Dom 12/31; Happy New Year in Mulege
We got a room in a basic Casa de Huespedes (Accomodation for Mexicans, not tourist class per se) in Mulege pop around 3,000 (140 pesos, about $US 13) so we can enjoy festivities in the town square. These people party until 8 AM!
Sabado 12/30; Santa Rosalia
I'll write more and post pictures when I have access to a regular computer. We're in Santa Rosalia after a tough ride over hills and a headwind. I'm a bit under the weather perhaps due to a reaction with dates we've been eating.
We're getting an over priced so-so hotel room (Hotel Olvera, 300 pesos, about $28) in Santa Rosalia so I can rest.
Jueves 12/28; lluvia en Vizaino, Pedro y familia
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We camped just outside of Dr. Alvarado's office in Vizaino last night. It rained quite a bit but we were fine inside the tent and not cold.
This morning, the patriarch next door, Pedro, saw us in our tent in the rain and invited us in for hot food & beverages. His cousin and cousin's wife & children live in the same rental house, while his new house and mini mart convenience store are under contruction at his nearby ranch. It has been raining much of the day and it is cold.
Miercoles 12/27; Vizcaino, la dentista Alvarado
We rode very quickly from Guerrero Negro to Vizcaino starting around 14:30, and arriving at 17:00. We had a tailwind which helped us but nevertheless our feet were hurting from pushing our speed.
We grabbed some tasty tacos and beans for 20 pesos, a relief since many places without menus make up the price when they present the bill. As we were riding out of town to get some distance to San Ignacio before nightfall, I decided to stop in at the dentist, a senor Alvarado for a checkup.
Jen's teeth were fine but I have 6 teeth in precavity stage, with 2 being serious. He had time to work on my teeth so I decided we would repair the 2 seriously precavity teeth and leave the remaining 4 for later. He drilled away the diseased portions and cleaned and dried them, then he applied resin to one, and the traditional silver/mercury amalgam to the other which was a bit deeper (700 pesos). We were there for several hours. He advised me that the remaining 4 were less urgent but should get resin on the remaining 4 within about 6 months, and that dentists further south would be cheaper.
Mie 12/27; Guerrero Negro
Photo: Motel Brisa Salina
We were both pretty worn out, Jen especially, from the tough camping conditions over the past 2 days so we decided to hang out in Guerrero Negro for a day. We got a nice room with private bath (hot water) at the Motel Brisa Salina (Blvd Emiliano Zapata tel (615) 157-1795. For the bargain price of $150 pesos (about US $14).
Note that in Baja prices are only slightly lower in the U.S. and higher than in the Mexican mainland. This is presumably due to all the rich Californians that vacation here. The northern part has many hotels and condos.
Martes 12/26; una pareja nos ayuda
This couple gave us information about seeing the whales. Unfortunately, we didn't see any whales. There weren't any near the shore in December and we didn't take an excursion out in a boat to see them.
Martes 12/26: Guerrero Negro
These past few days have been a bit stressful. The desert in Baja is really big, and I got plenty of desert when crossing Nevada. Plus, it is cold at night. The weather is unusually cold for Baja, not what Jen or I had in mind for touring in "Mexico". Jen hasn't been sleeping well and we have been arguing sometimes. I think this will get better when both of us settle in and we get south where it is warmer and we're not in the bloody huge desert.
Jen and I both have some issues with our bikes and Jen got a flat. So I dismounted my rear Marathon tire, took out my tire liner, and gave it to Jen for her rear tire to protect it. Now I'm running a 47-559 Marathon Plus rear tire in the back which should give good protection, but unfortunately it is rubbing my rear fender. I may have to take my fender off and give it away or throw it away. I'm trying to adjust it but there just isn't enough clearance for a 47mm tire and a fender.
Guerrero Negro is very nice; I prefer it to the fancier tourist spots. The traffic is quite mellow and relaxed. We tried to get to the Old Wharf to see if we could see any passing Grey Whales. Unfortunately, there was a gate in the way and we couldn't get past. The tour companies try to get you to take an official tour, of course. We did bathe ourselves in the salt water near the salt processing plant and wash a few things (with biosoap, of course). I like it here.
