8. Port Hueneme to Malibu, CA, USA

After mugging with missiles at the Point Mugu State Park, Louise and I popped into a very swish AirBnB in Malibu to surprise the inimitable Dr. Christine Cho, college roommate extraordinaire, on the occasion of her 50th birthday. We ate nuts, broke meringues, and swapped stories together with dear friends Soomie and Shikha and sister Julie.

My and my friends' fiftieth birthdays are a major motivator for this trip. I am dropping by to see many of them, my wheeled presence having to suffice as my present. The trip is also a gift to myself, to make sense of the last 50 years and figure out what I want to do with the next chunk of my life.

I've not made much progress on those fronts, but these are early days. My attention, as you can probably tell from these posts, has been mostly on maintaining homeostasis while safely navigating my loyal filly. Should any insights manifest themselves, you will be the first to know.

And maybe that is the first insight: Just focusing on riding your bike and occasionally meeting a good friend can keep you incredibly happy for days on end.

Distance: 25.12 mi / 40.43 km

Climbing: 732 mi / 223 m

Total: 469 mi / 755 km; 18,169 ft / 5,538 m

Sleep Spot: Christine's Birthday AirBnB in Malibu

Song: "Life Goes On" by The Beatles

Route: