Not everyone is cut out for long, multi-week bike tours. People might have limited vacation time, lack the equipment, or not have the physical ability to take on such a trip. But, by selecting the proper route, almost anyone who can ride a bike 20 miles and is willing to tackle a bit of uphill can experience the unfettered joy of riding a bicycle and experiencing the beauty of the Northern California Coast. In this article, I describe two such rides: a 1-day 23 miler along the incomparable Big Sur coast and a 2-day 50 miler between Mendocino and Gualala. Both routes are on Highway 1, usually have a tailwind, and have stunning coastline in view virtually the entire way. Either one of these rides would be perfect for that non-touring partner who might never go on a long tour but who is interested is seeing what all the fuss is about. The Big Sur coast between Carmel and Ragged Point is a world famous bike touring destination. And rightly so! Its 75 miles of rugged coastline traversed by the undulating, twisting Highway 1 provide some of the best bicycle riding in the world. Of the entire 75 miles, the first 23 from Carmel to Pfeiffer-Big Sur State Park are the very best. What's even better is that while the road is a bit "lumpy" and there are a few uphills along the way, there are no serious climbs in this entire section. Anyone with a modicum of bicycle fitness should be able to handle both the distance and the elevation. One more benefit is that riding from north (Carmel) to south (Pfeiffer-Big Sur) usually means a significant tailwind. The reward is an unending panorama of natural beauty, minimally developed coastline, wildflowers, and water every color of blue. Here is a sampler:    This page has dozens of photos of this stretch of coast. While there are no services from just after Carmel to Pfeiffer-Big Sur, there are all you need at Pfeiffer-Big Sur, including motels, campgrounds, cottages, restaurants, stores, and even a hiker/biker site. If the ride down is with the wind, isn't the ride back against the wind? While this would make sense, there is an even better answer: the bus! There is a bike-rack equipped public bus that goes along Highway 1 with a stop at Pfeiffer-Big Sur. At present (July, 2012), there are three scheduled stops at Pfeiffer-Big Sur (Big Sur River Inn) at Noon, 3pm and 6pm. It is a 45 minute ride to Carmel and a little over an hour to Monterey. It costs $1.75 one way with no charge for the bike. The route and schedule of Monterey-Salinas Transit Line 22 is available on-line. The best way to start this ride is Carmel for two reasons. First, it is just south of Carmel where the scenery gets good. Second, Carmel has any and all services you might need. If you can afford it (Carmel is an expensive place) rent a room for the night before, park your vehicle there, ride down, bus back and drive away. You can also spend the night in Pfeiffer-Big Sur either camping, in a rustic cabin, or a comfortable hotel. You will likely need reservations for any of these if it is a time of high tourist demand. With luck, you could leave your car overnight somewhere (Carmel isn't real tourist friendly so don't just park your anywhere and expect it not to be noticed), ride to Big Sur, spend the night, and bus back. Some cautions are in order. Highway 1 is a narrow two-lane road with little or no shoulder. Sometimes you are riding right next to a steep cliff down to the ocean. Care needs to be taken when sharing this road with cars and, especially, RVs. Each rider should have a rear-view mirror and not listen to music while riding so as to be maximally aware of vehicles coming up from behind. Also, riders should be prepared to stop and pull off the road if a particularly large RV is coming or it looks like an on-coming vehicle will meet one passing right where the rider is. It is best to ride this road in non-summer months. I recommend around mid-April when the coastal wildflowers are at their peak. But, May or September would be good too. I'd also suggest not riding on weekends, if you can avoid it. In my experience, if you pick the right time, such as week-days in April, there are very few cars on the road. Lastly, why not ride the whole 75 miles of the Big Sur coast? There are several reasons. First, there is a long, reasonably steep hill just south of Big Sur and another one just north of Ragged Point (the southern end of the Big Sur Coast) that some people will have a hard time climbing. Second, the views south of Big Sur are not as captivating as those north of it. Third, transportation back to Carmel gets harder to arrange further south. Fourth, there are limited services south of Big Sur that make resupply and places to stay harder to find. On the other hand, if your partner is willing, why not? Another wonderful stretch of coastline, much further north, runs from Mendocino to Gualala, a run of 50 miles south (with the wind!). Like Big Sur, this stretch is traversed by Highway 1 and mostly runs along the cliff tops with an expansive view of the entire coast. Since most non-bike tourers view 50 miles as "too long," this ride can be done in two days with an overnight stop at a very nice KOA campground at Manchester State Beach. You can bring camping gear and get a hiker/biker rate ($10) at the KOA or reserve a small cabin for the night. The KOA has a pool, sauna, and a kitchen area for meal preparation, among other amenities. There are also motels, stores, and restaurants/cafes in the several small towns along this route. The undulations are about the same, or even less, than on the Big Sur ride. The same Highway 1 runs along the coast with its two lanes and little to no shoulder. The main difference is that this stretch of highway hosts a couple good sized towns and a surviving timber business. Thus, you will occasionally have to contend with delivery and logging trucks, though, the times I've ridden this road, the traffic was mild. That said, you should have a rearview mirror and be prepared to pull off and let trucks go by. Unlike the Big Sur ride, this portion of coast has several small towns conveniently spaced several miles apart. While I haven't done any in-depth investigation, they all appeared to have, at least, one food store or cafe. As a result, carrying much more than snacks isn't necessary. Some of them even have small boutiques that might make for a nice browsing/rest stop. The views along this route are stunning coastline, as well. Here are some examples:    This page has dozens of photos of this stretch of coast. The small town of Manchester is just past the KOA but it doesn't offer much in the way of supplies. There is a single commercial building in the village that says it has a "country store" but I didn't go in to see what it offered. As a result, it would probably be good to carry something to eat to get down the road at the start of day 2. A couple miles past Manchester is the town of Point Arena, which has a whole street of shops and cafes where you can get a proper breakfast and food for the rest of the day. Shortly after Point Arena, whose point hosts a lighthouse, the road rejoins the coast for the ride down to Gualala, the next good sized town on the coast. All the services you will need to eat and spend the night are there and it is the best place to end this short, but very pretty ride. If you drove to Mendocino and left your car there, you can take MTA bus 75 on the South Mendocino Coast Route (schedule here) back there from Gualala. The bus leaves at 7:45am and gets back to Mendocino by 9:30. It has room for 2 bicycles. The fare is about $5 each. There is also a bus that connects with the Sonoma County Airport Express and comes as far north as Point Arena. While it shouldn't be a problem to leave a car in Mendocino overnight, it would be good to choose your parking spot carefully or ask a local for the best location. Why stop in Gualala? While there is no reason to stop in Gualala, there is a long "M" shaped climb just north of Jenner that starts about 20 miles south of Gualala and involves both steep uphill and down. This climb would be a challenge to a less experienced bike rider. But, should the spirit be willing, the ride from Gualala down to San Francisco is, indeed, a great one that is another 120 miles south, or about 4 days of relaxed riding. While I haven't researched it, I'm sure it would be possible to get all the way to Mendocino on public transit with a bike in tow. It can be hard to share bike touring experiences with people who haven't done it before and may not be comfortable undertaking a long bike ride. These two short, relatively easy trips may be just the thing. They are easy enough for any reasonably fit person to finish and beautiful enough to give someone the full feeling of bike touring. Who knows? It might be just the experience to plant the desire for even more! |