| Date: October 31, 1999 | | Location Canada to Mexico - #43 - Redondo Beach to San Clemente | | Where: El Rancho Motel, San Clemente | Sunday - Jeanette writes
I've asked for equal time since yesterday Jim wrote to you HIS impressions of the beautiful scenery.
I rank both yesterday's ride and today's in the top 3 or 4 for the whole trip - both for beauty and joy.
The Santa Anna winds have warmed the beaches to the 80's, scoured all the smog out of the basin and blown it far out to sea. It is so beautiful to see the Channel Islands and Santa Catalina across a deep blue ocean with postcard like white waves crashing beside our shoulders. The hills and foothills along the Pacific Coast Highway are also visible and close enough to reach out and touch. I wonder if this was the beauty that the explorers discovered when they reached this area. Since the automobile became important here, days this clear are scarce.
This morning we left the beach area @ 7:00 AM standard time and had Pacific Coast Highway almost to ourselves for the first hour or two. This was a stroke of pure LUCK on our part, masquerading as genius!
Bit by bit traffic increased but the shoulder widened and improved so that we were able to fly along at a 14.6 mph average in the morning.
Tomorrow we expect to reach San Diego in early afternoon and find a place to stay. Dave and Gary will meet us for dinner and try to get some time on Tuesday to ride with us to the border. We are thinking about another layover day for some visiting and sightseeing before we board the train home to Salem.
You will get one or two more notes before we return.
|  | | Lunch at Madison Square & Garden Cafe, Laguna Beach Days Distance: 58.6 miles
Days Climb: 1290 feet
Days Average Speed: 12.4 mph
Days Max Speed: 30.5 mph
Total Distance: 1895.6 miles |
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