Surprisingly smelly Elephant Seals share the beach with locals at the pretty seaside town of La Jolla, then we are up near Balboa Park, San Diego, where the detached houses have all been built in a Spanish style. Linda and Dom welcome us into their home and help plan our route to the border.
Next morning we follow the Bay cycle route down the bay to the Tijuana River, overlooked by Mexican houses high on a bluff. A very substantial metal fence winds away into the interior hills and across the beach out to sea. Five American helicopters buzz overhead continually. Border patrol vehicles move alongside the fence. There is an enormous concrete bull ring and a lighthouse just beyond the fence. A Mexican fisherman mends his net on the beach, but we have our side to ourselves.
After taking photos to prove we made it, a bike path takes up the Caronada Peninsula to a bicycle ferry. Two cyclists we had spotted heading to the border introduce themselves. They have just finished their trip too and are returning home to Denmark - one has a new Thorn bike!
By lucky coincidence Darren (married to niece Claire) is on a big Motor Yacht in a marina in San Diego, so we can celebrate achieving our border to border goal with him over a few beers before negotiating Downtown in the dark and back up the hill to Linda and Dom.
Tour miles to date: 2,657
Location:Carlsbad to Mexican border
