Play Always

Home! A short update.

2010-09-13T20:15:00.000-04:00

Home! After a 10 hour day of traveling, we made it home. Selena picked us up at the airport and we were back at our house by 4:00 in the afternoon on Tuesday, September 7th.

Waiting in the airport. It was so strange to only have two bags with us.

Beautiful flowers waiting for us at home.

It's amazing that it took us three months to bike out to the West coast and only a day of travel to come back. It is very surreal to be home. There is so much room in our house, and our bed is so BIG! It's a beautiful time of year to be in New England. Our garden and yard was very overgrown when we first got back, but we have slowly tamed it back. And in the garden we still have broccoli and kale to eat! Also, Selena sweetly picked and hung our garlic to dry, so we have lots of garlic to eat.

Look how much food we can cook at once! Also, notice how we can just have fresh fruit around to eat whenever, that won't get squished in the bags and make a mess? Ah, the stuff we take for granted at home...

Picking peaches.

Cleaning up the back yard.

Our very overgrown front yard.

Lovely sunflowers!

Selena helps (okay, she did most of it) prune the river birch tree in our front yard.

We are still waiting on the return of our bike. It should be here any day. It's been strange to not ride for a whole week.

Day 91

2010-09-06T20:17:00.001-04:00

Stats
San Francisco, CA→ San Francisco, CA
Net Elevation gain: 66 ft. (95 ft. to 161 ft.)
Average Speed: 7.8 mph
Top Speed: 20.7 mph
Time spent biking: 21 minutes
Miles biked today: 2.8
Total for trip: 4437.5 miles

Unfortunately, we didn't have the best sleep last night. The room we stayed in was too hot and the people on the bottom bunk snored. One of them also got a phone call in the middle of the night, which she answered and proceeded to talk loudly on, in Dutch, for what seemed to Jenny like an hour. The bed was comfortable though.

We got up early and breakfasted on watermelon, last night's chicken leftovers, an omelet with Laughing Cow soft cheese, onion, and garlic, plus toast. It was fun to cook food in the huge kitchen at the hostel. We made sure to wash all the dishes we dirtied afterward.

After breakfast, we were both excited and overwhelmed at plans for the rest of the day. We needed to finish sorting through what we were taking home with us and what was getting shipped with the bike, then we had to pack everything up and find our way to the bike shop. Once there, we would start the process of dismantling the bike. After that, we'd have to pack it all up securely, and get it ready for shipping. Finally, we'd have to find our way to the home of the person who offered to host us tonight.

Brett works to free our bike from the little courthouse room where we kept it last night. Up and over the other bikes was the only way out.

After finalizing our plans and printing out the shipping forms at the hostel, we carried everything downstairs (it took quite a few trips), loaded up the bike one last time, and set off down the hills of San Fransisco toward the docks on the eastern edge of the city.

Down the stairs!

A picture outside the hostel before we set off down the hill. In the background you can see the tower of the Bay Bridge to Oakland.

Once we were riding a sense of calm came over us. This was our last day of our bike trip. And it was BEAUTIFUL. The sun was shinning, the water sparkled in the distance and we were pros at navigating traffic and finding our way around. We took our time riding the short three miles to the bike shop and stopped several times to take photos.

A pier down by the water. It was such a beautiful, clear day.

An artsy shot.

Arriving at Mike's Bikes about 15 minutes before 11 am, the shop was not yet open. We unloaded our bags and set to work taking the bike apart. Halfway apart, the bike looks really silly. Once the employees arrived for the day, we were able to get the two bike boxes that they had saved for us and they also kindly let us borrow a few tools to finish dismantling the bike. Jenny cut the boxes so that we could fit them together as one “box” with lots of packing tape she bought nearby. We were having fun, but it was a bittersweet feeling at the same time.

What we accomplished before the bike shop opened.

Boxes!

The two boxes taped together. Long enough to fit Jenny!

In goes the bike!

About an hour later, we were still in the midst of packing up the bike. The bike went in fairly easily once apart, but we had to figure out how to stow all our other gear in there safely. We were starting to get really hungry so Brett went to get some food while Jenny continued to pack the boxes. Getting to the very end of a trip can be pretty emotional and even stressful, so it was good to take a break from each other. Brett made some good choices at the food store just a block away, and brought back some yummy food. When he got back, we sat down together and ate until we were full. Things are always better after food, and Jenny had brought us close to the end of the packing, so we finished up pretty easily after that.

Tape. Lots of tape.

Lots and lots and lots of tape.

With one final picture of us next to the box that now held the bike that took us all the way across the country, we set off into the city on foot. After a short stop at the health food store/Internet cafe near Mike's Bikes, where we called Mama and Papa and looked up directions to our Warm Shower host for the evening, we set out again. Lindsey's house was only a few miles from where we were and though we were tired and feeling sick of traveling, it was a nice change to walk there. Now that our bike was packed and left behind, we mostly just wanted to be home and not be so tired.

On foot is much slower than by bike.

A huge mess of cable car lines.

Well, it turned out that Lindsey is one of the nicest people ever. Once we got to her apartment, she showed us right in, let us take showers and even took us on a short walk to see the famous houses called the Painted Ladies which are just up a steep hill from her apartment. In the evening, she cooked us a delicious dinner and it was so much fun to share stories about our trips. She and her husband biked across the country last year, so she had some GREAT stories. To top it all off she even offered to drive us to the airport in the morning, instead of having to hire a van/shuttle to get us.

The Painted Ladies.

As we drifted off to sleep tonight, Jenny on the couch and Brett on a sleeping pad on the floor just below (we could still hold hands), we talked about how fitting it seemed to start and end our trip with a Warm Showers host.

Our cozy spot for night.

An amazing thought: Tomorrow, we will be HOME!

The last photo of us with our bike.

Day 90

2010-09-05T15:56:00.011-04:00

Stats
Marshall, CA→ San Francisco, CA
Net Elevation gain: 82 ft. (13 ft. to 95 ft.)
Average Speed: 8.4 mph
Top Speed: 35.9 mph
Time spent biking: 6 hours 15 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 11 hours 25 minutes
Miles biked today: 53.1
Total for trip: 4434.7 miles

We woke up early, a little tired, but having both gotten a decent amount of sleep. It wasn't quite light as we emerged from our cozy blankets and started to take down our tent, one last time. As the sun began to brighten the world, our tucked-away spot didn't seem so secluded as it did last night. A couple cars passed without much notice and a lady out for a morning walk with her dog came near, but by that point we were packed up and ready to set out. It's amazing how quickly we put everything away and were ready to go!

Our "stealth" camping spot.

We made our way through Marshall, and up over some capes before stopping for a breakfast of pecan pie. YUM! The sun was poking out, and we were looking out over Tomales Bay, where there were lots of birds. Most of the birds were wading around, probably looking for fish to spear. They were so pretty.

Nothing like pie for breakfast!

Big white birds in Tomales Bay.

A closer shot of a bird in the shallows.

One problem with not staying the night at a campground? No bathrooms to use in the morning. We did find a porta-potty at a kayak rental place before leaving Marshall, which was good.

All in all, it was shaping up to be a beautiful morning, with clear sunny skies, but still a bit cool. The further south we went, the more bicyclists we saw and the warmer it got. There were LOTS of bikers out for morning rides on this holiday weekend. We stopped for a more complete breakfast on the side of the road, sitting on a cement bridge. Brett counted at least a dozen bikers go by while we ate.

Second breakfast.

Our view from our second breakfast spot.

Before long we made it to the turn for the beautiful wooded bike path. We had been looking forward to this path the closer we got to it on our map. It was just as good as we imagined, and maybe better. It's always a treat, after riding on busy roads for a long time, to find a nice, quiet, well-designed, smooth bike path. This path made its way through old growth forest, eventually winding its way into Samuel P. Taylor State Park.

Once in the park, we decided it was a good opportunity to use the restrooms, as well as possibly our last chance for photos of the redwood trees. Finding a hollowed-out tree, we set up the camera and did a few timed shots together. Goodbye redwoods, we have loved riding below your magnificence!

These trees are so great: both immense and amazing!

A couple from San Fransisco stopped us and asked some questions about our bike and our trip just as we were setting out again. They looked at our maps with us and we talked about directions. Our way into the city seemed good enough to them, though they did warn us that the next bit of road wasn't going to have much of a shoulder. They were right about that. There were also lots of cars on the road, but a large majority of them were heading away from the city on the Saturday of Labor Day Weekend, which we were thankful for. People went around us, and before long we were within mere miles of San Fransisco!

