Thanks for the replies. I told a friend that I was considering doing that loop this weekend (my team is out of the World Cup, so I now have time
) and his first response was "where are you going to get water?" He actually proposed an idea that I have never considered: store a third (or even fourth) bottle in my jersey. I can ride out with it empty and not fill it up until I get to the gas station early on River Road.
Originally Posted by
hack
-Not sure how inviting they are, but maybe one of the many new wineries could be a stop off point for a quick refill?
My initial hope was for someone to suggest one of the wineries.
My only other trip down River Road besides Sea Otter was riding to the Hahn winery.
Originally Posted by
bikingshearer
Is there water at the Soledad Mission? If so, problem solved, as it is either right on or very close to your route (it's not in the town of Soledad, but you probably knew that.
Actually, I did not know that. Great suggestion. Their website says they do not sell food or drinks (weird for them to explicitly mention that), but as long as they are open they must have a rest room where I can grab tap water. I can potentially bike to the mission and if they do not have water, I can perhaps do some other loop like going on the road on the other side of the 101 into Salinas. Don't feel like doing that though without someone else with me for guidance.
Other possibilities are to do the reverse loop so that I have water for the Carmel Valley climb and coast my way down to River Road or just doing an organized ride such as this one:
Bike Classic | Morgan Hill Freedom Fest
Winds have been killer lately.