Continued good fortune

Wednesday 1/12/11:

Today is a short biking day.  Only about 20-25 miles of riding planned from Cardiff by the Sea to Mission Bay.  Since I didn't have far to go I had a leisurely morning at camp.  I "cooked up" a eggs and bacon freeze dried meal (actually tasked pretty good) hot oatmeal and a cup of tea.  I sat overlooking the beach eating breakfast and watching the surfers ride the waves.  I called home then took a brief nap before packing up camp.  My neighbor stopped by to wish me safe journeys  and by 11:30 I was off.  It only took 2 miles for me to see a spectacular ocean /cliff view so I stopped for a photo. 

So far I haven't spend a night in the exact location I planned to stay and tonight would be no different. The benefit of not having reservations and travel off peak in this area is that you really don't need reservation so you can alter your plans as the day unfolds.  Each day has developed far better than I could have hoped.  Initially I bummed that I would be spending a week "alone" until I met up with Aaron Roux and Rick Mason.  Little did I know how much bike traffic there would be along the coast during the daytime on a weekday in January.  I've been so forturnate to bump into such nice people along the way.  On average I see roughly 150-200 cyclist and hundreds of runners during the course of a 4 hour bike ride.

While stopped for my photo 2 miles from camp today I met George Olmstead.  We had a nice discussion about my trip and it happens that he is a very experience cyclotourist as well a warm showers host.  George and his wife Cindy live only 3-4 miles from the starting point where Aaron and I plan to begin our trip on Saturday.  George graciously invited me to dinner and to spend the next 2 nights at his home.  George gave me his cell number, home address and agreed to meet after 5pm at his house. 

Now having about 5 hours of time and no need to arrive early to setup camp I took the opporturnity to visit Torrey Pines golf course and pick up a souvenir in the proshop.  As I took a few pictures of the course a ranger came over (I thought he was going to tell me to move along and stop taking pictures) wanting to hear about the trip I'm taking.  He recently moved to the area and was as enamoured with Southern California as I am.  He shared the only 2 downsides he has discovered about living here..(and only one downside if your OK with the high population density)..the cost of living is high (property values and taxes).  The ranger then recommended I check out the gliderport. 

The Gliderport (see picassa pictures) was an excellent spot for a nice long lunch.  I shared a few sunflower seeds with friendly bird (see pictures) and then headed down the steep hill into La Jolla.  La Jolla is an impressive town, especially the views by the water.  The scenery and real estate are impressive and remind me of the beauty of the Amalfi Coast of Italy or the Charleston Waterfront but with it's own distinct spanish influence.

Next I biked through the Mission Bay beach resort area on a long boardwalk.  Before arriving at George and Cindy's I was passed by a guy on a bike with a small gas motor and a trailer carrying his dog.  Pretty strange site...luckily I quickly snapped a picture to remember it better (see picassa pics)

After 5 nights on the road (3 on a train and 2 camping) it was a real treat to have Cindy's excellent home cooked meal and sleep in a comfy bed.  Professor Slughorn's sand timer was running very slow because of the conversation over dinner (sorry to all you non- Harry Potter fans for the Professor Slughorn analogy).  George and Cindy couldn't be any more helpful and accomodating hosts.  Likely George will be able to ride with us on part of the 1st day of the trip out of San Diego.  I feel very lucky that I happened to leave camp when I did and run into George on the road.  Any cyclist traveling through San Diego who belongs to Warm Showers should contact them when they are in the area.

I slept straight though the night for the 1st time in nearly a week.  Woke up feeling extra refreshed and looking forward to meeting Aaron and the adventures to come.

-Jeff