Sonoma County coast.

Improvised food.

On the Sonoma Coast, I was for the first time on the trip reaching places I had spent time at before.  It was fun to bicycle by a surf break I surfed this winter (which was not breaking well on this day) and the hotel where I helped teach a meditation class.  It was also striking how much more I saw/noticed/experienced while bicycling than last time I was in the area in a car.

I was also able to use my monocular-cam setup to catch photos of pelicans with an egret as well as a cormorant sunning itself.

With my back still not doing too well, I bicycled and used the public bus for a stint in line with my new plan.   Instead of being a letdown it was incredibly interesting.  On the bus we had a group conversation on solar chargers v. batteries.  We were comparing them because one of the guys was considering buying a computer but did not have electricity.  He will probably just wait as he is turning 62 soon and is looking forward to receiving social security so he can move from a campground to a studio apartment.  He estimated that he would need ~$700 a month as his total net income to be able to live comfortably.  I was very impressed with how low that figure is and his example inspires me re-think what is the minimum amount I need to live on.

I stayed in a small town that only had one restaurant.  The one restaurant in town did not have any vegetarian options on the menu, but fortunately I still had camping food supplies.  So, I washed the vegetables in the hotel shower.

I then went out on the second floor roof balcony and set up my camping stove.

It was quite fun cooking on the roof balcony and I ended up having a very tasty dinner (quinoa + kale with cheese).  It was a reminder to me that fun can be had in many circumstances - doesn't necessarily need surfing and camping.