Day 41. Time to Coast!

Saturday February 18, 2023

I just realized each blog kinda begins with me waking up huh? Well today I woke up to the fact that I will actually see the Pacific Ocean today...wow! So good! It feels like I've been pedaling nonstop for six weeks now. Not the bike silly! Geez I'd definitely need new shorts and a butt massage. But figuratively anyway. So far this trip I've logged over six thousand miles on the jeep and I'm just now making it to the Specific Ocean I set out for. That's a lot of pedaling!

I figurative : ) that's across the country twice and I haven't laid eyes on the Coast yet. Maybe I shoulda picked a straight-line? Nah, too boring. Following the wind is so much more adventurous right!?

Too cold? Head south! Feeling sore? How 'bout an outdoor heated spa two hours away in Ouray!? Sweet! Geez it's easy to get pulled into a thousand different directions with so much to see in this country. No way I coulda followed every whim, every tip, every distracting "squirrel"along the way though. Had I done that I figurative that I'd still be in Georgia somewhere bombing a trail with Jim : )

So today's goal? Get to the beach and chill. No thinking about where the next destination is.

Almost every day on this trip, at some point, I do a little planning in my mind. Where I'll be going next, do I need to reserve a site, do I need food, what I'll be doing there. Today I have a couple of things to check off my list but once I get to the shoreline? Putting a chair down in the sand and planting my duck butt on it is all I have in mind!

Dig my webbed toes in the sand and just melt into the view.

No more going west from there!

Just enjoying the view from the shore.

No more pedaling...

It's time to Coast!

I packed up my clothes and organized the gear in the jeep. Sometimes after a day or two, especially with a ride day thrown in, the stuff in the back can get a little disorganized. Most times I have to pull half of the gear out to get the bike I need for the day. Keeping it neat is one chore that pays dividends when I go looking for something later. Everything has a place and it's so stress free when it's actually in that spot! As I pack up and prepared to leave I grabbed a few photos of the little Air Bnb I've been in. A private entrance that leads into a cute bedroom and a sweet private bath. It's all I needed!

I realized this morning that I never met Christina, the owner of this rental and felt a little bummed. I usually try and make it a point of making connections with peoples wherever I can and for some reason this one fell through! Maybe I'll cruise past where her salon is and stop in to say hi on my way out of town. But a thanks and shout out to you Christina for a warm cozy respite!

I also decided to grab a pic of the Folsom Prison sign also, just because, and check out a little bit of the surrounding residential area's too. I'm always curious what the homes look like and the question "Could I live here?" is always tucked in the back of my mind so I love doing a little exploring. As I'm driving around it is so cool to see cyclists out in the morning sun just hammering some of the climbs on the roads here too.

So I drove past the prison and grabbed a photo and I notice there is a bike trail that runs around it. The path is practically roadside but yet protected and it's called the Johnny Cash Trail....for the prison song! Perfect lol. I mean you can't really even see the prison it's nestled back behind the path and these rolling hills.

I grabbed a photo or two and then headed to where Christina's salon is and pulled into the parking lot and paused for a bit. I started sensing the end of the journey being just around the corner and it was starting to hit me.

I began to feel a little bummed - I think I had kinda hoped there would be an aha moment on this trip like "Wow this is where I want to live!" or relocate for a while. Or a "Whoa this place is so awesome I have stay and cycle more!" Not being married and with kids falling out of the nest I'm pretty much a free duck to migrate and build a new nest anywhere. It's definitely a bit of the grass might be greener over there mixed in with why the heck not just go explore the rest of the country too.

I definitely feel like I tasted the area's I visited though...not just a drive by. There is absolutely nothing like cycling around the towns and trails to really get a flavor for the area. Spending a few hours jumping off the bike in a historic district just to walk among the peoples even. To really savor the different shops and the staff working in them gives you such a strong sense of the village. Spicy? Bland? Vibrant!? So many different towns with so many varied personalities. Have you ever gone into a local brewery and gotten overwhelmed with all the different beers on tap? So you order up a "flight" of them? Usually a little board with maybe four different 'samples' of their brews? You try them all and then settle on a favorite and stick with it for awhile. I tasted a lot of these towns the same way...and there are a few that I would not order again and there are some that I would definitely settle on for awhile. Nothing like a strong bold IPA to grab your attention right?!

The peoples, the views, the trails and the overall taste of a town appeal to the pallet of your soul if you take time to sample and savor them for a bit.

I really resonate with this western outdoorsy vibe quite a bit. From Breckinridge, Grand Junction, Moab and into California the atmosphere centers more around living life out of doors. Little warmer in Cali too lol. So nice to be in 50-70 degree weather huh? Especially after those sub-freezing temps camping out inside the jeep wow...seems forever ago. But would any of these places be a happy home for me? Could I start everything over in one of these towns...alone? Geez big call. It's not like there is a Mrs. Duckpond there to either resonate with or dislike any place either ya know? These are my thoughts that are hitting both mind and heart as I sit in the parking lot near the salon. I'm feeling the emotion of leaving an Island where I've lived my whole life and have a lot of friends vs. migrating west alone to start off fresh with the main strong pull being that everyone likes to cycle out here. It's a weird mix of already missing peoples back home combined with the excitement and nervousness of moving somewhere new without a friend base.

I better move on here now before I tear up actually lol.

I'm still in the parking lot of the salon and I notice a coffee place right in my line of sight.

Sure!

I jumped into the shop, grabbed a warm latte, turned to leave and I couldn't. The Barista had put a heart on top of the latte and it just kinda hit me - and I teared up a bit right there at the register. The warmth of the people around here. From Colorado west actually. Listen I love New York. But people out west here, I dunno just feel more genuine. There is a connection that happens in even the smallest of interactions. They actually make a conversation with you...there is a follow up to the "How are you?" I throw out to them. They'll smile and make eye contact as they pass you on a sidewalk returning a warm hello to mine.

The little frothy heart on top of the latte hit mine and flipped it upside down a bit.

The Barista's art felt like it was drawn on my soul and meant as a gesture of warmth.

Ha! Is a warm, heart-topped latte enough of a sign to make the decision to move across the country? I mean it did have cinnamon in it too : )

It could be such a great new chapter into the book of me.

Again, I know it would be like starting from ground zero though to build the community I have back home for sure. Bike shop, Liberty Riders, a great Christian group and community. That's a lot of starting over for a middle chapter of anyones bio-novel (Whaddya mean I'm past halfway!? What? People live to 114 all the time! : )

Plus, it's nice to have my kids nearby too, although they are definitely sprouting their own wings. DuckPondKids are leaving the nest! My mind hops back and forth, skipping around like this for a few minutes.

I couldn't quite peel myself away from the lil' coffee shop with the frothy heart. So I sat with these thoughts for a bit. Meanwhile cyclists are coming in and out of the shop. So normal here. It’s like they're telling me to hang around longer... that there are cool peoples and rides to do!

Wow some powerful emotions inside. I sat with myself a little longer until I was ready to get in the jeep and move on. No real decision made other than the analytical side of me realized I’ve got about four hours of driving ahead (at least) and I wanted to check into the camp before the sun went down to sit on the beach - as a finish line of sorts. The pull of staying with these feelings a bit longer vs. the pull of surf and sand.

The trip ends at the beach.

Let's do this.

Morro Strands bay is a few hours south and the temp started to rise a bit as I drove, which was awesome to see. Hoping a great nights sleep on the beach is in store.

The miles clicked by and I listened to more Stick Figure reggae on the way. Their music just resonates with me on this trip. A nice chill vibe to cruise too. My only stop is for gas and since I wanted to sit on the beach when I arrive I'll have to grab a beach chair since I didn't pack any.

One of those supermarket cheap ones is perfect.

Driving near the town of Morro Bay on the way to its shoreline I feel the anticipation of seeing the beach rise up in me - just like a wave that seems to awaken out of the flat ocean. Funny how if you look out past the surf the ocean seems flat right? Then all of a sudden there is a wave that forms, seemingly rising up out of nothing.

Emotions seem to swell up like that too...

I roll a window down to get a whiff of the salt air. It's been six weeks since I've seen my hometown ocean beaches. I did spend some time down in Florida on the Gulf of Margarita but this felt more like a culmination of reading the whole book rather than just one of the middle chapters. Those meaty chapters add to the story but there is always the next one that'll reveal another dimension to the narrative. Each view on this trip, each bike ride, every meetup along the way has been one of those middle chapters crescendoing into this glimpse that is about to take place. Over forty days on the road to arrive here today.

Now all those middle chapters are culminating and I have that same feeling you have when you get to the end of the book. The excitement of all the chapters pulling together. Mixed in with a little bit of wow I don't want the book to end either!