As we pedaled into Lagunitas, we stopped for smoothies and a bagel sandwich at the general store. It was still early and after this third breakfast of the day, we felt more relaxed and well-fed. Before leaving town we took some time to poke around a tag sale. We didn't find anything, but it's always fun to look.

Lagunitas is a small town, even though it's fairly close to San Francisco.

Our route into the city was a lot hillier then we had imagined it would be. We had some very large hills to climb up and over. Because of this, it took us longer than we had thought to get into San Fransisco. Also, with so many other cyclists out for rides today, at times it was frustrating to see them whiz past us, clad in their lycra biking clothes, sprinting up the hills we were inching our way up. It made us feel tired and slow. Oh well, it's not a race! And we have biked ALL THE WAY across the country AND down the coast!! So take that, you fast out-for-a-day-ride bikers.

Jenny really enjoyed looking at all the trees and plants that we passed today. She feels thankful that Brett does the steering so that she can look around. The plants here are so different than in the Northeast. It's a lot like South Florida. When we made it to Sausalito, we stopped to take some pictures of the bridges off in the distance. It was almost as touristy here as it was at Niagara Falls! We noticed that lots and lots of people had rented bikes for the weekend. Many looked to be tourists from other countries, and some didn't look too comfortable on a bicycle.

Beautiful flowers we wouldn't see at home!

The bridge in the distance is the one between San Francisco and Oakland.

We had one last steep hill to climb before coasting down to the Golden Gate Bridge! It was so busy on the roads and as we pulled into the parking area/lookout for the bridge, we felt thankful that we weren't in a car because of all the traffic backed up. As for crossing the Golden Gate, there was one sidewalk lane open for biking across. Without too much hesitation, but after a few last pictures, we decided to go for it!

This sign was a bit overwhelming, but it shows that this side of the bridge is not open to pedestrians, only to bicyclists.

Here we are getting on the bridge!

The views from the bridge were beautiful! We were on the west side of the bridge, looking out toward the ocean. There wasn't too much wind, which was a relief, and not too much traffic for us. The walkway was for bicyclists only! Still, as we had noticed before, there were LOTS of tourists on bicycles today for the holiday weekend. Some people looked quite scared. We stopped for pictures a couple times, but Brett wasn't exactly the picture of relaxation either, so we didn't dally. It was REALLY neat to stop and touch the enormous cords from which this suspension bridge is hung!

Jenny, holding up the bridge!

It was hard to figure out where to go after we arrived on the other side. We hadn't planned this part so well, and we had expected to get here earlier in the day, but still, we were in SAN FRANCISCO!!! We took a couple looks at very basic map, and Brett navigated us along the northern shore of the city until he saw the street he thought he remembered was the best way to the bike shop.

Looking back at what we just crossed, and down at the bay where people were parasailing in the crazy wind under the bridge.

A shot from a different perspective a little later.

As we turned right onto Hyde Street, we almost panicked. Ahead of us was one of the steepest streets in the city known for its hills. Without stopping we double-checked with each other, and then went for it. We just hoped we wouldn't drop the chain. We climbed slowly but steadily, working hard, but still able to keep going. It reminded us of the very steep hill in Albany, way back when, but this was MUCH longer. About two thirds of the way up, because we were going so slowly, Brett's foot clipped the front wheel, and we stopped abruptly. It was a little embarrassing, as there were some curious pedestrians watching, and it took us a couple tries to get started on such a steep hill, but then we got going again, and made it the rest of the way up, eliciting a few cheers from our “audience.”

At the top of Hyde Street we took a break and dared to look back.

Once at the top of the hill, we surveyed our surroundings. There were tall buildings in every direction, tons of people, and narrow streets. We were certainly in the city now, but still several miles away from the bike shop, and the shop was closing soon. Our first priority was to find a bathroom (easier said that done in the city, we found out), and then get our bearings and have a snack. After a few tires, we found a public bathroom in a sports store, then a cafe to sit down in to use the Internet.

It was getting to be late afternoon now and we new that we wouldn't have enough time to find the bike shop and also pack up the bike tonight. What should we do now? It was hard to think about what was best and we were bummed that we didn't arrive in time to back up the bike today. Also, the stress of navigating and biking in the city had taken a lot out of both of us already, especially Jenny, who, from the very beginning didn't want to bike in the city. After some food and weighing a lot of different options, Jenny starting calling hotels and hostels to find a place to spend the night. The Green Tortoise Hostel had one bed left! Yay! Plus it was only about two miles away from where we were (and NOT down the very large hill we had just climbed up!).

Relieved to be done with decisions, we quickly got back on the bike. The route was fairly simple, but no one told us there would be a tunnel. Yes, that's right: a tunnel. There didn't seem to be much traffic at all, so Brett made the decision to go for it, despite the worries we both had. As soon as the traffic light changed to green, we pushed off and into the tunnel. Luckily, it was downhill, so we were moving right along. And then the traffic started entering the tunnel behind us. We were already about a quarter of a mile in, but there was still quarter of a mile to go, and the noise was deafening! The cars were gaining on us, but we zipped out into the dwindling daylight just as the cars started passing us in the other lane! Whew! Jenny promptly proclaimed that was the scariest thing she'd ever done.

A few blocks later we were at our final destination for the night. We rang the bell, carried our gear and our bike up the stairs into the hostel, and checked in. We were exhausted, but also hungry. Brett volunteered to go back out on foot and bring back some food, while Jenny rested. In a little while, Brett returned with a large hamburger, as well as some Vietnamese food. We ate in the little indoor courtyard where our bike was stored. It was open to the sky, and our bedroom window also looked out on it.

The delicious food restored our spirits, and gave us enough energy to shower, and straighten up our stuff before falling into bed. Actually, we literally climbed into bed, as we were on the top bunk. We were so tired that all we wanted to do was sleep, and we knew we didn't even have to get up early to bike a long way. Ah! A bed...

A picture from our morning, before we left Marshall.

Day 89

2010-09-04T15:55:00.011-04:00

Stats
Gualala, CA→Marshall, CA
Net Elevation gain: -23 ft. (36 ft. to 13 ft.)
Average Speed: 9.3 mph
Top Speed: 42.8 mph
Time spent biking: 7 hours 55 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 13 hours
Miles biked today: 73.4
Total for trip: 4381.6 miles

Good morning! Two tandem bicycles in the hiker/biker area!

After breakfast this morning, before we hit the road, we offered Nadia and Dieter a chance to try our tandem in exchange for us trying theirs. They were excited to try the switch for a ride around the campground loop, and we were thrilled with our chance to try their bike. We should explain that on the Hase Pino, the front person is in a recumbent position while the rear person is in an upright position. Brett took the rear position, which is also the captain's seat on this bike, while Jenny got to be up front.

Nadia and Dieter and their very cool bike!

It was hard to tell if we liked it more than our own RANS Screamer, but we certainly enjoyed the chance to try it! Getting going was a little different, and it had been a while since Brett had swung his leg over an upright seat. Funny the things you get used to. We are so used to our bike now that probably any other bike will feel strange. We're going to miss getting on this bike every morning when we get home in less than a week, even though we are fairly well ready for the trip to be over.

Jenny cooks up some breakfast to get us ready for a long day.

Who's paw print is that?? Pesky raccoons! (Also, someone nibbled their way into our food bag last night, even though it was locked in the wooden cabinet. Oh well, it's just a small hole and the trip is almost over.)

We pedaled out of the campground on our own bike only a few minutes before our fellow tandem riders left on theirs. By the time we'd made it back up the hill and back on the main road, Nadia and Dieter were close behind us, and it stayed that way for most of the morning ride. Having bikers behind us kept us pushing and it was a fun challenge to stay ahead. The four of us played leap frog a couple of times, always smiling, or ringing the bell playfully when we passed each other.

We had planned for a long day today. We wanted to get as far as we were able, so that we would have as few miles into San Fransisco tomorrow as possible. We still hadn't arranged the exact details of shipping our bike, though we were pretty sure it would work out. That was on our list of things to do today.

