Big Sur, California

A loop around the central coast area

7 days / about 350 miles

This tour was part of my new-found love for combining a bike ride with a professional conference. I flew into San Luis Obispo and rode to Cambria to attend the California Natural Building Conference, then continued on in a counter-clockwise loop up to Monterrey and back down the coast. There had been a major landslide on the coast earlier that year, burying Route 1 somewhere between Cambria and Gorda. The road north of that was still open, and there was an exit via Nacimiento-Ferguson Road. But, this led to Route 1 being almost empty of traffic, which was awesome.

This was my first time to this area of California. I really enjoyed being able to bike tour in April and not freeze to death. The scenery was great too, including the green hills, big farm fields, and of course the coast. Camping at Lime Kiln State Park under the big bridge and watching the sunset over the ocean might be the highlight of the trip.