Biking from San Francisco to Los Angeles Biking down the coast of California has been a dream I've had for many years. When I lived in LA, as a kid, I would ride my bike down the coast to the beach. When I moved up to San Francisco, the desire to do the entire coast kicked in pretty strong.

I had bought a new touring bike in December, 2003 and was excited to put it (and me) to the test. I'd also fitted the bike out with racks, bought camping and cooking gear, and had bought the Adventure Cycling Maps of their Pacific Coast Route. I'd also bought and read the "bible" of the Pacific Coast route, Kirkendall's Bicycling The Pacific Coast.

This was my first self-contained bike tour. Here is what I did to prepare for this trip.

I carried about 45 pounds of equipment. Here is my equipment list.

I planned two schedules. One required 70 mile days. The shorter one required 50 mile days. Here are both schedules.

I ended up doing the aggressive (70-mile days) plan. I have done this ride several times since and no longer ride such long days. I now do this ride doing ony 50-mile days, which better fits my riding style. But, alas, that story will have to await another journal! Return to Main Menu

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