by Philip

Day’s mileage : 63

Running total : 1,934

We woke early with the prospect of a long ride, and were greeted by hummingbirds seemingly inspecting us through the large windows. A breakfast of gorgeous oranges from our hosts’ trees and porridge, followed by a lovely chat with Jim and Eileen and we headed off down the very steep hill, circumventing Komoot’s 3 miles with serious climb which was (a) impassable and (b) unnecessary. We joined the 101 with avocado groves on the hills to the left and citrus groves to the right, and saw a field of heavily pruned trees which almost looked like concrete sculptures – we have no idea what they are. After a few miles another Komoot special told us to ride down the opposite carriageway of the 101 – we declined and tried what looked like a potential option only to find a locked gate after a mile with no way through so retraced our steps, finding a stretch of the 101 where bikes are banned – the first time we’ve come across that – and we rode into the town of Goleta itself, stopping at a bus stop to remove layers and start writing this blog.

From Goleta we passed the Santa Barbara airport with jets taking off – seemed like another world! There were avenues of palm trees, jacaranda trees, and miles of shops. Then onto a lovely cycle path which took us into Santa Barbara itself, through throngs of people enjoying brunch on Saturday. We played another game with Komoot and took a few wrong turns but ended up at the beach and the pier which you can drive onto, admiring the pelicans lined up on a nearby pipeline. There are several oil rigs visible at sea, one burning a flare which is unusual. It was nice to see the beach being well used – volleyball, fishing and people in the water – even lifeguards which is a first.

Santa Barbara – or at least the part we saw – seems very upmarket. Liz commented it is how she imagines Cannes to be – beautiful avenues of trees, well manicured public areas, lots of people enjoying the afternoon. The city has obviously invested heavily in cycling infrastructure – we enjoyed cycle paths along the beach which then continued inland and along quiet roads, albeit next to the 101 highway. We stopped for lunch at the Carpinteria town skate park – opened 2 years ago and well used. It’s outside the police station so behaviour was good! From there we went back on the highway for half a mile before being forced off … and into several miles of purpose built cycle path along the bay – lovely riding but very noisy next to the freeway. Entering Ventura county the cycle path ended but the highway disappeared off so we stopped for a rest and to write this, with only the sound of waves to accompany. 

As I was writing the last paragraph, two cyclists, well laden, went past and called out, then stopped for a chat. Kristen and Bethany are from Toronto and flew with their touring bikes to Vancouver and are doing the same ride as us, with some minor variations in the Washington state area. It’s only the second time we’ve met anyone doing the ride, which has really surprised us – they are mainly camping, but hopefully we’ll bump into them again on the way south.

The cycle path theme continued through Ventura, with wide paths along the front shared with pedestrians. We were buttonholed by a pamphleteer and had to make an excuse of needing to get an urgent photograph to escape. From Ventura we rode on a very straight road through dunes and into Oxnard, initially underwhelming, with derelict industrial sites, then a power station and oil refinery on one side and a mile or so of fields prepared for strawberry planting in the other. Coming into downtown Oxnard the view changed – clean and pretty past a park with heaps of palm trees and then the biggest marina I think I’ve ever seen. A stop at a supermarket as usual ensued, and then the last 2 miles (be quick – the sun’s out and we’ve got ice cream!) to our AirBnB – which is a ground floor flat on the beach, with the sand coming right to the patio dune-like, but with the ocean visible too.

Additional notes

Goleta to Oxnard, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, CA.

Left at 9.20am. Arrived at 5.45pm.

Weather: Cool and overcast. Later sunny and warm. Too warm to feel comfortable with a headache.

Landscape: Steep downhill through the ranch, the blue sea ahead. Along the 101, hills to the left, sea to the right, and small fields of crops where there was enough land to cultivate. The 101 was fast and busy but there was a wide shoulder. Eileen passed us in her red mini and we waved. We did an extra stretch of the 101 to avoid riding the wrong way along the other carriageway (thank you for that suggestion, Komoot). Goleta, where we stopped in the shade of a bus stop for a break, with tall palm trees, small homes on the right, hotels and businesses on the left. Goleta led into Santa Barbara, the roads on the outskirts lined with purple jacaranda trees in full flower and dark pink bougainvillea. Smart, upmarket Santa Barbara, lots of palm trees and eateries and people out enjoying themselves. A railroad runs through it and we heard the blare of the trains but didn’t see them. From the coast we looked towards the town with tall palms against the sky and mountains behind. A beach path alongside the town. Inland under various underpasses then to our delight we were on the old 101, noisy from the new 101 beside it but we were glad to be on a quiet road. The mountains to the left were misty on top. Through Carpinteria where many people were eating outside restaurants. A path alongside the 101, hills to the left and railway line, beaches and sea to the right with areas where people were setting up barbecues and enjoying the good weather. The sun was out and the sea was turquoise. Along the coast, populated with RVs and groups enjoying a weekend trip to the seaside. A quieter road inland but with my headache I don’t remember much about it. Oxnard marina blue and pretty with many big white boats stretching into the distance.

Towns: Goleta. Santa Barbara. Carpinteria. Oxnard.

Trails: An unmade road which ended in a padlocked gate. A cycle path alongside the 101, loud but safe.

State roads: Stretches on the 101.

Breakfast: Jim’s oranges and yogurt. Porridge.

Lunch spot: At a skate park outside Carpinteria with a little shade. It was getting late and we were too tired to wait till we got back to the coast. However after we set off again we found the sea was just around the corner.

