2008-11-01 La Costa Conservation Area

Jake and I were expecting to be joined by some others, but as it was, we had the whole trail to ourselves as we started the climb up the switchbacks. I was a bit apprehensive about the ride because I forgot to bring my guards, so I didn't push the limits as much as I would have had I been wearing them.

We climbed the switchbacks in pretty good time. Since this was Jake's first time at La Costa, he was distracted by the views of Batiquitos Lagoon to the west. I have to admit, even though I've ridden La Costa many times, the view of the ocean is always a welcomed sight, not to mention that even on a warm, clear day, the ocean breeze keeps things cool and refreshing.

After climbing to the top of the hill, we jetted down the fire road on the other side, through the old green waste site and then up to the next water tower. I was feeling a bit slow, but I kept my pace as fast as I could. Jake wasn't far behind, and after a very brief stop at the top of the second hill, we headed back down. Just as we got through the gate, back into the conservation area, two other guys were going up hill. We sailed past them. When we got to the bottom, Jake commented about how he thought the downhill run seemed to be a shorter distance than the uphill, even though we rode the same trail.

We were quickly climbing back up the back side of the conservation area. I could really feel the strain of the climb in my legs, so I was glad when we got off the fire road and onto the little serpentine singletrack since it's much flatter. We stayed on the singletrack, crossing the road, and continued on our way down the southwest side of the hill. 

On the way down, I encountered a pair of hikers. I politely pulled over to let them pass, motioning to them that they could continue on and saying that they had the right of way. The woman snidely remarked that no one else had ever stopped for her. I thought to myself, that while she may be right in her indignation, she probably had never come out to do any trail work, and that the trail we were on was built by mountain bikers and not hikers.

Anyway, as we reached the bottom and started on the short uphill section back to the Calle Sitio trail, Jake looked ahead and saw two riders going up the switchbacks and thought we were going to climb back up. He let out a loud "Oh Gyan" that was reminiscent of vocalizations I've heard during other pursuits, but I assured him that we weren't going to climb back up again. I don't think he trusted me, because he stayed put until, I assume, it became evident that I was heading on a flat trail and not upward.

Afterward, we enjoyed a nice conversation at my house while sipping cool water and watching some mountain bike videos.