Another beautiful morning as we woke in Monterey - cool, but clear and
no fog. We loaded up the vans then stopped to take a group photo in
front of the Bay Park Hotel, who have supported us on every year of the
ride, and then filled up the bikes to head out on the road.

Fast freeway riding this morning in perfect conditions - we ride in the
fast lane for safety reasons so that we are away from the merging
traffic, but with so many bikes usually there is a lag factor and we end
up riding a little slower than the speed limit. No such issue this
morning - 24 bikes and three vans in perfect formation PASSING traffic
as we belted down the road.

We arrived in sunny and warm Santa Cruz and found our way through the
town down to the famous boardwalk - the only continuously operating
seaside amusement park left on the West Coast for almost 100 years now.
It was warm and sunny and we enjoyed a beautiful lunch on the water.
Amy and Annelie tried out their new US Harley riding skills in the
amusement arcade on the Harley riding machine. As Annelie said, "That
chick can really ride!"

Then it was back on the bikes and winding our way out of Santa Cruz and
on to Highway 9, a beautiful twisty road through the redwoods. 25
gorgeous miles later we popped out on the top of the ridge at Skyline,
Highway 35. We made a short stop to regroup, then on up Skyline for
more redwoods and spectacular views.

We overshot our turn off by a mile, which meant we got to turn around at
Alice's Restaurant (the famous one in the song) and then back to our
intended road, Old La Honda - a tiny, twisty one lane road through the
redwoods and past some very large mansions.

After a few miles we popped out down the bottom of the hill, and then on
some easy roads in to our hotels in Palo Alto - every year the Westin
and Sheraton hotels (side by side) support our group and once again put
on a great welcome with reserved parking for all of our bikes.

We have now reached the Bay Area, but will be heading north through the East
Bay to see more of this stunning state before our final run in to San
Francisco on Saturday.