave’s crash up against the rocks below.

After prying ourselves away from the view, we were back on our bikes and headed south. We didn’t make it far before traffic was at a standstill. Up ahead a red helicopter was hovering over the side of the cliffs and lowering something that looked like a platform down to the people below. It seemed as if there had been an accident and they were trying to life flight someone out of there! The longer we watched, however, we realized there were construction workers up the mountains and the helicopter was bringing them large nets to cover the cliffs and prevent avalanches. It was pretty cool to watch.

Once they were finished, we were back on our way. At about 50miles, and the peak of the final mountain, before our decent down to San Simeon State Park, we met up with Mark. We followed him down about 7miles for coffee at a place called Ragged Point. It was about 5pm and the temperature was dropping fast. We had about an hour left to ride before we reached our destination. Despite the cold, we made time to stop and check out the heard of elephant seals lounging on the beach. Just so you guys know, I do a pretty good imitation of an elephant seal! We were carrying on a pretty lengthy conversation before the guys made me leave! (Bill, remind me when we get back to show you! It will make you laugh! :)

We pulled into the campsite at about 6pm. It was a beautiful spot. This was our remote site, so that meant no hookups and no generators on after 8pm. We played catchphrase by the campfire and roasted marsh mellows until we were too tired to keep our eyes open.