Sep 24: Costa Mesa to San Elijo State Beach Bear Encinitas (78.3 miles)

Today’ intended ride would have been a bit over 60 miles riding on a combination of Hwy 1, some nice oceanfront trails and quiet roads through Camp Pendleton Marine Base. I’ll explain the “intended” below…

I slept in late, until 7:30 and felt guilty about it! I was then off riding down to PCH and to the beach our family used to visit often, Big Corona in Corona del Mar.

Our beach spot was near that big rock.

Nearby is Little Corona beach with its iconic arched rock

This is the beach for scuba diving!

I did a quick stop to check on the house my mom built a while ago. It’s looking great still

I rode on south passed the old yellow “Date Shakes” shack (now a much nicer place) and Laguna Beach, which seems way bigger to me now.

There was a nice oceanfront trail from Capistrano Beach through to San Clemente which saved from a bunch of hills. A bit sandy but worth it.

Next came Trestles Beach, a famous surfing location and the entrance to San Onofre State Beach, a 6-7 mile long park on the bluffs, which abuts Camp Pendleton Marine Base. Normally, the base is open to bikers passing through, but not today :(. A nice young Marine had the unenviable task to inform anyone who just rode those 6-7 miles to reach him that the pathway is closed due to military exercises. That means I have to bike back those 6-7 miles to Trestles and get on I5, a crazy-busy freeway. Too bad a note could not have been posted at the park entrance! Luckily, CalTrans has made allowances for this situation

So, I got to ride an extra 12-14 miles today, but I have to say, today was the day to do it: it was overcast and there was no strong wind blowing any direction.

At a rest stop on I5 I got a closer view of the military operations: helicopters ferrying equipment between a ship at sea and the base ( you’ll see the ship in the background)

And here’s what was ferrying the equipment to/from the base

I finally arrived at Encinitas at 5pm. I never saw the sun today, but that’s ok: I was nice and cool all day.

My campsite is right on busy Hwy 1 with a train tracks just beyond. It’s noisy as all hell but I think I’ll still be able to sleep well. Tomorrow, and I can’t quite believe this, but tomorrow after about 55 miles I should arrive at the Mexican Border!