46.5 miles, 1,700' of elevation gain, temp range of 55 to 89 degrees with blue skies and an off shore wind.
This was yet another day of beautiful blue skies and visibility to the horizon. We had an easterly wind at times that slowed us down when we were heading east, but as we rounded the bay and headed west, the winds gave us a wonderful push.
The first 10 miles were more about getting out of Santa Cruz which is a fairly large metro area of 55,000 people so you had urban riding to contend with. Eventually, however, we rode into an agricultural area growing artichokes (10 for $1) and strawberries with the noticeable aroma of strawberries as we rode. Lots of pickers in the fields as the harvest season is in full swing.
We jumped on the bike path at the 33 mile marker and we basically rode it to within 3 blocks of our hotel in Monterey. Lots of views of the Bay, sounds of the seals and flocks of Pelicans which added to the visual enjoyment of the relatively short ride. Our hotel is another Best Western n the style of a Victorian house with a wonderful happy hour and within two blocks of Cannery Row and the world famous Aquarium.I spent the afternoon strolling and enjoying the wonderful view of he bay and remembering scuba diving in this very same bay years ago. It is almost totally empty of tourist and the cycling path almost totally empty. The least amount of people I have ever seen here which is a welcomed change to the usual bustle of the area.
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