Final day of the bikepacking trip! We had agreed to get an early start, so I'd gotten some stuff to eat from the motel breakfast area the previous night. Had a chocolate milk, took a shower, began packing up my stuff, then I poured the milk on my cereal. Milk was sour, ugh! So I went down and got another one. Also sour! I ate my cereal dry, along with a banana and a string cheese. Then I finished packing up and loading out my bike. I'd forgotten to charge my phone, so it wasn't fully charged when we checked out of the room and went down to the parking garage on the ground floor. I had it connected to my little power bank to continue charging. All were there except Hugo, who didn't understand the text messages about being ready to ride at 6:30. Charlie needed some Gatorade for the ride, so he went across the street to 7-Eleven, and Hugo showed up shortly afterwards. We all gathered for the starting pic and the start of the ride in that store's parking lot, then headed south on PCH toward Huntington Beach. I don't think I've ever ridden this stretch of road. The sun was still low in the sky, and it was really difficult for me to see because of the glare, so I rode at the back. We were on the highway for the first three miles, then we switched to the Huntington Beach Trail, which was quite nice but also busy with runners, walkers, and a few cyclists. This path took us by Huntington Beach, along with outskirts of Costa Mesa, and into Newport Beach. The path eventually dumped us back on to PCH. We were all riding pretty fast until we got to the wavy part of PCH, with its little downhills and climbs past Irvine, Corona del Mar, and Laguna Beach. I gapped the others when the waviness began, would maintain the gap and then let the others catch up, until I finally got to the top of a climb south of Laguna Beach, near the Ritz Carlton. Charlie wasn't too far behind, and he rode up to meet me. We got a text saying that Hugo had a flat, so the two of us waited at this point for the others to catch up. We weren't too far from Dana Point by then, so we all rode into this little city, turning off PCH and, led by Charlie and Andy, riding over to the marina, which was buried in construction. Andy tried to find a coffee shop he remembered by the marina, but all the shops were apparently closed, and we had to go a roundabout way just to get there. So we tried to get back through a parking lot to Dana Point Harbor Dr, and Charlie had a little spill when he slowed down to avoid running into an older couple on the sidewalk. No injuries, and we were able to get his bike adjusted back pretty quickly. We ended up having a big breakfast at RJ's Cafe, which wasn't in the original plan. Hugo and Nel were okay with the plan, so we did it. The food and service there were very good, and I was happy with the choice. We were behind schedule after breakfast, and the day was warming up, so we took Dana Point Harbor Dr over to the entrance to Doheny SB, rode through it to the parking lot by the actual beach, then got on the protected bike path running along PCH. I kicked in the jets on this stretch, gapping the others and moving pretty quickly past San Juan Capistrano and into San Clemente. Here is where the frustration for me started. Charlie knows this area very well, so he took over and led us through neighborhoods. My route had us riding on ECR, and in hindsight I believe this would have been the better choice. Charlie, Nel, and Hugo were out in front, and I was hanging back with Andy, listening to music. We got separated from the others, but Andy said he knew the way. On one little climb I got out in front of Andy, and he passed me without me noticing it. I waited for five minutes or so, then he called and asked me where I was. I got off the bike route when I tried to catch up to him, was minorly pissed off, and, after chatting with him and Charlie, worked my way back to ECR and followed my original route to the point where I was able to reconnect with the others, on the bike path leading to San Onofre SB, not too far past San Clemente SB. All good after that. We got on the Pacific Coast Bikeway, which is a really nice stretch of roads and paths heading into San Onofre SB. It followed the Old Pacific Hwy for a bit, then went into the park, which is quite long. Much of the park area was closed off to campers, but we were able to get through okay. Past the park, by Las Flores Viewpoint, we rode under the freeway and were again on decent, wide roads and paths as we headed generally southeast. I should mention that we once again had a generally favorable tailwind pushing us along. Charlie and I got out in front on this section, moving pretty quickly down to the Las Pulgas Rd exit, where we had to get on the freeway and ride along the emergency lane. We all gathered up there and then gave each other lots of space, so we could pay attention to road debris to be avoided. I initially stayed with the others, then saw that the road conditions weren't too terrible, so with a fairly strong tailwind I kicked it into high gear and led out. After a couple of miles we had to exit the freeway and go through the rest area, then get back on. Once I was back on the freeway, I really hit the gas pedal and put in a pretty big effort, averaging well over 20 mph all the way to the Harbor Dr exit. There were indeed some stretches of the emergency lane that had a fair amount of debris, but in general it was cleaner than I had expected. All of us got across with no flats, which was a little surprising. We all gathered up at the exit and then took Harbor Dr over to Pacific St and familiar surroundings for most of us. Hugo had run out of water along the freeway, and he was really suffering, so he and I pulled off the main route and went looking for a place where he could find some Gatorade. He took a lot longer at the store than I would have thought, but luckily the others were waiting for us by Jed's house. Hugo and I rode down to meet them, we took a picture with the Bisikleta banner in front of his place, then we continued on. While we had a short break there, we decided to power on to Solana Beach and skip the originally planned lunch break. It was around here that Andy said he planned to ride home instead of catching a ride with me and Ann. He and Nel slowed their pace after that decision, so Charlie, Hugo and I formed the other group that rode faster and, generally, together. We stayed as a fully integrated group following the normal way back from Jed's house to PCH. then we started to separate. Over to Carlsbad, and I was generally leading our small group. We stayed together through this city, then I gapped the others on one of the little climbs. Hugo and I got back together, loosely, and continued on until we stopped to wait for the others at the 7-Eleven just past La Costa Ave. Charlie showed up, then we got a text saying that Andy and Nel were stopping for a soda at a restaurant north of us and that we should continue on to Solana Beach. So that's what the three of us did, following PCH through Leucadia, Encinitas, and Cardiff on the way. I pushed the pace a little bit, was mentally ready to be done, and my legs were feeling fine. Hugo and I separated a little bit from Charlie, then the three of us rode over to Chief's Bar by the train station to stop for a little celebration.
Avg speed = 15.7 mph. Total mileage = 75.3 mi
Avg power = 116 W. Weighted avg power = 143 W
Total elevation gain = 2520'
Avg heartrate = 112 bpm (Coospo)
Relative Effort = 70
Training Load = 237
Intensity = 65%
It was here that I noticed my jacket and flip flops were gone from the top of my saddle bag. I'm guessing they must have flown off during that last part of the ride. Alas! Leslie was already in the parking lot, on the phone, so while Charlie put his bike in the car and changed clothes Hugo and I went in and got a beer. His wife Christine showed up soon after, and we chatted for a bit before Charlie and Leslie came in. Ann wasn't too far behind them. We all talked a little bit about the trip, a couple of friends of Charlie and Leslie showed up and joined in the conversation, then not too long after that Ann and I left, and she drove us home through surface streets to avoid afternoon rush hour. We got home around 3:30 or so. Was good to relax and eat a little bit, although I wasn't super hungry. I watched a little TV, took a shower (that felt good!), and avoided taking a nap. Ann was really sweet and avoided making pasta for dinner (her original plan). Instead she made a tasty barley soup. I was pretty hungry by that time. Had an easy evening, not much done other than shaving off my 6-day beard. Lights off early, after a long day (<>).
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