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On Friday, October 9 2015, June, Tom Corrigan, and myself drove to Yosemite from the north bay area. June was going to babysit her granddaughter while her son and his wife attended a wedding in the Yosemite Valley. Tom and I were dropped off at the Yosemite West hotel in Buck Meadows. From there we would ride our bikes home. The trip would total 236 miles and span 4 full days of riding, roughly 60 miles per day.
Tom, at 67 years old, was a seasoned expert, having previously done two long rides by himself. The first trip, 2 years ago, to Santa Cruz about 150 miles. The second trip, about a year later to San Luis Obispo, over 350 miles. After listening to the details of his most recent trip, I asked Tom, "Would you ever want to do something like that again?" He answered quickly, "Not by myself".
So we spent the next couple of months planning a trip that we may take together: the routes, the hotels, the provisions. I knew that June (and perhaps me) would be going to Yosemite in the near future. Once I convinced June that she could babysit by herself, and probably navigate to their cabin in the Wawona area by herself, and then drive home by herself, then the trip moved from the realm of fiction to a real possibility. Thanks for making it all possible Baby!!
The day to leave had come. Before we left, I weighed my bike with me: 186 lbs. That would be 150 for me, 20 for the bike, and 16 for the rack, saddlebags, and stuff in the bags. In the saddlebags, I brought an extra set of riding clothes (microfibre bright T-shirt, underwear, and socks), light vans shoes (I wore them once), flip-flops, light pull-over top and sweatpants (used them every morning), swimsuit, 6 cliff bars (I ate one in four days), bike tools and two extra tubes (used them both the first two days) and a lock, which I used once the first time we stopped. After that, we would either carry our bikes into the place to eat (no one even looked twice), or I would go in and see what I wanted to eat, then watch the bikes as Tom went in to order and pay for us both.
Friday night - I was just a little nervous as June drove off. We were alone and committed. We walked a little, swam a little, and ate a nice dinner at the cafe next door to the hotel. We had a nice soak in the hot tub, watched some TV, then set the alarm for 6 am. The weather for the next few days was expected to be in the low 90's!
Two old guys on a simple mission: Get Home. Here we are in front of the hotel in Yosemite just before June drove off.
We were out the door at 6:30 am which became the norm for our adventure, trying to beat the heat. The best (and only) place to eat breakfast that early was a small bakery about 3 miles down Hwy 120. It was dawn, and so we had a plethora of blinking, flashing, strobing red and white lights on the bikes and helmets. No one but us was on the road, but if they were, we would not be overlooked for scenery. More likely, we may have been mistaken for an errant, rolling Christmas display. The air was cool in the mornings, so I rode in light sweatpants and long sleeves until it heated up. About 30 minutes after starting that first morning, we pulled off the road and lumbered into the Tangled Hearts Bakery for coffee and a very simple breakfast.
Breakfast at about 7am. Nice place!
The following 10 miles into Groveland was nice and quiet, but far 'hillier' than Tom would have liked. While I have an aversion to traffic, Tom has an aversion to hills, especially uphills. He grumbled as I rolled past him after breakfast, "This was supposed to be an all downhill day!" At the end of that day, we had logged over 4000 ft. of uphill climbing. After Groveland, we faced the dreaded Old Priest Grade, a very narrow, crooked, and steep 1.5 miles downhill. I was fairly new to 'clipless' cleats and pedals, and surprisingly I had not yet fallen to the ground with one or more feet still clipped to the pedal - until this hill. About 2/3 of the way down, I heard a car behind me. I unclipped my right foot as is my custom, pulled over to the right side of the road, then realized there is only a drop off of several feet. By this time I was stopped, so in a split second of desperation, I allowed myself to fall to the left on the very rough pavement. There I was, sprawled on the road and a car was coming right behind me. With my left foot still clipped in, I scooted myself and the attached bike to the side of road. I suffered a few bloody scrapes on my knee, but at least I didn't become road kill. The car slowly passed and the nice lady passenger stuck her head out the window and asked if I was OK. Yes, thanks! Nice people up here in the mountains.
I gathered what was left of my pride, climbed back on my trusty steed, and inched my way down the remaining steep hill. Shortly before the bottom, I heard another car behind me and started looking for a slightly better pullout. Not 10 seconds later the car blares his horn, so I hurriedly and more gracefully pulled off the road. The guy in the pickup behind me passed slowly, and with windows down, proceeded to holler obscenities, with accompanying gestures, all the passed me and to the bottom of the hill. Then at the stop sign at the bottom, 30 yards in front of me, he continued his rant for another 30 seconds or so. So now he is almost a minute delayed to his important meeting at the local bar with the other local idiots, thanks to me.
