Distance (mi) = 40.3
Ave Speed (mph) = 8.5
Max Speed (mph) = 27.4
Time (h:m) = 4:41
Route:
Highway 1, Point Arena, Anchor Bay, Gualala, Sea Ranch, Stewarts Point, Grestle Cove Campground
Today was destined to be my bear adventure.
Left KOA Manchester at 9:15 am with squally conditions coming my way... more Southerly headwinds to buck.
I stopped at the Point Arena library to do some work on their PCs which are available for use. Afterwards I stopped at the Point Arena Market otherwise known locally as the Coastal Organics Co-op grocery, deli and espresso cafe. I bought a soup for lunch and several items for dinner at camp. Recommended stop.
By this time I was behind on my schedule for the day's run so I was eager to get going to arrive at camp before dark. Roller coaster hills, small towns were passed on the narrow 101 road with no shoulders. The terrain is prairie grazing grounds, rugged coastline with big kelp beds near shore and nice vistas,
There is a very good espresso coffeehouse with fast WiFi called Trinks in Gualala. It is tucked in a small shopping area in the Seacliff lodging complex at the bottom of the hill. As a bonus it has nice views of the bay ... a must stop, try their fabulous berry pies. It is next to the Bones Roadhouse restaurant which looked like an interesting eatery. There is also a good grocery store for provisions, the last good one before Bodega Bay.
I arrived at the Grestle Cove campground about 30 miles North of Bodega Bay at 7:00 pm just before darkness fell. This was more like a primitive campground in a remote area, no nearby neighbors. I set up the tent quickly and ate my roast beef sandwich and curry chicken salad from the Coastal Organics Co-op in Point Arena. Then settled in the tent to do some writing.
At 1:00 am, I woke up to blow up my inflatable mattress which developed some leaks and was deflating every two hours. I heard some rustling outside the tent before the guttural, blood curdling loud growl. That caught my attention ... I stopped inflating. My mind first went to a large German Shepperd that I saw on the way to my campsite, as the sound was so unexpected. But almost immediately I realized the growl came from a much bigger animal ... I heard tigers growl with that deep timbre at the zoo. But there are no tigers in the forest here. This was a black bear(s).
Within another minute another ferocious growl, but closer. Total blackness outside, no moon, cloudy with slight drizzle. I switched on my small LED flashlight and gathered what defensive makeshift weapons I had at hand in the tent -- a plastic mallet and a stainless steel water bottle. I also had Deet bug spray ... does that work on bears too? The animal smelled me in the tent and was signaling that it is there and not to mess with it, I surmised.
I was very alert listening to every sound outside the tent. The rustling subsided for 10 minutes, then they were back ... was I in a Hitchcock movie? I thought. Suddenly, I heard what sounded like the Trek bike falling over. It was parked 25 feet away on its kickstand. I chanced a peek outside my tent. Two black bears were pawing my pannier on the fallen bike. Were they going to chew or claw through my Ortlieb panniers?
My instinct told me not to try to shoo them away. Usually, they shy away from humans but once in while they are in a bad mood and charge at you. This was all hypothetical from what I knew about bears. I closed up the tent and just listened. I heard low murmuring growls as they were feasting on the food items which I keep in the right back pannier. The items: one apple, one banana, two big bags of dried soup mix (sealed, not opened), small baggie of jam packets, small baggie of sugar packets, bag of ground coffee, half loaf of bread, one jar of peanut butter, and one sealed cup of oatmeal.
For the rest of the night, I was uneasy and on bear watch. I was waiting for the first morning light so I could inspect the damage. The pictures depict what I found. The bears managed to claw out the food without undoing the two fastened clasps on the pannier. Fortunately, they did this without chewing or otherwise damaging the panniers ... how very clever they are. What they left was a bit of bear drool which I cleaned up. The Trek was not damaged. Every food item was eaten on the spot or taken away except the jar of peanut butter, coffee and the oatmeal. I am glad they were seemingly satiated with this meal and did not come back for seconds -- a banana in the tent and some protein.
In the morning after I assessed the situation, I thought maybe I should have put the all the food in the provided bear food locker. Instead, I packed it on the bike so I could get a quick and early start in the morning. I took one banana to the tent to eat in the morning. What if I had put all the food in the bear locker except the banana which I kept in the tent? Would the bears have been mad that they could not get to their meal and invaded the tent for that lone banana?
What learned from my first ever bear encounter: put ALL food items in the bear locker and don't pitch the tent near the locker. Or hoist the food up a tree outside the reach of bears.
