January 31, 2012
Punt!
Heading out of Monterey (last evening) a sign warned that the coast highway was closed beyond (some indecipherable small geographic point). We ignored that, and headed for Big Sur (in the dark). We gave up on the winding, dangerous night drive and holed up to wait for dawn. We continued past Big Sur until a sign that simply said "Road Closed in 20 Miles". No indication about any detour and nothing to build confidence that the sign was not left over from some long completed project or slide clearing. Lots of cars seemed to be heading south with much gusto. Did they know something we did not?
Not wanting to wind our way down 20 miles and then back, we turned around. In Big Sur we failed to find any more information, so we continued our retreat. Later, a gas station attendant (near the first sign) confirmed that the road had been closed due to a slide for two weeks and was likely to be closed for another two. Yikes, had we been on bikes only it would have been a real downer to be blocked on the coast, really in the middle of nowhere.
Anyway, that could be the end of our coastal exploration. Perhaps we will bail out and head for Joshua Tree National Park. Right now we are sitting in Salinas thinking about it!
Well, we headed out to Highway 101, and noted that bicycles are not allowed on this northern bit of that freeway. We have the van so no worries, but we are always thinking of those on bikes, or ourselves in the future on this route. So we found a county road, G18, that runs parallel to the freeway, and later rejoined the portion of 101 that is part of the Pacific Bike Route. Finally, we rejoined Hwy 1, at Pismo Beach. We were back on track!
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Now, checking internet at McDonald's in Santa Barbara, we see from a Guestbook post by Jim Fitch that the road beyond Big Sur was reopened today at 1:30. Oh well. At least by backtracking we saved a four or five hour wait.
Tomorrow we will cycle a different section of the route, around Ventura - getting very near to Los Angeles. The landscape, of course, is changing again. This time, though, not such rave reviews. We see dry hills, grapes to the horizon in places, cabbages or strawberries in others. The strawberries are all bedded with plastic mulch, that reflects the sun to look silvery under the right conditions. From one hilltop we were sure we were looking at a large lake, but it turned out to be infinite acres of strawberries.
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It is often said (by wine drinkers, I think) that in the wine you taste the climate and the land - the "terroire". We stopped at a roadside stand and bought some strawberries and cherries. Not only did these not taste anything like our wonderful British Columbia fruits of the same name, but they left us wondering if in some way they would make us sick. How much pesticide and fertiliser could there really be in there? Well, a peek at one vineyard warned off visitors due to pesticide hazard. The sign looked pretty permanent. Hmmm.
Santa Barbara - we are only getting a glimpse in the dark. But we see palm trees, Spanish architecture, and at one theatre cameras and lights and a blond starlet looking person under the lights. We feel like the Beverly Hillbillies rolling into town! (Actuallyt, we plan to swerve East before we actually hit Hollywood.)
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