Clipped-In, Heading South: Day 11 – The Mendocino to Gualala Blues

Day 11 – The Mendocino to Gualala Blues

What a start to the day! I stayed at the Mendocino Hotel right in town, really enjoyed my stay, and got the best sleep of the trip. I woke up refreshed, relaxed, and ready for a leisurely ride to Gualala. Having left the big hills behind and being on the Coast made me believe that any of the many three hundred foot and under hills would be a breeze.

Well, a breeze is exactly what I got. After dillying and dallying my way through the first 10 miles, a stiff South Wind picked up. Stiffness gave way to an onslaught. The winds were steady at15mph, with higher. At mile 29 of the 50-mile day, I took my first break, exhausted. Strangely, I still had that chilled feel and I sat back on the side of a very comfortable berm in the shade of sea cypress looking out into a golden field of grass. I slowly ate my lunch which consisted of pepperoni, a peach, a cliff bar, and a quarter of a peanut butter cookie I had left over from that awesome cookie and coffee house in Fort Bragg. I watched the vultures sore over the fields that sat between my vantage point and the small hills further to the East. Only flapping to keep from being pushed North by the steady South Wind.

It was about this time, 21 miles from my destination, I thought about Bonnie, Adria, and Todd. This would have been a good day to have been riding with them. As luck would have it, I would catch up with them within a mile and together we would enjoy what some people enjoy more than a good meal shared among friends, misery.

Link to July 11 ride: http://www.movescount.com/moves/move35715591

Photos