Simple Hobby Homesteading

I must come clean about something that I did not purposely leave out of yesterday’s ride post… Perhaps I had momentarily blocked it from my memory because I was so excited to finally be on my bike or maybe I just wanted to save myself some embarrassment… Anyways, yesterday, day two of riding for most but day one of riding for me… well, I kinda sorta totally fell. One of those falls that I have gotten really good at. The fall from an almost complete standstill.

Here’s how it went down (literally)… We were biking on a beautiful bike trail along the highway from Santa Cruz to Monterey and I saw a road sign with the mileage to Los Angeles and a few other places. This road sign would be a great picture of how we were slowly but surely getting closer to Los Angeles and help add that “epic” touch to my California Coast Classic scrap book, my sole excuse for the plethora of selfies and road sign pics.

I voiced my intent to stop for a picture to my husband, slowed down, clipped out of my left pedal while braking and coming to a nice slow stop next to the wonderful California shrubbery. I was almost at a complete stop when I reached around my back to the right to pull my iPhone out of my back jersey pocket… Leaning to the right while only being clipped out on the left does not equal happy times and over I went letting my right knee catch the brunt of the sandy and unfortunately sharp shrubs and succulents. Where is your nice soft grass California?

Of course the first thing one does is look around to check if anyone saw the “tumble” (can’t really call it a crash). There was only one other rider behind us and he slowed up as he approached and asked if I was ok. I said I was and he rode on. Kevin was a total sweetheart, helping me back up and holding my bike while I took assessment of my knee and took a picture of that STUPID SIGN! I had a nasty gash full of dirt and sand on my knee and some nice road rash along my whole right leg. How do these “at a standstill” tumbles cause such injuries? I blame you speed play pedals! Grrrrrrr

To make matters oh so much worse I was wearing my new white cow socks and the stream of blood was heading straight for the cuff… NOOOOOOOO, save the socks! I grabbed a tissue from my bike bag (who’s glad I’m an overpacker now husband? Yes,  me) and applied direct pressure rubbing a great amount of dirt and sand deep into my bloodstream. The socks were saved though for the next 15 miles I had to catch a stream of blood every so often. OK, enough about yesterday.

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We are heading out from Monterey this morning and I do believe Kevin is determined to make me an expert on clipping out of my pedals at a roll and at a stop. Many pep talks as we roll down that hill out of camp which is quite fun on the downhill side of things. I now thank the staff for having us come up that monster hill because it was fun to fly down!

My knee is super stiff but I have no infection thanks to the homemade plantain, tea tree, comfry healing salve I brought along (yes, I’m that nerdy). Kevin’s upper thigh issue is proving to be quite a burden for him and we both agree that we’ll take many breaks today full of great memory photos!

We are heading to Big Sur and I’m told today and tomorrow are two of the most beautiful days of the whole trip. Today would be somewhat short as far as mileage went with only about 47 miles of riding. There was some decent climbing but the view was absolutely breathtaking so the ride went smoothly.

I had lived in California for 8 years before (just 3 miles from the coast) and never once had I seen a whale. Guess what I saw this day… a whole pod of humpback whales feeding on anchovies just off the coast. We stopped and took a ton of pictures as I swooned over the magnificence of these creatures. To say it was amazing would be the understatement of the century. Seeing whales was a hope of mine on this trip and certainly a box I wanted to check on my “things in life” list. CHECK!

The uphills made me work but the downhills were exhiliarating. I was clutching and pumping the brakes as I reached speeds of 40mph (faster than I’ve ever gone on a bike) and Kevin would fly past me as if he just lit his booster rocket pack with seemingly no fear!

 

We were getting close to camp at the Big Sur Campground. About a mile shy of camp was a neat little resturant and shop where you could get some great food and put your feet (or whole body) in a refreshing stream (river?) shaded by huge cyprus trees. When I say refreshing I mean freezing cold of course.

Kevin and I opted for a huge lunch at the restaurant complete with a big brownie and ice cream dessert which I inhaled shamelessly. To my defense, I offered Kevin some but he’s not a sweets kind of guy (which I already knew)… I just wanted to be sure those around us saw the effort I made to share lol.

After lunch we strolled down to the stream to put our footsies in the water. Ummmmmm… that lasted as long as it took me to take a quick picture and dash back out. That water was cold and I’m a complete baby.

We climbed back on our bikes and made our way into camp. It was gorgeous. The day’s heat was shaded by these huge stands of cyprus and pine trees. The smell of pine always takes me pack to good memories of camping and canoing along the Wisconsin River with my dad and brother. We got our stuff, set up camp, took showers, and I gathered some stuff to go down to do some laundry. I packed the clothes and cycling gear that needed to be washed with my bag of quarters and baggy of detergent (NOT DRUGS) into one of our hiking packs and hopped on my bike. It was a quick little ride to the laundry facilities at the campground (about a mile, maybe a little less) and there was a washer open. I put the first of two loads in and waited. Another washer became available, I threw our other load in, and waited.

I chatted with some folks who were cycling the coast as well. They were supporting themselves with all their own food etc. and seemed to be in great spirits though they looked quite weathered. We must have looked like spoiled Holloywood kids to them with our fully supported rest stops, catered meals, and fancy cycling outfits. It was fun to talk with them and listen to their experiences.

