13 January 2007

Solo ride

View from Skyline Record cold temperatures had me considering putting off this ride, in which I would climb Kings Mountain for the first time. Since the skies were clear, the sun would warm things up, though it would still be very cold in the shade. That would mean that if I started later, it would be warmer. However, since the route was around 110 miles, I had to start early enough to get back before sunset, which was around 5:30. In the end, I put on an extra set of gloves, added an extra jacket, and started off a little before 9. I figured that if I left Sky Londa for the final 50 miles or so before 2, I'd have about 3 1/2 hours, which was enough time if I rode at around 15mph.

It was freezing cold when I started. The weather services said the low was 27, so the temperatures were probably close to freezing, and it was supposed to be colder in the San Lorenzo Valley, where I was initially headed. Heading up Hwy 9, my toes and fingers were numb from the cold, and the two layers of gloves prevented me from warming up my fingers. From Felton to Boulder Creek, there was heavy car traffic, as usual. Above Boulder Creek, the traffic thinned significantly, as usual. In the upper part of the climb, it was warmer, and my fingers were comfortable, but my toes were still numb. There was also wind from time to time that the mountains had been shielding below.

At Skyline, I turned left and, after the initial brief climb, started a cold, shaded descent. Skyline has views of both the ocean and the bay. I stopped and, after a few minutes of fumbling with the camera phone with my gloves on, managed to take a picture of the bay.

At Sky Londa, I turned right and headed down Hwy 84, which I had never done before. At first, it reminded me of Old Santa Cruz Hwy, only with sharper curves, but the resemblance faded farther down. I turned left at Kings Mountain and started along the mostly flat initial part. After Entrance Way, it started climbing and the scenery looked more like a typical shaded mountain road of the area, resembling Tunitas Creek more than anything else. There were a couple of cyclists stopped at the Huddart Park entrance, and another one in a black jersey climbing slowly. We exchanged greetings as I passed him, and I noticed that he had aero bars on his bike. Soon after that, I noticed signs on the right, with #22, then #21, then #20 hand-written on them. I figured that they would count down to #1 by the top. There also were no mileage signs. Further up, I noticed a deer off the road, only 3 or 4 feet to my right. It watched me as I rode by, never making any move to run. A few feet above it, there was another, smaller deer, which also didn't try to run. I must have missed most of the other numbered signs, or the signs had the numbering scrubbed off, but I finally saw #3, then #2, then #1, just before the top. At Skyline, I turned left and headed back to Sky Londa.

Again at Sky Londa, I stopped for a snack and got an orangeade at the store. When I was ready to go, it was 1:17, so I was pretty sure I'd make it back before dark. I headed down Hwy 84, which was initially cold and shaded. Further down, it became more sunny, and, by the time I got to San Gregorio, my toes had finally warmed up enough to be comfortable for the first time in the day. At Hwy 1, I turned left and started the long stretch along the coast. I was really tired, and, by the time I reached Gazos Creek, my pace had slowed considerably to about 15mph, which I more or less maintained all the way back to Santa Cruz. At Western, I turned left and headed home.