In February I blogged about our trip to Ireland and England without our tandem. We couldn’t get over how easy it was to travel with just a few lightweight suitcases.
Now it’s March and we are back in SoCal with our tandem having fun in the sun. It’s our bi-annual return to Corona-del-Mar where our main activities are riding, walking and watching sunsets.

Actually I must confess that we have added a fun new activity this time around, shopping and getting almost daily “gifts” from Amazon.
Roger has been busy giving our beloved (almost 16 year old) Erickson a facelift. He has replaced many parts. The planned new paint job has been postponed until next year. What’s new you ask? A new back wheel, new chain rings, new cassette, new pedals, new chains, new bullhorn stoker handlebars, new brakes, new water bottle cages, new shoes, new helmets and new glasses for Roger.

The bike, shoes, helmets, etc will be staying out west for a least a year. We have big future plans for the Erickson which require the overhaul, but I am not going to discuss that now.
Our first week of “spring training” has included mostly 30-35 mile rides for 6 out of the last 7 days. A great start. All of the spring plants are in bloom here in Southern California, where it has been quite cool, with overnight lows in the 40’s.

Speaking of Shady Canyon, last time we were here everything was dry and pretty brown.  It’s nice to see some color.

It’s nesting season for the Terns and Plovers who hang out in protected areas at Huntington Beach.

On Easter Sunday we accidentally hooked up with Melinda and John Hansen and some Easter donuts.

We rode with them when we were in the OC about 6 months ago, and look forward to more adventures with them and a few of the other local tandem riders while we are here.
On Tuesday we rode early and drove to San Clemente to meet Michael and Nancy for lunch.

The plan was for us to ride to meet them, but the predicted 30 mile an hour winds out of the North (which would have been a head wind for 22 miles home) caused us to postpone those plans.

It’s been a chilly, but beautiful first week in paradise.  The temps are expected to rise which can only help to make our adventures better.

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