Day 13: I woke up early with the sun & read a little until Ben was up. Oatmeal as usual. Chris & Kim joined us at the picnic table with their food. We chatted more. I really like them; they’re easy to talk to. We got a quick picture of the 4 of us & they were on their way. We set our things in the sun to dry for a bit, charged our lights & were on the road by 9:45. A little uphill to start, but not too bad. Most of the ride was downhill. Nice winding country roads, slope not too steep, kind cars & little traffic. We stopped in Fish Camp for lunch: pb&j bagels & some snacks from the only store there, all enjoyed under the shade of a picnic table umbrella. It was back uphill a little, but again, mostly downhill.
Once we rolled into Oakhurst (our destination for the day) we had to stop by another roadside fruit stand for produce. Always stop! The food is so tasty & you never know when you’ll find the next one. We got stuck talking to another biker for a bit. He was very chatty, a little condescending about people our age & Ben’s work as a handyman/realtor & his assumptions about everything. He gave us tips about local routes to Fresno, which was nice.
We got into town early & needed to kill time before showing up at our next Warm Showers (Bob & Martha) so we swung by a brewery on the way – South Gate Brewing. We played some cards, chatted with a few staff – they were cool – & another patron & I helped a woman get her flat tire changed. We didn’t change it ourselves but this other patron thought I worked there so he told me a car in the parking lot had a flat tire & to alert the driver. I passed his message on to the staff & the tire was fixed within 10 minutes! Speedy AAA service! Good catch, guy. While we were killing time, Bob texted to say he saw us riding through town & to come early. He even stopped by the brewery to introduce himself as we were loading up to head to his house 🙂
The ride to their house was a little tight (barely a shoulder & fast cars who don’t care to move over for bikers) but nothing we can’t handle. The stark difference between quiet country mountain roads & busy city was a little jarring. I kept thinking to myself “were not in Kansas anymore”. Once we arrived at Bob & Martha’s it was much better. They live in the country, on the outskirts of town, on some beautiful land. We showered, did laundry (in a machine!), & had lots of cuddles with their beagle, Trumpet. He’s such lover & so sweet. Bob made tasty chicken tacos…and yes…I ate them…! Bob, if you’re reading, I’m a vegetarian & just didn’t have the heart to tell you since you went to all the trouble in making them already & for all your generosity with everything while we were there (food, shower, bed, laundry, route advice). I knew that day would come sometime on this trip; I was prepared. And for real, they were SO GOOD!
After dinner they took us for a walk around their property. Quite the place! Nice gardens, big trees. Bob is in the process of building a back patio with a fire place & outdoor kitchen. Pretty cool. He’s very handy – makes & builds everything! Bob is very smart, a problem solver, & has lead an interesting life. He used to be a big climber & had lots of different types of jobs, therefore, many skills. He took a solo cross-country bike trip last year & hadn’t been on a bike in about 50 years!!! That’s what I call an inspiration! He, of course, made a lot of his gear for the trip. Cool. Martha was very helpful, generous, kind, down to earth, handy & knowledgeable too. We talked a lot about Bob’s trip last year (San Diego to Boston). Trained to be an ultra light packer with climbing, his bike trip included very minimal gear, which inspired us to go through our things & send stuff home.
When we settled in for the night, Ben was feeling overwhelmed with our upcoming trek through the desert to Las Vegas. He was concerned about climbing more mountains, the heat, no shade or water, being in the middle of nowhere & needing help, getting trapped. He told me he had a little PTSD from Glacier Pt. I tried to reassure him to take it 1 day at a time. There is almost always someone or something along any route that can help us out. He was feeling rushed to make it to Las Vegas in 1 week so we could meet up with Ben’s aunt & uncle & wasn’t looking forward to higher mileage. We did lots of research on routes, places to stop, lodging & made a rough plan for the next week. He felt a little better so we called it a night & hit the hay.
My brain is two-tired to continue at the moment. Until next time!
Whitney