42 Miles
Another fabulous day on the road.
Got up this morning and went down to Santa Monica Pier to check it out and find some breakfast. The pier has several restaurants and amusement rides, but not much for breakfast really except for a Good Bean and Tea Leaf coffee shop. Good coffee!
From here it was down to the beach and a couple hours riding the bike trails which wind back and forth through the beautiful white sands of the LA beaches. As has been the weather here, it was cold and overcast all morning long, and it's Tuesday, so beach traffic was light (which is good...I imagine those bike paths get rather congested!).
The beach tour ends at Redondo beach and I was sorry to see it go. From here the route takes you east starting at Torrance Boulevard and winding it's way over to 223rd Street where it enters Long Beach and crosses the Los Angeles river, which is well contained in a large concrete aqueduct. From here there is a great bike trail that extends along the top of the aqueduct all the way to a beautiful park on the waterfront in Long Beach. Just before hitting Long Beach, the sun came out.
Trying to follow the Adventure Cycling route through all the bike trails was difficult. It's a confusing situation, but getting lost and wandering around isn't so bad! I rode out to take a picture of the Queen Mary and then rode past the Aquarium of the Pacific and remembered back to a great day Pattye and I had visiting her. It would be so nice for her to be here sharing this with me. We'll get here again soon!
After getting off track again on Shoreline Drive (where the barriers and bleachers are still up from the Long Beach Grand Prix, which is run on the actual streets of Long Beach) I picked up the correct bike trail and headed back into the beautiful white sands of the beach. When I hit the south side of Long Beach I sought out a cheap motel for the evening and called it a day. Tomorrow, San Clemente!
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| The pier at Santa Monica |
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| Looking back at Malibu |
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| Santa Monica Beach |
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| My Ride |
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| Venice Beach Art |
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| Bike lanes in the sand |
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| A lot of boats at Marina Del Rey |
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| End of the beach at Redondo Beach |
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| Onward to Torrence Boulevard |
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| A curious little jog in the route "Sonoma Street" was a very beautiful diversion from the otherwise ordinary homes in the area. These beautiful trees shade the entire block and the homes and yards are all quite beautiful as well. This was like an unexpected Easter Egg in the middle of the route. |
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| A lot of congestion and heavy traffic along this stretch to Long Beach |
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| Onto the LA River bike trail |
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| The Queen Mary |
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| Looking back at Long Beach |
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| Dolphin fountain near the Aquarium of the Pacific |
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| Shoreline Drive with all the racing barriers and fencing still in place from the Long Beach Grand Prix |
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| Biking the Long Beach beach |
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