Ave Speed (mph) = 8.5
Max Speed (mph) = 27.4
Time (h:m) = 4:41
Route:
Highway 1, Point Arena, Anchor Bay, Gualala, Sea Ranch, Stewarts Point, Grestle Cove Campground
Today was destined to be my bear adventure.
Left KOA Manchester at 9:15 am with squally conditions coming my way... more Southerly headwinds to buck.
I stopped at the Point Arena library to do some work on their PCs which are available for use. Afterwards I stopped at the Point Arena Market otherwise known locally as the Coastal Organics Co-op grocery, deli and espresso cafe. I bought a soup for lunch and several items for dinner at camp. Recommended stop.
By this time I was behind on my schedule for the day's run so I was eager to get going to arrive at camp before dark. Roller coaster hills, small towns were passed on the narrow 101 road with no shoulders. The terrain is prairie grazing grounds, rugged coastline with big kelp beds near shore and nice vistas,
There is a very good espresso coffeehouse with fast WiFi called Trinks in Gualala. It is tucked in a small shopping area in the Seacliff lodging complex at the bottom of the hill. As a bonus it has nice views of the bay ... a must stop, try their fabulous berry pies. It is next to the Bones Roadhouse restaurant which looked like an interesting eatery. There is also a good grocery store for provisions, the last good one before Bodega Bay.
I arrived at the Grestle Cove campground about 30 miles North of Bodega Bay at 7:00 pm just before darkness fell. This was more like a primitive campground in a remote area, no nearby neighbors. I set up the tent quickly and ate my roast beef sandwich and curry chicken salad from the Coastal Organics Co-op in Point Arena. Then settled in the tent to do some writing.
At 1:00 am, I woke up to blow up my inflatable mattress which developed some leaks and was deflating every two hours. I heard some rustling outside the tent before the guttural, blood curdling loud growl. That caught my attention ... I stopped inflating. My mind first went to a large German Shepperd that I saw on the way to my campsite, as the sound was so unexpected. But almost immediately I realized the growl came from a much bigger animal ... I heard tigers growl with that deep timbre at the zoo. But there are no tigers in the forest here. This was a black bear(s).
Within another minute another ferocious growl, but closer. Total blackness outside, no moon, cloudy with slight drizzle. I switched on my small LED flashlight and gathered what defensive makeshift weapons I had at hand in the tent -- a plastic mallet and a stainless steel water bottle. I also had Deet bug spray ... does that work on bears too? The animal smelled me in the tent and was signaling that it is there and not to mess with it, I surmised.
I was very alert listening to every sound outside the tent. The rustling subsided for 10 minutes, then they were back ... was I in a Hitchcock movie? I thought. Suddenly, I heard what sounded like the Trek bike falling over. It was parked 25 feet away on its kickstand. I chanced a peek outside my tent. Two black bears were pawing my pannier on the fallen bike. Were they going to chew or claw through my Ortlieb panniers?
My instinct told me not to try to shoo them away. Usually, they shy away from humans but once in while they are in a bad mood and charge at you. This was all hypothetical from what I knew about bears. I closed up the tent and just listened. I heard low murmuring growls as they were feasting on the food items which I keep in the right back pannier. The items: one apple, one banana, two big bags of dried soup mix (sealed, not opened), small baggie of jam packets, small baggie of sugar packets, bag of ground coffee, half loaf of bread, one jar of peanut butter, and one sealed cup of oatmeal.
For the rest of the night, I was uneasy and on bear watch. I was waiting for the first morning light so I could inspect the damage. The pictures depict what I found. The bears managed to claw out the food without undoing the two fastened clasps on the pannier. Fortunately, they did this without chewing or otherwise damaging the panniers ... how very clever they are. What they left was a bit of bear drool which I cleaned up. The Trek was not damaged. Every food item was eaten on the spot or taken away except the jar of peanut butter, coffee and the oatmeal. I am glad they were seemingly satiated with this meal and did not come back for seconds -- a banana in the tent and some protein.
In the morning after I assessed the situation, I thought maybe I should have put the all the food in the provided bear food locker. Instead, I packed it on the bike so I could get a quick and early start in the morning. I took one banana to the tent to eat in the morning. What if I had put all the food in the bear locker except the banana which I kept in the tent? Would the bears have been mad that they could not get to their meal and invaded the tent for that lone banana?
What learned from my first ever bear encounter: put ALL food items in the bear locker and don't pitch the tent near the locker. Or hoist the food up a tree outside the reach of bears.
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