Jen's tire lost all pressure, maybe the patch didn't hold. She's patching it now while I'm in the internet cafe. We ran into two guys who were at the REI garage sale in Berkeley a few weeks ago. Small world.
Martes 12/26; @ beach after denied entrance at gate to whales
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12/25: stressful xmas eve
Jen didn't sleep much last night; we rode out of town to shorten the distance we would have to ride tomorrow. However we ended up camping next to the road; I thought that there wouldn't be much traffic on X-mas eve but actually trucks were going by all night, Jen hardly slept at all. Plus the wind was howling causing our little REI Quarterdome tent to flap.
Also, it has been much colder at night than we expected. We are pushing our gear and Jen is sometimes cold at night.
12/24: hitching south
Because it is cold, especially at night, we have been hitching through the huge desert. The buses were full or didn't have space for our bikes, so we hitched with a young couple from California, Luke and Sucha. They were going to Bahia de Los Angeles so we rode with them for part of 2 days to Catavina and then to the turn off to Bahia de Los Angeles.
Domingo 12/24; Luke y Sucha
Luke & Sucha gave us a ride from El Rosario south to where the road to Bahia de Los Angeles diverts from Hwy 1. This saved us a lot of riding in the desert.
Viernes 12/22; pincha
So much for my Marathon Plus tires, which are supposed to be nearly unflattable. It did take a nail to do it. I think ordinary glass and road debris won't touch them.
Jueves 12/22: bicicletas en arena (empujar)
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We had to push our bicycles in the sand leaving Molino Viejo to get back to hwy 1 south of San Quintin. Neither of our tires are sand-compatible, though mine are wider than Jen's.
12/21: Staying at community center
We hit heavy rain and I got a big nail in my special "Marathon Plus" front tire which has heavy protection. We took shelter so I could fix the flat then some fellows from a community center for treating drug & alcohol addicts (much scarier sounding than it actually is) offered us shelter. They gave us very good food of pork, rice & chicken and hot tea while we dried off. I tried fixing some donated computers they had but I couldn't get them to work.
Jueves 12/21; Centro de rehabilitacion de enfermos de alcoholismo y drogaddicion
Hector y otro hombre
Aviso contra alcoholismo
Carlos, el director
Labels: Bike Touring
Jueves 12/21; Bus full, hitching out of Ensenada
Labels: Bike Touring
Miercoles 12/20; Jen having Margarita @ La Mision
Wed 12/21; left Tijuana, in Ensenada, looking for bus to Santa Rosalita
I can't access Blogger at this internet cafe, so I will try posting by e-mail. I don't know if this will work.
We left Tijuana yesterday on Tuesday. We ended up riding part of the way on highway 1D toll road which is forbidden for bikes, because the other road dead ended in a village. It is a shame because 1D has a shoulder unlike the regular hwy 1 which does not.
We have been using our Katadyn Vario water filter to treat tap water to drink. After we filter it, I have been putting in 1 drop of concentrated bleach to kill viruses, which a filter doesn't stop.
We spent the last night in La Mision on the way to Ensenada. Our riding distance is of course constrained by available daylight. The north part of Mexico has quite a bit of trash and is rather barren, but the poverty is less than I expected. The waves of trucks, when they occur, can be quite heavy and there is no shoulder so it rattles us. At other times, traffic is quite light.
We spoke to a gringo in the La Magana restaurant in La Mision who told us the terrain is barren and there isn't much to see between Ensenada and Santa Rosalita, so he suggested we take a bus to Santa Rosalita and ride from there. Today we rode from La Mision to Ensenada on the regular hwy 1, which is only about 45km however it was quite hilly so it was a good ride for us.
I got a Mexican number with Telcel, please use it only for important calls. It took a long time in the queue and then various procedures to get the SIM for my mobile.
We are taking care of errands in Ensenada then we plan to take a bus to Santa Rosalita tonight. They said they would take our bikes but we don't know specifics or cost yet. The ticket itself is 800-some pesos which struck me as expensive but probably better for us than riding through the desert. I got enough desert in Nevada to last me a while.