The terrain was still up and down, and the foggy morning made for some pretty sights, but not of the ocean, though we knew it was nearby. There were hawks in the sky again this morning, too. After one downhill, we stopped at a small store in a small town and ended up choosing to buy some hot dogs after not seeing too much else we wanted in there. Nadia and Dieter were there, too, as well as several other bicyclists, some touring and some not. All the bikers were really nice, and people were impressed with our distance covered this summer. The bikers out for the day had purchased water, and after they filled their bottles as much as possible, they gave us what was left, which was really kind of them.

Again we were impressed with the hawks, both flying and perching on these rocks.

A happy snack on a foggy morning.

Sometimes the Adventure Cycling maps are great, giving us phone numbers of campgrounds or listing where there will be stores, and sometimes they have mistakes or imperfections. We were looking at the elevation profile and thought we were done with the big hills, based on the towns we'd reached and passed, but were extremely disgruntled to find ourselves climbing one last big hill, misplaced on the elevation profile. Grrr! It was really foggy on the hill, but eventually we got to go down the other side. Nadia and Dieter passed us one more time just after that, and stopped for the night at a campground where several other touring bicyclists were staying.

A switchback on the way down the misplaced hill.

Soaking up all the views of the Pacific Ocean we can, as we'll only see it for one more day.

We were hungry, and a bit tired, but it was still only late afternoon, and we really wanted to get to San Francisco early in the day tomorrow, so we pushed on. It was very tempting to stop with everyone else just north of Bodega Bay at a state campground, but once the choice had been made, and we had passed the campground by, there was no turning back (at least in our minds).

When we made it into Bodega Bay, we wanted very much to find a bathroom. The town was touristy, with mostly upscale shops, and not one seemed to have a bathroom for us to use. Finally, we realized we were hungry too, as it was about time for an early dinner (5pm). We picked a tourist dive, a fish 'n chips place, and they had a bathroom. It took a long time to get our food, but that was okay because it took us a while to find a table free, too.

Before the food came, Brett called Mike's Bikes in San Francisco to see if they had bike boxes that we could use to ship our bike. We figured we could cobble two cardboard bike boxes together to make one large package to fit the Screamer. He came back to the table so proud that he'd called and found secured two boxes, but Jenny reminded him that we needed more than just boxes. We need a business to say they will be the pick-up point for the shipping company. After much tired and hungry grumbling, Brett called back and spoke to another person at Mike's Bikes and found out that, yes, they are okay with being the pick-up point, and figured out their hours for the Labor Day weekend we are in. Whew!

Our food was decent, and it filled us up, but we were almost buoyed as much by taking care of the shipping logistics. It was as if a weight had been lifted from our shoulders and a dark cloud passed away, allowing us to enjoy our trip again. We were adventurers with miles to ride, and though we'd passed the last camping spot (or accommodations of any kind) for about 35 miles, we were excited and optimistic about our chances for making it to the next state park, or the private place a few miles closer.

A mile or two south of Bodega Bay, we turned East, away from the ocean...and uphill. It was only a gradual climb, and the scenery was interesting and different. We saw sheep fields, and eucalyptus trees lined the roadsides. Eight miles out from Bodega Bay we reached Valley Ford (pop. 126), which had a great general store that we stopped into. We bought the rest of a homemade pecan pie, plus some strawberries and some juice. Mostly we were excited about the pie, though!

Sheep field.

Eucalyptus tree.

Shortly after that, we turned back south and crossed our last county line short of the Golden Gate Bridge, entering Marin County. It was getting dusky, but there was nothing to do but pedal onwards. On the first uphill in Marin County, our spirits deflated some with the realization that our rear tire had just deflated as well. Darn! A nasty little tack like the kind used for furniture was the culprit, but now we were forced to unload the bike, flip it over, take off the rear wheel, and find out that we had no extra tubes for that wheel besides the ones that already had holes. So, we had to patch this tube as well.

All of that took so long, even working quickly, that it was actually dark by the time we finished. We had to put the wheel back on with our headlamps shining. It was getting chilly, too, so we layered up. We still had some good energy left for pedaling, and we had no choices no but to push on, so we kept going. Brett was afraid that the bike's headlight battery would die if we used it all the time, so we kept it on the lowest setting and even turned it off when we could avoid using it. But still, we were making progress.

After the flat tire, we started thinking about stealth camping. Although neither of us was ready to stop, we both began scanning the sides of the road for possible spots. We descended back to ocean level and passed by a single building all lit up. It must have been a restaurant or something, and even though it was seemingly in the middle of nowhere, it was bursting with activity. Luckily for us, there weren't many cars at all on the roads, though. We were under twenty miles to the next campground.

At this point, it became clear that we probably weren't going to make it to a campground. Riding in the dark is slower, and we were getting tired, so we were actively looking for a place to pitch the tent without drawing attention or complaint. Even though we were only about fifteen miles from the nearest campground when we made it to Marshall, we had had enough, and figured we had cut enough miles from tomorrow's ride to San Francisco to make it there in time to pack the bike up for shipping before the bike shop closed.

The Adventure Cycling map lists the population of Marshall as fifty people. We didn't see any of them as we picked a spot between a tall hedge protecting us from the road and an abandoned building. Our tent sat mostly level on the thick growth of ivy on the ground and we were mighty proud of our little spot! We were tired and it felt relieving to have picked a spot to stop. We were a little nervous about camping so close to the road, but we figured we'd get up early enough in the morning before anyone noticed us. We wanted to make sure we got a good start tomorrow anyway, because we still had a bunch of miles to go to get to the city.

We saw a few of these really pretty flowers today before we headed inland.

Day 88

2010-09-03T15:55:00.006-04:00

Stats
Albion, CA→Gualala, CA
Net Elevation gain: -39 ft. (75 ft. to 36 ft.)
Average Speed: 9.0 mph
Top Speed: 44.6 mph
Time spent biking: 5 hours 10 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 9 hours 45 minutes
Miles biked today: 46.6
Total for trip: 4308.2 miles

The whole world was foggy when we woke up this morning. We were out of the tent by 7:00 and it was chilly! We ate some cereal with coconut milk and peach while we tried to use the Internet to look up phone numbers for bike shops near San Fransisco. We soon decided that we needed more to eat and a place that was warm. We weren't ready to leave yet, wanting to wait until some of the fog cleared, so we decided to have a second breakfast at the little cafe that was part of the campground.

Our first breakfast on this chilly morning.

The food was expensive, but also pretty good. Being inside for a while warmed us up and after we had eaten we felt much more ready to pack up the tent and set out for the day. As we were packing up, a whole family began arriving to the campsite next to ours, and they were excited to hear about our trip, and we had fun talking with them as we readied ourselves for one of our last days of riding.

Even after our second breakfast, the ocean was still fogged in.

By this point in our trip, we're used to “late starts” and they don't bother us too much, but we are a little concerned about making it to San Francisco in time to pack the bike and still have a day to explore the city before flying out super early on the morning of September 7th. Also, we still haven't lined up a store to get bike boxes from and to serve as the pick-up point for shipping our bike home. Since our phones still didn't work where we had camped, we really were eager to get on the road (despite the 14% grade to climb just to get back to it).

View of the bridge we are about to cross after we made it out of the campground and up the steep hill!

It was very slow going even after we got underway. There were some climbs that kept us feeling like we were slogging, and we didn't have the amazing views of the ocean to perk us up because it was still all foggy in that direction. The roads were clear of fog, so there were no safety issues, just aesthetic ones.

Good morning world!

We stopped in the little town of Elk and purchased some more expensive food. These little towns in California seem to be more expensive the closer we get to San Fransisco. Perhaps they simply survive on tourists and inflated prices. The store we shopped in did have freshly baked cookies, still warm from the oven, though! We bought two and ate those right away, while we packed up the other food we had bought and contemplated the rest of the day.

This store had warm cookies.

It was hard for us to get in the mood for biking today. We just didn't feel like it. Also, the unfinished plans for shipping the bike home and finding a place to stay in San Fransisco had us on edge and it was hard to relax and just enjoy where we were in the moment.

Of course, there isn't much else to do but get back on the bike and pedal some more. After our cookies disappeared, we pedaled on. One thing about the biking on the coast line is that the riding is very much up and down. There are hardly ever any flat sections. On one crazy steep hill, it got so steep around a corner that Jenny was worried we were going to flip over backwards. We didn't, but that is an indication that we are climbing some awfully steep hills!

It was hard to get a shot of this switchback that truly shows just how steep it was. We will just say that Jenny does NOT want to bike this part again.

