Day 12: Down by the bay, where the...artichokes grow!

Bryan started the day with a great tailwind and smooth sailing almost all the way into Santa Cruz. He enjoyed a wide shoulder even when he was supposed to be off the #1 and on a designated bike trail. Signage is lacking! With his usual 2 hour head start, I had a hard time catching him before 12:30. He also liked the view, including the freshly cultivated and planted fields. One crop that he puzzled over turned out to be row on row of artichokes. You don't see that in Saskatchewan! All in all, he covered 160 km by the time he arrived just outside of Monterey.

In Santa Cruz, we got gas, found the tourist information centre, bought another phone card, and picked up some groceries. We have to look after the mundane, after all. However, many other people were using this day to go to the beach, cycle or hike the hills. We saw surfers, both of the wind and wave varieties. Cars were parked along the highway, anywhere there was a pull out. Harbour parking lots teemed with people chasing a few hours of sun and wave action.

My day was also very different from the tension of yesterday. Roads were straight and wide, with lots of places to stop and smell the roses or taste the fruits. This was a U-pick strawberry farm that also had their own line of jam and had lots of tasty creations from pies to chocolates. What was really quaint was the decor and the honor till. This was a great place to relax along the way.

Imagine that...not far down the highway was a huge fruit market busy with the Sunday crowd eager for the great prices and quality. They also had an amazing store with row upon row of shells from around the world.
All this and a great view of the ocean.

While I waited for Bryan today, I decided to capture some of the beauty growing along the highway, from calla lilies, to these succulents below, to brilliant blue or yellow flowering shrubs. All this in a drought year?

At about 5:30, I collected Bryan and his bike from the busy spot above on the #1 and we headed into Monterey for the night. After quickly unloading at a motel, we walked the 15 minutes down to the bay area.
Unfortunately, the aquarium and museum were closed for the night but we enjoyed our stroll on the docks.
We got a few long looks since we had worn our winter gear, but we were nice and warm the whole time, despite a cold wind off the water.

On our way back through the downtown, we stopped for supper at a classy Italian place featuring an accomplished guitar player accompanied by a fellow on a set of 4 bongos. Excellent food and a little Santana made for a nice finish to a very good day. By the time we walked back to the motel, the sky sparkled with stars in the full moonlight. Yes, so romantic!