I check into the campsite and roll onward to site 34.

I park the jeep so that when I pop the tent I'll be able to see the water from my front door - but I don't bother getting it set up now. I just throw on my suit and make my way to the beach while some families and kids are playing about.

I kick off my shoes to feel the sand on my feet and walk through the dunes. Wow! There it is! I kinda drop the chair on the sand and just kept walking to the water. That soft, dry, powdery sand becoming firmer as I got closer to the surf. The sun is warm on my skin and a small wave crashes over my feet…and I had two thoughts:

Holy cat it's cold!

I didn't expect that! Yowza!

Does this water know it's in California?

Somebody should have a talk with it for sure!

Did I take a wrong turn in Albequrque and end up on the Bering Strait?

Beach Boys, Corona commercials, surfing, all those images....gone!

They're replaced with thoughts of ice fishing, eskimos and frostbit toes.

Ain't nobody hanging out in the surf here for sure! I bet even the sharks this time of year are like "no freakin way dude we headed to Cozumel for awhile".

At least put up a warning sign for 'naive' New Yorkers geez!

I look around hoping no one saw me jumping around like a two year old getting into his bath.

Then the second thought, after I couldn't feel my toes anymore anyway...

Wow I’m here.

Trip is done.

Is it really?

I can't believe it.

Some powerful, grateful emotions rose up and crashed on the beach of me.

I just stood there for a few minutes with the polar-plunge-worthy waters cresting over my feet and a swirl of emotions being tossed around inside.

It was closing in on 4 o'clock and starting to drop in temp so I decided not to swim in the forty eight degree water and start my night off freezing again.

I sat in the chair on the beach, closed my eyes and just absorbed the sun.

One of those restful rests.

When the sun sank low enough for some sunset photo's I grabbed a few and stood watching it settle in for the night. It becomes a shared experience with the other folk around that stop what they are doing to take in the end of another day. Wow I could get used to ending every day like this...

As I headed back to the jeep I notice people literally sitting atop their vans looking at the water over the dune. Perfect idea. So I popped my tent up, grabbed some of the guac n chips that I bought and planted my butt in the tent. My feet are on the ladder outside of it so my view was over the dune with the sun below the horizon but still alighting the water with that warm orange glow. I had no liquor, but watching the waves meet the beach, with a monumental trip behind me, made this ducktail hour one of the best ever.

So good.

A definite disbelief that I am here for sure.

As I sat atop the jeep...

I breathed in the warm salt air.

I breathed in the view.

I breathed in the emotions.

I breathed in the accomplishment.

Then I went to sleep with a smile as wide as the panoramic view of the beach in my mind.

Inside

Man I think this whole blog was a lot of the inside journey. Nice to notice it though if you've never looked at it before... an honest look anyway : )

Outside

Sweet Jesus the beach views! Wow did I ever miss that sun, salt air, water view!

Upside

Well so many here today...but in keeping with the inner journey theme of today's blog:

The upside to being alone is that the inside voice is more noticeable. To many distractions around you keep you from hearing, and then listening to what it has to tell you. So good to hear it!

downside

The opposite of the upside today! The downside to being alone -

No one to talk too! Yes today was for me...but wow how I would love to share these views with someone too!

Every Which Way but East

The town of San Luis Obispo is calling my name and I figure I can road cycle up into it in the morning and be back to catch the afternoon sun on the beach again. Sounds awesome.

Time to Coast. A "Specific Coast" to be exact.

Christina's welcoming Air Bnb sign.

The lil' deck outside the cozy bedroom below...

Not my home but was nice to call it one for a few days...thank you Christina!

A state that builds bridges for cyclists...so good right? Part of the Johnny Cash Trail.

The Johnny Cash Trail alongside the road here...the prison over the hills to the left of it.

The Prison Welcome (?) Sign : )

The rolling green hills on the drive south... another great and 'new' view on the trip.

Seeing the Ocean beach I'll be staying on for the first time!

The path from my campsite to the water...

Beach at last!

Toes frozen in the water and looking back at the beach and campground.

My spot for two nights...

Do sunset views ever get old? So good...

Morro Strands bay... I love this little 'mountain' that stands right close to shore Reminds me of the final scenes in the Goonies movie for some reason...

My "Ducktail" hour view from the top of the jeep sitting in the tent.

Me, my jeep and the little ducks on the dash made it...

Life is good!