When we arrived in the next town, this one had a decent-sized grocery. We stopped to use their bathroom, to buy supplies for dinner (egg noodles, Brussels sprouts and hot dogs), and of course just to take a break from the biking. It's very frustrating when you know you ought to be enjoying something more than you are, but it's just not being fun.

After shopping for food, we found we were hungry and dug out the calzones we'd bought earlier. Sadly, they weren't very good at all. The fillings were okay, but the crusts were awful: hard, tasteless, and in the way. We sat in the sun in the parking lot on the other side of the road from our bike, but the pavement was too hot. We sat in the shade next to our bike, but it was too cold to be comfortable. Brett went back to the sun, while Jenny preferred the shade. We each called our parents, and Brett spoke with a teacher from school, making plans for next week. So strange that next week we'll be doing something so different, so normal, so stationary.

After long conversations we set off again. It was getting to be the time of day that most bikers out touring would start thinking about a place to stop for the night. For us, it was our best biking of the day! Maybe the rest helped. Probably talking to our parents helped. Anyway, we were having fun again!

For the first time today, we can see the ocean!

Two bikers caught up to us from behind and they both turned out to be fellow touring cyclists that we've seen before, but this was the first time we'd seen them riding together. Ken, the fellow biking home to San Francisco, was pedaling together with a young woman we've seen a few times, but never spoken with until now. We saw her first as we entered the redwoods, and then again in Arcata, but only now did we get a chance to chat with her. It's her first tour, and she's not camping, but she's self-supported and going all the way to Los Angeles.

One of our favorite parts of the day was when we saw what we originally thought was a kite, fairly stationary in the sky between the road and the rocky shore. Then we realized it was a bird! (For those birders out there, we're pretty sure it wasn't a kite, as in the bird.) We saw lots of birds of prey in the next few minutes, and many of them were catching the breeze just right to seemingly float in the air! It was one of the neatest things we'd seen in a while. We stopped to ogle some, and then we were on our way again.

Birds floating in the air.

It took us a while to find the campground tonight. After climbing up a decent hill, we found what we thought was the turn and started to go down. We fervently hoped we wouldn't have to come back up tonight. Fortunately, we didn't, and although the campground was all full, they had a hiker/biker area. We had the great pleasure of sharing the area with two other touring cyclists, a couple from Germany. They are also touring the coast by tandem! They were riding a Hase Pino, which we were extremely excited to see in person, because they are only made in Germany, and we had only seen pictures before.

The sunset shortly before we found our campground.

Our evening was topped off with a delicious dinner of noodles, hot dogs, Brussels sprouts and cheese, AND marshmallows for dessert! Nadia had never eaten marshmallows before, and her husband, Dieter, was excited to have them again! Marshmallows aren't something Germans have, and Nadia hadn't necessarily believed the tales she'd heard of Americans roasting them. She also gave him a razzing, because she had no idea he'd eaten them before, on a previous trip to the United States a long time ago.

As we sat talking and roasting marshmallows over the fire, we felt so lucky tonight. Everything worked out today. It was tough at times, yes, but here we are, safe and happy, with friendly people, sharing a campsite and a warm fire. This trip is almost over, and it's been such a great adventure.

Brett was delighted to have a fire. Marshmallows were a real treat, too!

One last bit of excitement before bed, was our second run-in with raccoons on our trip! While we had our backs turned, enjoying the fire, forgetting completely about the bag of marshmallows resting unguarded on the picnic table, Brett once again got to jump up and chase a thieving raccoon who was making off with our treat!

There were at least two raccoons together, probably a mama and a baby. The animals continued to lurk in the darkness, only their eyes glowing from our flashlights, until after we retired to our tent. They could be heard prowling for a while after, climbing back up on the picnic table and pawing our bags. (All our food was safely locked in the boxes provided for the night.) Sorry raccoons, no treats for you tonight! Better luck next time.

Day 87

2010-09-02T15:54:00.016-04:00

Stats
Piercy, CA→ Albion, CA
Net Elevation gain: -896 ft. (971 ft. to 75 ft.)
Average Speed: 9.0 mph
Top Speed: 36.2 mph
Time spent biking: 7 hours 20 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 11 hours 54 minutes
Miles biked today: 66.1
Total for trip: 4261.6 miles

Just after 6 a.m. Brett's alarm went off, but we were tempted to stay in bed. It was just starting to get light outside the parts of us that really wanted to get a nice early start to the day, (knowing that we had some of our last large climbs to conquer) persuaded the other parts of us to get up. With a quick game of “Race you out of the tent!” (which always seems to take longer than it ought to because of the inevitable involvement of tickling, hiding the other's clothes, or covering one person with all of the blankets while trying to dash out of the tent with someone holding tightly to one of your legs) we were fed and on the road by 7:10!

The morning was quiet and cool as we set off excitedly. Our breakfast of cereal with coconut milk and peach on top, oatmeal and other snacks put us in a good mood for biking. Also, it's always exciting to get an early start to the day.

Only a few miles (fifteen minutes) into our day, we turned off of Route 101, which we had followed down most of the coast, to pick up “The One”. Around here, they don't call these highways by anything other than “The One,” or “The One-Oh-One.” It took Brett a while to notice, and today we joked around a lot, overusing the names that feel silly to us. Besides getting through the last few miles and over the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco, “The One” is pretty much our last road to follow!

About to turn onto The One!

When we turned onto The One, we had a nice little downhill to a river where we started our last big climb. The sun wasn't yet reaching down into the valley, but the climbing warmed us up quickly. The road was quiet, and there were almost no houses anywhere, just lots and lots of trees. Most of the time, we were able to see down into or across the valley we were leaving behind, and they were really neat views.

A different shot, looking back at the bridge we just crossed, at the bottom of the hill.

Now we get to go up!

A lovely view after about a half hour of climbing.

The roads were so quiet this morning.

Brett stretches while Jenny takes pictures.

We climbed for about an hour straight, going 4.5 miles and gaining about a thousand feet of elevation. You do the math: we didn't go fast. We counted how many cars we saw, and it wasn't hard to keep track: one car passed us from behind, and somewhere around a dozen went the opposite way. We were still in good moods, and just after what turned out to be the top, we stopped for a snack. After that break in which we ate a delicious combo of dried salmon and bread and hummus, our moods got even higher. Man! That snack was GOOD.

Of course, after every big climb there is a big descent! This one was REALLY fun, especially for the driver. There were about a million switchbacks on the way down, and it was fun to use the brakes (thank goodness for the drum brake!) just enough to be safe, but to be able to cruise around all the corners (sometimes making “Nnneeeeeowwwhhhh” airplane/racecar noises).

It's like we're flying!

At the bottom of the the mountain, we had a short level stretch before starting to climb again. This accent was about 2 miles up and took us about half an hour to gain about 500 feet of elevation. It wasn't as fun, but we knew it was coming, and it was over before too long.

We came back down the other side of that hill just about all the way to sea level for the first time in a few days. In the first town we came to, Westport, we stopped in a little general store and then ate again. All that climbing takes time and makes you hungry! We used the wifi there to check our email, too.

Cliffs and rocks and water and beautiful blue sky.

It's nice to be riding along the ocean again.

Heading out of Westport, we had some steep little ups and downs, but we won't top 500 feet above sea level more than twice again this trip. Weird to think about it that way, but exciting, too! However, these little hills tired us out and we lost the emotional momentum we had from climbing this morning.

A large patch of the "funny pink flowers" that Jenny had been wanting to get a photo of ever since we started seeing them when we entered California.

The little hills began to mellow, and in Ft. Bragg, a medium sized town, we stopped for some ice cream. Just as we were sitting down to eat our banana split, a man walked into the shop, headed straight for us and said, “Hey! Do you want some?” He looked happy and excited, but we were confused as to what he wanted. “Want what?” we said, in response. “Do you want some pot? Aren't you from Maine? I saw your bike outside and, weren't you the ones I passed back there who asked if I had some pot?” All we could do was shake our heads.

One! Two! Three! Ice cream!

Also in Ft. Bragg, we stopped at a grocery store and procured replacement stores of food: hummus, carrots, avocado, broccoli, and a peach. Sadly, not far out of town, we suffered a flat tire. It took a little while to change: unload the bike, take the rear wheel off, etc., etc. That cost us both some time and some more emotional momentum, but we did okay with it, trying to cheer ourselves back up.

Boo!

