Day 26: Half Moon Bay to Capitola, 57 miles

Ah, the rain returns, at last!  And thanks to Intaba’s generous loan, I have a dry tent.  But the gale wind that blew it over this morning drenched everything.

I was nonetheless in a better position than Jess, the French Canadian cyclist camping under an open tarp.  She said she only got a little wet!  The other cyclists at Half Moon Bay also reported soaked tents.

I hung out at Pete’s Coffee too long, even after the storm broke and blue skies were apparent.  Why too long? The six hour ride, put me arriving close to sunset.  Ah well, can’t always be in a hurry!  I’m on this tour to relax, reminisce, find myself, explore.  And meet new friends, and today found other touring cyclists gathering at Davenport, 11 miles north of Santa Cruz.

There was Jess, enjoying a lunch break, burger time.  And Mindy and Mike, who I’d met first at Leggett.  Is it synchronicity to run into them again, after taking several days diversion to Calistoga, hanging out in San Francisco an extra day?  This is the way touring the Pacific Coast plays out, meeting up with cyclists at different points along the journey.

I powered on through Santa Cruz, sprinting to the campground.  I found New Brighten has a bicycle camp right off the beach, glad to camp with the lull of the waves to offset the noise from the Highway 1 freeway.  I met Adam, who started at Pete’s Coffee this morning, his first tour.  I remember how new and exciting bicycle touring was when I started out, in 1984 with my KHS, then the next summer after graduating from OSU, with my shiny new Miyata.

My bike has some rust, and I’ve got some gray in my hair, but I’m amazed that the open road seems just as new and exciting today, and meeting new cycling friends just as precious and inspiring.