California: Ventura to Carpinteria (and back): A flamboyant and entertaining ride
We put our van right by the ocean, at Rincon beach - near Ventura, in the night. There were scads of giant RVs parked along here, so we just joined the party. At daybreak we moved to a beach at Ventura (Buenaventura Park) and headed back North on the bikes.
The ride started on a bike path that had lots of joggers, switched to a bike lane on Hwy 1, and ended with the shoulder of the freeway (Hwy 101).
We have to hand it to Southern California. When it comes to delivering the goods on entertainment it is hard to beat. Much as we enjoyed Half Moon Bay up North, today's ride had this: Broad sweep of open beach with long rollers crashing in, surfers out on the water in wetsuits or gearing up from many parked cars in beachside parks, palm trees and other tropical foliage, adjacent high cliffs, bright blue sky and soft air - shorts and t shirt stuff, gentle breeze, no hills.
Have a look:
Rincon beach, where we slept. Apparently "Rincon is known world wide as one of the planet's top surfing spots. Nearly every major surf champion on the globe has taken Rincon for a test drive."
Bike path, Hwy 1, train tracks, and freeway 101 intertwine a bit on this stretch. At Emma Wood State Beach we stuck to travelling by the water, but the pavement ended. We had to carry the bikes over the tracks and up this steep embankment to regain the bike path.
