left Petaluma Sunday morning at 0952. found the Kastania road extension paved all the way from behind the old gas station/cigarette store all the way to what used to be the southbound exit ramp to San Antonio road. I was able to "plod", as Dawn Thomas calls my 3-MPH attempt at a jog, for the first few miles, but stopped somewhere along that span and continued walking.
as the day turned into night, muscles were getting sore and my breaks were longer. I didn't get to the San Rafael to Larkspur path until after midnight, and though there was a sign saying the tunnel was closed, I didn't believe it, and kept walking, muttering to myself about the sheeple who would turn back, believing the cops were energetic enough to shlep out here every night to lock up a pedestrian tunnel.
so imagine my surprise, and disgust, when I got right up to it and found out it was true. a big old padlock on the gate. however, it looked like the other half of the tunnel, while overgrown, may have been open, and there was an open gate to that part about 1/4 mile back. so I plodded back to it and came up the other way. damn! another gate. but when I got up to it, it wasn't locked! just latched with one of those Y-shaped things that swing out when you lift and pull. so I got through that, but then, just a short ways into that tunnel, there was a huge steel gate locking out any access. so I wasn't getting through there until 5AM. on my way back, I saw another swing-out gate between this unpaved path and the bike path that I hadn't noticed before. this also was unlocked, and I pushed it open and was back jogging down the path only to see headlights approaching! cops, I thought, who else could it be? just play it cool. but it was only private security, and they just let me jog on past! I got out of there without incident, went down Andersen to Sir Francis Drake and headed back west. approaching the crest of a low hill, I felt power ahead of me. suddenly a noise, and a buck jumped the steel barrier and ran across the road and up the embankment! his doe followed shortly afterwards. they were beautiful, silhouetted against the sky. got to Larkspur about two hours later than I should have, 02:40.
I slept a little on the Mill Valley to Sausalito trail, and again for a good two hours in Sausalito proper. didn't get across the Golden Gate bridge until 16:24, almost 30 hours after leaving Petaluma. got down to the parking lot just in time for the PresidiGo bus, used the swanky restrooms at the Presidio to clean up, shave, and fill my water bags, and caught the 17:15 PresidiGo, an express bus totally free, to the Transbay terminal downtown.
slept a little along the embarcadero last night, wrapped up in my SOL sleeping bag and leaning against my gear and provisions which were wrapped up in my tarp. nobody bothered me. I even drank a 22-ounce Heineken, discreetly pouring it into my coffee cup so no cops passing by would notice, but I don't think they care anyway.
I need to buy another Dromedary bag to pee in. a smaller size, for sure, so I don't get it mixed up with my water bags!
the two Megabus drivers I tried so far wouldn't let me use my ticket for their bus. don't know if the policy changed, or they don't know the policy, or they just didn't want to do it. going to try again tonight on the 00:15 bus. at least it's the same day.
I'm in Panera now, enjoying a 99-cent dinner roll with real butter. I've been fat-deprived. I did find a nice meal last night, though, a chicken teriyaki rice bowl someone left on top of a garbage can near Caltrain. people in the bay area are always doing this, gifting food to weary travelers by this anonymous method!
last updated 2017-10-31 22:33:07. served from tektonic.jcomeau.com