Day 40, McGrath State Beach to Hollywood, 81 miles

All good things must come to an end. Today was my final ride on the west coast. The day's ride was fairly flat, but still quite challenging, especially in LA. I had to pull out all my city-riding skills to escape with my hide. I kept imagining some El Camino with my skull as a hood ornament...

Oh, and this is the famous burning bush, Moses- style. (bite, drk, bite! :) :D

I stopped in Ventura for some dinner at 'The Habit', which is so named due to the sometimes compulsive consumption of their burgers. Then I rolled into camp for my final night in the tent for awhile. I must say I had grown attached to it.

Pic: I thought y'all should see some damned palm trees since I'm in socal and all, so I shot this one from the bike just south of Ventura. yeehaw!

Day 39, Carpinteria to McGrath State Beach 25 miles

After spending the morning in Carpinteria, I lazily rolled my arse to the next campground, passing many a motorhome perched precipitously between the pacific and the two lane highway. Like the ocean, the further reaches of this stretch of wheeled homes disappears before the eyes can reach them...

The ride was beginning to take on an 'anti-climactic' feel. I had entered the 'falling action' in the plot of this special story. I was turning the final pages of miles with my pedals, already hoping for the sequel...

The end of the day found me reaching Carpinteria State Beach the same time at Moritz, yet another 19 yo free spirited German vagabond. Moritz was on a Marty-esque two week Canada to Mexico pace. He is a triathlete and has already completed an Iron Man distance race. We decided to spend the evening in the refreshing and healing waters of the lady Pacific, body surfing and watching the sun set. Then we went out to pizza and had a good ole time sharing tales of the road. 

Day 38, Refugio state beach to Carpinteria, 35 miles

Nearing the end of the journey, in an attempt to slow into some swirling loop of time, I crawled through the delicious falling action of the story- the pilgrimage. I spent some time in Santa Barbara, then found these calm swimming beaches just to the south...
bluh

Today was a day of big hills and bland scenergy. So, you'll get bland commentary and no pictures. I stopped and did laundry in the godforsaken town of Lompoc, which is basically one big strip mall out in the middle of the hot boring nothingness. the end.

The town of Oceano is surrounded by sand dunes, which perpetually try to engulf the town. The streets are regularly plowed, much like a ski resort town.  

Day 37, Oceano campground to Refugio State Beach, 80 miles

Crawled out of my tent this morning and saw my man here throwing down a nasty beat on his portable yamaha keyboard. Mesmerized, I watched him freestyle for several minutes. He then segued into a lengthy rant about the ill effects of Mormonism on our society. As I get further down the coast, there are more 'homeless prophets' inhabiting the hiker-biker sites. The shared features of these folks seem to be brilliance, independence, and stubbornness.

turn the page 

Setting sun gives fame to the subtle 

Blue Heron, listening... 

In the Pismo Beach area, I found a feathery flow- an impossible curve of pigment in space 

Nearing San Luis Obispo, I saw this old farm. I almost passed it by, but realized that life is lived or skipped in these moments. I decided to live. 

In the town of Cambria, I updated the blog and got some lunch at the grocery deli. On my way out of town, I saw a car stop on the shoulder and extend a thumbs up and this little yellow package for me to grab. The handoff was executed with commercial precision and spirit. I'm guessing it was someone in distribution for this company rather than a well wishing layman. I had seen these bars displayed in nearby stores, but never tried one... a couple hours later, low on energy, it saved my life.  

purdy birdy... seeeeen 

Day 36, San Simeon to Oceano Campground, 55 miles

Wasn't sure if I dreamt this... if I did, then we're sharing the same dream... wait, that didn't solve anything....

The even more famous Hearst Mansionn of media magnate William Randolph Hearst. I've already done the tour, so I stayed on the nice level highway 1. 

closeup... nice schnoz! even puts mine to shame! (not easy) 

The famous Elephant seals of San Simeon.  

Back at the campsite, sittin with a monkey. Just another day on the California coast... 

The view from the top of the hill, where the Hermitage sits. I'm glad I got a ride from Ken. 

Ken invited me to attend Sunday service with him at the Calmadoli Hermitage, a Catholic monestary. The service was performed by monks, with the brilliant sermon by the revered mystic Father Bruno Barnhart. After mass, we were invited to a delicious meal with the monks, featuring quiche, green salad, corn, juices, soup, rice, and even apple pie and ice cream for dessert! Daily caloric intake... check. Daily dosage of spiritual guidance... check.  

Spent last night's campfire and this morning chatting with camp neighbors Ken, Melinda, and Casey, along with other campers. Casey is a neuroscientist and Melinda is a lawyer, both from the Bay Area. Ken is a pretty dynamic and spiritual guy, who has set up a sort of base camp operation here. He has been a national delegate for presidential elections, and has helped in brokering peace in Northern Ireland by organizing a trip for the Dalai Lama to visit. He is currently working on a grand plan to liberate Tibet! Made for some interesting conversation! 

Day 35, Sunday, Kirk Creek to San Simeon, 45 miles

Morning has broken...

Sun set lengthens the frequency of the light of day, stretching into eternity 

Whale watching crowd... call me Michael Jackson if you like, Drk, but how cute is this wittow one?? Couldn't resist.  

At Kirk Creek Campsite, we marveled at whales performing acrobatic jumps. Slow camera (or finger?) strikes again! This time missing a full body twisting jump! better than Seaworld! 

Symptom: paying $18 for two glasses of wine. Treatment:bogarting view seat for 2 hours and breathing in the misty love blanket