So much for that tire. Good thing we have another!

As the afternoon wore on, we made some more progress south, but we were getting tired and figured we would probably stop in Little River at Van Damme Beach State Park. However, after one tough little climb, we realized we had just left Van Damme Beach State Park at the bottom of the hill. We didn't want to have to climb that hill again, and we weren't completely wiped out yet, and it wasn't even dusk yet, so we pushed onwards.

According to our map, the next little town, Albion, has two RV parks. Unfortunately, our phones didn't get any reception to call either one, so we couldn't check prices or availability. We stopped and consulted the map multiple times, but couldn't figure out exactly where one of the RV parks was located, and the other one was located at the bottom of a cliff. We couldn't bring ourselves to just go down the hill to that park, so we crossed the bridge, and hoped there was somewhere to ask on the other side.

An old house and a wind-blown tree.

There were no stores to be seen that would be open after 5pm, and we stopped and talked it over. In the end, as much as we hated it, we decided we were quite tired, and it was the lesser of the evils to go down the cliff that we'd have to climb in the morning.

Back across the bridge we went, and turned into the driveway down. A sign greeted us: 14% grade! Holy smokes! We were a little nervous going down such a steep grade, but the drum brake did its job, and we went down slowly. Sadly, this RV Park wasn't that attractive. It did have a nice view of the bridge, but other than that it held nothing for us. Apparently, if you like to fish, this is a good spot to camp, though. For us, this was just a spot to lay our heads. We paid in an envelope and picked a site. Because we were tired, all this took us longer than usual, but we managed not to get too crabby despite the chill that was now upon us.

An amazing view of the wooden bridge above the campground.

Jenny was the hero of the evening because she got the password for the wifi from a neighboring camper! We cooked a meal first, before setting up our tent for the night. It wasn't much, but the broccoli-cheese-ramen with salt and cayenne did fill us up okay.

Amazingly, by the time we had the tent set up, it was dark, despite arriving while it was still quite light out. We had just enough energy left to crawl int the tent, write a post for the blog, and go to sleep.

Many of our breaks while climbing today were centered around flowers.

Day 86

2010-09-01T15:54:00.013-04:00

Stats
Myers Flat, CA → Piercy, CA
Net Elevation gain: 651 ft. (320 ft. to 971 ft.)
Average Speed: 9.5 mph
Top Speed: 45.6 mph
Time spent biking: 5 hours 15 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 8 hours 4 minutes
Miles biked today: 49.9
Total for trip: 4195.5 miles

Last night, Brett specifically tried to give Jenny the mattress without the small hole in it, so that she might have a full night of sleep, but he failed. In his defense, it is very difficult to tell them apart. The leak is very slight, not even noticeable actually, until you wake up on the ground in the middle of the night.

Despite the rough night for one of us, we both got up feeling pretty good. We had fun taking pictures of each other climbing around on redwood tree stumps next to our campsite. These trees really are amazing, and the stumps left behind are quite something. Ken, a fellow touring cyclist, took a shot or two of us together, for which we are grateful. He's heading home to San Francisco, on almost the same time frame we are, so we may see him again.

A shot of Jenny on the stump in the morning sunlight filtering down through the trees.

Us together.

WOW.

We tried to get going on the earlier side of things this morning, and we succeeded in being out on the road by 9:40. Not too bad! We were still riding in the redwoods, and it was just BEAUTIFUL. It's a little surreal, but mostly just awe-inspiring and serene. The temperature was a bit chilly, but there was no sign of wind, at least not yet.

Out of curiosity and because we could, we paid $3 to be able to ride our bike *through* a redwood tree. It's living, but has some help staying upright. It wasn't the most elegant thing, but it was neat and awe-inspiring in its own way.

The riding seemed to be more down than up for a while. We had two fellow riders in sight this morning: Ken behind us, and an unladen woman from British Columbia (who has done a bunch of touring by bicycle in the past) with whom we played leapfrog. At one small store we all paused together, but Ken didn't need anything and kept on and the woman turned back since she was just out for a day ride. We bought two drinks, a treat, and floss (which we've been meaning to buy since Florence or before).

Leaving the store we noticed how hot it was. We realized we aren't right along the ocean anymore, with its chilly breezes to cool us down. In some ways we welcomed the break, but it was pretty hot and we miss the ocean views. Thankfully, we're often along a river so there's water to gaze at.

Lunch today was a feast of our own supplies. We stopped in Garberville and got a few things from Chitaqua Natural Foods, but mostly we sat in the park/square across the street at a table with a sunshade and munched on things like the free tomato from yesterday, good bread (made in Arcata), a delicious lemon poppyseed muffin, salami, ham, lettuce, hummus, carrot, and avocado. When we'd eaten to our heart's content, we packed up and reluctantly made our way back onto the highway in the hot sun.

Our food supply laid out for the feast!

We considered taking a break in a cool place like a library, but we wanted to keep going. We paused at the on ramp to apply sunscreen for the open road, and then on we went. Actually, there was a nice breeze helping us along, and after a bit we got off at the next exit. Following the smaller road in the same direction at the highway, we were right alongside the river, and we came upon a good spot to go swimming!

A view over Brett's shoulder of the river valley we followed much of today. Along the road were lots of what looked, and smelled like huge fennel plants!

The cool to cold water was really nice, but the algae was less so. We swam a bit, and lingered a bit, but we cooled off quickly, and still wanted to make some distance today. Carefully avoiding the poison oak that abounds here, we made our way back up the steep incline to our waiting bike.

A barefoot Brett ready to climb down to the river for a swim.

After that, we were biking for a while. Of course, we warmed back up again quickly, but we were on and off the highway a bunch this afternoon, so the riding was interesting enough to keep our minds occupied. We did more climbing this afternoon, gaining a few hundred feet of elevation, something we haven't done in a while. Looking ahead, we know we'll have a difficult day of climbing tomorrow (our last big hillclimb/mountain), and we're really excited for it!

We passed a few logging trucks today, or rather, they passed us.

Our supply of water ran low this afternoon. We were drinking lots to keep up with the heat, and there aren't so many stores (or houses) in this region, so we actually ran out for one of the few times all trip. Just as we ran out though, we came upon a campground/resort/camp store where we bought a treat, and refilled our water bottles with nice cool water.

From there, we only had 5.2 miles to go for the day to Standish-Hickey State Park. It was eerily quiet, with an otherwise empty hiker-biker area, and only one other couple in the section of the campground we were in. We self-registered, and Jenny cooked us up a huge meal of rice, beans, apple sausage, cheese, green beans (from the farm stand!), while Brett set up the tent for the night. Brett also made sure to charge the laptop and camera from the outlets on the bathroom building.

Since we finished our day of riding early enough, we even had some time and energy to work on the blog a bit. Brett wrote some, but we're so far behind it's hard to remember details from the day. The pictures we took help set the story straight, plus Jenny remembered more of the day, and we pieced it all together.

After that, we set an alarm for an early start, and got some well-earned sleep.

Day 85

2010-08-31T15:53:00.020-04:00

Stats
Arcata, CA → Myers Flat, CA
Net Elevation gain: about 143 ft. (177 ft. to about 320 ft.)
Average Speed: 12.0 mph
Top Speed: 42.4 mph
Time spent biking: 4 hours 47 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 8 hours 40 minutes
Miles biked today: 57.4
Total for trip: 4145.6 miles

It was a novelty to cook breakfast on a real stove this morning. Jenny made a scrumptious omelet with goat cheese sprinkled on top, while Brett put the laundry in to wash and did some writing. We hung out with Rebecca for the morning, and were off to a somewhat early start, by 10:00.

Cooking breakfast.

Rebecca, Brett and Jenny. Thanks for having us visit!

Only a few miles down the road we stopped to buy some food at the Wildberries marketplace before leaving town. Wildberries is one of those amazingly overwhelming, huge, local health food stores, where you just want to buy everything because it looks so delicious.

If you're ever in Arcata, CA., be sure to go here.

After walking around the store in a sort of daze, we decided to pick out some foods to eat right away from the prepared section, so that we wouldn't be hungry and would be able to then make better decisions about what to get for future meals. Our food choices after we had eaten ended up being: sausage, olive bread, hummus, carrots, beans, a peach, a large hunk of cheese, smoked salmon, salami, avocado, chocolate trail mix, and coconut dates.

Palm trees in the square in downtown Arcata.

