Day 4 -- Pismo Beach to Santa Barbara

Tuesday, Aug 14, 2007

I actually slept until about 7 AM today -- good for me! There was even sun on the tent.



After breakfast (pan-roasted sprouted wheat bread and hot cocoa),


I hung up a few things to air out.


One of the problems with car camping, is the the thing you want is always under other things. The first method of dealing with this is to unload, find, take, and reload. The other technique is to reach in until you feel the object, and then pull. I'm demonstrating this here:


I met these two guys that had a "Rip Stick." This is a skateboard with two inline wheels. It can actually be propelled very effectively, even up hill, by making strong S curves.



I next put on my wetsuit and walked to the beach. The waves weren't that good there, but there were two large grey dolphins playing very close to me. Much bigger than the ones at home, and grey instead of brown. One popped most of the way out of the water, and fell onto his back.

I then walked about a mile down the beach to the pier, and the waves were better there -- surfed for about an hour.

I packed at noon, made a sandwich for lunch and headed to Santa Barbara. My campsite had only one tree, but I was able to rig my hammock, put in the earplugs to block out the generators and boom boxes, and take a nap.


I took a peek at the beach (this is El Capitan State Beach), then headed into S.B. to the library and dinner. I'm back at the library now posting, and it's 8:30 PM and dark. I gotta finish up and head back to the campground and set up the tent. Besides, the guy two tables down is farting and burping, and making other weird noises, so it's time to head out -- no time for proofreading!

I'll be here for three days, so I get a break from the driving. I'm going to burn out if I don't slow down a little.

Day 3, Part 2

Monday, Aug 14, 2007.

From now on, I'll put the day of the week and date on the post, 'cause I am so losing track of what day it is.

After posting to the blog from an Aptos coffee shop, I talked with Jenny and Lena (daughter and wife, both of whom are currently in Sweden) via Skype. Pretty cool.

The trip to Pismo Beach took me through the Salinas valley, a major agricultural area. Lots of strawberries were being harvested.


Artichokes be big here too.


Next was a quick stop to have the surfboard blessed by Neptune and Minerva.



And after a lot of drivinng, I checked into the campground at Pismo Beach State Beach, and took a walk down the beach to check out the pier.




Remember, you can click on these images to see the full-size version.

I was really beat by the end of the day. A few hours of surfing in Santa Cruz, four hours of driving, then the long walk to the pier and back. I've got to cut down on these activities!

I had planned to drive to Santa Barbara early tomorrow and surf there, but since I'll be in S.B. for three days, I think I'll shoot the pier here tomorrow, and then head on down the coast.