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By Johnny, January 5, 2010 10:00 am

Between Christmas and New Years in 2009 I rode 431 miles in the span of 7 days. It all began on Christmas evening when I decided to ride out to my sister’s place in Chino Hills. The ride was good with some notable hills through Eagle Rock / Pasadena and the 3 hills entering the City of Walnut on Grand as well as through Diamond Bar / Chino Hills. It took me about 5 hours to go 55 miles. I was carrying with me a change of clothing and some Christmas gift for our gift exchange. Everything including myself made it safe and sound.

The next afternoon, I had to make the journey back home. The toughest hill this time around was the one from Chino Hills to Diamond Bar on Grand. All the other hills from the previous day made it enjoyable since the grades was a bit more steep on the way to CH. I got up to 38 mph flying down Grand in Walnut. I got home a few minutes sooner than I did the previous night.

On the 27th, I took the day off from riding knowing that the next day would be the start of my bicycle touring / camping trip.

The next morning on the 28th, I left the house at 6:20 am. I was suppose to meet Jeremy at the Vermont / Santa Monica red line station at 7 am. I underestimated the time it took to get from my place to the station with a full bicycle load. Needless to say I was late by 30 minutes. We immediately took off riding down Santa Monica towards the ocean. After about 25 miles completed we rested in Santa Monica where we were greeted by a furry friend looking for food in Jeremy’s bags. We rested and collected ourselves and prepared for our next stop, which was going to be some 30+ miles away.

We hopped back on our bikes and pedaled north on PCH. We didn’t stop until we rode past Zuma beach in which I had to take a bio-break. I was feeling good and excited about the trip. I was eagerly waiting for the scenery to change from the rolling hills of the Pacific Coast. Strangely enough, the bottom bracket on my bicycle started to act up. It was making loud squealing noise off and on. Interestingly enough, that noise was gone after the first day.

The next time we got off our bike, we were at a cool rest stop outside of the Naval Base where they showed replicas of fighter jets and missiles. We had our first meal there. When we got there, there was a guy playing with 2 new puppies. The dogs were adorable but I didn’t approach him to talk about them. I was just zoning out from the ride. Eventually we see the same CHiP officer pull over 2 cars on separate occasions. It seem to us that this was a hot spot for this particular officer. Right when we were getting ready to leave, another touring rider stops by to say hello. He was traveling from San Francisco down to the southern border from Germany. He takes 2 months off every year around the same time to tour the United States. He was riding through Yosemite and was cruising through the area we were planning to visit. We wished each other safe travel and proceeded opposite directions.

We rode through Oxnard which featured a fairly busy suburban neighborhood highlighted with various service people driving their big trucks, sports bikes, or obnoxiously modified import car. It was a relief to finally get out into Ventura before sunset. That was cut short when the clouds prematurely covered our sunset and we were forced to ride in cold.

The final leg of the ride had us riding through 2 camp sites preparing our dinner, cruising through the 101 / 1 freeway, and finally highway 150 before we found a camp site at the side of the road. We spent the night covered in our tarps listening to the calls of bats and barking of dogs through-out the night. We finished 104 miles but I could not comfortably sleep. It was the fear of being caught that kept me up. I have to admit, stealth camping is not my thing. Jeremy seemed very content since he was able to sleep through the night undisturbed.

The next morning we crawled out of our slumber back onto the 150 highway. We proceeded another 16 miles through Carpenteria and Summerland until we reached Santa Barbara. Our focus this morning was to find a spot to have breakfast. We were able to locate a spot on a park right next to the ocean walk.

I enjoyed some oatmeal and a cup of hot cocoa. Also had a banana and some trail mix. What seemed to me at the time plenty of food for a ride, was certainly not enough for what was in store today. We packed up everything and got back on the road. The mission this morning was to locate more water since we were running really low. We followed the maze of bicycle lanes and routes through-out Santa Barbara and found ourselves outside of a Vons where Jeremy bought 2 gallons of water.

