September 2011
1 post
6 tags
December 2010
1 post
It's REALLY winter now
We’ve got snow. LOTS of snow. And it’s pretty cold now (for humans, that is. Us dogs can stand just about anything!). Yet I am surprisingly happy. The colder weather suits my coat. It would be perfect except for the arthritis aches and pains.
Here’s a photo of me enjoying the snow before a walk. I like to stick my whole face in it, that’s why my nose is white! ;-)
Sadly...
October 2010
29 posts
Postscript
Mom and I had a long drive home with Paul and Karen, but we made it safely and are unpacking and cleaning up from the trip. It feels good to be back.
I saw Daisy yesterday and whew!, she didn’t forget me. Mom, Dad & I even went for a bike ride in the afternoon. Mind you, nothing big, but it was still fun for me. With the warmer weather this week, we may even get some more riding in. Who...
Day Twenty-nine to Santa Barbara
Our last day. We climbed out of Lompoc on Route One to Highway 101. Then we said ‘good-bye’ to Route One. It has been good to us. After we had a rest stop at a REAL rest stop, we rode 101 down to Goleta. We saw oil rigs right off the coast all the way to SB. When we got to Goleta, we picked up a really nice bike path which we took all the way into Santa Barbara. We rode right through...
Day Twenty-eight to Lompoc
We rode past a lot of conventional farm fields today. It was kind of boring since it was all I could see. Lunch was in Orcutt where we found out that the road we were supposed to take was closed. SO, we ended up taking Route One through Vandenburg Air Force base to get to Lompoc (pronounced lom-poke). It was still pretty hilly going through the base and very windy. I lost one of my flags just...
Day Twenty-seven to Pismo Beach
What a lovely [READ: no big hills] ride today. We stopped for a cookie snack in Cayucos and I finally saw a human surfing. Not just bobbing in the water, or swimming out to a wave, but honestly surfing. Cool.
We saw lots of other cyclists on the road today as well- people just out for their Sunday ride, I guess. We had lunch in the happening place of San Luis Obispo. SLO is a college town and it...
Watchmore Elephant seals!
Day Twenty-six to San Simeon Village
We rode out of Big Sur refreshed after a day off right onto a very big hill. After the hill we followed the lovely rugged coastline all day down to San Simeon. There were very few towns along the way. After lunch in Gorda, we had yet ANOTHER hill (Papa really earned his food today!) to Ragged Point and then it was pretty nice riding to San Simeon. We stopped to see the Elephant seals before we got...
Day Twenty-five Rest Day at Big Sur
TODAY was my idea of a vacation. I got up late, ate breakfast (YES, I really ate all of my breakfast!) and then played with the little girl from the campsite next to ours. Her name was Anais and she spoke French to me because she is from Montreal. Then after a nap, Dad, the Pauls and me rode out to the beach to hang for awhile. I really like the beach. By the time we got back, Mom 7 Karen had...
Day Twenty-four to Big Sur
I wish they would make tires that never go flat. The Burley had two flats today and the tire is still acting a little weird. It’s making Papa mad. Never mind that. We had a nice stop in Carmel at the beach. We could see Pebble Beach Golf Club from there. [Paul H. and Karen actually rode past it because they missed a turn.] Then we rode Scenic Dr back to Highway 1 only to spend ~45 minutes...
WatchCinder & Papa in the Redwood forest
Anonymous asked: Hello Cinder,
Glad to hear you enjoyed my home town of Santa Cruz, although I am sorry about those raccoons. The sea lions are more friendly and their bark is a lot like yours. Do you like barking along with them? I was just wondering if you have been able to run around off leash on any of those great beaches and go swimming? Also, do you like the fragrance of eucalyptus? Have a nice...
Glad to hear you enjoyed my home town of Santa Cruz, although I am sorry about those raccoons. The sea lions are more friendly and their bark is a lot like yours. Do you like barking along with them? I was just wondering if you have been able to run around off leash on any of those great beaches and go swimming? Also, do you like the fragrance of eucalyptus? Have a nice...
September 2010
57 posts
Day Twenty-three to Monterey
We had a nice short riding day today, no hills to speak of and great weather once again. We stopped in Moss Landing for lunch and then went out to the beach to see the sea otters and seals in the harbor. One of the sea otters looked kind of like my grandfather, Burt, when he would go swimming- laying on his back, lazily paddling his back flippers just enough to keep himself in place. They were all...
Day Twenty-two to Santa Cruz
Mom’s friend, Greg, joined us today from our ride to Santa Cruz from Half Moon Bay. Paul, Paul and Karen are riding from SF today so they have a longer ride than us.
Mom got up regular early time and went out to pick slugs with Lyn. The ducks really like them and they are a good source of protein for them. It was cool to watch them eat the slugs. Mom says it’s was the least she could...
