Day 57 – San Francisco

We’re done. What a day. It’s certainly satisfying to make it all the way to San Francisco (and a bit surreal to be here). Tho, honestly, this was probably the most difficult day of the trip. Between the ride itself, the logistics, and just the duration, I’m totally wiped out. That said, Heidi won’t let me go to bed until I write the post, so here it is 😉

It was a beautiful day in Sacramento. JP and I looked particularly photogenic in the morning sun.

The plan for the day was to SAG up to Winters, ride to Vallejo, catch the 2pm ferry to SF, then ride the last 6 miles from the SF ferry terminal to the Warming Hut at the Golden Gate Bridge. We decided to leave out of Winters to make sure we made it to Vallejo in plenty of time for the 2pm ferry. We were shooting for a 1pm arrival, and we got there at 1:02. Not too bad from a planning perspective.

A few days ago Bobby decided he wanted to ride that last 6 mile segment in SF with us. Figuring it was mostly bike path and bike lanes, I agreed. He’s been really excited about it, and the first thing he did this morning when he got up was to put on his biking jersey. Then, after JP and I hit the road, he got his bike prepped with Terran and rode it around the parking lot to make sure everything was ready.

The ride out of Winters started with a bit of a horse race. The route we were on is apparently popular with the local riders. We hooked up with a small group of riders and put the throttle down for the first 5 miles or so. We ran a nice paceline scooting along at ~19mph while we wound our way through orchards and vineyards.

We met up with the MCC and Art 23 miles in to the ride. We refilled bottles, grabbed a quick bite, and were optimistic about the second 23 miles we had left. Unfortunately, mother nature (and the local geography) had something else in mind. The wind really picked up and JP and I fought a 15mph headwind for a good chunk of the ride. Also, there was a bit more climbing than we expected coming in to Vallejo so that cut our pace down too. Luckily we had allocated enough time to get in to the Ferry terminal so it wasn’t an issue.

On the way in to town, we took ~5 miles of a bike trail that went up and over the pass in to town. We swapped positions with another cyclist on the trail a few times, and finally met up with him at the bottom of the hill/end of the trail. The rider asked me “When you reach the bottom of the trail, what do you do? I always turn around, but there’s got to be more riding.”

I respond… “Well, we’re going to go up and around Columbia Parkway, turn right on Georgia, get on the ferry to San Fran, and then ride to the Golden Gate Bridge to finish a 2 month long cross country bike trip.”

“Oh. Huh. I don’t think I’ll do that.” with smiles all around.

Anyhoo, JP and I met up with Heidi in the MCC at the Vallejo ferry terminal. Art had already left for SF to do some sight seeing, and after a quick conversation, Heidi, Terran, and Dax were on their way to SF as well. JP, Bobby, and I enjoyed the midday sun and some chicken tenders while we waited for the ferry.

Terran took the camera while Heidi drove through town. He managed to catch a shot of Cupid’s Span with the Bay Bridge in the background.

He also got a picture of the Ferry Building… pretty good shot from the car.

JP, Bobby, and I tracked the MCC via our mobile app. Heidi was definitely battling Sunday SF traffic and barely beat us to the bridge before we made landfall.

At the Ferry Terminal we were met by Tom Tufts, another Tom (that Heidi and I went to school with) and his girlfriend. They were the first of our welcoming committee and were riding with us to the bridge.  Also, I’ve been worried someone was going to wreck during this trip… turns out, it was Tufts on his way to the Ferry Terminal. He took a spill… which I appreciate. It spared me or JP having to do it instead.

The ride to the Warming Hut was crazy. There are a TON of people on bikes and walking around SF on the weekends. Plus, cars. I was a bit nervous about Bobby making it to the bridge, but he did a fantastic job. He handled himself well, especially when we got behind about 50 tourists who were all over the trail, snapping photos, and generally not paying any attention to those around them.

So just before 4pm, the whole group of us rolled up to the Warming Hut.

And here’s the obligatory handshake. Looks like we just signed a treaty or something… assuming heads of state sign treaties while wearing spandex shorts.

There were even more folks waiting for us at the Hut. It was really fantastic to have that kind of greeting. It’s pretty amazing to see friends and family waiting for us after this adventure. It was certainly heartwarming and a welcome sight after 2 months on the road.

All the cousins even had a chance to play together. I assume they’re all sleeping soundly as they really had a good time together both at the bridge and then afterwards at Heidi’s sister’s place.

And just so we have some proof, here’s us with the Pacific in the background. No it’s not photoshop. Yes, we made it.

Even more friends caught up with us as we made our way back to the car.  And with unplanned timing, one of Heidi’s oldest friends happened to be driving over the golden gate just as we were arriving and we were able to see him as well.  Just amazing.

So that’s it. There will be some follow-on posts regarding lessons learned, advice for anyone else trying to do this, gear reviews, etc. But this is the last of the daily updates. Thanks to EVERYONE that followed us throughout this trip. I was stunned by the number of people who I spoke to over the last few weeks who have been reading this blog and keeping track of our ride. Your support means a lot to JP and I. And a HUGE thanks to Art, Heidi, and the boys for all they did for us this summer. This ride wouldn’t have been possible without them and we can’t thank them enough.

Till the next ride…