We're sitting at an old diner in Blythe, close to the Colorado river, which we are soon to cross on our way to Tucson, Arizona. We said goodbye to Doug Adair at Pato's Dream Date Gardens this morning, and headed towards the Chocolate Mountains in the morning cool. We haven't blogged in a few days, partly because of difficulty finding an Internet connection, and partly because we found a couple of farms where we felt very comfortable and welcome, just at the time when we felt like slowing down and taking a little bit of a break.

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The adventures continue, and the ride to Malibu to visit Vital Zuman Farms was no exception. A little about how Guillermo uses his motorcycle: he reset the trip odometer every time we fill the gas tank, so we know exactly how many miles we can go before running out of gas (around 240 miles). Well, Guillermo forgot to reset the odomenter immediately after adding gas the last time, so we miscalculated and ran out of gas on the Pacific Coast Highway (not a bad place to run out of gas, if you ask me). We were cruising along, I was cheerfully enjoying my iPod, singing along at the top of my lungs (a motorcycle helmet is a safe place for that), when all of the sudden Guillermo pulls over and informs me that we ran out of gas.

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A visit to Coleman Farms was more like an excuse to eat, get drunk, laugh, and enjoy good company. It's true. We were hardly working, and having tons of fun. It began with a mosey motorcycle drive to Carpinteria on Hwy 192, passing grand estate after grand estate, and just about as many luxury cars. We pulled into the drive that led to Coleman Farms, and it was lined with white picket fences, perfectly manicured lawns, and a dozen impeccably kept thoroughbred horses. I thought, for sure, that these were going to be some uppity people.

As we drove along a little further, the picket fences stopped and junk metal welded into art began to dot the drive. Then, a pig pen. Then, a couple of trailer homes, and then finally Bill and Dehlia Coleman's cozy home covered in overgrown everything.

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Fairview Gardens, established in 1997 by Michael Ableman, is a non-profit organization located in Goleta, California. It is a twelve and a half acre farm smack-dab in the middle of suburbia, neighboring a WellsFargo Bank and Rite-Aid Pharmacy. Originally it was created to preserve the land and grow nourishing food, but has since become a huge success and an integral part of the community. On the farm, they produce over one hundred varieties of vegetables and fruits, and they educate others through tours, gardening and cooking classes, internships, workshops, and more.
 

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Earth to Table is a 3 1/2 acre farm located in the valley of Arroyo Grande. It is a very small operation, lovingly built by Cheryl Price, a woman ahead of her time in her community. Cheryl biodynamically grows heirloom varieties of vegetables, herbs, and flowers. Her methods focus on cultivating healthy soil, rather than focusing primarily on the plant.

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Hollyhock Farms is a gem of a place, owned by two charming farmers, Dick and Kim Rogers. This is as mom-and-pop of an operation as it gets. These two work non-stop to provide the people in their community with fresh and tasty organic produce. Even while we were sitting and enjoying a beer and a chat, Kim was pulling pesky mint from around a fountain, in preparation for guests that were planning on staying in their bed and breakfast.

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Our first farm to visit, Mt. Olive, was a little different from the 'typical' American farm we were expecting. It is owned by a group of Asian families (Malaysian and Chinese) that immigrated to California ten years ago.

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Today has been a success! We left the house at 10am, saying good-bye to Boris (Guillermo's sweet ol' dog and my newly adopted son), and loaded down with the bare necessities needed for a 2 week motorcycle trip. It ended up being quite a lot. We nixed eating hot food, so we took off the stove and some of the food, streamlining things considerably.

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Tonight we are tying up the loose ends before we hit the road, the long black road, to Austin, Texas, the final destination of the 'bike2barn 2007' trip. Already Guillermo and I are having an adventure, namely in getting to know each other a little better. A little background knowledge behind this trip is called for...

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28 de Julio is coming up, and Mariana and I are having a Peru independence day party here here at LocalHarvest headquarters in Santa Cruz to celebrate. We'll be making anticuchos, tamales, yuquitas, and pisco sours, but the main "course" will be a nice strong 4 gallon batch of Chicha de Jora (Peruvian Corn beer).

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