Day Twenty-one to Half Moon Bay
Today Mom, Dad and I rode out to Half Moon Bay to spend some time with Lyn Pratt. She has a lovely home two blocks from the ocean. Paul, Karen and Paul H (Who joined us in San Francisco) had a day off in SF. We had a glorious day for riding as we left SF. Riding out of town to the ocean and then through Daly City, Pacifica and some other small towns was great. We had some good hills too (up AND...
A note from Mom
Many photos have been taken the past five days, but still need to be processed before they can be posted. It all takes time, and I do need to sleep. That said, there will be some delay before the photos will be up. I’m on vacation too. ;-)
-Lisa
[READ: they may not be up until we return home]
Day Twenty to San Francisco
Yes, indeed, here we are in the city by the bay. We rode in over the Golden Gate Bridge from Sausilito. It was a long ride from Bodega Bay (over 70 miles), but wasn’t too bad, if just a bit warm for a black dog. Don’t worry, I get plenty of water and pee stops.
It was very exciting riding over such a big bridge. I’m glad I had my latest “safety equipment” addition...
Day Nineteen to Bodega Bay
I hate to sound like a broken record, but it was another day of beautiful coastal scenery. The Pacific Ocean was on our right, hills rising up to our left and the road rolling out before us. It was pretty easy until lunch in Fort Ross (with my mom) then it got really exciting with Dad after lunch. Our road turned into the road on the edge of the abyss for awhile, then calmed down to the steep...
Day Eighteen to Gualala
There were lots of “oohs & aahs” today as we rolled down SR 1 to Gualala. Around every corner was another stunning view of the coastline. We went through a few more towns today – Ft, Bragg, Mendocino, Anchor Bay, to name a few- and some spectacular houses right on the ocean. It was hard for Mom to not take a gazillion pictures today. [she is the photographer since I have no opposable thumbs...
Day Seventeen to Cleone
What a BIG day of climbing we had today. [I wish Neil were here with his altimeter so we could find out how much we actually did climb] First part was to Leggett (not so bad), then we turned onto SR 1 and climbed for another 4 miles (at 7% grade!). SR 1 is the scenic coastal highway. After the climb & lunch, there was ~9 miles of downhill!! Then we meandered up and down some more until we...
Day Sixteen to Richardson Grove SP
Today we rode the avenue of the Giants. It is a 31 miles stretch of road that winds it’s way through the Redwoods. It is awesomely cool. It was a really quiet road so we took our time. We even stopped to hike a bit and there were more smells there than one dog could possibly take in. Redwood trees smell really good all by themselves.
We are camped at Richardson Grove SP tonight in our own...
Anonymous asked: Hi Cinder - I noticed Paul and Karen stopped for ice cream, following protocol for a long ride. Did they share any with you? Wishing you a safe and wonderful journey!!! - Robyn & Lief
Anonymous asked: Cinder, I thought about you and your Mom & Dad today when a tandem bike passed me today. In the basket on the back of the bike was a white terrier dog enjoying his ride very much. I'm really enjoying your daily updates and pictures!
Audrey @ the Wedge
Audrey @ the Wedge
Day Fourteen to Rio Dell
Yeah! Sun! Today was a nice riding day. We rode through some regular, bigger towns this morning- Arcata & Eureka- and some cool little towns in the afternoon- Loleta, Ferndale and into Rio Dell. I can smell that this is farm country. Not just farm country, but DAIRY country! I love dairy! Even if it is highly subsidized dairy. (we are very far away from Eau Claire, WI after all) When we...
Day Thirteen to Trinidad
This morning we tried to wait out the rain at our KOA kabin north of Crescent City, but it hadn’t stopped by 11am so we just rode out in the rain for the third straight day. We went up a very big, very long hill just south of Crescent City that my mom and dad did on their very first bike trip together. It was really cool and very nostalgic for them. My mom even remembered the point where she...
questions from Liesl and Hilde Rhea
Cinder, We are really enjoying your adventures. We think our family should get a burley for us. Do we need one or two burleys for 2 dachshunds? Hope you are getting enough food, all of that guarding of the camp and navigation takes lots of energy!
Dear Liesl & Hilde,
I think one Burley should be big enough for both of you. Unless you don’t get along well. ;-) I’m a big dog and I...
Day Twelve to Crescent City
Today was ANOTHER rainy day. Mom, Dad and I rode. It was very wet and quite windy (headwind, yuck), but we only had ~50 miles to do. I don’t mind. It is quite dry in the Burley and I’m getting more comfortable as we go. I think I even fell asleep in there today. Dad said I was “wall plastering” [on my back, feet up the wall] when he opened me up for a pee. I don’t actually remember, so I’ll have...
ASIDE: Mileage & Route
In case you are wondering, we haven’t been on Highway 101 the entire time. Our maps come from Adventure Cycling and they do try to get cyclists onto more scenic, less busy roads whenever possible. This doesn’t mean that they are easier however. Just look at Seven Devils Rd. And yes, I have ridden all of the miles so far, even the rainy ones.