Corte Madera

Monday, October 14:

We headed south through the valley and Fairfax on a slow incline hill after our night in the redwood forest.  Once we crested the hill, the ride down was FAST and very steep but the trip quickly became an urban one.  We were diverted into bike lanes and side streets in a complex series of turns and steps as the highway became a freeway and riding it illegal.

By 11 we were ready to head into Marin City and then across the golden gate bridge.  However we stopped to communicate with Bruce and Sarah (two people we met at Richardson Grove) about staying at their place just south of San Francisco and ended up going to the bank and then discovering that there is was an REI and lunch there ready to be partaken in.

The other big question, when our attempts to contact Bruce and Sarah proved fruitless, was where to stay for the night.  With the national park closed, San Francisco becomes a large urban wall as the hostels are expensive and the parks are pulled out past the suburbs.  We really leaned on REI's staff for some answers but the best idea we got was to stealth camp the hills north of San Fran for the night and then continue in the morning before dawn. Then one of the staff, Joe, offered his place for the night.  We rode back north and stayed in Corte Madera at his very beautiful house in the redwoods.  He let us sleep in the bottom floor, gave us a box of clif bars, and bought ingredients for breakfast in the morning.  Lucky!

Tomorrow, into and hopefully through San Francisco.

Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge the next day