Saturday was my only full day in LA, and with it being such a big city, I decided it was best to save most of LA’s attractions for another visit. Being so close to the ocean, I decided a full-day ride along the beach would be perfect. After a big American breakfast at the Denny’s down the road, I headed to the beach.
The first part of my trip was a bit rough – since I was leaving from the airport area, I had to deal with busy roads and a lot of truck traffic. I was certainly glad when I finally arrived at the beach. After that my journey was great! The LA coast has a great continuous bicycle path for miles right along the ocean edge. I biked north along the coastline, passing the Santa Monica pier, the Venice Boardwalk, and eventually to the end of the trail at Highway 1. I tried continuing further north, but it proved to be too dangerous as cars flew past me across six lanes at 40mph.
The trail itself was great! It was full of joggers, walkers, 
rollerbladers, and lots of cyclists. It passed by a lot of scenic points and was also well marked to minimize risks of collisions. On the way back I stopped at the Santa Monica pier, watched a few street performers, and had lunch. There was a lot of Route 66 memorabilia for sale on the pier, as I learned that the pier marked the official end to one of America’s original cross-country highways.
After biking back, I began to pack, as I was flying home the next day. I biked to a nearby bike shop, which would be my last ride of the trip, as I borrowed a box and packed up my bike for my flight. After a $20 cab ride back to my hotel (I noted that my bike ride to the store was free and took only 20 minutes), I showered, finished packing, and went to bed early to prepare myself for waking up at 3:30am.
My total mileage for Saturday was an impressive 58km, bringing my grand total for my trip to 647km!
Beyond the Automobile 