Hello from Monterey! Yes, that means we already made it to the central coast of California! We are very sorry for not having published a new post until now. Since we finished the road trip with our beloved Shari and Mike –we also miss you guys and the rest of the family,– we had to ‘adapt back’ to our way of life on the saddle we had left in stand by before we had to stop for a month.

We even had to start slower than we were counting on in Crescent City. Luckily, at the Visitor Center we were pointed out towards St Paul’s Episcopal Church, were Katie hosted us for a night.

Despite the fact that resuming the pedalling was quite tough, we have managed to get ourselves just some 800 km (about 500 mi) to the border in San Diego. and in the process we have enjoyed every bit of this part of the West Coast.

We started with the different Redwoods State Parks: Jedediah Smith, Del Norte Coast, Prairie Creek –where we saw some elk in Elk Prairie, Humboldt and the Avenue of Giants.

The redwoods are impressive; we were particularly happy to have stopped for a short hike around Stout Grove. We also stopped at Tress of Mystery and had the privilege to visit the End of the Trail Museum, a hidden gem at the back of the gift shop.

We also take a short detour to take a picture at the ‘Tour Thru Tree’. However, the highlight there were the emus we saw and the little dance Tere shared with them!

On the way down to Eureka, we stopped for lunch at the Humboldt Swiss Club Hall. The building was closed but while we were eating a couple arrived and asked if we wanted to use the bathrooms. They were organising their Christmas event and we had the chance to talk a bit with them.

We reached Arcata on an extremely rainy day but we were lucky to be hosted by Abbey and Daniel, even if we contacted them at the very last minute! As usual with all warmshowers we met on this trip, we could not be more thankful.

We continued ‘down’ on the 101 and after Leggett, we left it behind and we started climbing Hwy 1 and headed to the coast.

And we continued South on Hwy through Fort Bragg, Mendocino, Manchester, Bodega Bay, Point Reyes and Samuel P. Taylor State Park. At the campground, we met Nick, a guy form San Francisco who was on his first ‘solo’ cycling trip.

And just like that, we ended up in San Francisco! After 11 days cycling without q break, we were looking forward to at least a couple of days ‘off the saddle’. Again thanks to warmshowers, we were extremely lucky and Mathis and his ‘roommies’ –Andy, Serkan and Todd–allowed us to crash on the couches. We were so lucky to spend the weekend at the coolest place with the beat vibes in all SF!

However, first we had to go across the city during the Santacon –everyone downtown San Francisco was wearing a Santa costume– and climb all the way up to Bernal heights.

We had three fantastic days: we visited the city, we could cook in the house, we had the chance to attend a concert by Peter, Bjorn and John; and Pak went to a basketball game at the home of the Golden State Warriors.

Another of the highlights of our stay in SF was Mission District, and more particularly Balmy Alley. It is a very special place indeed.

After our gorgeous stay in SF, we resumed pedalling and made it to Half Moon Bay and Costanoa, before getting to Santacruz and La Selva Beach.

That happened yesterday and we had the privilege to live yet again ‘one of those great cycle-touring moments’: after lunch we were trying to get to a bike route towards Santacruz when a couple of cyclists in the opposite direction stopped us and said we had to go back in order to get to the city. After a couple of minutes talking with us they decided to ‘shepherd’ us through town and eventually point us out towards La Selva!

They led us all along the coast and showed us the city in a way we could have not imagined and for sure missed if we had not stumbled upon Andy and Mike! We saw Steamer Lane, the beaches, Dan Lorenzo bridge, the harbour and then followed the bikeways closer to the coast on the way to La Selva Beach. Thanks a million again guys!

Yesterday night, Beth –a other member of warmshowers– hosted us in La Selva. However, since we arrived a bit early, we went for some groceries at a local store and ended up drinking some refreshments at a terrace. And that was when Lisa stopped to have a little chat with us. She saw Anacleta and FU.LA.NA. with all the gear and, since their children are ‘so into biking’, she could not help ask us some questions about our trip!

We ended up talking about the warmshowers initiative and before waving us goodbye she told us to check on the bluff just at the end of the street. That was the best recommendation ever! The sunset light was just beautiful!

Shortly afterwards we met Beth at their place and had a wonderful evening: we cooked, chat about our lives and trips, took some photos and eventually went for a deserved rest.

And, finally, this morning we followed the route Beth recommended us and we headed to Monterey through some farm land and the Elkhorn Slough. It was a beautiful ride with a long cycling path between Castroville –artichoke capital of the world– and Seaside. And long was also the climb to the Veterans Memorial Park campground! According to Beth, it has its own reputation and now we know why indeed!

Thanks a lot to you all as well, for following us on this blog or on the social world. Do not hesitate to contact us or ask any questions; we will try to reply as soon as possible. And, of course, please keep in mind you can always subscribe to our blog and/or our social media. We will try our best not to take so long to publish our next post.