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Leaving San Francisco and heading south along the coastal Highway N° 1, is indeed a fantastic and unforgettable experience. Cycling past acres and acres of fruit plantations, fields of artichokes and sweet smelling strawberries our route hugs the ocean until reaching Monterey. Here in town, take some time and visit the aquarium and watch out for Otters, Seals and hungary Pelicans hoping to find a bite to eat as the fishermen unload their worthy catch down on Cannery Row. Now, the road starts becoming quite hilly as we make our way up and along the "Big Sur" towards Santa Barbara offering us spectacular coastal cliff and ocean scenery all the way. Note the many houses here up on the cliffs half hanging over or propped up on wooden poles, to keep them from crashing into the ocean due to coastal decay each year. Cycling through any huge city is stressy, however LA is a totally different matter. Advanced plans need to be made before tackling this mentally and physically demanding section (yet another good reason for buying our CD). After, successfully passing through LA, keep your eyes open for Dolphins, Whales and surfers galore on our way to San Diego, just short of the Mexican border, the end of our 690 mile or 1130 Km tour. | ||||||||
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| Hwy. 1 hugs the deep blue Pacific ocean most of the way heading south, allowing us great views over the coast at all times. | |||||||||
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Using
the bike-paths in and around LA, Santa Barbara and San Diego are fun,
however they can also become quite congested at times with skaters, joggers
and suchforth. Nevertheless, they are a good possibility of escaping the
high volume of loud, fume stinking traffic in these congested urban areas
and allow you to sit back, pedal and enjoy the scenery as you make your
way along the coast route.
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| The "Big Sur" winds it's way up and down the coastline, making the highway a very demanding piece of work for a cyclist. | |||||||||