Day Twenty-six
Santa Cruz to Carmel-by-the-Sea, 53 miles
Last night, I reached my hotel, showered, ate, wrote my blog and collapsed into bed. At this point, I’m tired after a day on the bike, but not hating life. So it wasn’t agony that drove me to bed, I just couldn’t stay awake.
More rain this morning. Like yesterday, it dissipated by mid-morning and I started the ride under clearing skies on damp pavement.
The cities around Monterey Bay deserve a much longer visit. This was obvious after riding just a half mile. This feels like a place that knows what it’s about.
After a 5-mile warm-up, breakfast!
A one-man shop and I met the man. He said his shop is the best kept secret in town. I said the whole town is the best kept secret in town.
As I sat at sidewalk table, a man my age walked by, barefoot, in a wetsuit with his surfboard tucked under one arm, off to take a few laps on the local break. I want to do that!
Soon I was riding through ag-land, different from anywhere I’ve ever seen. These fields are for high-value produce, on a massive scale.
Watsonville is known for artichokes, but right now, the strawberries are in.
The air was scented by billions of ripening strawberries.
The fields are formed into long raised rows, drip irrigation lines are placed on top of the row and each row is then covered in black plastic sheeting.
I watched a farm worker walking between the plastic rows with a burner device. She was melting 3-inch round holes in the plastic in a specific pattern. I assume that into these circular holes a small strawberry start is planted. Thousands, maybe millions. And billions of berries. I read that 2,500 acres are planted in strawberries, and each acre produces 50,000 pounds of fruit
In the town of Marina, I picked up a bike trail that paralleled Highway 1and I rode the trail 10 miles into Monterrey. Then it was 6 miles to finish the day at the home of Chris and Seaberry, friends of my brother Bob. Of all things, they are planning a whitewater rafting trip on the Deschutes River, which happens to be the river I know best. So I’m trading river data for a shower, bed and home hospitality tonight.
Gratefully, I’m tired tonight but not destroyed. I shook off yesterday’s fatigue with one-night’s rest, and I’m sure tomorrow I will feel the same. Each day this week, my daily miles will rise, and I am more and more confident that I will push through these last 600 miles in respectable form.
California and the people of California continue to impress. Happy days as a cyclist.
