Before I reached the Mediterranean south of Barcelona, there was one final hurdle, which you can see here. This was another long day of cycling, and I reached the camp on the shoreline after midnight. That day was a trip. It was totally dark in the mountains, and this time there was no question about the meaning or intent of the honking of the cars that had to deal with me. When I was finally approaching the coast, the otherworldly orange glow of the beach town behind the ridge was a welcome relief. But I felt like a scumbag when I checked in at the campground with: (1) bugs stuck in the sunblock and sweat on my arms, (2) the foulest stench of an honest day's work emanating from my cycling clothes, and (3) the aforementioned flashlight once again attached to my forehead. I liked the beach camp of L´Hospitalitat - plenty of friendly folks there walking around in their underwear. (7/21/04)

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Atlantic Coastal Range

From:	bplater@yahoo.com	(Sun Jul 25 20:54:28 2004)
MFMK, if you continue to ride your bike down mountains in the dark you will never return from your trip. Why do I have to take care of you every where you go???
From:	Michael Kopp (mk)	(Thu Jul 29 05:12:30 2004)
I appreciate the concern. But I have three things to say in my defense: (1) there were only two nights out of the month that I have been over here where circumstances required night riding, which I have otherwise managed to avoid; (2) I was using a bike light and headlamp, both of which are designed for safe riding in the dark; and finally (3) while we are on the topic of mountain safety, it was not I who had a near-death experience bagging Mt. Whitney in nothing but shorts in below freezing weather in the middle of a lightning storm taking place at the peak. No, that was you. Is the pot calling the kettle black? I think it most certainly is.