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Mon 12/18; Golden Gate motel
While Jen was on her own on the U.S. side of the small and not imposing at all bridge and structures separating Mexico from California, she met a man named Daniel who she described as very helpful, and offered to lodge us in Tijuana. However, we called the number he provided later and after I spoke with his mother in Spanish, learned that the room was not available tonight.
We went checking prices in the downtown Tijuana area. The prices were similar to U.S. prices, though for higher quality than low end motels in the U.S. We ended up staying at a Dive called the Golden Gate motel, complete with a bored hooker outside (US $17).
Mon 12/18; Jen's new Arnette frames
We walked by an eyeglass/optometrist shop and Jen popped in to ask about replacement eyeglasses. To her surprise, she was able to get the Arnette Falcon frames which seemed to be no longer available in the U.S. So she had her existing lenses in the new frames and was out the door in a half hour or so. I think she was worried she might have to go without glasses for quite a while or perhaps even the whole trip.
Labels: Announcement
12-18 Mon; Got bike tube, Tijuana
I bought tubes at a K mart in the us so I was able to reinflate my front bike tire. I switched to Shrader valve rather than Presta which is more durable.
We're in Tijuana. We were so surprised that no one even checked our passports. I didn't even realize we were in Mexico, so bizarre.
12-18 Mon; bike disabled
We're still in the Us. I got a flat from a sharp rock and while I was installing my bullet proof new Marathon plus tires, my valve blew then my reserve tube blew so my bike is disabled.
Mon 12-18; jens flat tire, broke glasses
We met a Japanese cyclist named Taka-san who was going to Mexico City but Jen got a flat so he went on alone. Jen stepped on her glasses again this time breaking them in several pieces so she isn't wearing them. We are at the border on the US side.
Mon 12-18; Jen's birthday, Chula Vista
Today is Jen's birthday! We camped last night in behind a church in Chula Vista and packed up around 0600. It got cold enough to make frost on the ground last night but the sleeping bag (Rei Safari & sweetie pie) was warm. This morning we are warming up at Starbucks & will cross the border a bit later.
Sun 12-17; Chula Vista next to border
We spent a long time shopping for food and making last equipment purchases. At least we still made it to Chula Vista which is only a couple of miles from the border. It is evening now around 1900 so we will eat dinner out & try to figure out where we will stay tonight.
Sun 12/17; Cold, now sunny, filter, bino
It was rainy & cold this morning so we were jazz about getting out of the tent. It turned out we camped right outside of Encinitas. We had a leisurely breakfast & bought a Katadyn Vario water filter and some compact 10x26 binoculars for Jen at REI. We don't have too far to go today, just be in position to cross the border early tomorrow.
Sat 12/16; set off, 80 km, camp Carlsbad
We hit the road from aunt Lisa's around noon, because Jen couldn't find a post office for some packages & we did laundry & dishes. I got hungry quickly since we left at lunchtime. Much was on bike paths. Instead of going through Pendleton military base we rode on I-5 for 7 mi. In Carlsbad we were both hungry after 50 mi & it was after dark & raining so we camped in a day use park & cooked dinner.
Fri 12/15; Climbing closed gate 4
When we returned from shopping at Trader Joe's and our failed effort to repair Jen's glasses, we found Gate 4 to aunt Lisa's complex closed, locked, and unattended. So, we had to climb the fence.
Labels: Sneaky
Fri 12/15; Jen's broken glasses
Jen was stepping out of the shower at aunt Lisa's, when she stepped on her eyeglasses and cracked the frame. I thought maybe we could repair the frame using superglue, but the salesperson at Sears thought it wouldn't work because superglue is too brittle. We also went to a fancy sunglass store at Laguna Mall, and Lenscrafters. They didn't stock the sports frames that fit her existing lenses.
I suggested that since her prescription is perhaps 4 years old she should get a new optometrist examination and new lenses and frame. I think Jen wants to try to match the frame to use her existing lenses, since that would save the time and expense of an examination and she has photochromic lenses. Right now we don't know if we can find the same model of frame.
Labels: Announcement
Fri 12/15: Packing for Sat morning departure from Laguna Woods
Jen's bank card arrived so we're packing up our stuff to take off from Laguna Woods on Saturday morning. We haven't received the AA battery charger yet, but we're prepared to leave it so we can get on the road.
