Katie MacDonald - Bike the US for MS
Day 4 - March 16 - Paso Robles to Arroyo Grande - 48.4miChris left early for work, so we woke up to say goodbye, and then got ready for the day. Both mornings we’ve been here Chris has left us a note and snack for the day - she is so sweet. We ate some bagels that we had picked up yesterday, packed our bags, and then biked to the Enterprise car rental place so that we could drive to Paso Robles. We managed to take apart the bikes enough that we could fit them into the back of a sedan, but it was not easy. About half way through the drive, Carissa realized that we had left our bike shorts in the dryer at Chris’s place, which was not a good realization, but there was nothing we could do at this point. After about 2 hours of driving, we got to Paso Robles, returned the car, and took over the sidewalk of the strip mall while we put our bikes back together. The first 20mi or so were fantastic - I was feeling good, the roads were good, and I was listening to some great music. We stopped for a bathroom break in Santa Margarita, and happened upon an adorable bakery called Just Baked, that had some of the best cookies I’ve ever tasted. There was a bit of a climb out of town, but is was followed by an absolutely incredible descent into San Louis Ospio. It had smooth pavement and a wide shoulder, and I could not stop smiling the entire way down. The rest of the day went pretty smoothly. We stopped in the town of Arroyo Grande to grab dinner, and then there was a bit of a climb into camp. On 4K they call it “host hill”, because there always seems to be a climb right before the end of the day. Tonight we are staying with Laura, who’s contact info we got off of the Adventure Cycling Association maps. Her and her husband Ben run an adorable AirBnb, and also let cyclists camp on their property. Because there was nowhere for us to hang our hammocks, Laura said we could use her tent, which was incredibly kind of her. What we didn’t expect, was that this tent had a queen sized bed in it! The whole property is amazing, and Laura and Ben built it all themselves. They have two bunkhouses that they rent out, two outdoor bathrooms (complete with showers), a fire pit, and a swing-set in the back with an amazing view of the sunset. They also have dogs, cats, chickens, and horses. This place is incredible. We ended up eating dinner in the backyard, then played on the swing-set, showered in the bathroom that is wallpapered with maps, and then hung out by the fire pit. There is another couple staying in one of the AirBnb houses, and they joined us by the fire pit for a while before we called it a night. My shoulder is still hurting, so I’m going to try sleeping with the Icy Hot patch on. This bed is so ridiculously comfy, I don’t know if I’ll be able to get out of it in the morning. Day 5 - March 17 - Arroyo GrandE to Goleta - 81.7miWoke up this morning after the best sleep we have had so far, and were ready to tackle our longest day of the trip. We got packed up and ready to go a bit faster than usual, and were soon biking through foggy farmland. We stopped for water at a gas station, and chatted with a few local ladies who were really friendly. The fog eventually burned off, and it got really hot. Today was the dreaded Lompoc climb day, and it was really hot by the time we got to the first climb. We had to stop halfway up to change out of our layers that we had put on in the morning. The first climb was steep, but not as long as we had thought it would be, and there was an epic windy descent into Lompoc. There weren’t many cars, so I could take the whole lane and really enjoy it. In Lompoc, we stopped at a bike shop to pump up our tires. The guys at the shop were great, and recommended a sandwich shop for lunch. We left our bikes and the shopped and walked there. It was a cute place, and Carissa and I split a delicious roast beef sandwich. After eating, we walked back to the bike shop, and headed out for the second big climb. This one was way less steep, and was a gradual 1000ft climb. Just over halfway up, I got my first flat tire. Not of the trip, my first flat tire ever. 6,000+ miles of biking experience, and I had managed to avoid getting a flat tire, but there I was on the side of the highway fixing a flat. I ended up accidentally putting the busted tube back in the tire, which made the whole thing take longer than it should have. Eventually I caught up with Carissa, and we made it to the top of the climb. I was running out of water, so I was pretty thirsty by this point, but Carissa gave me some from her extra bottle. The descent wasn't as spectacular as the first one, but still pretty great. We stopped at a rest stop at the bottom for water, and then headed out to do the last segment of the day. The fog had rolled in again, and was so bad that I didn't even notice we were riding right next to the ocean. About 5mi away from camp, Carissa and I got separated, and ended up taking different routes there. When I got to the Christ Lutheran Church, Laurel showed us around and left us to get settled in. She even bought us an amazing chicken dinner and left oatmeal for us to have in the morning! We ate dinner, got cleaned up (somewhat) and then headed down the street to check out the local brewery before heading to bed at 10pm. Long, but good day. Happy to have the longest day of the trip out of the way. Day 6 - March 18 - Goleta to Port Hueneme - 55.1mi We slept in a little bit this morning, and then puttered around for a bit before heading out. We biked through Goleta and got to check out the UCSB campus, which is beautiful. We were on bike paths for most of the morning, and stopped on the Santa Barbara pier to try and find a second breakfast. We didn't find any food that we were in the mood for, but a lovely lady at a tourist shop recommended a grocery store with pastries along our route. We got cinnamon buns, and then biked over to the beach to eat them. We switched maps at this point, and slowly made our way towards Port Hueneme, passing through lots of beautiful towns, and riding on a bike path sandwiched between the 101 and the ocean. At one point, we stopped to take a picture and met Stephen Swift, a cyclist who has been biking for cancer for 5 years and is on his way home. We started pushing our pace a little bit after this break, and were averaging 15mph along the highway. We got to Ventura, and got hot dogs from a cart on the beach as a late lunch. We also met some people from the Toronto area - small world! After the hot dogs we had 13mi left to camp, and stopped for the first DQ of the trip with about 2 miles to go. Camp tonight is Living Hope Church in Port Hueneme. We ordered pizza, and played card games until bed time at 9:30. Day 7 - March 19 - Port Hueneme to Woodland Hills - 49.1miNeither of us wanted to wake up this morning, which resulted in hitting snooze on the alarm several times. When we did get up, we finished eating the pizza, packed up, and headed out. We stopped at a little cafe a couple miles in to fill up our water bottles, and then we were off for the day. We were along the coast for the first half of the day, and it was absolutely beautiful. We saw dolphins swimming in the ocean, and the terrain was mostly rolling hills. We got to Malibu in time for lunch, and ended up getting fried chicken from a grocery store and sitting outside. We were anxious for the second part of the day, which would take us over the Santa Monica mountains. Carissa talked to a local gentleman about routes over the mountains, and he suggested that we take the road from Pepperdine University rather than going through Topanga, because it was much less hilly. Shortly after heading out and starting the climb, the same gentleman passed us in his car, rolled down the window, and shouted out "I told you this was the better route!". The climb was difficult, but the view was so rewarding. Shortly after going through a tunnel, Carissa got her 3rd flat of the trip, so we had to stop and fix it. By 3pm we were at Carissa's cousin's house. Greg and Marie were absolutely fantastic, and so great to hang out with. We threw all our stuff in the laundry, and then spent most of the afternoon chatting, playing with their dogs Reilly and Rosco, and their 7 month old daughter, Larson, who is the sweetest baby. They invited the neighbours over for a BBQ dinner, and we had an awesome time hanging out with everyone in the backyard. We ended the night with a dip in the hot tub, and then headed to bed close to midnight.
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katie macdonald
Summer 2016, I biked 4,295 miles, coast to coast across the USA to raise money and awareness for MS. March 2017, I biked self-contained from San Francisco to San Diego with my friend Carissa. August 2017 I connected the dots and biked from Seattle to San Francisco. Summer 2018 I am heading to the UK! Follow my journey here! Miles biked for MS:
6,800.13
Updated August 27, 2018 Archives
January 2019
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