From a Bill Mahr segment that Tom and I watched one night: I don't know it for a fact, I just know it's true: Not all guys who drive pickups are jerks. But almost all jerks drive a pickup.
Tom came along a few minutes later, brakes squealing the entire way down, and I conveyed the story. Good times, then Onward! At the bottom of Old Priest Grade, we were on relatively flat ground and moving West toward Lake Don Pedro. We stopped to take this poignant photo:
Tom overlooking the drought-stricken
'Creek' Don Pedro. He got a flat tire shortly after I took this picture.
We continued on Hwy 120 with fairly light traffic until Chinese Camp where we got off the main highway and onto Red Hills Road. It was a beautiful detour, but shortly after taking the following picture, I got a flat on my rear tire. The moral: stop taking pictures!
Tom riding on Red Hills Road near Chinese Camp. The DIP street marking is purely coincidental, I promise.
Following the Red Hills detour, we got back on Highway 120/108, then a long-awaited lunch (and beer) at the '50's Roadhouse Restaurant in Knights Ferry.
After lunch, we enjoyed a leisurely roll along the Stanislaus river in the baking 93 degree heat. At one point, we explored a park and I waded into the river to cool off. Tom opted for sitting in the shade and taking a short nap.
At about 4:30 pm on Day 1 we pulled into the Motel 6 in Oakdale. I quickly put on a swim suit and jumped in the pool, followed by a short walk to the local 7-11 for a few beers. We had dinner and breakfast at the restaurant 20 yards from our room. A soak in the hot tub at night capped an excellent and uneventful day!
While driving to Yosemite, we tried to get a preview of as much of the road as we would see on the way home. Part of what we saw was NOT encouraging: going though Brentwood on Highway 4, just passed Discovery Bay. It looked like a death trap! Cars and trucks flying West at 65 mph with NO shoulder on most of the 9 miles we would be on it.
Check out the map and you will see that there are only TWO roads of any kind into Brentwood (just left of Discovery Bay) from the South or West. Highway 4 was out of the question, so the night before Day 2 we decided to take J4 because at least it has a shoulder. More about this later.
The Day 2 route would take us across the great San Joaquin valley. Early that morning we were quickly out of Oakdale and on cool, quiet River Road heading West along the Stanislaus river.
Early morning along River Road, the overlook from a bluff next to the river.
As we turned North toward Manteca, we crossed some railroad tracks around which the concrete had broken off and left at least a 6" drop. I went over them fast and hit the bottom violently, causing my rear tire to immediately pop. Another 15 minutes to stop and change the flattened tube. We are now down to one good tube between us.
The next event worth noting occurred while trying to negotiate the tangle of freeways just West of Manteca where I5 and 120 merge.
The red is the undocumented 'Bike Path' that we questioned on Google Maps, then were told about by a fellow biker not far from here.
And here is the actual Bike Path, and this is the good part. But at least we didn't have to ride on the freeway.
Shortly after this depressing stint of freeway and broken concrete, we stopped for lunch across the street from the Dell'Osso Family Farm. The pumpkin festival, in full swing, is a BIG hit there, complete with pumpkin shooting. 'Eee Haw!
View of the Dell'Osso Family Farm from Denise's Farmer's Market. I had the Tri-Tip sandwich and (let me guess) a beer.
Next stop for us was the West Valley Mall in North Tracy where Tom went in to buy four new tubes. It was hot outside making sure the bikes didn't walk off.
We plodded West in the 90 degree + heat another hour or so until we reached the dreaded J4 north, mentioned earlier. For at least some of it (2 miles?) the shoulder is about 20 inches wide. The rest of the almost 10 miles was maybe 3 to 4 feet. Trucks, campers, boats, and a multitude of Sunday afternoon 'headed home' traffic FLEW by at 65 mph just a couple feet from us. And, just so you fully appreciate the feel of it, there is an unmistakable 'sucking' draft as a large truck or trailer goes by, pulling you toward the traffic. This was a terrifying way to end an otherwise pleasant day.
