Wanderlust II

My trial for next week continued, so with a light calendar and wanderlust in my heart, I played hooky yesterday. I loaded the car with the essentials and the bike and headed out of the soon to be sweltering San Fernando Valley around o800. I avoided the heavy westbound 101 traffic by heading up the 405 and out the Ronald Reagan Freeway all the way to Ventura. The morning air was cool and I had the windows down and the sunroof open to the soundtrack of Joni Mitchell's "Urge For Going". It was refreshing passing the farms past Moorpark on the 2 lane road, and smelling the good old country air. I savored the moment, knowing that in my lifetime, I'll probably see that agriculture replaced by tract homes and a 4 lane freeway.
I parked in Ventura Harbor and took a 3 hour bike ride north. Ventura has some great bike trails that I had never explored. There is one north of town that parallels a beautiful undeveloped beach and I found a lovely park with a trail down to the river.
I met two friends for lunch, and bought some outstanding strawberries at a roadside stand. Headed back to LA on the 101 and got a slap in the face of reality with the tight early evening traffic and the smoke from a big wildfire.
I heartily recommend the occasional day of hooky!