Simple-Tour

The Balaton is barely accessible if you just want to stop and have a splash. You mostly have to pay for it…it turns out Lake Tahoe (where I stopped) has a fairly similar concept. I had some amazing scenery coming down from the Sierra Nevada, and I finally can say the first real mountain range is behind me (there is an even bigger coming up with several small ones until)! The heat is constant now and based on the forecast I have to get used to it, perhaps start the rides earlier. I’m following Hwy 50, so far there were services every so often, but after tomorrow that’ll change, so I will have to carry more water. On the other hand, one of the main reasons I wanted to do this road is to see the desert. And a desert it is (already)! Straight roads until the horizon, I even climbed a hill with no top because the  heat created a mirage that sort of deflected the view of the sky and it looked like the cars just flying off the asphalt with no ending! Yesterday night I stayed at a nice war...

Heat, meet the mountain. Nice touch:). The scenery changed today, the heat not so much. To be fair, it did once I reached about 1500m elevation…but instead of writing about how difficult the ride was (might be the top one, thanks to the above mentioned factors) I want to acknowledge the devastating effects of the fire that ravaged through the area last year. I saw burnt trees all over the mountain, the hill sides, as if its plan was to achieve maximum destruction. I even saw a stone chimney and a fireplace, with no house around it. But I also saw an incredible amount of saved buildings, cottages, houses that all had a few intact trees around them, surrounded by ashes and black remnants of once huge pine trees. Firefighters rock, no doubt.  A hőség ma találkozott a heggyel és jól egymásra találtak…A táj sokat változott (hegyek, völgyek, patakok, fák, teljesen kiszáradt aljnövényzettel), a hőség kevésbé (azért 1500 méter magasságban kicsit moderálta magát). De most nem is az út nehéz...

Heat, heat, heat. There is not else lot to say, but if you plan a ride in 36-38 degree celsius, then don’t. I shortened my original plan, but I’m glad I did. I may have to do the same for a while, but apparently it is getting better! On the other hand, I rode nice little roads (with minimum shade - let’s put aside the heat factor), lovely bike paths (in Sacramento), met a probably future bike tourer (Tom) and saw a few interesting places (Eldorado Hills Town Center). The heat changed my plans and almost beat me, but not completely yet.  A hőségé volt a főszerep ma. Nem sokat lehet mondani egyébként mint azt hogyha 36-38 fokos melegben valaki tervez egy bicikli utat akkor legjobb ha el se kezdi. Sikerült lerövidítettem a mai tervezett utat és örülök hogy megtettem… Valószínűleg hasonlóan kell cselekednem a következő néhány napban, de az előrejelzés szerint ez csak egy picit jobb lesz. Ha ettől eltekintünk, azt kell mondjam, hogy nagyon szép mellék utakon jártam, szép Biciklis utakon...

Started cool. And foggy. And gray. A few hours later I was really missing the fog, the cool air and the greyness. The sun was brutal, and the lack of shade drove up the happiness factor whenever I saw a tree. I reached my original destination before 3pm so I had a lot of time to spare, but rather then going further in this heat, I kept the original plan and decided to stay at this campground, with air conditioned bathrooms(!) and a pool I might try later if I can stay up (probably not). RVs around but I don’t really care, I want to be gone by 5:30am or earlier to beat the heat, and because there is a fair amount of climbing coming…the hills and the orchards, the mix of sunflower and fruit trees painted the canvas along the road, I assume typical California. A reggel még hűvös volt, ködös és szürke. Pár óra múlva már csak áhítoztam ezekről. A nap nem volt kíméletes (és olyan 36 fokban érkeztem meg…), minden fa az út mellett aranyat ért! Du. 3 körül érkeztem meg, még elég korán, de ilyen...

What a day! Arrived in San Francisco just before noon and by 7pm I: - was picked up by Eilish’s cousins’s husband, Tony - put the bike together  - given a ride through San Francisco (hills hills hills, Lombard St)  - ridden through San Francisco (hills hills hills, Golden Gate Bridge, Hawk Hill, Palace of Fina Arts, Lombard St) - ate an amazing dinner made by Roisheen, Eilish’s cousin.  So now all I have to do is go to sleep. Micsoda nap!  Még épp délelött jöttem meg, Tony, Eilish unokatestvérénak a férje jött ki elém. Dél és hét között pedig röviden ez történt: - összeraktam a bringàt - Tony körbe vitt San Franciscóban, beleèrtve a dombokat, Telegraph Dombot, Lombard St-et… - tekertünk is a vàrosban, beleértve a Golden Gate Hidat, Lombard St-et, Hawk Hill-t, Palace of Fine Arts-ot - nagyon finom vacsorát ettünk Roisheennak, Eilish unokatestvérének köszönhetően.  - és most már csak aludni kell:).

The packing is (more-or-less) completed! I tried to make it light, but I still have to live out of these bags hopefully for about seven weeks…I’m not entirely sure what I’m about to do, I didn’t have time to think about it. I’ve been working a lot in the last while and my “preparation” was anything but…although that doesn’t stop me:)…so wish me luck, first an undamaged bike in San Francisco!  A bringa nagyjából bedobozolva! Megpróbáltam könnyűre venni a dolgot, de arra is figyelnem kellett hogy ezekből kell megélnem, ha minden jól megy hét hétig körülbelül…Nem egészen vagyok tisztában vele, hogy mi is vár rám tulajdonképpen, hogy mire vállalkoztam, nem is volt időm ezen gondolkozni. Leginkább a munkára volt csak időm. A felkészülés sem sikeredett a tervek szerint, de hát ez sosem állított meg:). Drukkoljatok, első körben azért, hogy a bringa épségben megérkezzen San Franciscoba:)!