We finally located the road that was going to lead us up to the road to Lake Cachuma. To say that this road was tough would be an understatement. It was suppose to be only 15 miles of straight climbing. After the first 2 miles I was beat. I was really tired. There were switchbacks and hairpin turns that would take you up 4 stories up after 2-3 turns. After 4 miles, I gave up and decided to walk the bike up. The pictures below showed a very naive me thinking I can take on this mountain. Little did I know…

We made our way onto highway 154 which was a straight climb up. When I mean straight climb, it was a complete ascend up to the top. At the end of it all, we probably climbed about 2600+ feet. At that point, Jeremy wisely suggested we put on a sweater because it was going to be cold flying down. Boy was he right! We hit speeds of 40 mph flying with speeding cars and trucks. It was a pleasant ride up and down all the way through to Lake Cachuma. We finally had our lunch right next to the lake. I foolishly thought this was it. Jeremy had other plans. He was seeking for a fire road that was suppose to take us over to the beach the same day. Luckily for me, that road was closed to the public so I offered that we stayed at Lake Cachuma for the night. I was both mentally and physically beat. I did not want to climb more mountains that evening. Thankfully, Jeremy agreed and we got to camp at the Lake Cachuma area.

During the night we were kept up by frat boys who were extremely loud. They were freaking themselves out when a enormous raccoon invaded their site. The same raccoon came through our site and stole some bread off of Jeremy’s bike. Jeremy took the bread and threw it away from our tents. It was comically because I thought I was hearing him eat in the middle of the night while it was really a raccoon. And yes, that animal was fat and enormous!

The third day of the bike tour began with a rain in the morning. We spent our mornings preparing breakfast in our tent. Knowing that I had hills, I ate more oatmeal than usual hoping that this would help. We packed up and began our ride out in the rain. I didn’t mind the rain all too much. It was actually therapeutic as we ride 10 miles towards Solvang. We finally reached Refugio Road. Locals pronounce it as Refufio. A guy on his truck stopped by to ask us if we were doing okay. We told him we were good and asked him about the road. He said he’s done the hill and said it wasn’t so bad. I guess I took that literally because I was shocked when I reached to part of the ride where the roads were so bad that the only way a car could make it up these hills, is if you have a 4 x 4 vehicle. We climbed and climbed up this mountain. Our tires and mud guard on the bike was caked with mud. We stopped several times but managed to get back on the bike and continue to pedal up towards the top. My tires were not suited for that type of situation but I pushed on slipping and sliding. Fortunately for me, I did not fall. I was able to finally make it up to the top. Jeremy once again was able to reach the top well before I did and waited patiently for my arrival.

I was greeted by a couple of old folks exclaiming, “You look like you rode from China!” I didn’t know if I should be offended or not but I was thoroughly exhausted. Again, I had to put on my layers of clothing because at the top, we were amongst the clouds or fog. Descending on the other side, we were told was going to be step and fast. Jeremy went ahead of me since he had plenty of time to rest. On my way down, I bumped into the same old couple who wanted to take my picture. We talked for a few minutes and found out that they were from LA in the Ontario area. They had a place in Santa Maria and was touring the hills to see Reagan’s Ranch. The were retired teachers who had a lot to talk about. I finally got to leave on my descent down the road after they took a few pictures with me. It was a frigid ride down. Really not a ride but rather an exercise of concentration and arm control. The roads were slippery and the visibility was horrible. It took me about 10 minutes to fly down the mountain onto the beach. I was so relieved to have lunch after the crazy 3000+ feet of climbing we just did.

After lunch, we began the last leg of our ride to Carpenteria. It was going to be a 50+ miles ride on the freeway and through Golieta and Santa Barbara. Jeremy had an abundance of energy and I found myself about 1 – 2 miles back from him at one point. I finally catch up to him when we exited the freeway and began our trail on the bike lanes of Golieta and Santa Barbara. That was probably one of the most entertaining ride that I’ve experienced. We were weaving in and out of multiple bike paths which gave the right-of-way to the cyclists.

Oddly enough, I had lost my sleeping mat on the road and a motorist found it and returned it to me. I was so grateful. When we got into Santa Barbara, the sun had set and we needed to find water and snacks. We met a few veterans who asked for change. We gave them some change and one actually told us where to get free clean water. By the time we got going again, it was pitch dark. During this whole time I was thinking to myself how amazing it is that no one got a single flat. Murphy’s Law kicked in and I got a flat on my rear tire right before we entered Carpenteria. We had to pull over and I had to unload the bike completely. It took probably about an hour to change out the tube, load and unload my bike. We finally make it to Carpenteria and found that they had a campsite for hikers and bikers available. We gladly took the spots offered and setup camp. We ate and I took a nice warm shower before I went to bed. Jeremy on the other hand was exhausted so he went to sleep right after dinner. Total mileage this day was 67 miles.

