The Pirate’s Cove 20K Trail Race was the only part of the road trip that we committed to in advance (with money, that is) as we were concerned the race would sell out. And it did.

There were also 8, 30 and 50K events and these races were part of the Pacific Coast Trail Run Series. It was so well organized that I wish we could have done more of these races, but this was the only one that fit into our schedule. I encourage Tucson trail runners to check out the series for some possible weekend trips.



We headed through the fog over the Golden Gate Bridge and easily found the race site next to Rodeo Beach in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The 50 and 30K runners went first, followed by the 20K runners about 15 minutes later. The race director was welcoming to all new trail runners and gave them some recognition and encouragement at the start.



The race started with a long, grueling climb, but the amazing views made the effort worthwhile.





I fell near the back of the pack, but made up a fair amount of ground on the screaming descent into the aid station at mile 4. Paul taught me how to be an aggressive downhill runner and it paid off as I passed a number of racers gingerly making their way down the hills. I was a little concerned that I was trashing quad muscles that I would need later in the race…but I decided to enjoy the speed while I could!

The aid station marked the beginning of the next big climb. A few people passed me back on this uphill (definitely an area in which I could use some improvement), but I blew by them again on the downs.



I was amazed when a volunteer at the next aid station informed me that I had just 3.7 miles to go. My GPS died recently and so I had no idea what my pace was during the race. As my legs were fatigued from yesterday’s San Fran activities, I was figuring for a 3 to 3.5-hour finish. Looking at my watch, I realized that I might break 2:45!

With an added spring in my step, I took off and tried to hang on to a couple that was running just ahead of me. I knew that the remainder of the race was downhill, and so I just kept pushing.

Paul looked stunned when I hollered to him as I approached the finish line with a time of 2:42. There’s no finish line photo as he hadn’t been expecting me so soon.

As a form of ice bath, Paul had essentially gone swimming in the ocean for about 10 minutes. The water was probably in the mid-50’s. I was concerned with being swept out to sea and so just waded in.



The pain of the cold soon turned to numbness, but I knew that the park had showers and was looking forward to a nice hot one. Then, Paul informed me that the shower water was freezing. And when I entered the shower, I discovered that it was also outdoors. But, I felt disgusting and so I sucked it up and took the coldest shower of my life. To top it off, the stream of water came out like a rocket and was actually painful. I felt like I was getting hit with a fire hose.

Next up – wine country! At the suggestion of a friend via Facebook, we headed to the Grundlach Bundschu Winery in Sonoma for a tasting. Then, we hit one of the mass-producers, Kendall Jackson. I can’t say that I really get all of the aromas and flavors claimed on the tasting menu (you know, dried rose petal with a hint of white pepper and a firm finish), but I definitely preferred the taste of the wine from the smaller, more exclusive winery.







Finally, we headed to Bodega Bay, ready to set up camp. We knew it will get colder as we headed north and so wanted to get as much camping in as we could now. Unfortunately, both campgrounds in the area were completely full – apparently, that happens on the weekends. We lucked out by getting the last reasonably-priced hotel room in the area at Bodega Harbor Inn.

This was another fantastic day! We started off with a 5-mile run along the gorgeous San Francisco Bay. Then, after showering up, we took a walk to a section of Lombard Street known as “The World’s Crookedest Street.”



Then, we took advantage of one of the city’s free walking tours. They offer a few hundred each month – it’s really a fabulous program. However, our guide was not exactly fabulous. Very sweet though, in a bumbling sort of way. In fact, the best part was when a member of the Dolphin Swim Club invited us inside and essentially hijacked the tour for about 20 minutes.



Their boats were beautiful, their history interesting and their members tough as nails. This elderly, but very fit, man explained that they discourage wetsuit use in the 50-degree ocean water “because you don’t need one.”



We were starving by this point and so headed to the pier for my first whole Dungeness Crab - delicious, but a lot of work.



Then, Paul and I split up to each explore our own interests – Paul went for history with a visit to a submarine, and I went for food with a tour of the Boudin Sourdough Bread Factory.



We met up a few hours later and headed to Chinatown and Nob Hill, followed by an amazing dinner at Thai Noodle which included the most delicious eggplant I have ever tasted. San Francisco is the perfect city for just strolling around – everywhere you go there are interesting sights, beautiful architecture and blooming flowers.







