Ziggy, the Zony.

Peggy and Cora, riding.

Cora, riding near Monticello Dam.

Phil had mentioned that he had seen Ziggy the Zony out in the field yesterday, so this morning after breakfast Cora and I rode over to check him out. Ziggy is half zebra and half pony. We also saw a few llamas there.

Cora and I were riding loaded down today, as this was to be our Harbin Hot Springs option. I was carrying the bulky sleeping bags and pads for each of us, and Cora was taking most of the rest in her Little Joe bag.

I think we wore Jannene out these past few days, and she also was looking forward to getting to Calistoga and her spa treatments, so she was going to keep to the short option today. Cora and I were going to add in a stop for swimming at Lake Berryessa, and we were happy to see that most of the faster group was willing to join us.

Moscovitz Corners Store.

Lake Berryessa.

At the Spanish Flat junction, Lisa, Karl, and Phil all decided to skip it, but Peggy, Kim, Theresa, and Fran were all going to join us. The water was great. Kim and Peggy practiced their syncronized swimming. They were poetry in motion. I tried to be syncronized a bit also, but I don't think it looked quite the same. We all enjoyed the swim and had our lunch at the water.

After the swim, I wanted to continue around next to the lake, and Cora was happy to go along with me. But all of the others decided it would be best for them to go back out the way that they came, then follow the route up from there. So Cora and I just cruised along next to Lake Berryessa for a few more miles then climbed up out of the lake basin and stopped in at Pope Valley store. We were just finishing our sodas when we saw Fran ride up. She had left the others behind with the thought of getting into Calistoga early. Cora was happy to see that my option was indeed much shorter (by 3 miles) than the way that the others had gone.

Troy's reststop at Ink Grade.

Hubcap Ranch.

We then rode up to the SAG stop at the bottom of Ink Grade. This would be where Cora and I would leave the route, so we made sure to stop in and get our water filled up and have something to eat. Troy made Cora an extra PBJ sandwich and we loaded up with trail mix, for the luxury of SAG stops was not to be had for awhile. The others all soon showed up.

We were hoping that we could talk more people into joining us at Harbin, but they had all made their Calistoga plans. Cora and I then said our goodbyes and headed off. This Harbin Hot Springs option is one that we have both been looking forward to for a long time, almost as long as I've known Cora. This option was one reason why Cora had come on the tour. Cora had long ago mentioned Harbin Hot Springs to me, and so I took Diana there last November for our 2nd honeymoon, and I really liked the place.

So now we were off to Harbin. Only 20 miles to go. But first we had to climb up over the Butts Canyon hill, but that wasn't too steep or too hard. After 16 miles we arrived in Middletown, where we stopped for sodas and a small snack in the shade at Middletown High School. Next stop was Harbin, just 4 miles to go.

The ride seemed much longer than doing it in a car, but finally we arrived. We arranged for camping for one night on the deck, and 3 times the guy asked us if we might want to extend to more than one day. But we told him, no we would be leaving in the morning.

Finally on the deck with our bikes parked, we both couldn't wait to get out of our sweat saturated bike clothes. First up was a refreshing shower and clothes washing, then we would check out the hot pools. This was the life. Coming to Harbin was the best idea. We both couldn't see just going to stay in Calistoga.

The hot pool was 115F and the cold pool was 65F, very therapeutic for weary muscles. After alternating between the hot and cold pools, with longer stays in the warm pool, it was getting close to dinner time, and first we wanted to stop by the market. Cora agreed to a short hike with me on the Bath Path loop, taking the long way back to our bikes. I mentioned that in the early morning I would like to take a longer hike, and Cora agreed that this was a good idea, as this would allow her to sleep in a bit more.

Cora and Donny, wearing their sarongs, on the sleeping deck at harbin.

At the market we both bought sarongs so that we could then dress comfortably. Cora was able to find her favorite pattern, a leoperd print. Cora twisted and tied the sarong into a dress. I told her she looked every bit like Wilma Flinstone. We then had a good vegetarian meal at Harbin's restaurant.

Sleeping on the deck wasn't bad at all. Our pads were just the right thickness, so I was quite comfortable. The only drawback was that the deck creaked whenever someone walked on it, so we often had this creaking as there were about a half dozen other people also sleeping on the deck. We had a good view up at the stars, though, and it didn't get too cold. Much of the night I was able to just sleep on top of my sleeping bag. Cora, on the otherhand, burrowed deep inside her sleeping bag.

Go to the next day.