There were two industrial dryers but one was broken. Hmmm… 2 washers and 1 dryer, the line was quite long for that dryer and it was almost dinner time. I decided to pack up the damp clothes and return to dry them after dinner. Damp clothes are quite a bit heavier than dry clothes and the ride back to our campsite was a bit more cumbersome with the heavy pack on my back. Luckily the riders camping next to us had a clothes line up and offered to let us hang our damp things. This will certainly help.

We had decided on the late dinner time this evening which we though started at 7:30pm (we later found out it started at 7:00pm as was clearly written on our DRG which we totally didn’t look at for the supper time). We also thought there were shuttles to take us up to the lodge from the campsite but we weren’t seeing any (it’s quite possible we just didn’t wait long enough) when we went to catch one at 7:00pm.

“Let’s just walk,” I suggested. I don’t think Kevin was feeling as spry and chipper as I was because he gave me a somewhat ugly face. We couldn’t ride our bikes up because we’d be returning well after dark and had no headlights on our bikes. So, we started off not knowing exactly which way we needed to go (and seeing no signs that would help us out). I knew (for fairly certain) that we passed the lodge on our way into camp that day (Kevin didn’t remember seeing it) and I knew the creek that was now on our left was on our right when we road in. Kevin seemed dubious. It was getting dark quickly as we walked and a car approached. I suggested we flag it down and ask which way the lodge is but Kevin played his “no direction asking man card” and it passed by. We walk some more. I’m getting hungry and more unsure of my navigation skills. Another car approached and I flagged it down to ask which way the lodge is. They said we are on the right track and just keep going… we did. We got to the guard gate at the entrance to the park and I ran up to ask which way the Lodge is. She said it’s across the road and up to the right but it would be safer for us to take the trail (through the woods) rather than the road in the dark. We followed her advice even though I was sure I would be eaten by a bear. I just had to outrun Kevin… just kidding… kinda.

We got on the trail and I am not exagerating when I say we heard a ton of rustling in the woods to my right. Ask Kevin, he heard it too! It had to be a bear! We quickened our pace, nervously laughing and chatting way louder than we probably needed to (nervous laughter scares bears off, right?).

We made it to the Lodge (unmauled) and dug in to a great dinner of chicken, pasta, salad, rolls, potatoes (of course potatoes), and desserts.

Tummies full, it was time to head back to camp and fall into a potato induced coma snuggled in my warm sleeping bag. I’m too impatient to wait for a shuttle back to camp so I talk Kevin into walking. As we are leaving we meet up with Natascha, a fellow rider and that night’s Honoree. Diagnosed with JRA at 12 years old this woman lets nothing get in her way!

We all start to walk back to camp down the trail of certain death and mauling and we hear rustling in the woods again off to our left. My heart skips a few beats as I’m not sure if it’s a cougar or a bear ready to rip me from limb to limb because I smell like yummy chicken, pasta, dessert and POTATOES! I search my knowledge of bears to try to remember if they like potatoes all the while trying not to act like a scared little school girl in front of Natascha (Kevin already knows I’m a scaredy cat).

We trek on and the trail spits us out onto the main road where a shuttle pulls up and offers us a ride. I love their perfect timing. We hop in and Natascha shares her story with us, very neat and inspiring. This young lady goes on to accept a marriage proposal from her boyfriend later in the ride!

We arrive back at camp and check the clothes on the line. Much of it is still a bit damp and needs to get dried before it’s packed up. Ugh, I was tired. Kevin insists on walking with me to the laundry facility and I’m glad for his companionship as I’m less afraid of being eaten but more afraid of being abducted by a crazy camper somewhere along the way. I throw the damp clothes in my pack and Kevin asks if I have everything. I respond in a long exasperated tone, “Yes, I only took the clothes out of the pack so the rest is all still in there.”

We walk along and Kevin asks if I know where I am going. I do, but he has a way of making me second guess myself. It’s a straight shot, not tough, but it seems we walk forever. We finally arrive and I empty all the clothes in the huge empty dryer. It’s chilly and I contemplate throwing myself in for a tumble of warmth. I reach into the pack to get the bag of quarters and they aren’t there. Seriously, they aren’t there! They have to be there. I don’t remember taking them out but truth be told that doesn’t mean that I didn’t.

Kevin gives me the “Oh hon” as I dig in my pocket to see what loose change I have. One quarter, I have one quarter in my pocket. Well, that will give us 10 minutes worth of drying time. I spend the next 10 minutes apologizing to Kevin who just chuckles and says he loves me. It seems like one of those “I love you even though…” kind of I love yous 🙂

The 10 minutes actually dries our cycling gear completetly (gotta love spandex) but doesn’t do much for the cotton shirts etc. We pack up the clothes and head back to camp. We plan on hanging them out to dry on a line when we get into camp the next day.

Now, it’s time for sleep. We can’t call the boys because there is no cell reception. We decide to zip our sleeping bags together to make one big super snuggly sleeping bag that we both ought to love. We didn’t. Apparently, throughout the whole night I was quite the sleeping bag stealer and both of us got a very fitful night of rest. On the bright side, we stayed plenty warm even though temperatures dropped to the mid 30s!

Life is good… ya ready for the ride to San Simeon tomorrow and to see if I survive the climb up the Twin Sisters mountains? First I have to make it out of camp which proves to be a task in itself…

~Jhenna