With that morning’s run and all of the walking we did around the city, I figure we put in at least 10 miles. And these were not flat miles. Upon arriving back at the hotel, I put on my compression socks, hoping they would work some magic before the morning’s race.

We climbed out of the tent before dawn in search of sunrise photos. Instead, we got fog. But that made for some cool photos too.



Our first stop of the day was the Piedras Blancas Elephant Seal Rookery which was amazing!





We continued up Highway, 1 ready for the legendary views of Big Sur. Unfortunately, the fog stuck with us all the way through this area until we reached the affluent town of Carmel-By-The-Sea. No, we did not see the former mayor, Clint Eastwood, but we did see lots of Porches, BMW’s and the like.



Yelp.com led us to Dametra, a Greek restaurant, and we stayed for lunch, despite an overly effusive, ass-kissing host who told us that we were "about to be spoiled." Do people really go for this schmaltz?



But the food, a roasted vegetable salad and chicken souvlaki, was spectacular. To cap it all off, the host insisted on hugging both me and Paul as we were leaving. It was a memorable meal!

Next up was Monterey where we got an amazing seafood cocktail at Fisherman’s Wharf, strolled Cannery Row and then got free entry at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.



It was 4:30 and we were hedging on whether or not we wanted to pay the admission fee with only 90 minutes before closing. Tickets were $30 – each! An elderly ticket seller with a kind heart (and a sense of humor) offered us free admission if we would dance for him. So, we did a little two-step and in we went!







We had planned to stay somewhere in that area, but decided to just drive all the way to San Francisco, so that we’d have a full day in the city on Friday. Once again my IPhone app, Hotel Pal, came to the rescue and led us to San Fran’s best kept secret, the Country Hearth Inn.

For just $62 (and $72 on Friday due to the weekend) we got a in the center of the city, just a walk away from the Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman’s Wharf and all of the hot spots. We were floored - we had expected to pay double that amount! Luxurious it was not, but it was clean and adequate...and we didn’t plan on spending much time there anyway.

We pulled into camp in the dark and so it wasn’t until the morning that we discovered the beauty of Lake Cachuma. The huge campground was practically deserted, although the fisherman began arriving at dawn.





Solvang, “the Dutch Capital of America” was just about 20 minutes away. We spent some time walking around the quaint town and admiring the mission which had the most fantastic Stations of the Cross that I’ve ever seen – outdoors on a beautiful pathway.











Through the miracle of Facebook, I discovered that the brother of my friend, David, was an assistant winemaker at Babcock Winery, which happened to be right on our route. We wanted to hit a winery, so why not pick the one at which we had a connection?



Colin was extremely gracious about us interrupting his workday and he gave us a fantastic behind-the-scenes tour. We actually wound up skipping the tasting room as we figured we had already tasted the best wines - straight from the barrel. Also, it was before noon and I was already buzzed.



We made a brief stop in Pismo Beach where we enjoyed some delicious fish tacos on the beach. We had planned to camp in this area, but, as it was still early in the day, decided to head a bit farther north and check out San Luis Obispo.





At this point, we were itching for some exercise and we certainly got our fill with a steep 1,200-foot climb that rewarded us with amazing views.





With legs of jello, we made our way to the Natural Café for a very healthy and delicious dinner. We then continued on to Morro Bay to set up camp for the night.

Having spent the night in Palm Springs, we started day 2 with a run at Indian Canyon, a beautiful palm oasis.







After working up an appetite on the trails, we headed to the Palm Greens Café, one of those tree-hugger type joints that we just love. Paul started the meal with a gluten-free brownie…



…and then we split a delicious salad sampler plate. It was a creative and fantastic lunch!



We hopped back in the car and drove through L.A. (been there, done that) and on to Santa Barbara where we stopped at a large farmer’s market. We picked up some fresh produce, including this South American fruit which we had never seen before. It tastes like a cross between a banana and a pineapple.





We enjoyed our bounty as a picnic dinner, overlooking the ocean at Stearn’s Wharf.





Then, it was back to the Prius for a 30-minute drive to the campground at Lake Cachuma where we set up camp – in the dark.