Day 12: Santa Cruz - Big Sur

Whenever we are near a larger city we are diverted off US 1 onto the scenic route. Today we rode through lots and lots of strawberry fields. Sometimes we were on good road and other times we wondered if we were still on route. We were. We finally got back on 1 and made our way to Seaside, CA.

Before Seaside we stopped to use the restroom. We had seen Sweet Cherries Ahead signs so Ben took a moment to score us some cherries, amazing!

Before Seaside we had to get back off 1 onto a road that led us to a bike trail. We met local cyclists Brick and Robert. My front brake had been dragging, they helped me with that problem PTL. We rode the ups and downs of the trail to the Chilis in Seaside where we met Darren and Sydni Murphy for lunch, it was awesome as were they.

After a Starbucks stop we got back on the bike trail to make our way through Monterrey and on to Big Sur. We knew there would be some climbs but we didn't realize they would be so steep on our way out of Monterrey. After finding the right road that would lead us to a trail we connected with the road that would put us back on 1. It always feels good to get back one 1 because it feels like the most direct route to where we are going.

The ride down to Carmel was fast with lots of traffic. After that we had alot of ups and downs all the way to Big Sur. The beauty of this section is second to none. From Carmel there were big yellow numbers painted on the shoulder every mile so we were able to count our way down to Big Sur, it was good. When I saw the 10K paint my guess that they ran a marathon along that route was confirmed.

Just before Big Sur the ride went from coastal to forest, very cool and beautiful. Before reaching the State Park we stopped at the grocery for some dinner supplies. When we got to the Park the Ranger said we could cancel our full site and stay for cheap in the hiker/biker section, we liked that. The hiker/biker section was secluded and awesome. Redwoods!

We showered, ate Ramen spaghetti with beans and then hit the Park store before it closed at 9. After this we headed to our tents for a good night's rest. Tomorrow we will continue our way down the coast toward Morrow Bay. Thanks to those of you praying, it works big time!