7: It's an ill wind that blows nobody good . . .

What is it about this wind?

We were having such a great time, rolling gently down from Paso Robles through the Sans - San Miguel, San Ardo, San Lucas - and then we turned up the road for the last 22 miles (should have taken about two hours, given the pace we were making) and blam! Hit in the face with the headwinds again.

This is what passes for a river in this part of California

Our average speed dropped from about 12.5 mph in the first half of the day (we were feeling so cocky!) to somewhere closer to 8.7 in the last three hours.  Argh!

Don't miss Linda's cafe when in San Miguel

It was a gorgeous day, cool and sunny.  We have been blessed so far to have nice, if windy, weather.  Our breakfast stop was in San Miguel, where Linda has been serving travelers from all over the world for 28 years.  Her tiny restaurant was a highlight of the day. She has plans to move a few blocks down the street, but don't worry - the beautiful blue counters are going with her. So if you go through San Miguel, stop in for a bite.

Also in San Miguel, we stopped for a quick look at the Mission San Miguel.  I'm embarrassed to say that this was my first visit to one of the missions since moving to California 15 years ago.

The church at Mission San Miguel is still used for daily Mass

It was quite a lovely place, and I wish I could have spent a few more minutes in the painted sanctuary. The piano tuner was at work at the front, and I could tell that the acoustics in the church would have made for some great music-making.

We passed more fields along our ride today. I am impressed with the diversity of crops that are grown in the adjacent fields. Hard to be sure from the bike, but I think we passed onions, lettuce, cabbage, cauliflower, and others I could not identify.

Folks, here's a plea: do not waste food! OMG it's a lot of work to get vegetables to your plate; don't waste them.

On the way to Santa Barbara the other day, I was so dispirited to look down at the bike computer and see that we were rolling dead flat and only making 6 mph. But today, I actually caught a glimpse when we were descending 2% and the speedometer read 5.7!  Ay yi yi!

Red leaf lettuce destined for your salad bowl

I've included a few shots that give you a sense of the winds in the second half of the day.  Crazy-making stuff.

It blew and blew and blew!

Old Glory

The day's record:  Paso Robles to King City, 59 miles/414 to date.


I love our country's flag, but when you are riding a bike, this is NOT what you want to see!