Labels: Announcement
Fri 12/15: hummingbird OK we presume
Lisa's neighbor put out a bird feeder overnight, and we guess that the hummingbird eventually got tired and came down to the bird feeder. Once free of the skylight, the bird could easily escape.
Thu 12/14; Hummingbird rescue (failed)
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A hummingbird trapped himself in the skylight by Lisa's apt. He keeps trying to fly up into the skylight even though the way is clear for him to escape by less direct routes. We've tried to attract him with fake flowers, real flowers, put a cup of sugar water on a pole to feed him, and tried to get him out of the skylight using a hat on same pole. Lisa's next door neighbor called the maintenance crew to see if they can help, but I'm out of ideas.
Wed 12/13; Jen riding 'bent, skins knee, rest @ Laguna Beach
Jen has been riding my 'bent and is doing quite well. She really likes it, although she would prefer a more upright seat and could be a bit closer to the ground to put her feet on the ground at stoplights. After golfing Jen & I rode to Laguna Beach. Unfortunately, we hit a patch of stripped road surface and Jen fell skinning her knee. It wasn't too bad but no doubt hurt. You can see her knee injury if you look closely at the photo.
Laguna Beach is near sunset.
Labels: Cycling, Injury
Wed 12/13; Laguna Woods golf course
Lisa demonstrates putting technique.
Sweet!
Lisa demonstrates a drive with her 9 iron.
Labels: Sports
Tue 12/12; Swank Rans tailpack/backpack
The convenient Rans tailpack provided free of charge by Jeramiah the Bullfrog at Ez Rider Cycles (http://www.ezridercycle.com) also doubles as a convenient backpack for shopping, in this case at the Laguna Hills Trader Joe's.
Tue 12/12; Scarfin' $1 tacos @ Rubio's
Jen & I (well mostly me) were scarfing fish tacos at Rubio's Fresh Mexican Grill in Laguna Hills on the Tuesday $1 fish taco special.
Labels: Food
Mon 12/11; Rans tailpack from Jeramiah at EZ Rider Cycles
Thanks to Jeramiah at EZ Rider Cycles recumbent dealers in Davenport, WA for supplying my Rans tailpack free of charge (509-725-4249, ezrider1935@msn.com). It has straps so I can wear it as a backpack.
Talk to Jeramiah for your cycling needs!
Labels: Cycling
Mon 12/11; Jen rides Rans 'bent @ Laguna
Jen is learning how to ride my Rans V-rex recumbent bike; she rode last night for just a few minutes and more this morning. Now she is able to ride uphill! (Notice her new Third Eye pro rear view mirror mounted on her helmet)
Labels: Cycling
Sun 12/10; Cutting meat for dinner
I haven't been eating much meat since I arrived in San Francisco the first time in early October, but Hisako had some nice pork in the freezer and we decided to cut it and cook it.
Labels: Food
Sun 12/10; flooded Aliso creek crossing
Jen and I are walking through Laguna Woods, the huge complex where my aunt Lisa lives. Here Aliso creek is 'flooded' due to the rain last night (unusual in Southern California, which is why so many want to live here).
Sun 12/10; morning at @ Lisa's, Greg departs
We've had breakfast and will go for a walk around the town. Greg just departed on his bike back to LA. He plans to ride to Long Beach, then take the blue line metro into town.
Labels: Announcement
Sat 12/09; Arrival @ Lisa's place
Aunt Lisa met the 3 of us at Laguna Beach and offered to sag our gear, which we accepted.
It was raining harder for a while, rather unfamiliar for me in California but I didn't mind it. Jen wasn't using a front light because it isn't easy to mount one on the handlebars with the new giant handlebar bag she got from Performance Bike shop in Santa Monica. We'll figure out something, maybe attach it to her handlebar bag. Similarly, you couldn't see her rear flashing LED which was obstructed by all the junk strapped on top of her rear rack.
We arrived at Lisa's place where Greg will spend the night before he returns tomorrow to LA. I'm not sure how long Jen and I will be here. I know Jen was excited to see a Pilates and Bikram studio near here.
