Half Moon Bay X 2

We made it through San Fran. Lucky for us, since it was a week day, there was hardly any people on the Golden Gate Bridge which made for an easy crossing with our fully loaded bikes.  We did manage a few wrong turns, which in San Fran means you are riding up hill after hill; one of those led us to the top of Legion of Honor.

This is how victorious we felt when we made it to the top of a very long hill.

Good fortune was with us as we met gracious people along our 40 mile ride who pointed us in the right direction on several occasions. We left the windy, choppy waters of San Fran and was greeted by calmer waters and sun.

We stopped in Pacifica for a few supplies and a passerby mentioned we would be going through a tunnel right after crossing Devil's Bridge. Given the name of the bridge and tone of the passerby we thought we were in for precarious situation.

Come to find out, it was the most bike friendly tunnel offering plenty of light and a bike lane as wide as the car lane, plus the grade was all downhill for us. These types of discoveries make us very happy these days.

We arrived at Half Moon Bay campground and were met with an incredible sandy beach and a sunny warm day. We liked it so much we decided to stay a second night just because we could.

Our first night we were awoken at 2:30AM by an outstanding lightening and thunder storm however we woke feeling strong!

We ate like royalty; loadeding up on carbs, protein and beer!

We enjoyed time on the beach and watching the sun set.

   

At 2:30AM, on our second night, we woke to the sound of someone or something by our bikes and the food storage container we were using to keep our food safe from critters. We could hear the crumbling of plastic and noises around our bikes. We both felt like we could live with losing our food but really did not want to lose our bikes. We both exited the tent to find my handlebar bag was opened and several items had been removed and were scattered about including the surprise Payday candy bar I secretly bought Poncha earlier in the day (as it's her favorite and I love the look on her face when I present her a unexpected treat after a long day's ride). I then recalled I had forgotten to remove that and a Cliff Bar. Using our iPhone I shined the flashlight towards the bushes and we saw two beady eyes staring back at us; the culprit...a RACCOON! Lesson learned: NEVER, EVER leave food outside the storage container!

I woke tired and in need of my morning coffee due to my mistake of leaving food out and it interrupting my sleep. While I heated water for our coffee and oatmeal breakfast Poncha was checking the air pressure I our tires. She turned to me and asked, "Do you want the good news or bad news?". I say "the bad news" as I know if you following up bad with good news it's a good balance. By the look on face I knew before she even spoke these words..."you're back tire is flat". I let out a few profanities and then gathered myself, turned around my attitude, and changed a tire in record time with a good outlook. Come to find out an earlier flat (yes, I've officially had five flats and Poncha only one) left my tire compromised with a large gash. We rigged a solution and will find a bike store in Santa Cruz tomorrow. By the way, I did ask what the good news was. Poncha replied, "I love you". My heart soared and nothing could get in my way of having a good day. Then she reminded me the other good news was that we were in an ideal place to change a flat; no rain, no busy traffic, no other crappy circumstances. 

We continue to love our adventure. Every day holds new terrain and unknown challenges along with surprises. We landed tonight in a KOA campground, which happens to have a rather fancy bar and restaurant. Currently, we are enjoying none other than an iced cold pint of Brew Free or Die IPA from 21 Amendment Brewery. Score!

Cheers everyone!