Today was the day to give the bike back to its rightful owners. I after a nice breakfast in a small coffee shop just down from the hotel I set off for my last mile on the Harley, stopping just short of the rental drop off to fill the tank. Whilst not a Harley fan I’ve become quite attached to the bike. It’s a good bike to do a trip like this on, not least because it has the most comfortable seat of any motorcycle I’ve ever ridden (and that’s a lot!).A quick inspection and signature and that was it, I was without transport. Bob had given me a map of the bus routes for San Francisco so I planned to take the bus to Golden Gate Bridge. In all my trips to San Francisco I’ve never been there. I could have taken a taxi, but the bus allows you to see, and hear the locals going about their daily business and so, for me is more interesting.
Category Archives: On the PCH
The Last Stop
I’ve reached my last stop of the trip, the Phoenix Hotel in San Francisco, after putting 3362 miles under the wheels of the bike, with just over a mile to do to drop the bike off at the Rental company left to do. I’m now starting to feel rather sad as it feels as though ‘the end is nigh’ and I guess it is for this trip. I’ve become rather used to life on the road and have been anxious to get on the road each morning. I could very happily re-pack the bike and get on it again tomorrow morning and continue north up Highway 1 and then on to the Canadian border.
Whale Watching
For the first time in the trip I set my alarm so that I wouldn’t miss the departure time. It wasn’t really necessary as I’m always awake early, but wanted to be sure!
Elephants and Castle
It’s been a low mileage day, only a little over 60 miles, but one full of great sights, so plenty of pics to follow! I’d intended to be in Carmel tonight (140 miles), but am currently in a motel in San Simeon. It started with a Facebook chat with my friend Sarah this morning, who mentioned that she’d enjoyed her time in San Simeon some years before, so I decided to have a look on my way.
A Short One
This will be a short post as I’ve mostly been lazing around today!
After a laid back breakfast I headed for the beach and spent three or so hours there, leaving around two just as the sun got to its highest to make suer I didn’t become lobster coloured. It was a great beach backed by cliffs and had several seals sunbathing on rocks out in the bay. No pics as it wasn’t the sort of beach you take pics on.
On the Coast
The End of the Mother Road
Two thousand seven hundred and eighty seven miles from the start in Chicago thirteen days ago, I today reached the end of Route 66. It has been an amazing journey, not only for the people I’ve met and the places, and sights, I’ve seen, but also emotionally. Simone and I had planned to do this journey together, and now I’ve finished it alone for both of us. Tomorrow (probably today now in the UK) would have been our thirtieth wedding anniversary and I have to confess to having tears running down my cheeks as I write this. I wouldn’t have missed this journey for the world , but I wish we could have done it together. As it is Simone has been with me in spirit all the way. I’m very sad in a way that this part of my journey is over.