By the time we left Arcata it was nearing noon. We had some good riding along 101, with the wind at our backs and food in our bellies. The scenery was mostly blah highway, but we had some prettier riding when the sun came out and we passed the larger city of Eureka.

More lovely orange poppies.

These trees have very pretty leaves. We think they might be eucalyptus?

We took a break by a marina in the outskirts of the city so that Brett could make a few phone calls for work. Jenny spent that time watching the pelicans. The little marina had a ramp that went out over the water and it was a perfect place to stand and watch the boats and the wildlife. Besides the pelicans and omnipresent seagulls, we also saw two seals! Jenny felt that she could have stayed there all day watching, particularly for the pelicans.

This place was so tranquil in the chilly afternoon.

Jenny could have stayed here all day watching these birds!

For lunch we stopped in the small town of Scotia, where we found a picnic table and snacked on food we already had, even though there was a store right there.

Jenny makes some hummus and salami sandwiches to eat.

On our way out of town we passed many lumber yards. The amount of wood that these places have is hard to comprehend. This picture only shows a small section of the expansive yard.

A more serene shot.

By mid afternoon, we made it to the Avenue of the Giants! This stretch of our trip was truly amazing. Nothing compares to slowly biking along the quiet roads that weave into the forest and around these humongous trees. Although it runs basically parallel to Highway 101, the Avenue of the Giants sees far less traffic, and certainly lower speeds. Ideal conditions for viewing the redwoods while biking.

A little bit of information about the Avenue of the Giants.

So. Tall.

Not long after starting along the Avenue of the Giants, we were passed by an interesting cyclist. He was in all the garb of a fancy biker out for a day ride, but he had a semi-large backpack on. When we talked with him later in the day, we learned that he was a touring cyclist, too, but doing things completely differently. Al got this (crazy, but fascinating) idea in his head to try to make it from Seattle to San Diego in less than two weeks. He is averaging about 130 miles per day. Yes, averaging. He is staying in cabins and motels and his wife is helping to arrange things from back home. He seemed really nice and down-to-earth, but boy is that a different way to do things!

We prefer to do things a little bit slower. With lots of breaks for photos!

A big hug!

A pleasant surprise along the road this afternoon was a farm stand. We pulled over and bought a few delicious tomatoes, some green beans, and a cucumber. The owner was really friendly, and after chatting for a while about her organic produce and our trip, she gave us a free tomato for the road! We love fresh food, and it always feels good to buy it right from the farmers.

Tonight we got to camp right beneath the redwoods! Burlington Campground in Humboldt State Park is a beautiful spot. There were a few other cyclists at the campground as well, but we had our own site because the one that the others were sharing was full. We cooked an incredible multi-course dinner, starting with bacon, which we ate as soon as it was cooked, then soup, made with fresh sausage, beans, potatoes and carrots. For dessert we had coconut covered dates and a peach. This meal made us feel as though we were eating like kings!

Cooking dinner beneath the redwood trees.

Day 84

2010-08-30T15:53:00.008-04:00

Stats
Orick, CA → Acata, CA
Net Elevation gain: -10 ft. (187 ft. to 177 ft.)
Average Speed: 9.0 mph
Top Speed: 36.8 mph
Time spent biking: 3 hours 35 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 6 hours 5 minutes
Miles biked today: 32.3
Total for trip: 4088.2 miles

After a restless night, we got off to a late start. Jenny took a shower while Brett worked on packing up. We ate some blackberries from the patch next to our campsite. We fed a few to the friendly horses on the other side of the fence. Turns out, they love blackberries like we do!

These horses loved blackberries. There were more berries on our side of the fence, probably because they had already eaten the ones on their side!

Even with our slow start, today was far better than yesterday. We were able to work together nicely, and after some snacking from our food supply and returning the key to the bathrooms at the office, we set out.

Most days we have a decent idea where we might camp for the night by estimating about fifty miles ahead, but we rarely know for sure. But when you are headed to a friend's house, it's different. It's just a matter of what time you'll get there! We knew we'd stay the night with our friend Rebecca, who we know through the UMass Juggling Club, at her apartment in Arcata.

The fog lends its own kind of beauty.

There are thousands of views like this along the coast!

Today wasn't a sunny day. It was bright and dry when we struck out, heading almost due south. The coast was a bit foggy, but the roads weren't, and we took our time pedaling along, knowing we didn't have to push too hard to get to our destination at a reasonable time. We passed by the little town of Trinidad, and were in the woods for a stretch, then after that on really nice roads with little traffic. We noticed that there seemed to be a lot of homes turned into places to rent a room, stay in a motel, or bed and breakfast.

A beautiful lagoon separated from the ocean by a thin strip of land.

When the woods opened up, we were right back on the coastline, along a really pretty bike path. We didn't go down to the water, but it was beautiful and so peaceful to gaze out over the waves and the sand. Today we saw the ocean meet the land at both expansive sandy beaches and rocky cliffs and crags.

Brett's view, including the pretty flower Jenny gave him.

A well-placed bench made for a relaxing break for a few minutes.

The sign describes how sea levels have changed with respect to the land over time. It was an excellent location to use as an example and fascinating to think about.

As we rode into the outskirts of McKinleyville, we were getting really hungry for a real meal. All that was left at the corner store that we came upon was one pre-made wrap that didn't look very appealing. We asked about how far into town we'd have to go to get to a restaurant or some other food store, and were told it wasn't far. We did have to climb a bit of a hill to get up to the center of town, but we were hungry enough that we thought it would be worth it.

When we got to the main stretch of stores and restaurants, we chose a pizza shop, and we made a GREAT choice! The pizza was so good that Brett even went back to order seconds.

We were SO happy with our pizza choice. Yum!

When we got to the main stretch of stores and restaurants, we chose a pizza shop, and we made a GREAT choice! The pizza was so good that Brett even went back to order seconds. While finishing up our meal, we checked the map on line for the best way to get to Rebecca's house from where we were. Since we had deviated from the Adventure Cycling Association route, it ended up looking more efficient to go directly south from where we were, instead of heading back down to the ocean first. We had one small bridge crossing on a busier stretch of highway, but it turned out not to be as bad as it looked on the map.

Jenny LOVES these! She pointed them out anytime we passed some on the side of the road. Sometimes it was just one, and sometimes there are whole patches!

The plants reminded us that we really were in California today. We biked passed palm trees, huge cactus plants, and many tropical flowering trees, some of which Jenny recognized from Florida, and some new to us both.

An example of the exotic-to-us plants we see in this area.

It took us a few tries to find our friend Rebecca's apartment, but once we did, we were greeted with hugs and a comfortable place to rest for the night. We hadn't seen Rebecca in years and it was fun to catch up. Her roommate Kayce was also fun to meet and chat with. Kayce showed us one of her favorite books, which Brett ended up reading the start of out loud to everyone after dinner. There was one especially funny bit when Rebecca was acting out all the crazy lifeforms Brett was reading about.

We didn't bike a ton of miles today, and the sky was overcast, but it felt so good to be in better moods and to be taken in by friends at the end of the day. We didn't have to set up the tent. Rebecca made us salad! We got to sleep on a comfortable futon mattress. We're in California, and we got here by bicycle! Life is good.

Day 83

2010-08-29T15:52:00.009-04:00

Stats
Klamath, CA → Orick, CA
Net Elevation gain: -10 ft. (197 ft. to 187 ft.)
Average Speed: 8.7 mph
Top Speed: 35.2 mph
Time spent biking: 3 hours 4 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 6 hours 15 minutes
Miles biked today: 26.6
Total for trip: 4055.9 miles

Up early this morning, we didn't feel like eating a big breakfast, so we mostly just packed and left, eating a little bit during the process. The campground was quiet but chilly, and we were ready to move on. We were a little grumpy because we couldn't find a good place to plug our computer in and sit down at the same time, and the wireless signal wasn't great either.

We hit the road, but our moods didn't improve. Talking didn't help much, so unfortunately we were still unhappy when we started pedaling up a big hill into the redwoods again. Under the shade of the redwoods, it was chillier, and our hands were uncomfortably cold, especially on the downhills.

A view of a down hill. Brett wears his rain coat for warmth.

Cruising through the redwoods eventually brought our mood up considerably, and we continued to be amazed by the big trees. We stopped a bunch of times, just to take a couple pictures or even just to look around.

So. Tall.

