I am trying very hard not to think about the remaining days of my ride because I believe it is dangerous, taking my focus away from being right where I am. When it first began, I felt overwhelmed, even panicked, by the number of days I would be spending on the bike. I didn’t know if I could do it. Just for the sake of survival, I decided to invest in each day and do the best I could. Now, I am on the opposite side of time, with this journey coming to an end. I still want to stay with the discipline.

I had to put this piece down, thinking I would continue it in the morning and then I changed my mind. I am fairly tired from the ride and the regimen, which is a cumulative thing. However, just as my focus on the ride needs to stay in place, so does my commitment to write. When I skip a day, its immediacy is lost and I can’t recapture it. I don’t want to do that to any of the days I have lived on this road trip, because each one has been perfect.

Today started out in our safari tent, which was a fabulous experience. I woke up, stuffed in a sleeping bag and wrapped in a comforter. It was definitely the best sleep I have had. Throughout the ride, I have tried to stay with my routine of sitting, yoga and a run. It is a grounding trio that gets me back to the same starting point each day.

This morning’s highlight was my run along the Cape Arago Hwy. The road ends at a wildlife viewing area, where sea lions bask in the sun. It proved too long a run and I promised myself to take the bike up there after leaving my temporary encampment. I could hear their barking as I walked down a path to get a view of these creatures. Sometimes, I envy animals because being present is effortless for them. The only thing that screws them up is our completely selfish behavior, thinking the entire natural world exists for our entertainment. I was thinking about that on my way back up the path.

Once again, I made some wrong turns on the way to Crescent City. I needed to return to 101 South and I ended up riding on some smaller roads, taking me back to the RV park where I started. I don’t think I have ever made it to a day’s destination without screwing up, even a little. I never thought I’d become a better rider, or less inclined to get lost or less clumsy as a result of this two wheel escapade. I think I have become more forgiving, but no more proficient at anything. No matter what I do, or how many times I do it, I am Larry. Once again, I added time to the day’s travel.

 The ride along 101 is extraordinary. There are huge stone outcroppings planted in the ocean, looking strong and stubborn. The breath of the ocean is cold and extremely strong, pushing the bike whenever it felt like it. Everyday, I am overwhelmed by scenery that only God could have created. You could never convince me that life imitates art, which is the vanity of the artist, coming from the same place as our misguided dominion over nature. I must be living in heaven because there is no other explanation for what I have been privileged to see and experience. Sorry, I am crying once again, overwhelmed with gratitude.

I rolled into Crescent City around 6PM and pulled into the parking lot of yet another non-descript motel. I don’t think I have mentioned the sheer joy of maneuvering the Harley under these circumstances. This is when you really feel the weight of this tugboat, especially trying to back up any kind of incline. Yes, it was yet another Charlie Chaplin moment in the making, teetering on the edge of yet another drop, which was happily avoided this time.

I was within walking distance of a shopping center and a Chinese restaurant, where I ordered a #7. I wasn’t sure when and where to look for the Super Moon, a dumb name if ever there was one. It is the moon, doing what it has done since the big bang or whenever Stephen Hawking created it. When I was walking up the stairs to my second story Presidential Suite, I looked at the sky and there was the moon, wearing a dark red veil.

Tomorrow, I get to visit the Redwoods, who have been around to see the moon appear in the night sky for the first time.