California Dreamin' Cycling Tour

Dates: (7 days, 6 nights; (Sun-Sat) * 4/28-5/4

Assembly Point: San Jose, Ca (airline service to San Jose, Timberline van shuttle to and from airport prior to and following tour)

Tour Cost: $2,650 (includes all lodging, breakfasts and dinners, support van, van shuttle, leaders, tour maps & narratives)

We have added a touch of Northern California to Timberline’s California Dreamin’ biking trip and believe we have captured the essence of the true California in this program. This quintessential California experience combines the Santa Cruz Mountains of Silicon Valley, California’s storied Highway 1, as it snakes southward from Santa Cruz hugging the incomparable Pacific shoreline, then adds the opportunity to explore the rolling, verdant valleys to the east that comprise one of the world’s great wine-producing regions and we believe that you will agree that the California Road Trip is a cyclist’s fantasy to its core.

By design, we’ve chosen to start our cycling tour in the cyclist playground of the little known Santa Cruz Mountains on the western edge of Silicon Valley. We will get a taste of Silicon Valley at our orientation dinner where we will meet a successful Valley entrepreneur/investor. We start the ride in beautiful Saratoga the ride will take us up and over the Santa Cruz Mountains ending in the surfing mecca of Santa Cruz.

The next day we will bike to Carmel Valley along the Pacific coast trail, through the lush strawberry and artichoke fields, ending the day with the thrill of cycling the famous 17-Mile Drive. Day 3 brings the excitement of Rocky Point and the many arched bridges and spectacular headlands that extend to Big Sur and beyond. We’ll spend our third overnight south of Big Sur at the Ragged Point Resort overlooking the ocean and continue south along the coast through San Simeon to Cambria on Day 4.

On Day 5, we’ll leave the coast for our first of several forays into the wine country to the east. Early into our ride through the hills east of Cambria, you’ll know why we’ve chosen a spring date for this bike tour. We can’t imagine anything greener or more beautiful than the hills that we’ll encounter as we ride to Paso Robles. We’ll explore several of the region’s local vineyards, and a bakery or two, before settling into the beautiful Paso Robles Inn in the heart of town. It’s back to the ocean on Day 6 as we ride to Morro Bay and then visit exciting San Luis Obispo. We’ll linger in this historic town well into the afternoon before continuing to Pismo Beach, where we’ll spend our next two evenings in the spectacular oceanside setting of the Shelter Cove Lodge. We’re headed to the Edna Valley on Day 7, not only to visit a few additional vineyards, but more importantly, to enjoy the valley’s rolling, quiet country roads that constitute a not-to-be-missed cycling opportunity. We’ll climb gradually to the Lopez Lake Recreational Area and then return to Pismo Beach. We’ll call it a tour mid-afternoon in Pismo Beach and van shuttle back to San Jose where our California Dreamin' Cycling Tour concludes.

Day 1	Saratoga – Aptos	40 miles
Day 2	Aptos - Pacific Grove	46 miles
Day 3	Pacific Grove – Ragged Point	81 miles
Day 4	Ragged Point – San Simeon – Hearst Castle – Cambria	24 miles
Day 5	Cambria –Paso Robles	44 miles
Day 6	Paso Robles—San Luis Obispo—Morro Bay—Pismo Beach	48 miles
Day 7	Pismo Beach—Tour of the Edna Valley—Lopez Lake—Pismo Beach	38 miles

Total Mileage — 321

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