We love these trees! Brett has been waiting a long time to meet them.

Reading the map on one sign, we made sure to visit “Big Tree.” Any tree that gets named among these giants has to be worth seeing, right? Big Tree ended up being an extremely old specimen, and appropriately wide in girth. We tried to get some pictures here, but it was busy with other tourists and taking any picture of a person standing near a redwood is hard if you want to get a bunch of the tree in.

The path through the woods to get to Big Tree.

Along the path there were many photo opportunities.

Big Tree.

Incredible statistics.

Coming down out of the redwoods, we saw a herd of elk! At first we were very excited, because we had hoped to see elk on the trip. Then, as we realized that this herd is very complacent around people, and were happy to graze for hours right next to the road, the excitement wore off a little. Of course, it's still great to see such big animals at a reasonably close distance, ostensibly in the wild.

Elk! They are pretty big.

A little further out of the redwoods, we ate lunch at La Hacienda, a Mexican restaurant. This long break did us good. It gets chilly when we go down, and there were a bunch of descents this afternoon. Since we are following the coast, any time we go up, we come back down. The wind takes a lot out of us. Outside the restaurant there was a very large part of a tree on display, which we admired after our meal. Part of the display talked about the economy of this area being based on the big trees over time. Eighty to a hundred years ago they were logging them, and now their economy is based on the tourism the great redwoods generate. It was really interesting to think about.

Jenny checks out the time line of historic events that occurred during the life of this tree.

After our lunch break, we stopped for a snack of blackberries as we pedaled out of town. It was only mid afternoon, but the biking just wasn't coming easily to us. When we came to a campground, we pulled in and decided to take a break and possibly stop for the day, instead of making it all the way to our friend's house in Arcata as we had planned.

The campground was nothing special, but Jenny especially just wanted to stop for the day and lay down. As we set up the tent, another herd of elk wandered within range of sight, between us and the highway. They weren't very exciting to watch for long, though. There were actually two campgrounds with the same driveway, and unfortunately we didn't notice the other one until after we'd already paid for this one. We could have saved $5 and stayed under the redwood trees rather than in an empty RV park.

We were tenting right next to a horse farm, and beyond that you can see the herd of elk crossing the road on their way to somewhere else to graze.

Jenny rested in the tent while Brett worked on the blog. He was sitting out in the cold by the office, which was closed. He hoped the caretaker would come back with the password for the Internet which we'd forgotten to ask for when we signed in. Eventually, he did get the password, and he did some work on line in preparation for next week back at work. After that, we snacked some, and pretty much went to bed feeling grumpy.

There were a bunch of reasons we weren't feeling good, but one of them is that sometimes it's hard for us when we change our plans. We waned to simply rest, but we also wanted to push on and get closer to our goal of San Francisco. After taking the day off recently, we figure we have just enough time to get there and ship our bike before flying out early on September 7th. Hopefully, our short day today won't set us back too much.

Even though it wasn't the most pleasant day, there were still beautiful and fun parts. We still got to see amazing trees and several flowers like this.

Day 82

2010-08-28T15:51:00.008-04:00

Stats
Brookings, OR → Klamath, CA
Net Elevation gain: 76 ft. (121 ft. to 197 ft.)
Average Speed: 10.4 mph
Top Speed: 37.4 mph
Time spent biking: 5 hours 6 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 8 hours 20 minutes
Miles biked today: 52.9
Total for trip: 4029.3 miles

Last night, when we were speaking with Wim, we talked about how we never get early starts. He said he rarely does either, and that he's just made peace with that. Well, we're trying to. You might think that after the off-day yesterday we'd get a nice early start today, but if you did you'd be wrong. We got up early-ish, but Jenny hadn't slept well, so after breakfast of fruit on yogurt and some other snacks, after we each took a nice hot shower that helped us to relax, and after Jenny did most of the packing, we finally got going at 10:10. In fact, we were the last bicyclists out of the campsites. We did the right thing not to stress about it, but we really would like to start earlier.

Still a little bit misty in the late morning.

Before we even passed through Brookings, we saw two bikers paused by the side of the road for different things, so we really weren't so far “behind” as we might have thought. We got off of Route 101 for a while onto quieter roads, following the directions of the Adventure Cycling Association (ACA) map. We had to get back on for a short stretch to cross the bridge over the Smith River … and into CALIFORNIA! Our last state!

We definitely will.

We were really excited, and of course stopped at the welcome sign for a few pictures. Also stopped there was Bruce, a motorcyclist traveling on his own from Illinois. It was nice to chat with such a kind fellow traveler, and after we took a few pictures for him, he took a few pictures for us. Some motorcycles might be annoyingly loud on our ears, but we've liked most of the riders we've met.

Our last state. We made it.

They waved us through the Agricultrual Inspection checkpoint half a mile later, and that was it. California until we fly home. We savored the feeling of that for a while. We missed a turn for a quieter road that would have given us a view of the ocean, but we didn't mind riding Route 101 at that point because the road was nice, and we got back off it when the next ACA directions crossed over Route 101.

Look! Only 347 miles to San Francisco! Craziness!

The sides of the road were mostly unexciting, but some fields were clearly growing something different than we'd seen before. When we stopped for a snack a nice woman explained that they were Easter lilies. Jenny had guessed they were lilies, but we didn't know this was the only place that Easter lilies grow. Neat.

Fields of Easter lilies.

Our snack didn't do too much to stave off our hunger, so in a few more miles when we came to a market in Fort Dick, we bought a small chocolate milk and some of that mango-peach-pineapple juice we like, then sat outside at their picnic tables and cooked up our much-anticipated lunch. Pesto is so good, and we ate it over the last of our egg noodles plus some of the rice pasta Brett's mom sent, Italian sausage, Jarlsberg cheese, and Brussels sprouts. We made a lot of food, but we ate it all up!

It's always makes us happy to find a good spot to cook a meal.

Jenny noticed a sign while we were cooking that mentioned they had wifi available, so we took out the computer and posted another entry to the blog we'd written the night before. That felt good. We also got to read a whole passel of funny and sweet comments people had left. Thank you! They put us in a really good mood.

Our next town was Crescent City, but before we got there something very exciting happened: we biked our 4000th mile of the trip!!! We have enjoyed hitting the other thousand-mile milestones, but this one was by far the sweetest, because we know it's our last and because it's a very big number now. We celebrated with a whole strawberry-rhubarb pie from a restaurant in Crescent City, which in retrospect was a poor decision, but a thing we've been talking about doing for a celebration all trip. We didn't eat the whole pie, thankfully.

It was very exciting to get a whole pie. It would have been even more exciting if it wasn't quite so sweet and tasted better. Oh well. Yay for 4000 miles biked!

Just south of Crescent City, now back on Route 101, we started climbing a significant hill. We knew it was coming, but it wasn't so bad. Well, it was hard work for sure, but we were climbing into another exciting area of our trip that we've been looking forward to since before we left: the Redwoods!!

Brett spotted his first Coastal Redwood tree not too far up the hill, and we both found it amazing to climb amongst the tall giants. The hill took us from sea level up to an elevation of about 1200 feet over a few miles, so this was a big climb. Wim passed us, but it was fun to keep him in sight for a little while before we stopped to take pictures and a breather.

We made it to the redwoods!!

A huge tree, and Brett.

Taller than Jenny!

What can we say about the redwoods that would convey how we felt under them? It's hard. We've heard so much about them, and Jenny had seen them before at some point in her travels, but we experienced them together today. They are so straight, so tall, but once surrounded by a grove of them and their massive trunks we felt both calmly enchanted and also excited.

Downhill through the redwoods, here we come!

From the top of the climb, it was an amazing descent back to sea level. The views to our right (west) of the ocean from such a height were a bit dizzying. When we got all the way down, we got our first glimpse of California beach, and it was nice. Pretty similar to Oregon, but nice.

The coast of California!

Today was the first day on the coast that the wind wasn't pushing us along. We had a headwind on and off today. It wasn't windy under the great redwoods, but along the coast both in the morning and the early evening it was. Still, in the morning we rode pretty fast, and in the evening after the climb and descent we made decent time.

There are lots of different RV parks around Klamath, and we weren't sure which one to stay at. We even considered trying to make it up the next hill before we stopped, but then thought better of it. After a bit of asking and meeting up with Wim at a convenience store, all three of us split the cost of the next RV park we came to. It wasn't cheap, but probably nothing in this area is. At least it was reasonable when it was split, and we were glad to help Wim out in that regard as he'd already gone there and found it too expensive for one person.

