adventure + idea

I had read about this nice campsite in Malibu (Leo Carrillo State Beach Park). It would require riding 100 miles a day, along the pacific coast, and eating tons of food. My type of ride.

Friday Afternoon. I left the lab about couple hours before usual so that I could pack and make all the arrangements for the weekend. The plan was for me to ride to Malibu on Saturday, camp in Leo Carrillo state park and ride back home on Sunday.

I packed everything:

Tent, tent stakes, sleeping mat, food(bread and peanut butter), tools(2 tubes, tire lever, mini tool), a tee-shirt, shorts, underwear and toiletries in the KADA SEAT BAG.

Sleeping bag up front. I don't own a handle bar bag so I just tied it up using couple buckle straps.

Phone, wallet, Adventure cycling map and mp3 player in the jersey pocket. The whole setup was stable and looked like it could hold on for the weekend.

Ready to roll

Saturday morning was bit chilly and drizzling, never the less I soldiered on. After riding about 30 miles I realized that my setup had one flaw. The sleeping bag at front was too tightly clamped to the handle bars and it was becoming had to ride on tops. Riding on hoods was not that comfortable too. Time to invest in a handle bar bag. Never the less I rode on, mostly riding on drops.

Since I had to ride through head winds almost all the way, riding on drops was better.

After riding for about 70 miles I entered City of Malibu.

Road signs helped me to stay on the right path.

97 miles in I rolled into Leo Carrillo state beach park, As I rode in the park entrance, the sign read �campground full�, but Leo Carrillo is one of the last state parks in Southern California to have a hiker/biker sites. The site itself is beautiful anchored by a large and sheltering tree.

Tent setup under the tree.

The weather was perfect and I decided to take a stroll on the beach 100 meters from the campground.

Serene Pacific coast.

Next morning, got up at sunrise, packed everything and after having bread and peanut butter, I started to cycle home.

Santa Monica with its bustling pier and promenade.

All in all, the weekend was beautiful. I cant imagine how lucky we are as bike tourists to still have the hiker|biker campsite at Leo Carrillo. If you live in Southern California, it�s worth a visit.

I accidentally switched off garmin on my return trip and didnt realize it 15 miles later. Oh well!!