"WE'VE MADE IT!"
With no road left before us we rolled our bikes off the edge of the pavement and onto on the wet, cold sand. To the North of us shrouded in mist, the towers of the legendary Golden Gate Bridge stood ominously through the fog. To the West spread out before us lay our much awaited and anticipated prize, the Pacific Ocean!
With our feet bare we pushed our bikes down the almost empty beach to the waters edge. Accompanied by our official supporter/city escort/photographer/house host, Eric Chilton we completed the final few feet of our remarkable 4, 444 miles/ 7036kms cycling journey across the U.S.A, just in time before the classic San Fransisco weather of cold, foggy, rain, greeted us.
A few days earlier, after almost 3 weeks since the accident Narelle was given the OK from the Physical Therapists to again ride a loaded bike (carefully!) so with a new bike we gathered up our things and said goodbye to the beautiful Lake Tahoe region and the network of amazing people that had cared for and helped us during Narelle's recovery. With the help of our official support team Starre and David Evans,
we once again loaded up our bicycle's to recommence our journey. Having put the trip on hold for such a long time it felt almost like we were at the beginning again, especially as we had lost physical condition, stamina and confidence in the other road users. As we waved goodbye and pedalled away, our thoughts and emotions were a mixture of sadness, excitement, anxiety and anticipation for what lay ahead. 
For Carmen what lay ahead was a flat tire 0.5 miles into the ride!
Over the next few days we descended out of the majestic pine covered Sierra mountains at 8,0000ft into the rolling hills of vineyards and orchards of 1,000ft.
In the city of West Sacramento we had the pleasure of staying with Barb and Dan Beatty and Robbie (their very talented Australian Shepherd), whom we met while traveling through Nevada.
Over great food we each shared our tales of adventure and travels via bicycle as Dan and Barb were seasoned tandem-cycle tourers. Inspired by their incredible stories, Narelle was soon scheming up plans for her next adventure "...kayaking.....with a handmade kayak?...hhhmmmm."
Around Sacramento, the traffic thickened,
but lucky for us there were miles bike trails and lanes to get us through without issue.
The college city of Davis was also fun and easy to navigate as Davis prides itself on being an ultimately bike friendly community. We headed west out of town via the Davis bike routes, through a beautiful area of orchards and groves as the sun set, and into the the township of Winters. There we met Dave Rodriguez and his family Jenny, Mason and Derek. Dave, excited about our trip and eager to support us, generously offered for us to camp the night in the family's camper.
With a great nights sleep we were glad and grateful to have met another incredible American family and share with them this remarkable experience of ours. The following day, we set forth on what would be one our final of our cross-country journey.As we rolled closer towards the coast the vineyards and orchards were slowly replaced by dry, golden, oak dotted hills. The aroma from the eucalypts lining the roadway could be smelled on the breeze, which Narelle recognized instantly. "I really am closer to home" she often would comment.
"Carmen, are you taking those guns to the gun show?"
With Vallejo and the ferry terminal almost in sight Narelle was again reminded of the beauty and the beasts of California's vegetation. A flat front tire lead her to discover 8 Goat Heads stuck in the front tire alone! Lesson Re learnt- DO NOT TAKE YOUR BIKE OFF THE PAVEMENT, EVER!! That flat tire and later verbal abuse from a city transit bus driver for actually riding ON the road couldn't destroy our excitement for arriving at the Vallejo Ferry, our ride to downtown San Fransisco.
We were ALMOST there!
With our bikes loaded into the ferry, we cruised down the San Fransisco Bay, out of the sunshine and into the classically cloud-covered city of San Fransisco.
From the ferry we received our first glimpses of the grand Golden Gate Bridge, guarding the bay and greeting the Pacific Ocean. 
On disembarking from the ferry, we were suddenly downtown and no longer alone but now surrounded by the bustling movement of cars, trucks, buses, cable cars and thousands of people all on their own missions somewhere. Making our way along the waterfront along Embarcadero, we were glad to be wering our "high vis" clothing (a must to be worn) when Narelle's bike again got a flat tire!
"Is this a sign? Is something trying to tell me that I'm just not meant to make it?" Narelle asked herself. But with a laugh and the sun low on the horizon we continued our journey arriving to the Golden gate Bridge just as the sun fell below the horizon.
We were ALMOST there!
With our bikes loaded into the ferry, we cruised down the San Fransisco Bay, out of the sunshine and into the classically cloud-covered city of San Fransisco.
From the ferry we received our first glimpses of the grand Golden Gate Bridge, guarding the bay and greeting the Pacific Ocean. 
On disembarking from the ferry, we were suddenly downtown and no longer alone but now surrounded by the bustling movement of cars, trucks, buses, cable cars and thousands of people all on their own missions somewhere. Making our way along the waterfront along Embarcadero, we were glad to be wering our "high vis" clothing (a must to be worn) when Narelle's bike again got a flat tire!"Is this a sign? Is something trying to tell me that I'm just not meant to make it?" Narelle asked herself. But with a laugh and the sun low on the horizon we continued our journey arriving to the Golden gate Bridge just as the sun fell below the horizon.
Fulfilling life goals, we cycled our bicycles across the bridge as the lights from downtown, the house-studded city vistas, and Alcatraz Island now beginning to sparkle across the bay. The Pacific coastline and alluring ocean silently awaited our arrival in the settling darkness beyond the steep hills of Marin before us.
With the sun now well below the horizon, we made the decision to hold off our attempts on reaching the nearby ocean until daylight. Eric Chilton and his two-year-old son, Otis, picked us up near the cold and windy Golden Gate Vista point from where we had called our families to celebrate our arrival to San Francisco. For the next few rainy days, we spent time in the company of the Chiltons, Kate, Eric and Otis, in their home in Berkeley.
When the time came and the clouds cleared enough to venture out, we headed from Berkeley across San Francisco with Eric as our guide to meet the long awaited shoreline of the Pacific Ocean.
On the BART (Bay Area Rail Transit).
On the BART (Bay Area Rail Transit).
Narelle at Bubba Gump's. "My name is Forrest... Forrest Gump."
What an incredible feeling to reach the beach, to bring our bikes to the water's edge and dip our front tires into the salty, cold waters of the Pacific Ocean!
Across the United States... through record heat, tornadoes and lightning storms, and many mountains... the kind you see and those you simply feel... from Sea to Shining Sea... all for the adventure of it, the stories of grand challenges, the experiences we won't soon forget and the friendships we've gained, and for one other very important reason: WATER!
We are so happy to have accomplished our goals of reaching the West Coast and BRINGING WATER to those who need it most. Through this experience, we will have positively changed the lives of others by supporting charity: water, however our lives too have grown incredibly rich through our experiences.
Cheers,
Thanks to all who made this trip possible, from those who donated to our fundraiser, to those others who gave us shelter and direct support. We could not have done this without you!
With the coast-to-coast ride now under our tires, we are going to continue supporting charity:water as we explore the west coast northward for another week before setting sail on separate vessels homeward to our families and loved ones. For many this journey was a very unique experience and others very inspiring and we would love to share all that we learnt along the way with you. If you are thinking of doing a similiar trip, go cycle touring for the 1st time, start a charity fundraiser or simply have a question about our endevour that you would love an answer for then please post it in the comments below or send as an email, as our next blog shall feature answers to all the commonly asked questions we received along the way as well as some of the bizzare ones.
Water Cycle 2010
4,444 miles
314 people served with clean drinking water
for 20+ years! (so far)
Cheers,
Narelle and Carmen
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