Dinner, made by Liz: Macaroni cheese, double quantity of sauce to make another for tomorrow’s lunch with Aran and Beth. Mango and yogurt. A slice of pumpkin pie (not very nice if I’m honest).

Wildlife: The bobcat had left a calling card on our doorstep overnight. Many hummingbirds, two of which did that curious thing of hovering closer and closer, looking intently at us. When we were packing up the bikes the wings of one were making a whirring sound, like they did in the forest in Grenada. A deer running in the hills. At the coast in Santa Barbara, pelicans were lined up on a large pipeline, a different sort of pelican line-up. We sent a photo to Cathy.

Plants: Lots of russety avocado trees. One field of heavily pruned avocados painted white to protect them (we later found out from Eileen).

Things we saw: In Goleta we rode past a small building by the roadside with a sign that read ‘Modern Laundry’ though it didn’t look at all modern – but I could smell the laundry soap. A wooden pier in Santa Barbara with cars rattling over it. Kite surfers with big, colourful wings. In one quiet street off to the right of the bike path, was an old-fashioned road sign that read ‘Old Pacific Coast Hwy’.

People we spoke to or saw: We chatted for 20 or 30 minutes with Eileen and Jim and invited each other to visit. Three men on the other side of the padlocked gate who commiserated with us. Philip made phone calls to bike shops in San Diego. As we sat on big rocks between the bike path and the beach, Philip writing the blog and me nursing my headache, two girls came by on laden bikes and stopped for a chat. Kristen and Bethany are Canadian and apart from Ray are the only people we’ve met doing the whole ride. They set out a week before us and are on normal bikes and camping. It was a great pleasure to chat and compare notes and routes. They are very fit and set a cracking pace. Surfers in their black wetsuits. A man in a wheelchair in Ventura asked us where we had started and, when I told him, replied ‘No shit!’. While Philip was calling bike shops beside a quiet road, a group of three day cyclists stopped to chat, they were encouraging, checked we were ok and wished us luck finding a buyer for the bikes. The apartment owner was outside the back beside the sand dunes working on a mosaic table he’s making with tiles and polished agate.

Incidents: I woke with a headache and couldn’t shake it off all day so I was struggling to take in everything we were passing and to savour every mile. Slightly strangely, there was an exercise bike in the sitting room at Jim and Eileen’s so I got Philip to pose on it for a photo. Komoot directed us to cross the four-lane highway and ride along the wrong side for a way to reach a turn off. We were highly suspicious and instead tried an old track that ran parallel, which we accessed by going around a padlocked gate (there was a gap in the fence). This was successful for about a mile then just as we were to rejoin the Komoot route, there was an impassable padlocked gate and we had to go all the way back. We reached a section of the 101 where bikes were not permitted and we had to turn off – a relief! In Santa Barbara, I suggested a different turning which got us into a complicated set of one-way streets it took ages to navigate our way through to reach the coast. Each time I started filming a beautiful coastline, something almost immediately got in the way – the path veered off inland or we passed endless RVs parked up on the beachfront completely blocking the view. My head was muzzy and I didn’t remember much of the ride to Ventura.

Shopping: Ralph’s, Oxnard.

Accommodation: A ground floor apartment right on the sand dunes, the dunes are outside our bedroom door and the sea is at eye level, a strip of blue.

Today’s sound: The hummingbird’s whirring wings.

Today’s smell: Soap, even before seeing the laundry in Goleta.

Special moments: Lying awake in the night I could see the shapes of the avocado trees in the dark. Meeting the two PCH cyclists. The three cyclists who stopped. The good weather. Tea and shower. Our hot showers and baths are always amazing after a long day, such a pleasure every time. Giving Philip his last rest day treat – the other half of the bag of Wisley liquorice. A little walk in the dark on the beach, waves crashing and the moon above. Falling into bed.

Positive experience from my journal: Making it with the headache without it being too difficult, just long, keeping going and not moaning.

Appreciation from my journal: Looking after myself but also keeping myself on my responsibilities like shopping and making dinner.

Blog comments from Debbie and Bethany. Debbie: ‘Still hugely enjoying your wonderful daily blog – following your progress down the pacific coast is a lovely part of each day. Your frequent encounters with hummingbirds brought back a long-lost memory from my childhood. On sunny summer evenings my mother and her friend Margie, who lived nearby, would often have an end-of-the-day cocktail, sitting and chatting in our garden under a large peach tree we had. I enjoyed sitting with them. As we sat there, hummingbirds would at times come and hover over their cocktail glasses, and would dip their long beaks into the liquid. We would sit very still and watch, entranced by their beauty, and their ability to hover and drink without ever landing on the rim of the glass. I haven’t thought about this in years; thinking about it now, I hope that the alcohol didn’t do them any harm! The places you are now reaching are becoming more and more familiar: Pismo Beach, Lompoc, San Luis Obispo, Oxnard and now Santa Barbara – at Santa Barbara you really are in Southern California! For me it’s exciting knowing you are travelling through places that I know so well. Heartfelt best wishes for the journey ahead’. Bethany: ‘Was great to meet you both! Have a wonderful tour!’

Social media reply from Noel Tredinnick: ‘Philip. This is all totally remarkable. What stamina!’

Video: Philip riding south from Santa Barbara (1h17m9s). Philip riding beside the coast (35s + 17m37s (including Kristen and Bethany) + 24m57s).

Mementos: DBA receipt, Carpinteria (chocolate). Ralph’s receipt, Oxnard.