The next morning we were suppose to leave by 9am. I was up by 7am. Even though I was the early bird, I was the last to pack up my stuff. Jeremy had finished breakfast while I was putting my tent away. I felt so lethargic and drained. The ride did not start out well. I was instantly left behind by Jeremy. By the time I got my pace back we were ready for our first break.

We proceeded down toward Ventura. Once again Jeremy ran into some problems with his chain. He worked on it for about an hour before we got going again. We kept pedaling until we reached Oxnard. We stopped at a park for a breather and then about 10 miles later we decided to grab lunch. We both agreed that a nice lunch was well deserved for our efforts so we decided to go get some good Mexican food. Our first restaurant meal included a combination of a burrito and a couple of tacos. I was stuffed. Once again I thought this was enough to last me through the rest of the ride.

We left the restaurant and proceeded to ride through the same Naval Base that we had passed 2 days ago. This time we just rode pass the aircraft and missile display. By the time I reached Point Mugu, my calves started to hurt. In fact, it all just went down hill for my body from that point forward. With about 70 miles to go, I was in for a tough ride back. We patiently ascended and descended the hills on PCH until we finally reached the Santa Monica Pier. Due to the fact that it was New Years Eve, the pier was especially crowded by tourists and family.

It was in Santa Monica where I felt the chaos of traffic begin to creep up on me. Not only was I exhausted, I had to dodge people and cars while worrying about my leaning bag and sleeping bag on my bike. I didn’t want to lose anything. Jeremy took me through Beverly Hills and through Korea town in which he showed me my way back over to Burbank. He was done about 20 miles before I was. By the time I reached home, I was in a daze, hungry, and drenched in sweat. The mileage I covered was 105 miles for the last day of my trip.

There’s something about carrying all your personal belongings with you on a bike that humbles you down. A couple of notable first would be my first and second century ride was accomplished on this trip. I rode on the freeway for the very first time as well. I also learned a lot on this trip about myself. I learned that I am in decent shape for a guy who only rides on weekdays and occasionally on weekends. At the same time I learned that I need to be in better shape and battle more hills around LA. I learned to listen to my body whenever it needs something. More food, rest, and bathroom breaks. I also learned that people are generally very nice, kind, and curious. Everywhere we stopped there seemed to be someone willing to start a conversation with us. They’d ask where we were heading or if we needed any help. It was good to know that in a world where everyone is closed in their cars, people would still be willing to talk to a couple of bikers with their entire possession strapped to their bicycles.

A big thanks to Jeremy who planned the route and blazed the trail for me. He was methodical and direct with his planning. Like I said on Twitter, he was a beast on his bike and I’m glad he waited up for me when I was struggling through the hills. Here are some pictures from his camera. He took much better photos about the journey. His camera was readily available than mine so my pictures didn’t capture everything. I’m looking forward to the next trip.

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By Johnny, August 31, 2009 10:11 am

I wanted to point out a few of my favorite photos from the trip.

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By Johnny, August 30, 2009 5:56 pm

I have returned from my latest adventure through Las Vegas, Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, and the Grand Canyon. My travel-mates, my sister and her fiancé planned this trip a few months back. Here was the itinerary then.

• August 22nd – Las Vegas
• August 23rd – Zion
• August 24th – Bryce
• August 25th – Page, AZ
• August 26th – Grand Canyon
• August 27th – Grand Canyon
• August 28th – Havasu Falls

Saturday morning we got all our camping stuff together and it looked a little like this.

At first we couldn’t get everything packed in the car. Eventually we left the canopy and few other items at home. We were very close to calling it quits to the trip since all the SUVs and vans were rented and that would have been a $500 increase to the rental rate even if they found one for us. We began our journey towards Vegas in our rented Nissan Altima around 11AM.

We eventually made it to our Vegas location. We stayed at a friend’s vacation condo located about 4 miles from the strip. It was a hot and muggy day. Notice that the floor is wet when we arrived. Eventually we made it out to the strip and parked our car at the Bellagio hotel. We pretty much spent our evening walking through the strip from hotel to hotel after having our last meal before our camping trip at the Paris hotel. We eventually went back to the condo and called it a night.

The next morning we started our journey towards Zion. This was the first time we ever drove north on the I-15 freeway. After about 3 hours of driving and being lost at the north part of Zion we eventually made it to our campsite. We quickly setup camp and had our lunch. Marie had mentioned that this was “the best sandwich” ever. Probably because of the fact that we didn’t eat until 3PM.

