Day 11 (June 21)-Santa Ynez to Santa Barbara to San Buenaventura (reposted with new text and photos)



Friar Marcos arrives at
Mission Santa Barbara





Cool and overcast, I left Solvang (bike fixed, body okay) to spend the next 10 miles climbing over the Santa Ynez mountains on a back road named Alisal.  Only three cars passed me until I connected with Highway 101, where I road the shoulder of the highway all the way to Goleta, on the north side of the Santa Barbara area.  I took the "Crosstown Bikeway" on Hollister and State Street, where Carolyn was once again waiting for me at Mission Santa Barbara.

Known as the "Queen of the Missions," this is one of the few missions where there have been Franciscan priests since its founding in 1786 (mission number 10).  The present church (the fourth one erected on the site in1820 after the Great California Earthquake of 1812 destroyed the previous one) has as its unique signature, one bell tower on each side of the church entrance.  The combination of the majestic setting, on the side of the Santa Barbara Mountains, the church's grand architecture and the pristine condition of the mission make it one of the most visited in the 21-mission chain.



Twin bell towers of mission Santa Barbara



Gardens around Mission Santa Barbara



Fountain and padres quarters



Coastal bikeway near
Santa Barbara

We enjoyed a tasty seafood lunch at Santa Barbara Shellfish Company. We loved it so much on our beginning route to Sonoma, that we decided to take the time to dine at this establishment on the pier once more.  On my way again, a couple of local teenagers agreed to take my photo as I sped down the beach portion of the Pacific Coast Bike Route.  The ride to Mission San Buenaventura (in Ventura) was just over half the distance from Santa Ynez to Santa Barbara.  The trail and roads were clearly marked with the "bike in the sunshine" signs.  I was so close to the ocean at times I could feel the spray from the waves when they crashed against rocks.  A majority of the way I was right on the ocean.  The sun had come out and a gentle breeze was blowing at my back... a perfect ride.

Attiving "early" at Mission San Buenaventura, I had the opportunity to tour the mission before it closed.  Surrounded by more modern buildings and sitting across from a colorful park, this mission had a special feel to it.  Carolyn liked the inside of this mission more than any others we've been to this far.  The garden, though small, is well-tended and very peaceful, even situated in the middle of the city. 

Established in 1782 as the ninth mission, San Buenaventura was the first of a second wave of missions established after a five year gap (Santa Clara was founded in 1777).  Focus was taken off the San Francisco Bay area, which was of strategic importance to the Spanish, to "filling in" the gaps along El Camino Real.  When completed, all 21 missions would be situated a day's travel (by foot or horseback, of course) from each other, allowing settlers, soldiers and missionaries to move up and down the California coast with relative ease and safety.

Except for a month in December 1818, when priests moved their Indian converts to the hills to protect them from Argentinian pirates, the church here has been in continuous service since its founding.

Mission San Buenaventura



Inside of Mission San
Buenaventura, with its
unique antique furnishings



Notice how Carolyn captures the light and the shadows in the church in the photograph to the left.

Courtyard with the ever present stataue
of Father Junipero Serra, founder of
first nine California missions

Tomorrow we venture into Los Angeles area to visit their two missions.

Santa Ynez to Santa Barbara (via the coastal route):  47 miles

Santa Barbara to San Buenaventura (Ventura):  28 miles

Total biking for today:  75 miles

Total cycling on trip to date:  619 miles