Day 9, Santa Barbara

I survived the windstorm. Sleep was tumultuous with the sides of my tent collapsing inwards all night. Regardless, the MSR Hubba Hubba tent held strong.

The camp host also woke up early, driving his little six wheeled John Deere Gator around to unlock gates and things.

And he continued to drive around all morning. He could have easily optimized his route and duties to finish in half the time, but preferred to torture us with that Gator's incessant motor.

And we left - easy ride, beautiful weather.

The photos do no justice; just another shot of the ocean.

A few hours later, we arrived at Mike's house.

Mike is an avid cyclist, and at the age of 77, a true inspiration. He was kind to host Dave and I, even though he already had other guests.

Mike lent me his soldering iron to permanently wire my dynamo hub to the USB port. I bought a couple stereo jacks (Dave's fantastic idea) to make a quick disconnect for the system.

I'll post a photo tomorrow.

We also met Mike's other guests, Vincent and Justine, a couple from Paris. On their first cycle adventure, they return to France in June after traveling around the world for two years​.

They've hitchhiked around New Zealand, explored Thailand, Laos & Cambodia (to name a few), and taught French in Taiwan.

For their west coast tour, instead of riding two bikes, they have a tandem bike with a massive trailer.

Justine's tandem rig

Tomorrow is a rest day. And find a REI day.

Joe.