Got up nice and early and out by 9AM. It had been warm last night and I could sleep with the fly off of my tent and see the stars. Very nice.
Rolled past Miranda, CA and into a town called Phillipsville, which had the most amazing little general store. It had terrific coffee and a nice old bearded man playing some 70's fusion jazz. I like these parts of California.
I left the redwoods and made my way to Leggett, the little town where U.S. 101 meets California's Rte. 1. And just past the town of Leggett is "Leggett Hill," which is the biggest "hill" on the coast climging to 2000 feet. I rested a while beforehand, and then pushed through it in about a half hour or so. It was quite a climb (over 4 miles in length) but it flattened at spells so it wasn't always that hard. The descent was amazing. I could really feel the difference the new tires made. I got up to 47 mph. Hot damn.
After the almost 6 mile downhill, I hit another pretty hearty climb, which I might have been harder than Leggett if only because I had put so much mental energy into the first "hill." I crawled up it and hit flat land, but had to race to get into my campsite by sundown. On the way, I went through a number of small towns, the most memorable of which was called Westport. There was one main center of business and culture which was the general store/ post office/ gas station. Outside there were a few locals driking "Mates" (which is coffee for hippies), and a group of guys playing various guitar instruments. One man I met had travelled on foot (his belongings in tow on a makeshift rickshaw sort of contraption) with his dog from Dallas, TX. He'd been on the road for over three years. Pretty crazy. I liked his spirit though.
Got to camp and endured a brutally cold night. I put on my jacket and zipped up my mummy bag all the way and only then could I get comfortable.
For the day:
Rolling Time: 6:57:53
Distance: 84.54 miles
Avg speed: 12.13 mph
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