At Uncle Tom and Aunt Margie's

5/12,13,14 - Santa Maria, CA (60 miles)
We met up with Rachel's Uncle Tom and Aunt Margie (and Annie and Guizmo) just outside of San Luis Obispo. We didn't initially want to burden them w/ three days of our free-loading presence but all the Hiker-Biker campsites were abolished at Pismo Beach this year (too many homeless "hikers"). So we reluctantly called Uncle Tom on Friday night and he swept down from San Luis w/ his truck to save the day. The first order of business was laundry, then showers, then to go pig-out... and that we did. Margie is the GM at "Cool Hand Luke's Steakhouse" and we both enjoyed an endless stream of salad, breadsteaks and our first Prime Ribs in over a decade. And, that was just the beginning of good food... Saturday night, Uncle Tom whipped up a gourmet BBQ'ed meal with ribs, Italian sausage, boiled avacadoes, and tasty Merlot. We played old, scratchy records and talked until late that evening. As we left Santa Maria and the comfort of family, we had a sad heart but were also excited to once again begin our journey on the open road...