We got off J4 as soon as we could by taking Vasco Road, a very hilly, and also busy, detour to our hotel. But at least there was a wide shoulder. We pulled into the Holiday Inn Express, and walked across the adjacent empty lot to the Tower Market (gas station) to buy beer. We ordered pizza and salad delivered and drank to forget the treacherous late afternoon on the road.
The day started early, as usual. 'Breakfast' was provided continental style at the hotel. Yippee! Then we were treated to a 10 mile ride on the beautiful Delta de Anza Regional Trail. Really first rate riding in the East Bay.
Then disappointment - the Google Maps route through Pittsburg showed a 'restricted route' path along the waterfront through Port Chicago. (Just below 'Suisun Bay' in the image above.)
In reality, it is US military property with NO passage.
The detour required a horrendous climb over the hills to the left and at least 3 extra miles.
With his headphones on, Tom (orange shirt) makes the steep climb from sea level over the hills. I could hear him singing from here. Apparently, the singing distracts him from the fire in his legs and lungs.
Shortly after this hill we had a snack at Jack in the Box while we re-routed to the Benicia Bridge. The route took us through the scenic and fragrant oil refineries of Martinez. But once to the bridge, the day picked up considerably. The ride across the bridge was a very gentle grade up, followed by a gentle grade down.
On the north side of the bridge, the route took us through neighborhoods along the water front. We stopped to rest at this beautiful location:
I stole this from Google Maps street view. The day we were there was blue skies and little wind.
Here is the picture I took once I thought of it.
We continued to work our way North through Vallejo and American Canyon on Highway 29. The further we got from the bay, the hotter it became. It was going to be another scorcher!
Although busy, Highway 29 afforded us a nice wide shoulder and plenty of traffic signal stops. We detoured along South and North Kelley Road to avoid the miserable intersection with Highway 12. Once into Napa, we were home free. We ate (and drank beer) at a very nice Mexican restaurant across the Hotel Chablis. A soothing hot tub just before bedtime capped another very enjoyable day.
The day started early at the Starbucks across the street for coffee and a muffin. A short jaunt across town and we were on the Silverado Trail headed North. In my imagination, I pictured a quiet, meditative roll in the early morning, but it turned out to be like a freeway with cars and trucks pulling an 'end-run' around the street lights of Highway 29 up the valley. It was still a beautiful ride.
Early morning balloons over vineyards.
We pulled into Calistoga for lunch at the old railroad station deli and watched the parade of tourists from the front patio. Riding out of town through neighborhoods, I reminisced of my early years spending summers with my Great Grandmother in Calistoga. Once out of town, we began the first and hardest of the two passes going North. It was afternoon and getting hotter by the minute.
View of Mt. St. Helena just after the
first pass.
Although uneventful, the remainder of the day was NOT easy. We were close to home and familiar with the territory. We made the two hilly grades, with NO shoulder, in a fair amount of traffic. Then the final challenge: Chalk Hill Road. It is never easy, especially after a long hot day and carrying extra weight. Up the hardest and last climb, a garbage truck pulls up behind me, hesitant to pass. I dismounted and gave a wide berth.
In Windsor, I called June and told her we were making our way up Hembree. She met us in the street waving us in with a couple of towels. What a great sight! I tried and failed to take a picture, but I will always remember her greeting!
Naturally, cold beer awaited us after
the ride. It may be needless to say, but I didn't loose weight on the
ride. I doubt Tom did either.
Pick good routes even if they result in a longer ride. Traffic and no shoulder is a bummer combination. So if you are looking at a route far from home, how can you tell if there is no shoulder? Use Google Maps Street View. Use the little man on your computer, or press and hold on a route using your mobile phone. Do this in several locations on the road as the shoulder width will change.
Save the Google Maps route to your phone and use it for turn-by-turn navigation. But in order to do this, do not modify a Google-picked route by dragging the routing. Instead, create several locations to coincide with your chosen route. This way, the entire route will be saved including your modifications. In other words, the dragged routes won't be saved.
Pick hotel locations that are close to the route, but also within walking distance to good evening restaurants. You probably won't want to ride your bike to the restaurant.
Packing: Extra shoes are heavy. Flip flops are a better choice for around the hotel. For that matter, a lock is probably also unnecessary. I used two sets of riding clothes (except for padded shorts) and washed them at night, which worked well. One set of tools between two people is enough. The weight adds up!
A back-up battery is essential if using your phone for navigation and listening to music/story. I bought mine online for $10.