All done, heading home

The final descent down Hamilton was delightful.  San Jose is a big city and it took over an hour to reach Amity's house (my sister in law).  They had hamburgers and beer waiting for me!  And a shower!

I arrived in the afternoon and had a flight that night at 10:45.  A quick turnaround, but a flight on Monday means I'd miss all of Labor Day, and that would be a bummer. 
During the trip I would drop a pin in a map on my phone, here's a screenshot of the final route.  And as for Sinewave Cycles, here is my phone's battery level after 30 days on tour...

Overall, just a wonderful month on the road.  The route through the mountains was terrific.  I saw beautiful things and met interesting and kind people.  What else can I say?  I loved every minute.

Mount Hamilton Summit

The road up the east side is STEEP!  2000 feet in the last 5 miles - I think that's more than Tioga Pass.  But I made it and the view was worth it.

The Junction Cafe

A nice oasis in the middle of nowhere.

Done with Del Puerto Canyon!  Next is the climb up Hamilton, then down to San Jose!

Mount Hamilton

There are three ways I can get through the mountains and into the Bay Area - north over Altamont Pass (700 feet), south over Pacheco Pass (1300 feet), or straight over Mount Hamilton (4100 feet).  If you know me you can probably guess which one I'm doing.

But it's much more than simply being a masochist.  I bought my first road bike when I lived in San Jose.  I got it to speed up my commute, which I had been doing on a mountain bike.  Once I had the bike, however, I looked up at Mt Hamilton, the highest point in the Bay Area, and thought, hmm, what would happen if I tried to ride my bike up there?   I went halfway up on my first attempt, and to the top the next time.  The third time I continued over the back side to Livermore.  So to me, Mt Hamilton represents my initial interest in cycling, and the sign on top that says "Patterson - 50 miles" is my wonder of what would happen if I biked just a little further.  So, I can't think of a better way to end this trip, and the 20 mile descent to San Jose won't be so bad either!

All you can eat

All you can eat clam chowder at the Bellevue Bowl in Atwater, CA.  They must line up ambulances in the parking lot.

Steinbeck

I've been looking all day for a John Steinbeck reference - here it is, courtesy of Dustbowl Brewing Company in Turlock, CA.

Severe Tire Damage

Earlier today I pulled off the side of the road and filled both tires with the nastiest thorns I've ever seen.  I only realized this a minute later when both tires went flat.  Fortunately I was near a church with grass and a tree so I pulled off there, made some lunch, and prepared to do battle with these thorns.

It took about 15 minutes to pull them all out of the front tire.  The big ones were easy but there were tons of little needles that I needed pliers to pull out.  Once I felt I had found them all I checked out the tube - I found and patched one hole, but once inflated it slowly lost pressure - it might have several slow leaks, so I pulled it out and put in another tube, which held pressure (meaning I had removed the thorns successfully!)

The rear tire was a complete loss.  Many more thorns than the front, both big and small (I'm talking about DOZENS of them).  The rear was also just about worn through, which was disappointing - the tire is a Pasela TourGuard, I'd expect a tire with the words "Tour" and "Guard" in the name to be a little more durable.  So, I threw away the rear tire and tube and went to the backup I had used when I had some tire problems back in Crater Lake.  That, and a new tube, also held pressure.  Phew!  90 minutes later (including lunch), I was back on the road.   Pretty crappy but at least I was able to get everything fixed up.

The lesson, as always - never get off the pavement to pee, just find a decent shoulder!