Sorry for the delay in writing this, by the time I arrived last night I wasn't really feeling up to writing. Also, if you've messaged me and I havn't responsed, I promise it's on my to-do list, I've not had Internet access for very long here.
I woke up early today, obviously full of excitement. I'd heard the weather was going to be hot, but I'd heard that the whole way accross the western part of the trip so it didn't phase me too much. I went accross for my continental breakfast, and got on the road by 8:30.
The first part of the day was spent along cycle paths leaving Davis, including roundabouts dedicated solely to bicycles. This lead me out of town, and onto back country roads. I encountered an eastbound cyclist who was actually cycling round the world, dwarfing the trip I've done. He'd been on the road for 12 months, which is a LONG time. I continued onwards, through back country roads and grape fields, eventually arriving at somewhere that I cannot remember the name of for a break. Because the weater was baking hot by this point, I was feeling a bit lethargic and not great. Even on the last day, I'm learning new things about how to ride better, this lesson being "don't eat complimentary continental breakfasts because they don't fill you up enough." I bought a half gallon of apple juice (safeway apparently doesn't sell refrigerated soft drinks), and drank it down probably way too fast, and felt grim with stomach ache for the next bit. I wasn't sure if it was hunger (I didn't feel like eating) or what, but I didn't feel good. It was weird too, because I needed to stop not too further up for another drink in the shade, being both completely bloated with liquid and feeling dehydrated..
Anyway, after this drink I took a detour from my route, probably saving me a good few miles. The route took me two sides of a triangle, when there was an abandoned road that 'everyone knows about', which is just about good enough to cycle down. I did have to take my panniers off to get under the gate, but I encountered a cop down there who only asked if I got through okay. I decende into Valejo, and managed to follow my nose to the ferry port. I must stress at this point that it was around 4:30pm. I knew I had a full day ahead of me, but with all this talk of 'nearly there', I forgot how 60 miles is still a long way. I boarded the ferry, and despite it going seemingly ridiculously fast for a boat, it took an hour to get to San Francisco.
On arrival, I didn't need my map, and just turned right and found my way round the bay and up to the bridge. This took ages too, I never apreciated how far out of town it was. I reached the far side by at 7pm, and breathed a huge sigh of relief.
My story doesn't end there though, as I had to get to a place called Danville on the outskirts of town. To do this I had to head back into town and catch a BART train out. This was a challenge in itself, as I was relying on google maps to take me there. I eventually arrived there, to discover that it was like a tube station with no lifts, meaning I had to get my bike down stairs. I don't know if you've felt/lifted a packed bike, but it's heavy. They also have a tendency to want to roll down the stairs, meaning you're holding the brakes with every ounce of strength you have in your fingers. After negotiating the stairs, the next obstacle was the ticket barrier. The barrier system here is a lot like two spanish fans opening and closing, with the edges meeting in the middle. I must not have been thinking straight, as I pushed my bike through slowly, meaning the gate shut with me and half my bike still on the outside. I went up to a desk with a guy who didn't want to hear it, so I figured that if I jump over I would either get away with it, or he would hear me out. I had a perfectly valid ticket just so you know, I was well within my rights. Upon reaching the other side, I had an escalator to go down, which was harder than the stairs and I ended up clutching onto the bike for dear life, not letting go for fear of mauling the people further down.
I eventually made it to the platform, and got my train with relative ease. I had a slight scare that I was going the wrong way on it, but made it to my stop fine. By this point it was gone 10 and I was exhausted, so I took a cab to the house that I'm staying at. Taxi Drivers are very good queuers, and despite the fact that there were people carriers further back, I had to get in a 'normal' car. It all just about fitted, though my chainring (I think that's what it's called..?) made a bit of a mess of the back seat. Hey, if you make me go in this car, you can't complain when...
So that's the end of my story, or just about. I've now got a week off doing a cross between touristy things, sorting my bike out and just generally resting. I slept like a baby last night so I think this rest is a bit overdue. I will probably do a couple of summary posts in a few days, but I won't keep a day to day one (as it's become a bit of a chore of late). Other than that, I thankyou very much for your loyal readership, and that if you havn't done so already, could you please sponsor me through my website. It's an amazing charity who do great work, I'm sure you'll agree. The address is:
http://gregstransamericacycle.co.uk
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