There was some gear waiting for me so now I have my new 3rd eye bike mirror, 2 new Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires, my new red Rans tailpack, and the sweetie pie sleeping bag expander my Dad sent. We still need some sort of water purifier for Mexico which I haven't ordered yet. The CDC recommends boiling water, which we could do since we have a stove but that takes a while.
Lisa made us a dinner of rice, miso soup and pot stickers.
Labels: Announcement
Sat 12/09; Dinner at Newport Beach Gas station
We were getting hungry. I couldn't see a supermarket where Greg would be able to eat the macrobiotic dinner he packed, so we went to a gas station with built-in Subway restaurant. Jen and I split a veggie delite with avocado. There was no inside seating so we ate on the benches outside. When we left, it started raining.
Labels: Bike Touring
Sat 12/09; Ride on CA hwy 1 to Laguna Beach
The ride from Long Beach to Laguna Woods is very nice and pretty mellow; most of the time you are off the road on beach bike paths. This is the second time I have ridden this stretch; the first was 2 years ago riding from Aunt Lisa's then place in Long Beach to San Diego to start my southern tier ride across the country.
Labels: Bike Touring
Sat 12/09; Jen's new derailleur, brake working; set off to Laguna Woods
Jen got a new no-name front derailleur ($12). The Shimano Alivio wouldn't fit the seat tube of her older Specialized bike so she went to a different shop in the area. At least she has a working front derailleur and rear brake now.
We took the blue line train with our bikes to its southern terminus at Long Beach. Even though it was nearly 15:00, we decided to ride to aunt Lisa's in Laguna Woods.
Labels: Bike Mechanical
Sat 12/09; Jen & Greg off to bike shops
This morning, Jen was getting stressed about her bike condition. There are still many issues with her bike and especially without access to tools, it is just taking too long for me to fix it. So, armed with an internet map showing local bike shops, Jen and Greg went off to find a shop that can repair her front derailleur and brake quickly.
We were supposed to go to aunt Hisako's today. Jen's bike is in no condition to ride, especially in an urban environment, so I am not sure what will happen.
Jen just called me from the New Millenium bike shop (2806 James M Wood Blvd, (213) 389-5076), saying that she would buy a Shimano Alivio front derailleur ($25 + tax) so I could install it for her.
Labels: Bike Mechanical
Fri 12/08; Farmer's Market, Santa Monica
Just 2 blocks from Greg's apt there was a farmer's market. It is nice that even here in this enormous sprawling megapolis they have such things. We bought some strawberries, oranges, and grapes.
We rode to Santa Monica which is quite a good distance by bike; perhaps it took an hour. There was a bike path on some of the route but on much of it we were riding with the cars and in some areas it was quite busy, but we made it.
We went to Performance bike shop in Santa Monica again. We spent several hours there, for much of it Jen was trying various saddles. Performance let us use the trainer so Jen was able to ride on her bike in the store. She found a Terry leather saddle with titanium rails. It was pricey (about $80) but the tag said it was discounted. If it is more comfortable for her when riding for hours day after day it is worth it.
However, there still remains a lot to do with her bike. It was quite slow working in the Performance shop because I had to borrow their tools; the front derailleur cable snapped from age and use, and the front derailleur itself isn't very good (it has a short cage and is not ramped, designed for double chainring bikes not a triple) and has a stripped bolt and needs replacement. She can't even shift out of the granny ring. We failed to find the Diacompe ferrule she needs for her rear brake lever, so she can use only her front brake. In short, her bike is a mess and we're out of time.
Thu 12/07; Jen in lead inspector refresher class
Jen is taking a lead refresher course for industrial hygiene at Home Safe today (http://www.homesafetraining.com). It is nearly 100km away from LA in Loma Linda but still in LA metro, so she had to rent a car from Dollar at LAX and drive out there this morning. She'll be there from 08:30 to 16:30 today. I believe she must take a one day refresher course once every two years to maintain her certification, which she will need in March when she returns to work.
Wed 12/06 (Los Angeles, CA) Arrival @ Greyhound station LA
I got a little motion sickness on the bus; it seemed to be bouncing around quite a bit and I'm susceptible to that. Despite that, the night bus is the best option. Total travel time was about 6h 50m and we missed commuter hours in both the bay area and LA. I got at least some sleep.
