Day 12: Red Bluff, Super 8-Chico, Heritage Inn

Start: Red Bluff Super 8

Finish: Chico Heritage Express Inn

Miles: 50.7

Elevation: 285

Avg Speed: 11.8

Ride Time: 4 hours, 18 minutes

Calories Burned: 1222

Weather: Pleasant sunny day mid-90's.

Route: Hiway 99W south to a series of farmroads, east on 32 into Chico.

Cool Stuff:

1. It was nice knowing that we were going to finally have a day off after 12 straight days of riding.
2. Exploring Chico and getting a great haircut and beard trim.  I opted to not get my head shaved, but it is cut really short.
3. Going to a Chico Outlaws bb game and watching the fireworks display.  David was a good sport.  Can’t say I’ve encountered a Brit who enjoys baseball.

Lesson’s Learned:

1. It's good to have accomodations waiting.  Thanks to David and Rose, we ended up in a nice motel at an affordable rate.
2. Otherwise, an uneventful day.

Palaver: We have rerouted ourselves out of Chico using Google maps; we might be able to finish in three more days of riding.  Part of the plan is to ride BART from Pittsburg to Walnut Creek.  I'll need to check in with Eldred and learn more about BART logistics.

Day 11: KOA, Shingletown-Red Bluff, Super 8

Start: Shingletown KOA

Finish: Motel 8, Red Bluff

Miles: 50.1

Elevation: 819'

Avg Speed: 13.1

Ride Time: 3 hours 49 minutes

Calories Burned: 903

Weather: Temp range: 57 degrees to 127 degress, it was very warm, true air temperature was ~103 degrees but the bike thermometer was reading very warm in the direct sun.

Route: Route 44 West, Dersch Road, Jelly's Ferry road, 2 miles on I-5, S on Main Street, E on Antelope to Super 8.

Cool Stuff:

1. A 4000+ foot descent including an inadvertent pee upon my front panniers.  See the “best of’s” for the details.
2. The ridge that climbed up to Table Mountain and led up to I-5.
3. Sharing a pint of Jameson Irish whiskey with David and solving the world's problems.
4. Luigi's Pasta and Pizza house.

Lesson’s Learned: It was an uneventful day, just hot.

Palaver: A smooth ride down from the mountains into the Sacremento Valley.  We are now entering the fruit and produce section of America.  Because the heat is so intense, we have decided to start our ride very early.  This morning we were on the road by 6:30.  Tomorrow we plan on getting out the door at 5:15, eating at the neighborhood Denny's, and on the road by 6:30.  We will see if we can do it.

Day 10: Cave CG-KOA, Shingletown

Start: Old Station, Cave CG

Finish: KOA 4 miles east of Shingletown.

Miles: 28.1

Elevation: 1565

Avg Speed: 10.0

Ride Time: 2 hours 47 minutes

Calories Burned: 926

Weather: Today started off much cooler.  It was 53 degrees at 700 am.  We climbed to Eskimo Summit (5933') under cloudy skies.  It was 75 degrees at the summit.  Here at the KOA at 200 pm it is low 90's.  Good deal to be off the road, in camp, showered, and sitting in the shade.

Route: 13 miles climb up 89 to Eskimo Summit (5933'); turn right onto 89 and head west down 89 toward Shingletown.  A big climb and a great descent.

Cool Stuff:

1. A short and relatively easy day.
2. Staying in a very nice KOA.
3. Finishing before the heat and wind became too intense.

Lesson’s Learned:

1. Start early.
2. Fuel up hearty in the morning.

Palaver: This is the first time in 10 days with total relaxation.  It feels just fine.  It has been lots of fun so far.  We've riden ourselves into pretty decent form.  The big stuff is over; regrettably we are leaving the coolness of the mountains and heading down to the scorching flats.  Mt. Lassen was wisely avoided.  Neither of us was very keen on the climb and 32 south sounds like a very dangerous road, particularly with 4^th of July traffic.  So, the plan is to scoot into Red Bluff as early as possible tomorrow, work out way over to Chico, and then follow the Chico-Oakland routes I found on the internet.  More route finding issues will ensue I'm sure.  We'd like to get into Chico on the 3rd and layup over the 4th.