West Coast Express: San Fran to LA

The ride from the Bay Area to LA was cool. Getting into much larger cities and developed areas. The wildlife has turned from furry animals to furry homeless people. The animals smell better.

These last shots are from the Santa Cruz area. I can only imagine what this place must be like in the summer. Beautiful area, surfers looked like they were having fun.

This is the Monterey area. Well known beautiful area. Cannery Row is nothing like Steinbeck knew it but still has some charm. Campsite was up on this steep hill above the town. I decided to do the climb three times just for shits and giggles. I really need to ask for better directions than "just go up the hill to the top".

This was around the Big Sur area, where a cookie and a juice costs you $10 and the guide book tells you the park has hot springs but they don't. Big trees and ocean vistas, what more can you want. Lots of climbing on these days, up and down all day but the scenery keeps your mind off it.

Big Sur down to San Simeon. Sea Lions take over the beaches, Zebras just hanging out in a field and Hearst Castle. Apparently it's a pretty amazing castle, I saw the brochure and that's all I need. Fruit and vegetable farms are massive down here, I see where we get all our strawberries when it's pissing rain in Vancouver.

Out of the valley and back to the coast. Took a ride through a road that was under construction after it rained all night. Bad idea, bike got so packed with mud I couldn't even roll it. Had to pull everything off the bike walk half a mile to the end of the mud set it down and then go back and carry my bike to the end. Took me a good half hour to scrape all the mud out so my wheels could turn. Dumb, but I got the following 15 mile climb all to myself so that's not so bad. Palm trees and beaches, what I think of when I hear Southern California.

Santa Barbara was another cool city. Spanish history is everywhere. Sod farms, a fellow camper that doesn't know how to set up their tent. Planes on a stick, not just a North Bay thing.

Malibu to LA. Bearings in my bottom bracket explode. Rode 45 miles with a bike that didn't want to go. It sort of sucked but going through all these areas I've heard about on TV and movies kept my mind off it. Rolled up to my Uncle's pad in Hermosa Beach. Amazing location right across from the beach. Very nice area, really like it.

My Uncle Jay got us tickets to a LA Kings game which was followed by a concert that had one of the best laser light shows I've ever seen. Ghostland Observatory was the band, hadn't heard of them but their live show was pretty amazing.