We eventually hopped on the free shuttle that ran through Zion Canyon and took it all the way to the end. On the way we saw so many different sandstone formations. I was in awe to be in such a beautiful environment. We definitely felt so little at a place like that. The history of the Virgin River running through the canyon which was pretty much the reason why the canyon was carved in the way it was.

Our first hike was about a mile hike to the beginning of the Narrows. This was a section of the hike that you had to get your feet wet literally. We didn’t go too far due to the fact that in places like this with thunderstorms looming, you can easily be caught in a flash flood and we did not want to risk that. Thunderstorms was the theme of this trip after my friend Camille had told me she had lost a friend during a flash flood in Grand Canyon. We were very conscious about not putting ourselves in the position. Luckily when we got back from the hike, it was drizzling right before we hopped back onto the bus.

We then stopped at another location called the “Weeping Rock”. This was a half mile hike which featured a rock that had a constant stream of water flowing on it. We were under it to see and feel the water fall off the rock. The hike was steep but very short.

By the time that was over, we ended up going back to camp by the shuttle. We prepared some salmon and corn for our dinner and sat around our first night of camp fire. There was a general store right outside the park in which you can buy almost anything you need for camping. We went and bought some firewood and some citronella candle to deter the yellow jackets that was constantly buzzing around our meals.

The campsite was very nice. We were under the shade for the most part. At nights, it got windy. Perhaps not as windy as it seemed if you were sleeping in a tent. Our second night was much worse when it felt like the tent just was about to be blown off from it’s foundation.

The next day we got up and headed out of Zion and into Bryce Canyon. It was a 2 hour drive towards the Northeast. Very beautiful drive on a 2 lane highway. On the way we saw a group of cyclists who was doing one of those fully supported rides. I vowed one of these days I will be doing that. But for now, I admired my view at speeds ranging from 45mph to 70mph.

When we got to the Visitor’s center we had our lunch of Lunchables crackers, meat, and cheese. Again there was a free shuttle that drove us from various points of interest. We stopped at Sunset Point and was treated to majestic view of what this park had to offer. All three of us was in pure amazement to see the pylons of stones that made up this location. After several minutes of photo sessions, we hiked down to the canyon.

Our hike was initially going to be a 1 – 2 miler but ended up to be about 4 miles. We were very anxious at the beginning but towards the end it got tough with the hike terminating at the top of the look-out.

After the hike, we jumped on the shuttle for 2 more stops at Bryce Point and Inspiration Point. From there we were able to see more beautiful rock formations. We had lots of beautiful pictures from this hike and was probably the most scenic of all the places we went. Towards the end, we stopped taking pictures since it pretty much looked the same at each of the points. We left the park at 6PM and retreated back to Zion. We ate dinner, sat around the camp fire, and went to bed.

The next morning, was check out morning for Zion. We had breakfast and packed up our campsite. We had to remember how we originally packed the car so that we used every space optimally. After we were all packed up, we went on one last hike through Zion. We hiked to a location called the “Emerald Pools”. It sounded very interesting but unfortunately didn’t lived up to our expectations. Because of the fact that there isn’t a lot of water during summer, we didn’t see magnificent waterfalls. Instead a few spouts of water falling from the rocks above. Don’t get me wrong, it was still a good hike.

When we got back to the car, we began our journey to Page, Arizona. What’s in Page, AZ? That was going to be the stop before the Grand Canyon so that we can sleep on beds and take our much deserved showers.

What we didn’t realize was that Page offered many places to see. Ranging from Lake Powell, Rainbow Bridge, Horseshoe Bend, and the Glen Canyon Dam. We eventually decided to go see Horseshoe Bend before dinner. We were not prepared for the minor hike to the location but walked through it with slippers and all. When we got there, we were treated to another sight of beauty. Sunset at the Horseshoe Bend was incredible. We spent almost an hour admiring the view and getting over our fear of heights.

We meet a German family on the way back from view Horseshoe Bend. The father helped us snapped a group picture at the spot. We found out they were doing pretty much the same trip we were doing. Instead of starting at Las Vegas, they were going to end there. They were at Zion and Bryce at the same time we were and was heading off to the Grand Canyon the next day as well. We bid them farewell only to meet them again at the restaurant where we had Chinese food. They were very friendly and pleasant. Through out the remainder of the trip we referred back to them several times. One of the most interesting part of the trip was that we kept on hearing so many different languages. We were surrounded by Europeans everywhere we went. They really love our national parks! We got back to the motel and surfed on the Internet for a few hours as well as watched TV. Eventually went to sleep in our somewhat comfortable beds.

