#it was a little chilly and I had to cross a scary highway bridge | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

smovlov · 7 years

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S240 - Quickbeam to Marshall

This is a write-up I posted to the Rivendell Owners Bunch. I rode from SF to marshall Saturday July 1 to Sunday July 2. Click the break if you would like to read it!

all dressed up and somewhere to go

Started on July 2nd around 4:00 in the afternoon. Took the BART over to Embarcadero station and went to the ferry building where I got an empanada and a coffee ice cream in a sugar cone. snacked on those and took a few photos.

Ferry Building with Quickbeam foreground

Made a quick stop at the marina Safeway to pick up some bananas, protein bar, avocado, 4 pack of Hawaiian rolls, and a vegan chocolate chip cookie. After that I did a quick visit down to fort point where I encountered a pod of humpback whales breaching and lobtailing under the Golden Gate Bridge! I spoke to a woman named Elizabeth who was snapping some photos and she sent some to me!

Humpback lobtailing in the SF Bay, photo credit: Elizabeth

under the Golden Gate Bridge

I stood under the bride for a while until it got too chilly. it was after I got over the bridge that I realized that it would be dark by the time I got to the campsite. I was planning on riding through the Marin headlands and going to Samuel P. Taylor the back way but did not feel like riding later into the night. I pressed on to Corte Madera.

Mt. Tamalpais in the distance, Quickbeam again, foreground

I took the highway route which I had not done before, feels scary facing traffic on 101 separated by a chain link fence, low guard rail, and an emergency lane. I think ill take my chances with traffic on Camino Alto next time. The ride on the trail through Ross and San Anselmo is always nice. I especially like Shady Ln, even more when there is no traffic. I stopped shortly in Fairfax to do a little snacking on a banana, bar, and some bread. I was thinking that whites hill was a little closer so I switched to my lower gear (36,21). Only when I started riding did I realize it was much farther, especially when you're spinning 45 gear inches! I didn't mind it though as it was a nice change of pace, even slowed down a little bit. Finally I hit the hill, its not terribly long or steep but it is a climb, especially with a load and riding a fixed gear in flip flops. I reached the top and spun downhill to a little turnout next to a raving where I switched into the high gear. From here, I rode through the San Geronimo valley. By this time is was dusk and the hills were turning into images that should be painted, photographed, and cherished. I thought about taking a photo but decided to take it all in and keep pedaling with the slight downhill to Lagunitis.

I arrived in Lagunitas, home of the brewing company of the same name, and jumped onto the Marin cross trail. I tilted the light back just a little to capture any stray branches that were at face level. The ride was pleasant and I didn’t see anyone on the trail. Come to think of it, I hadn't ridden next to anyone since Sausalito!

cycling the Marin Cross Trail, B&m Eyc provides good light

I pulled into the hiker biker site at Samuel P. Taylor state park around 8:30, had dinner and a chat with two groups there. Two dads had brought their 4/5 year old daughters form Corte Madera on the back of two Yubas (think xtracycle/big dummy). The other group parked at Lagunitas and rode in by bike to score a site. I slept without a tent (don’t own one) and listened to the raccoons quarreling down by the stream.

In the morning had a breakfast of banana, oatmeal, and earl grey tea. Bid everyone farewell then headed to Pt. . Reyes Station. the Marin Cross Trail is a great trail with wonderful scenery I hit the bottom of the hill and switched into the lower gear.

Marin Cross trail in the morning light (if 9am counts as morning)

Base of climb up to Bolinas Ridge trail head

Topping out at Bolinas ridge and back into the higher gear, I spun down into the valley, heading towards Pt. Reyes Station.

Top of Bolinas Ridge, ready for the downhill. Drying laundry on the saddle bag.

Arrived at Bovine Bakery and got a fruit slipper (blueberry and cream cheese), armando bun (blueberry and walnuts), and a hot coffee. Sat out front for a while then purchased some more food at the grocery across the street. When I returned to pack everything up I met a man named Jody. We talked bikes, mountain bike history, architecture, construction, and the state of the SF Bay Area in general. Jody had to help his friend unloading a truck so I headed to Marshall for some seafood. There’s a series of rollers that don’t quite fit into my high or low gearing. It was at this time I found out that I have a third gear right in the middle cross chained between my 36 front and 17 rear. I named it the roller gear. I cruised the narrow highway 1 and turned off at the Tomales Bay trail for a little exploration. Bumped down the trail to meet the foot of the marshy bay. Changed out of my pants and into some shorts then headed back to hwy 1 in a tiny exploratory loop.

