23.01.2024 | Reading time - 35 min(s)

Bike Pacific Coast Highway, U.S.A - Part 4 of 4

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Well, here we are at the last leg of Geoff Aird's incredible journey down the West coast of the US that started in Seattle, Washington and will end in San Diego, California. In this leg, we leave San Francisco and the iconic Golden Gate Bridge after some well deserved rest for Geoff. In this final leg, Geoff continues down the pacific coast bike route, through Los Angeles county and down to his final destination of San Diego.

If you have enjoyed this series, check out Geoff's debut novel "Within The Walls" that is available on Amazon uk or in a loval bookshop where the novel is set - G C Greave bookshop in Berwick upon Tweed.

Over to Geoff to follow his San Francisco to San Diego bike ride...

Quick Navigation

Cycling Days 15 & 16
Cycling Days 17, 18, 19 & 20
Cycling Days 21 & 22
Cycling Day 23
Cycling Day 24
Cycling Day 25
Final thoughts from Geoff
Final thoughs from the Bike Coop
About Geoff

San Francisco, California to San Diego, California ( Eleven days - 574 miles)

Following the Pacific Coast adventure cycling route

Cycling Day 15 & 16

I set off early and got through the city quickly then back onto Highway 1. I stopped at Pacifica for lunch at a promenade café then had a paddle in the sea as I hadn’t been in the water the whole trip! South of Pacifica there’s a road tunnel which I wasn’t looking forward to. As I entered the tunnel the first car that overtook me then slowed down to my pace, put on its hazard lights and gave me an escort all the way through! What a lovely gesture and none of the vehicles backed up behind me seemed to mind either. My destination that night was Half Moon Bay, a beautiful small town surrounded by pumpkin fields.

Next morning I had breakfast in a diner on the all-American main street then set off for Santa Cruz. Highway 1 hugs the coastline so I had views of the Pacific all day. Entering Santa Cruz it looked like a mini Blackpool with its vintage Beach Boardwalk, Giant Dipper roller coaster, carousels and sky rides. Surfers from all over come here to ride the waves at this friendly beach town.

Cycling Day 17, 18, 19 & 20

Between Santa Cruz and Monterey Highway 1 loops inland through farmlands full of strawberry fields. I got lost at one point and ended up on a mountain bike trail, but the bike held up well. By now there was a heatwave, and I could feel the temperature soaring. That night in Monterey I met up with Steve and Brita, the couple I’d met in San Francisco, and we had a great night out at the aptly named pub, the Brittania, and it was good to see them again. I was in a dilemma with the next day’s route as the Big Sur coast was cut off due to a landslide and impassable. I decided to go inland and stay at King City then back to the coast. I set off early the next day, went through the small town of Carmel Valley and then up into the mountains before dropping down into flat country again. Today the temperature reached 38 degrees Celsius and I really suffered. After a while I ran out of water and was that desperate, I trudged across a farmer’s field to beg a bottle of water from a guy in a tractor! It was just enough to get me to my destination, King City, where the population all seemed to be Mexican, and everyone spoke Spanish! I had a fitful night’s sleep as I constantly woke up with terrible leg cramps, but I was fine the next day as I journeyed down to Pismo Beach and the coast again.

Pacific Coast Highway

Cycling Day 21 & 22

The next day was an easy day, it was cooler with a healthy tailwind. I had breakfast in Guadalupe, another small ‘Mexican’ town then a slow climb up to Lompoc to finish the day. Another easy day followed, and my average speed today was 17mph, but this was helped by a long, long downhill to the coast and the town of Gaviota. From here it was a steady afternoon along to Santa Barbara, a town which perfectly embodies California’s two personalities: beachy casual meets glitz! Golden beaches full of blond haired surfing gods! It felt like a European town with its red-tile roofs and rounded arcades.

