I knew about the Palisades fire that struck early this year, of course, but I wasn’t prepared for the sheer devastation. For many miles every single house was just gone, leaving just concrete foundations. The pavement was visibly melted in places. It was hard not to feel deep sorrow for the absolute destruction this fire wreaked.
However, my immediate concern was not getting run over by impatient commuters. For MANY miles the shoulder was closed, and traffic was heavy. I had to force my way into traffic and hold them off by sticking out my left arm, palm facing backwards, until I could slip between traffic cones and let a few pass me. Many drivers just couldn’t wait, and squeezed past with little room to spare. Not one car honked at me, though!
Finally I reached the end of this long section and I was able to relax, but just a little. I was usually stuck riding between parked cars and the stream of traffic (the “door zone”). The trails started around mile 15, and riding them early on a weekday was pure luxury. It was only punctuated by a stretch of city streets through Torrance and Carson, before getting back on trails in Long Beach. There was almost nobody on the beautiful beaches of Huntington Beach, and the trails were really quiet.
I have never ridden through LA before, and it was just fine.
The weather was absolutely perfect. It will be hard to go home to rainy Seattle!