Trail out to Tomales Bay

Foot of Tomales Bay

Got back on hwy 1 and an appetite was gaining on me. Finally got to Marshall store and ordered six BBQ oysters and a crab sandwich. The oysters were great and by the time I was finished I was wondering how I would find the room to finish the sandwich. Luckily the sandwich never came and I got a refund. I spoke with a couple visiting from Sacramento and gave them a few suggestions on things to do then headed off on my way back to Pt. Reyes. On Saturday I was considering heading up to Jenner but decided against it as it would take too long to ride back the following days.

These were excellent and surprisingly filling, maybe it was the bread!

Note: not a normal sized fork but larger than a standard cocktail fork

It was on the return leg that I started to feel some tightness in my right Achilles tendon. At one point, I stopped to strectch on the side of the road and found in the grass a Stanley 6 1/12 block plane! What luck! Back in Pt. Reyes I grabbed some ibuprofen and WD-40 (not great but it works). One helped the heel and the other helped the squeaky chain. I continued down highway 1 through Olema Valley, accompanied by a consistent headwind

Olema Valley, equipped with great road surface and strong headwind.

Bolinas Lagoon

Made it to Stinson Beach where I laid out in the sand, stretched my legs, then soaked my feet in the chilly Pacific. When leaving I saw a young teenager getting his book bag raided by the park service. Nearby there was a paper plate with pot and an big fat in progress joint.

By the time I left Stinson it was starting to get chilly

From Stinson I decided that instead of taking the detour up Panoramic highway, I would try to dodge the barricade at the Steep Ravine landslide on highway 1. I watched the highway from the beach and saw some cyclists riding down and a few cars driving up so I figured there might be a way around. It was a beautiful exposed climb. Felt like I was riding into the sky!

Stinson Beach below, Pelicans above, magic all around!

When I reached the barricade, I found a lot of fence, a lot of signs, and a police vehicle on the other side. I briefly considered portaging through the Dipsea trail but with a mildly large load and a narrow trail I felt like my best bet would be to descend and take the detour route. Switched back to high gear and spun down to the base, stopping briefly to ponder the pacific ocean and watch some sport climbers attempt a route down at Mickey's beach.

This approach has worked a total of one times, Authority vehicle in background.

unspecific Pacific pondering

At the base of Panoramic I put some water in my bottle and switched into the lower gear. I changed into pants and a shirt as the fog was rolling in and it was getting chilly. I had driven the road before and thought that it would be difficult on a bike, what I didn’t realize is how LONG it was! The climb for me was not easy by this point and I could have sworn it was over seven or eight switchbacks earlier! I think its around 1300' in about 5 or 6 miles. Finally, after climbing out of the fog I reached Pantoll, hot and tired with the fog gaining on me. I ate some bread and nibbled on the Armando bun, refilled the bottles, and switched back into high gear. Almost didn’t make it over the first hill out of parking lot!

foggy and chilly panoramic highway

Spun down Panoramic towards Mill Valley riding the brakes. Traffic was heavy due to the detour and I felt the need to pull off to let the cars pass. Conditions turned epic when I hit the ridge with fog and 25mph winds whipping though. Dropped into mill valley and put on wool socks, changed batteries in my rear light, and switched to the middle gearing. At the Tennessee valley intersection I met Mark, who slowed and allowed me to pull alongside. He asked me about my bike and my tour (not much of a tour, more of an extended ride). He was riding a very nice silver Davidson with a Dura-Ace group. He was preparing for a tour in northern Californian around the Trinity Alps. We talked about riding and a little bit about bikes. He also showed me the back way to get through Sausalito which was pretty cool. Less traffic and a little slower paced which I was completely fine with by this point. After we crossed the foggy, wet, windy Golden Gate Bridge we stopped and chatted for a bit. Hes been riding since moving to California in the 1970's and was turning 78 soon! At the end he said I was doing good for riding on a fixed gear, but I think he was doing much better!

Mark riding at a good clip across the windy, foggy bridge

I finished the ride in my middle gear through the Presidio and ended up getting take out at Osha Thai. Padang curry and coconut rice. Returned to Berkeley via BART at around 9:30pm.

back in "civilization"

Great trip and always great to meet so many nice people. For the most part the cars were polite. I had a few close passes but nothing too bad. I only had one kid yell something at me while riding. Other than that smooth sailing! Next time I might drop my chain rings down 2 teeth each for the "touring" load. I found after the first day, the only reason for the highest gear was for the downhills. Hopefully I can get that freewheel on there before the next ride...

Additional photos here: https://goo.gl/photos/QDize276hRjdi23Y7

#S24O

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