No one is awake in the morning, so I go out and buy groceries, then go to breakfast. Bill is up when I get back, so I say goodbye. I get Russ up and thank him too, then ride away into fog and light rain.

I set up camp at somewhat ugly Carlsbad Beach State Park, eat some lunch, and arrange to meet my cousin Tom and his wife Patti for dinner. It’s only afternoon now, so I wait. I find out I’ll be sharing my campsite with an old guy who’s a little crazy. I just stay away from him for the time being.

Tom shows up in his VW bus and insists on taking me to his place. We go to my campsite to get my things, and the old guy there goes nuts on us. Yells that we ignore him because we think he’s just a trashy old nigger. Shows us his bullet wounds from Viet Nam over and over. Nothing we say helps at all, so we just throw my stuff in the van as fast as we can and get out.

We enjoy a few beers and a good dinner in Carlsbad. Tom plans to take a couple of sick days to spend with me.