Watch This : Exciting Road footage!

Big ups to Nicole Album for teaching me imovie

Everyone's Got their own Ride

This is Rodrigo -- he started in Argentina, rode up to Mexico, then flew to Alaska, and has been riding back down to Mexico to finish the continent. We met him in Southern Oregon, at a state park. He was averaging 90 miles a day on the coast. Note the mid-shoe change willingness to pose for a picture.
Bryan, Rachel, and Rebecca, on the Avenue of the Giants.
Rebecca and her bike!
Rachel and Bryan, and their bikes. They'd been on the rode since April when we met them. Just married -- great way to test out the relationship. And they rocked it!
This is Paul from Anchorage. He liked detours.
And this rider, you may recognize on the Golden Gate bridge. Please try and close in on my face -- crazy eyes!

november 9

san diego today. pacific coast riding is done done done!

i rode 38 little miles, and took many breaks. i didn't pay for any of my meals. people were sooo nice to me, and i had companion riders on every hill. each time i found myself riding alone again, i giggled.

did that really just happen? 1400 miles!!!

i am hanging with jess and aaron and cash in san diego, and tomorrow i get the great privilege of dog sitting!

weekend plans and storms means i'll be back in action monday to start rolling eastward.

Dearest Big Easy, I'm on my way!
Love, Cara

November 8

56 miles to encinata today. Sometimes when I'm on the road, and big things are going down at home (read : seattle), I spend most of my time on the bike thinking about those things, even though I'm moving in the opposite direction. Today was one of those days. bike accidents suck, and so do broken collarbones. I'm familiar with both, although thankfully, not from this trip.
Some thoughts I did have about being here while I'm here: today I rode through pendleton marine base, stopped for pbj lunch, and got to see parades of tanks roll by, including one with a sign hanging off, warning "student driver."
Ways SoCal is not preparing me for the right angle turn include flat riding, almost non-stop bike trails, natural food stores, and the ocean. I am feeling sentimental about departing frm this coastline.
Surfers out in packs today. Party on the pacific. I am camping almost on the beach tonight, which is about as close as I've come. Tomorrow, to san diego, Thursday, I'll flash my passport.
Swift healing, andy.

Look! I'm in orange county, y'all!

	Just to prove I can keep up with the demands of a blog. . . 2 posts in one day! And pictures! I rode 75 miles today, from venice beach to laguna beach. 68 of the miles were on route and necessary to my progress. I thought I was ready for it to get dark early, but when it came, I was still on the road, sprinting at 20 mph to finish. Must. Start. Earlier. I've been taken in by walter, an old coworker of my cousin jeff's. He has 3 kids - 2 of them were home tonight and we had family dinner. We sat at the table so long that even me and the 9 year old boy got full. I have experienced such incredible hospitality on this trip - I have to do another round of shout-outs. To walter, jeff, and bill horgos for opening their homes to my crap everywhere, always hungry, stink self. Also, a shout out to karl, because he taught me everything I know about orange county. And to the night rider's union, for singing to me. Thank you thank you thank you. And now for the photos

bike hobos, elephant seals, and big sur

This post would really be better with pictures. Oh well. Rode 200 miles in 3 days from oct. 29 to oct. 31. Bertie (my bike) dressed up for halloween with new orange bar tape. Big sur was, as promised, hilly. I wasn't feeling much like riding on the 30th, the day I was at big sur. I was listening to music and counting miles. I sighed when a photo op was too good to pass up. Fortunately, around mile 20 I met gregg, and we rode, walked, and talked all the way to ragged point, the tail end of big sur. Gregg has been spending winters on his bike since the mid 90's. He has toured all over the country. He was carrying a medium sized backpack and a sleeping bag. He didn't wear a helmet, but told me he wanted one so he'd look more like a bike tourist. I felt like the super duper bike tourist next to him with all my labels and gadgets and extra weight. When I told him I wanted to write a kid's book about my travels, he said, "if I show up as a character, you gotta clean me up a little bit."
Together, gregg and I watched this silver haired, shirtless dude come around a blind turn and go bombing down hwy 1 on a shopping cart. He yelled to gregg, "pay you for some weed, man!" Gregg shook his head, then turned to me and said, "you gotta love big sur."
Later, gregg and I parted ways and I saw elephant seals do the worm on my way into san simeon. Then I saw lots of dolphins at dusk.
On the 31st, I rode to san luis obispo, which seemed like sweet town, and then trained it to los angeles, where I spent the last week not riding but beaching, eating, and smiling a lot.
Los angelians are really cute when it comes to a little bad weather. It's like the apocalypse.
On to the first o.c.today, then down to the border (wee!) Before I turn east. It's happening!

i guess i asked for it

total change of plans. only made it as far as aptos. bike computer busted today and held up progress. i did break my millenium marker, though. despite my computer's refusal to acknowledge. i did some math, and taking into account off bike days, i find my riding average hovers around 50 miles a day. i was feeling like that wasn't much, and i'll never get anywhere at this rate, but then i met a bike tourist riding in a long skirt, sticking around santa cruz because she'd found a place to spin the llama wool she's been carrying on the bike for weeks. everyone's got their own ride; i keep spreading the gospel. i'm hoping to close in on big sur tomorrow... and see the coast people are always talking about. i remain true, as ever, to southern oregon.