We'll be staying at Greg's in Koreatown again. He's away at his job and language classes so he won't return home until 20:00. He'll be leaving a key at the front desk for us so we can get in.
Labels: Announcement
Tue 12/05 (Oakland, CA); Loading bus, heading to LA
(Photo: me shoving the bike panniers in the overhead compartment)
Suzanne is getting settled in at Jen's apartment. Jen's friend Heather gave us a ride to the Greyhound station in Oakland, which was fortunate because we packed Jen's bike at her apartment to use the free box we got from Missing Link; and it would have been awkward for us to manage on the city bus, though not impossible. We're on the bus leaving Oakland at about 22:30 and arriving tomorrow in LA at around 05:15.
Labels: Announcement
Tue 12/05; Suzanne moving in; heading out to LA
Jen took some of her stuff and her car to her friend Chaincy's, and now is riding her touring bike back here. Suzanne & Jen will go over some more details in person, then Jen will surrender possession and we will take her boxed bike and our stuff to the Greyhound station to catch the bus to LA.
Labels: Announcement
Mon 12/03; so much to do, plan to leave tomorrow
Suzanne, Jen's sublettor is planning to show up tomorrow at 18:00 to take possession, then Jen and I are homeless, more or less. We plan to take the Greyhound bus at night to LA, where we will stay at Greg's place for a few days. There has been a lot to do but we have it under control, I think.
Labels: Announcement
Sun 12/03; Nu shooz
Jen has been packing a lot of her stuff to take to her friend Chaincy's, to make it as clear as possible for Suzanne who is subletting. There are a lot of administrative matters to take care of, and get her bike ready by about Tuesday to head down to LA.
While Jen and I were on a ride, we stopped at REI again for the second day of the garage sale. Score! She got some new Shimano biking shoes for only $10. They were men's size 6 which is I guess why no one else wanted them but they fit her. She also got some biking shorts for $5 (and a Serfas 27" tire for the regular price of $14).
Sat 12/02; Jen's place rented
It is a done deal, a lady (Suzanne) is subletting Jen's place while we are in Mexico for December & January 2007, maybe February 2007 also. Jen has already collected the money and given Suzanne the keys. Now we have to hurry to get everything ready; we still haven't finished work on Jen's bike yet. Suzanne will bring some things over tomorrow.
Labels: Announcement
Sat 12/02: REI garage sale
We got up at about 06:30 and rode our bikes to Berkeley to get tickets to the REI Garage Sale. The tickets are free, but you have to arrive early to get early entry, which increases likelihood of getting desirable items. We arrived just after 07:00 and about 15-20 people were already there. They passed out tickets around 08:00, fortunately we were in the first group (10:00 - 10:20) of shoppers.
It was pretty crazy, so many people running and grabbing stuff since you get only 20 minutes in the sale area. A lot of stuff we took initially we later decided not to get. I bought: a floor bicycle pump for Jen's place ($10), REI Sahara down sleeping bag ($45), REI camp dome 2 tent ($10), a day glo riding vest ($20), an REI 45UL backpack ($20). Also I bought some day-glo stickers from the regular store to make ourselves more visible.
Fri 12/01; Bike work, showing Jen's place, reading
I rode Jen's bike to Missing Link bicycle co-op (http://www.missinglink.org) for them to re-dish the wheel and install the 6 speed Shimano freewheel, then walked back to Jen's apt. The Missing Link mechanics were busy but got the bike done by 18:00.
We were struggling to get the handlebars out of the stem, so we could install a new stem that would raise the handlebars higher. Clamp-type stems that require sliding the handlebar out sideways make changing to a different stem a lot of work. The new stem allows changing the stem or handlebars without taking off the handlebar tape, shifters, and brake levers. We weren't able to get the bar-end shifters out of the handlebars, there must be some trick to it.
We're still showing Jen's place to potential clients, but so far no takers.
I'm continuing the book "Earth Odyssey"; I'm trying to get it done before we go to Mexico, which we can do after Jen's place is rented.
Labels: Bike Mechanical, Reading
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