After taking my time down the California Coast. Spending a month visiting friends and enjoying the sights along the Pacific Coast Highway, I have made it to Arizona. I strayed from the official Southern Tier bike route and rather than cutting over from San Diego at the Mexican border, I cut over sooner in Carpinteria. The route ended up working out well. I pedaled through the citrus groves of the Ojai Valley and then over the seemingly endless roads of the Mojave Desert. There was minimal traffic once I got out of California’s central valley and onto the desert highways. The desert climate during this time of year is ideal for cycling. The temperature is cool enough to prevent dehydrating quickly but the sun keeps things comfortable enough to wear a t-shirt. The terrain has been a cyclists dream and the only serious climbs in the last week happened the first day I left the coast. Most of the highways have been long flat or slightly graded. At times I have been able to use the extra weight in the trailer to literally coast for miles at a time over flat road. Riding through the eastern end of Joshua Tree National Park was easily the most scenic stretch and I pitched a tent in the park one night. Riding through the desert has never really appealed to me before and at the start of this ride I was a little skeptical about making it through stretches of Arizona, New Mexico and Texas without getting burnt out on the roads. But, after this stretch through the mojave I am more content than ever to be riding through the southwest. I guess you could say I am in a Monkey Wrench Gang state of mind (minus blowing up heavy equipment and bridges) and every night in the desert feels better than the next. The smells, sounds and sights of the desert are refreshing and at times I feel like I am exploring a new country even though I am still in my own state. In the end it took me 5 days from the California Coast to the Colorado River at Parker, Arizona and it will be another 6 months before I return home to the Golden State.
The mid-morning silhouettee of these mountains in Joshua Tree made for a memorable ride along highway 62
Making the coast to coast crossing official with a Pacific Coast wheel dip. Atlantic, look out! Your next.
Thanks to Jim at Bikesmiths in Carpinteria, CA for hooking it up with a killer new touring tire. 35cc what,what!
Jim here posing with his handy-work, he killed it with this fender modification on my Kona. This guy is the kind of person a cyclist loves to meet on the road. We spent about an hour trying to get my new tire to spin freely and Jim pulled through, trying one innovative idea after another. His outlook on bikes and willingness to share his knowledge is inspiring. Carpinteria is lucky to have a shop like this.
Crossing through California’s central valley about 50 miles north of Los Angeles with Interstate 5 and the Great America theme park in the background.
First night in the Desert. Camping just North of the San Gabriel Mountains along highway 138, also known as the “Pearblossom Highway.”
Leaving Twenty-Nine Palms heading into the Mojave desert. 115 miles to Arizona.
Starting another long stretch of road en route to Joshua Tree. These long straight stretches rolled by pretty quick since most of them were flat or slightly downhill. Watching the distant mountains grow larger over a half hour of riding was pretty satisfying.
I am all about creating decent meals with random ingredients on the road. Here’s my latest and greatest; “The Traveling Cyclists Breakfast Pizza”. Ingredients include an english muffin crust, peanut butter sauce and anything else you can find in your pannier as toppings. This morning I found and used some TJ’s Sweet and Savory trail mix (butter toffee chips, chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, peanuts, cashews, raisens, cranberries, and almonds).
DIY signpost in the middle of the Mojave Desert. Signs ranged from residences hundreds of miles away to towns and cities thousands of miles away.
Pulled off the road in the evening and found this prime spot to camp in the Joshua Tree Wilderness along Highway 62. I ended the day here with a spectacular sunset and the coyotes howled at one of the clearest night skys I have seen in a while.
Highway 62 heading through the eastern end of Joshua Tree National Park.
The hustle and bustle of Rice, CA was almost too much for me. This old shade structure, part of a rock wall, and a fence covered in shoes are all that remains of this once historic little town.
My route through California
Total mileage - 1090 (all numbers are a rough estimate)
Day 1: Redding to Platina (40mi)
Day 2: Platina to Mad River (50mi)
Day 3: Mad River to Ave. of Giants (60mi)
Day 4: Ave. of Giants to Piercy (50mi)
Day 5: Piercy to Casper (60mi)
Day 6: Casper to Manchester (30mi)
Day 7: Manchester to Jenner (50mi)
Day 8: Jenner to Samuel P. Taylor SP (55mi)
Day 9: Samuel P. Taylor SP to Half Moon Bay (60mi)
Day 10: Half Moon Bay to Santa Cruz (50mi)
Day 11: Santa Cruz to Garapata SP (50mi)
Day 12: Garapata SP to Jade Cove (50mi)
Day 13: Jade Cove to Avila Beach (90mi)
Day 14: Avila Beach to Lompoc (30mi)
Day 15: Lompoc to Carpinteria (55mi)
Day 16: Carpinteria to Santa Clarita (60mi)
Day 17: Santa Clarita to Pearblossom (40mi)
Day 18: Pearblossom to Johnson Valley (60mi)
Day 19: Johnson Valley to Joshua Tree Wilderness (70mi)
Day 20: Joshua Tree to Parker, AZ (80mi)
I had pictured a big “Welcome to Arizona” sign with the Colorado River in the background when I thought about crossing into AZ so this was a bit of a lack luster entrance. The kindness of Lisa at the Chamber of Commerce more than made up for the lack of a larger sign.
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