Cycling Day 23

Santa Barbara to Santa Monica was a hundred mile day but the beautiful weather and gorgeous sea views made the miles fly by. After Malibu it got tricky as the hard shoulder was full of cars where the surfers park so I was constantly having to look behind before moving onto the inside lane. Santa Monica is all glitz and bohemia! I sauntered along the promenade, past Muscle Beach gym where Arnie Schwarzenegger used to work out and onto my accommodation at the Foghorn Hotel overlooking the Marina Del Ray.

Cycling Day 24

Crossing Los Angeles, the following morning started well, and I breakfasted at a cyclists café on Hermosa Beach. The day went downhill after that as I got lost in Long Beach which is full of petro-chemical works, huge tankers and glass strewn hard shoulders. It was the only industrial area I encountered on the whole trip, and it took me all day to get through LA and back onto the coast at Newport Beach which is just south of the city. Clear white sand greeted me here in this affluent town where the wealthy come to enjoy themselves.

Cycling Day 25

So, I finally arrived at my last day of the trip. Newport down to San Diego. I had a late breakfast in The Lost Pier, Laguna Beach. There was a beach volleyball competition taking place and hundreds of people were spectating. As a backdrop the shore was filled with surfers doing their thing while pretty girls roller skated along the promenade, and everyone looked bronzed, lean and happy!! This is life in southern California! A cycle path took me down the coast, through Oceanside and small strung out beach towns onto my destination. I checked into the hotel in Mission Bay, San Diego at about 4pm in the afternoon. Mission complete although I felt a bit sad that the journey had come to an end.

Sandy beaches of Malibu

Final Thoughts From Geoff

The total mileage was 1497 and I managed to keep to the schedule I’d set. Apart from the derailleur incident my bike didn’t let me down once. I used Continental Grand Prix Four Season tyres and had no punctures, and they kept their pressure the whole journey! I spent over £1500 on food but I needed the fuel. The Pacific Highway is still wild, open and beautiful. Very often I cycled for miles and had all the scenery to myself. At times I found myself laughing out loud at the sheer enjoyment of it all; blue skies, sun on my back, tailwind, quiet roads on smooth tarmac and stunning scenery throughout; be it the Pacific Ocean or inland through the Redwood forests. An absolutely brilliant adventure!

Geoff Aird

Final Thoughts from us at Edinburgh Bike Coop

We all want to thank Geoff for taking the time to share this incredible adventure with us of his once in a lifetime trip down the Pacific coast route from Seattle, near the Canadian Border to San Diego on the Mexican border - practically the entire length of the United States of America. We followed the (relatively few) lows including a broken derailleur, running out of water on a sweltering day and a brief, but terrifying time on on a San Francisco motorway. All of this, however, was outweighed by the gorgeous views of the Pacific Ocean, the amazingly friendly people Geoff met and the meditative time on the road that a bicycle can give.

Thank you, Geoff, from all of us here at the Bike Coop.

If you missed any parts, you can find them here

About Geoff

Geoff Aird is a life-long cyclist and retired firefighter who has turned his hand to writing novels when not on his bike. Geoff's debut novel “Within the Walls” follows a criminal investigation that reveals a sinister underbelly to the seemingly sedate seaside town of Berwick upon Tweed. You can find Geoff's debut novel on Amazon uk or in G C Greave bookshop, Berwick upon Tweed, where the novel was set.

California Coast

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Ross Howieson

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Bike Pacific Coast Highway, U.S.A - Part 4 of 4

San Francisco, California to San Diego, California ( Eleven days - 574 miles)

Following the Pacific Coast adventure cycling route

Cycling Day 15 & 16

Cycling Day 17, 18, 19 & 20

Pacific Coast Highway

Cycling Day 21 & 22

Cycling Day 23

Cycling Day 24

Cycling Day 25

Sandy beaches of Malibu

Final Thoughts From Geoff

Final Thoughts from us at Edinburgh Bike Coop

If you missed any parts, you can find them here

About Geoff

California Coast