Ok.  Time to fill in details.

Monday night, we were camped in our tents at the edge of the parking lot of the Golden Acorn casino near Live Oak Springs CA.  We had crawled into our separate tents and were snuggled in for what was predicted to be a cold 44F night.  About 9:30 we were awakened by casino security who wondered what we were doing camped on the edge of their lot.  We explained that we had talked with the security guard on duty that afternoon, and had been denied camping near the casino building, and told that we should set up on the outskirts of the lot.

Security left and we went back to sleep, thinking that was the end of it.  But an hour later the head of security was back, and said that we were going to have to pack our belongings, and they would allow us to sleep in the trucker's lounge.  Ironic, because we had asked about that earlier in the afternoon and been told it was strictly reserved for drivers.  At any rate, we hurriedly packed our gear, took down our tents, loaded the bikes, and were escorted to the lounge.

It was about 11:30, and neither of us slept particularly well in the smoky lounge with the TV blaring and drivers turning on lights to fill out their logs.

Little matter, our alarm went off at 4:45, and we got things properly packed on the bikes, changed into our warmest cycling clothes, ate a breakfast sandwich, and by 6 were ready to hit the road.  Just as well, winds were predicted to rise to gusts of 35 mph by midmorning and we needed to be off the mountain.

We had an early downhill that was as cold as we had been for the entire ride, and were buffeted by cross winds a few times.

But winds were calmer when we dropped 1000 ft in elevation, and we had a pleasant 10 mile ride along the valley floor before we started our final big climb of the ride, a 1000 ft toward Pine Valley.  The wind was only a minor annoyance and we cleared the climb an hour and a half later, and dropped down again to
Pine Valley where we stopped for coffee and a muffin at Major's Coffee shop, before tackling a final 300 ft climb.

I cannot describe my elation when I got to that summit and knew that I had only to glide downhill into San Diego, perhaps I wouldn't even have to pedal for 40 miles.  Lol, foolish me, it wasn't to be that simple.

At first we did glide down the hill on old US 80, but then there was a hundred foot steep uphill as we got on  I-8.  Elation returned as from high on I-8, we spotted San Diego and the Pacific in the distance.  But reality set in again as we left I-8, and began following the city roads through the suburbs of San Diego.

We didn't have too much of a problem initially, but had to stop and consult our maps frequently to keep on track.  And then we began running into some hilly terrain that we didn't anticipate at all.  Stopping for lunch helped restore our reserves, and we were back heading for the beach, still 20 miles distant.

That's when I made my navigation error.  We turned left on Mission Gorge when we should have turned right.  It was a mile and a half before it became clear we weren't heading in the right direction and backtracked to the actual route.

With about 10 miles to go we were on level terrain, and finally the end seemed near.

The last miles were on the bike path to the beach, and I think we actually slowed to make it last.

Less than 100 yards from the beach, Don Schroeder was there to snap photos as we finished.  Don is the brother of one of Barb's good friends, and lives less than a mile from where the Southern Tiers route ends.

We hugged, then walked down to the beach to dip our toes in the Pacific.  

Don gave us directions,  and  we rode our bikes to his home, showered,  put on clean clothes, and headed out to celebrate over dinner at Shades Ocean Grill.

Then headed to bed tired and satisfied.   It's been a great adventure.

I'll follow up tmw with our experience getting ready to go home.  Been a busy day and we're due out to supper.