We got up, went to Walmart and McDonald’s for breakfast. I was surprised by the fact that it cost us almost $20 for breakfast at McDonald’s. That was 3 of the same “value” meal. Anyhow, we got on the SR-89 going South. What we didn’t know at that time, our GPS made us go to “Grand Canyon National Park” location in Flagstaff. We obediently obliged and drove all the way down to Flagstaff only to realize that the location it was directing us was an office location.

Our detour did bring us to another National Park at the “Sunset Volcano Crater”. This was an active volcano few thousands of years ago. It pretty much was one of the bigger ones around the area and around the park was surrounded by remains of hardened magma. We hiked around the Lava trail for half a mile. The place was interesting but it wasn’t as “scenic” as we thought it would be.

Our detour led us more Southwest than we would have wanted to be. Eventually we made it to our campsite in the Grand Canyon National Park around 5PM. We quickly setup camp and bought some more firewood for the night. The free bus at the park ran until 11PM every night in the summer so we thought it was a good idea to go to one of the stops to see the Grand Canyon.

We eventually made it out to Yavapai Point in which we were treated to a beautiful sunset. The canyon was massive. Much bigger than that of Zion or Bryce. I felt much smaller being there especially when you look through a pair of binoculars towards some trails in the canyon. We eventually took the bus back and settled in at our new campsite.

The camping at the South Rim of Grand Canyon was cold at nights. It was comfortable and not too cold. We heard lots of crickets and insects that chirped through-out the night. We saw bats flying over while the stars sparkled in the sky. The first night, the moon was missing after a brief appearance. The second night, it lit the sky and our paths.

The next day we went to the Visitor’s center to ask the park ranger on recommended day hikes. We were told that there is a 2 hour hike we can do called the “Ooh Aah Point”. This hike was great going down, but on the way back up, it was strenuous. Nevertheless, the reward at the bottom was another beautiful view of the Eastern part of the canyon.

We eventually finished the hike drenched in sweat and exhausted. We went back to the Visitor’s center by bus and meandered through the Rim trail. That was another 1.5 mi walk back to Yavapai Point, which was the location we were at the evening before. We took the bus into the Village. We were actually in search of these “cancellation stamps” from the National Park. At Bryce, we bought some National Park Passports which allows you to put stickers and have cancellations stamps from all the major US National Parks. In the Grand Canyon there was 5 of them. I only got 4 of 5. We treated ourselves to some ice cream before taking the bus towards the western side of the Grand Canyon. We ended up at Hermit’s Rest.

We found the 3rd stamp there and proceeded back. I remember being exhausted and falling asleep on the bus ride back into the Village. Marie & Sang decided to head back into camp and take advantage of the showers. I decided to find the remaining cancellation stamp at the Visitor’s Center. I soon found out that the last stamp was at the Desert View location which was only reachable by car. It was a 25 mi drive to the East side of the canyon, outside of the park. I was fortunately to find the 4th stamp at a location where we found the first one.

I made it back before it got dark and just sat around until they came back. We had dinner and discussed the details of our last day. When I was sitting around I was doing some quick research about Havasu Falls. This was going to be something we needed to do in more than 1 day. It wasn’t a simple trip of going there and hiking to see the falls. It was going to require some hiking to a location, camping and hiking back. We decided that it wasn’t going to be a good idea to go there and decided to head back home a day earlier. We forfeited the night at the hotel as a result. But that was evened out when we returned the car a day earlier.

Thinking back, we did a lot for a week long trip. It was non-stop action and I loved the camping aspect of this trip. I can’t wait to do another camping-centric trip again. I believe we may try to go see the Arches and make our way into Yellowstone. You know we have these cancellation stamps to obtain!

Here is the Flickr set of the remaining photos in our trip. Enjoy!

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By Johnny, July 16, 2009 1:10 am

The photo updates into Flickr are going up slowly but surely. I’m currently on my vacation back in 2007 of the Great Pacific Northwest. Looking at those images brings back fond memories. I can’t wait to be able to go on my vacation trip this year. We’re planning on heading over to Utah and Arizona to visit Bryce, Zion, and the Grand Canyon National Park.

Tonight I had the chance to ride from work to the Bike Oven and then from there back home for the first time since I’ve moved. Logged about 34 miles. Most on a school night on my commuter. Not that I’m proud or anything but I finally got to find out how it was to ride to the Bike Oven and back. I’ve been hesitant in the past because it didn’t seem too safe so I drove there most of the time. I think I’ll be riding there more often now.