Ave Speed (mph) = 8.2
Max Speed (mph) = 24.0
Time (h:m) = 3:00
Route:
Nimitz Blvd., Harbor Drive, Passenger Ferry to Coronado Island, Coronado Bike Path, Beyer Rd., Dairy Mart Rd., San Ysidro Blvd., Mexican border, Tijuana
Today was my last leg of the Border-2-Border challenge. It was a bit anti-climactic and the ride to Mexico was relatively easy until a few miles from the border. Most of the route was on bike lanes or bike paths. All flat, no hills of any consequence. The sky was blue and the temperature was perfect.
I rode down to Harbor Drive via the Nimitz Blvd. At Seaport Village, a short ride on a passenger ferry took me to Coronado Island, half of which is a naval air station. Coronado, dubbed as the "Crown City," offers pristine sand, gentle surf and a community with a small-town feel. The island is best known for two famous structures, the historic Hotel del Coronado and the iconic San Diego-Coronado Bridge. Tourists stroll down Orange Avenue, Coronado's main street, which is lined with shops, restaurants, galleries, theaters and the Coronado Historical Museum. At the other end of the island, Coronado's Ferry Landing offers a collection of over 20 shops, art galleries and restaurants boasting stunning views of San Diego's downtown skyline. The historic Hotel del Coronado, built in 1888, has a fascinating and colorful past which includes royalty, politicians, scandals, ghosts and celebrities. It's also widely believed to have been the inspiration for the Emerald City in L. Frank Baum's Wizard of Oz.
These attractions and miles of bike trails make Coronado Island a destination in itself for bikers and tourists. But I had a very specific mission today -- the culmination of my own challenge to reach the Mexican border after a 2,000 mile adventure. I followed Glorietta Blvd. around the bay and it eventually took me to a seven mile bike path which parallels the Silver Strand Blvd., a long narrow strip of land bordered on one side by the Pacific Ocean and the San Diego Bay on the other.
The bike path ends at Imperial Beach where 23th Street, Coronado Ave., Beyer Blvd., Dairy Mart Rd., and San Ysidro Blvd. lead you to the Mexican border. This area is quite busy with much traffic as both tourist and commercial traffic pass through Tijuana. The atmosphere is definitely Mexican where knowledge of the Spanish language is often helpful ... lots of tourist tiendas, bars, and hole-in-the-wall dives in San Ysidro on the American side. There is a trolley which connects greater San Diego with San Ysidro and points in between.
A separate pedestrian pathway across a sky bridge is used enter the Mexico for those who did not drive a vehicle or decide to park it on the American side.
Ajua! La frontera Mexicana, 1,974 millas sur de Peace Arch, Canada cruce fronterizo.