Total Miles 75.3
Average Speed 13.5mph
Total Ascent 1369m
Where do I start? What a great day! First up the weather was fantastic - the calm after the storm. Wall to wall blue sky and not a breath of wind. Good start. I had a continental breakfast (I've been doing that more often lately) but had plenty of bananas and cereal snacks for the road.
Getting out of the biggish city area took a little while but once outside I was treated to some quiet back roads through fruit and veg country - strawberries, cabbage (I think), lettuce, artichokes and pumpkins. A little later I would see a lorry (sorry - Truck) carrying pumkins the size of medicine balls (remember them from school gym? does anyone use them anymore?)
I cycled past a place called Moss landing and then Marina - that'll explain the marina! I was now onto a very long cycle path - great! smooth surface (apart from the odd tree root damage) and no traffic. This took me past a place called Seaside and somewhere else called Sand Dune City (the clue is in the name as usual!) and then into Monterey. Monterey has a big bay and big beaches - and a fantastic cycle path or two.I picked my way from path to path via small interludes on roads through Monterey and to lunch at Carmel.
The afternoon session began as I left Carmel and hit the coast again. This coastline seemed a little different to what i'd seen before. Now, I've seen my fair share of coastlines over the last few weeks and some have been stunning. The long sandy beaches of Oregon are wonderful, northern California transitioned into more rocky with a few cliffs.What was different here? Perhaps I benefited from a fantastic weather day. I did. But this coast had the ability (despite all that had gone before) to wow me all over again. Perhaps there are higher cliffs here. Perhaps it's just a little more remote. Perhaps the rocky outcrops are more pleasing to the eye. I don't know but it is just lovely. My camera had a busy day!
On the first part of this stretch I was passed by a group of cyclists from a triathlon club. It's always nice to have some other cyclists around. A wee chat but also in my mind this is a heads up to the motorists. There are not big shoulders on this road but that is a fact of cycling life in the UK so I'm not too worried by it. If there are run-offs I try to let traffic by. At roadworks I always wait until the end of the traffic line. I try to keep a steady line as far in as I can. I have to say that in the most part the motorists here are much more considerate than in the UK. Perhaps the roads here are wider (they mostly are) or maybe these are mostly holiday makers not in a rush.
As I pedalled on there was a reasonably big climb before a stunning headland called Point Sur (Despite my chat about motorists above maybe having cyclists on the road might be a Sur point with some motorists ;o)). At this juncture I stopped to take photos and the tri-club stragglers finally left me behind.
As if today hadn't been good enough, when I descended from the outlook over Point Sur, the valley that followed gave me a wonderful tailwind - Yes, at last! I was heading inland and in the distance I could see big hills and redwoods. This would be Big Sur.
Great to be back in the Redwoods again - maybe this is why I enjoyed Day 31 so much - a great combination of some of the best parts of this coast and forests. I did, however have one more climb to go. I'm torn between whether it's good to have a tough climb at the end of a day or not. You are already tired but you also know that once this is done it is the end of your day. Either way, this particular climb was not that difficult in comparison with some already completed on this tour -but they all hurt and it's still always nice to feel the gradient ease off and see the first downhill part ahead.
I nearly missed the entrance to my motel. It was about a mile or two the other side of the summit and I'd been looking out for the name Deetjens. This sign said Big Sur Inn - can't be it. Thankfully I had Garmin 800 programmed because it beeped at me as I went by and I was able to stop just about in time. I would NOT have thanked myself for an unnecessary climb to end the day!
The talking points of the day had not ended. This is no ordinary motel! That was becoming clear as I walked into reception to find antique style tables for dinner and hear vivaldi's 4 seasons! I'm not used to this treatment! My room also was "interesting". Very small - just enough room for a bed, sink and maybe just about cat-swinging room too. The room was called petite cuisine - so must've been a small kitchen originally - explaining the size. However, it was actually quite cosy.
I took dinner amongst the antiques and was tucked up in the petite cuisine by 9.
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