On Your Mark... (no pun intended)
Ok. Maybe there is a slight intention of a pun. But that's only because I'm getting very excited.
In one week, my lovely and faithful wife Carolyn and I will be heading off to Sonoma, CA. On vacation--well, kind of. My intention is to cycle El Camino Real (The Royal Road), from Sonoma (Mission San Francisco Solano) to San Diego, and visit all 21 of California's missions. Fourteen days on the bike. Almost 800 miles.
Why? (I know that is what you are thinking right now!)
It started out in fourth grade, McFadden Elementary School, Placentia, CA. Mrs. James was my teacher. Our social studies unit for the year was California history and, of course, it started with Father Junipero Serra and the establishment of the exploration of California by the Spanish and the establishment of the missions. It was that summer, I believe, my family visited the missions at Santa Barbara, Santa Clara and San Jose on our way to visit friends in Santa Clara. I was fascinated. That fascination has never left.
I've often told close friends that I was born in the wrong century. The Age of Exploration and Discovery--from Columbus through Stanley Livingston--would have been my era of choice. Perhaps its the adventure, or the tremendous learning that occurs when one ventures into places unknown, the feeling of awe inspired by new vistas. Maybe it is some kind of rebellion against the age of the machine. Back then all travel was either wind (sailing vessels), animal (mainly horses) or human powered (walking--the bicycle didn't come around until the 1800s). Perhaps that is what also draws me to cycling--the most efficient solely human powered mode of transportation. Whatever the reason, something inside me yearns to relive, even with all the hardships, that time of geographic discovery.
So, I am undertaking to retrace the steps of those great Spanish explorers, soldiers and missionaries who trekked the miles of what would become the most prosperous state in the Union. With an economy larger than many countries, and world-class and world connected cities built up around some of those missions, California (in spite of its traffic, smog and other problems) is among the premier destinations on the globe. I will, as those pioneers did, make the trip under my own power.
To be fair, those discoverers didn't get to stay in motels and hotels along the way, and they didn't have a great companion in a motorized vehicle to come to their rescue if they got into trouble. (My wife, Carolyn, says she's going on this excursion primarily so she can bring my body back to Arizona after I crash. I do hope she is wrong!) So, I'm not over-romanticizing this pilgrimage; I hope, though, I can sense something of the wonder they must have experienced when they first surveyed these places.
In this spirit, I'm navigating without GPS, cycling without ear buds or I-Pod, without any of those kind of modern amenities that might be available to me. It will be me and my "mechanical horse," re-blazing trails now covered with concrete and asphalt, that were once simple foot and horse paths.
My intention is to journal each day, to share as I can the sights, sounds, sensations and experiences of this journey. It is my invitation for you to follow along, if you choose. Your participation is eagerly welcome.
In one week, my lovely and faithful wife Carolyn and I will be heading off to Sonoma, CA. On vacation--well, kind of. My intention is to cycle El Camino Real (The Royal Road), from Sonoma (Mission San Francisco Solano) to San Diego, and visit all 21 of California's missions. Fourteen days on the bike. Almost 800 miles.
Why? (I know that is what you are thinking right now!)
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| California Missions (click map to get larger view) |
I've often told close friends that I was born in the wrong century. The Age of Exploration and Discovery--from Columbus through Stanley Livingston--would have been my era of choice. Perhaps its the adventure, or the tremendous learning that occurs when one ventures into places unknown, the feeling of awe inspired by new vistas. Maybe it is some kind of rebellion against the age of the machine. Back then all travel was either wind (sailing vessels), animal (mainly horses) or human powered (walking--the bicycle didn't come around until the 1800s). Perhaps that is what also draws me to cycling--the most efficient solely human powered mode of transportation. Whatever the reason, something inside me yearns to relive, even with all the hardships, that time of geographic discovery.
So, I am undertaking to retrace the steps of those great Spanish explorers, soldiers and missionaries who trekked the miles of what would become the most prosperous state in the Union. With an economy larger than many countries, and world-class and world connected cities built up around some of those missions, California (in spite of its traffic, smog and other problems) is among the premier destinations on the globe. I will, as those pioneers did, make the trip under my own power.
To be fair, those discoverers didn't get to stay in motels and hotels along the way, and they didn't have a great companion in a motorized vehicle to come to their rescue if they got into trouble. (My wife, Carolyn, says she's going on this excursion primarily so she can bring my body back to Arizona after I crash. I do hope she is wrong!) So, I'm not over-romanticizing this pilgrimage; I hope, though, I can sense something of the wonder they must have experienced when they first surveyed these places.
In this spirit, I'm navigating without GPS, cycling without ear buds or I-Pod, without any of those kind of modern amenities that might be available to me. It will be me and my "mechanical horse," re-blazing trails now covered with concrete and asphalt, that were once simple foot and horse paths.
My intention is to journal each day, to share as I can the sights, sounds, sensations and experiences of this journey. It is my invitation for you to follow along, if you choose. Your participation is eagerly welcome.
What a great adventure! I'm in awe of your willingness and abilitiy to physically commit to pedaling for 800 miles.
ReplyDeleteI grew up within a mile of El Camino Real in San Mateo. California is indeed a special place, and you are going to see a lot of it! I look forward to reading about your impressions as a modern age explorer:)
Epic adventure. I look forward to reading along here...although with a sweet twinge of jealously that I'm not pedaling the topography of California myself.
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