Cycling from El Capitan to Santa Barbara
On today's leg of the Alaska to Argentina bike ride, I cycled from El Capitan to Santa Barbara in the USA. Once at my destination, I met up with Anne from a couple of days ago.
Cycling from Santa Barbara
Not a spectacular night's sleep, due to the Highway being close by. A consequence of this, was that I was up and about early, and away before most other people began stirring... Oh damn, I forgot to pay that 10 bucks!!
The road to Santa Barbara was far easier than I expected, as was finding the hostel. Once I was booked in, I went for a wander around the town.
Homeless problem in Santa Barbara
I have to say that the homeless population is both incredibly visible, and a stark contrast to the obvious affluence that surrounds them.
The lack of a 'social safety net' is a huge shame for such a big country. The other side of the coin, of course, is that the transient population gravitates to both the warmer climate, and the richer cities.
Whilst I am certainly not saying that living on the streets is easy, where would you prefer to be homeless - Alaska (transient population zero) or Santa Barbara (transient population estimated in the thousands)?
Anyhow, leaving all that aside, I met up with Anne and her friend Cookie in a pub for a few drinks, where it felt good to act civilised for a change - Well, as civilised as I can get. I hope that offer to help sail the boat still holds Anne!!
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Dave is a UK travel writer living in Athens since 2015. With 20 years of firsthand travel experience and over 80,000 km of bicycle touring across six continents, he's been blogging at Dave's Travel Pages since 2005. Every guide is based on places he's actually been.
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