It was pretty cold this evening. In fact, it was very chilly in the shade of the redwoods, too, especially going downhill. Jenny found it too cold to stay out, and dove in the tent. Brett cooked up some dinner from what supplies we had, and we munched on some potato chips as well. We had ramen noodles to use up, the rest of the pesto, a few leftover sprouts (ironic that Wim is from Brussels!), and some cheese. Brett also made himself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich to eat while cleaning up.

Jenny worked on the computer in the tent while Brett slowly packed up for the night and chatted with Wim. Sometimes Jenny would comment from the tent, or Brett would go and ask her something. Most noteworthy from the conversation was Wim's question and our answer to it. He asked, “Have you had any 'miserable' days?” Brett considered a minute and then answered, “There were definitely parts of some days that were miserable, but no, we haven't had any days that were 'miserable'.” Wim felt the same for his trip, but mentioned that he'd run into a couple two weeks into a year-long tour and they told him they'd already had a few miserable days. Interesting comparison.

Brett and Wim unpack food and chat while preparing dinner.

This campground had something that we didn't like. They have a fish cleaning station that they let the bears have access to. There is a family of three bears that come by about three times a day according to someone there, really predictably. We think this is not such a bright idea, because sooner or later something bad will happen when you are essentially feeding the bears. We didn't make the effort to go try to see the bear(s) before we brushed our teeth and went to sleep.

Day 81

2010-08-27T15:51:00.009-04:00

Stats
Around in Brookings, OR on our rest day
Net Elevation gain: 0 ft.
Average Speed: 8.9 mph
Top Speed: 21.6 mph
Time spent biking: 30 minutes
Miles biked today: 4.5
Total for trip: 3976.4 miles

Last night we had tossed about the idea of making today a rest day. When we woke up, we talked about it again, and after looking at the maps and the mileages, decided that today was a good day to take off. We would rest our bodies, take care of things for back home, and try to catch up on the blog. Joe and Giana stopped by on their way out this morning, and we gave them hugs in case we don't see them again, though we hope we will. It was hard to let go of the feeling that we should be out there riding, too.

It took most of the morning to really get going, so that was part of the resting. We had been told the beach was amazing at this park, so we were eager to go down and walk along it together. Since it took so long to get ready, we ended up just snacking a bit for breakfast, and then biking into town for brunch at Mo Joe's, a cafe with a wireless signal. Brett got the Belgian waffle with strawberries and whip cream, while Jenny enjoyed the Southwestern Caesar salad, and we split a yummy “frozen chocolate milk.”

Breakfast, lunch, and frozen chocolate milk!

The food was good, and we felt like we accomplished a lot on our to-do list while sitting in the cafe. We posted two entries, talked to family, read a few comments, sent an email or two, we dealt with issues that had come up with the rental property back home, and Brett made a work-related call. He also ran over to the post office to buy an envelope so that we can mail a copy of last year's tax return to MassHealth, which takes care of our health insurance.

After the afternoon was spent at Mo Joe's, we stopped at Fred Meyer again to pick up some groceries for the next few meals. For dinner we got frozen sausage and pesto to go with noodles Brett's mom sent. For breakfast we got yogurt and some fruit to go with the dry cereal and the few blueberries that are left. For lunch tomorrow we bought sandwich meat, sliced muenster cheese, a small head of lettuce, and a red pepper to go with the bread and hummus we already had. Then we took the bike path back out to the state park where our tent was still set up. It felt very strange to “come home” to our tent already set up someplace. That was a first on this trip.

The wind was very strong today, blowing from the north or northwest as it almost always does here from May to November. It was so strong and blustery at the campsite that we decided to switch our dinner meal with tomorrow's lunch meal, and we made up some of the best sandwiches we've had in a long time! Good bread, spicy hummus, lettuce, muenster, red pepper, ham, and pepper turkey created a
nice blend of tastes and textures.

These were the BEST sandwiches!

At last, we were ready for the beach. Oh, but not yet: we had to layer up. The wind was so strong and the sun was hidden behind the clouds that covered the sky. Both of us bundled up with just about all the warm layers we have. Brett, who is usually so warm had on two pairs of pants and a pair of shorts, three long-sleeve shirts and a short-sleeve one, plus his hat. In the end, walking to the beach was enough to warm us up with all those layers, and we didn't have to worry about being cold at all.

We took so many pictures at the beach! The camera filled up and we had to delete a few blurry photos in order to take all that we wanted. The ocean, the rocks, the sand, the waves: they are all so inspiring. We're looking forward to being home, but it has been so nice to see the ocean every day this week.

That's Brett way up there at the top.

Climbing down to the ocean.

Want to play hide and seek?

Ah, the beach. There weren't many rocks to look for, but this was a very nice beach.

Many colorful starfish. We just stood and watched this place for a long time. The waves flowing in and out around the rocks were mesmerizing.

A little bit "washed out", but a shot of us together on the drift wood further up the beach.

Back at the campsite, we sat at the picnic table without being cold because the wind had died down, and we wrote some for the blog, as well as transferring the pictures from the camera to the computer. We talked for a while with other bikers who came into the hiker/biker area. Wim from Belgium has pedaled 6,500 miles since May 9th, hitting New York City, Buffalo, Chicago, Phoenix, Wyoming, Portland, Seattle and points in between, and he's on his way to San Francisco and some more. Two others are on a week-long trip staying in their home state of Oregon. We all had questions for each other and stories to share.

Before we went to sleep, Brett read chapter three of The Incredible Journey aloud. We're glad we took the day off, and we hope we sleep well so we feel more rested for the next section of our trip.

A favorite picture from our stay at Harris Beach State Park.

Day 80

2010-08-26T15:50:00.009-04:00

Stats
Nesika Beach, OR → Brookings, OR
Net Elevation gain: 23 ft. (98 ft. to 121 ft.)
Average Speed: 10.1 mph
Top Speed: 45.6 mph
Time spent biking: 3 hours 59 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 9 hours 24 minutes
Miles biked today: 40.1
Total for trip: 3971.9 miles

Brett cooked an amazing breakfast this morning: potato chicken coconut curry soup. It was one of the best breakfasts we've had on this trip. When Jenny finally emerged from the tent to join Brett at the picnic table, he was wearing a very large smile and looked quite pleased with himself. “You look so happy!” Jenny told him. “Yeah! I'm cooking!” was his response.

It was another beautiful day to be on the coast of Oregon today. The temperature never got too hot, yet it wasn't too cold; we had clear blue sky above us, and the wind was behind us for the fifth straight day! We still wore an extra layer at times, and one of us perspired a bunch up some hills in the sun, but we're certainly not complaining!!!

The dew falls heavy around here, and when we got up, everything outside was covered in water droplets. We slept well, so we were in good moods as we let things dry out and took our time getting ready. Jenny did a bunch of typing while Brett did some cleaning and packing. A few of our electrical devices also got some charge this morning.

A snapshot from our morning of what Brett ate for a quick second breakfast before breaking camp.

As we left the campground and turned back onto Route 101, we wondered if we might see some of the other bikers today. Just as we were making a guess as to whether Joe and Giana might be in front of us or behind us, Brett spotted them in the mirror! They had already come almost 20 miles from Humbug Mountain State Park. The four of us rode together through a beautiful stretch right near the ocean until we neared the bridge just before Gold Beach. When we stopped to take a photo, they pulled ahead and we wouldn't see them again until the evening.

We loved this small winding road right along the coast!

We were so caught up with biking after we crossed the bridge and pedaled into the town that we forgot to look for the store we had meant to find to get fuel for our stove. Brett asked at the grocery store, and was told that the Fred Meyer in Brookings might have some, and if not there would be a Walmart in Crescent City, CA.

Looks like a fishing derby in the Rogue River, with the long, flat bridge we were about to cross in the background.

California! When we left this morning, it was about 42 miles away. We were really excited to try to get there and sleep in a new state, but we've been so happy with Oregon that it's hard to want to leave. But up first, we had some beach to explore and then a hill to climb.

Ever since we hit the coast, we've been talking about dipping our tires in the Pacific Ocean, in the tradition of many cross-country cyclists at beginning and ending points. Our route isn't really from ocean to ocean, but we still wanted to do it. Most beaches haven't seemed narrow enough to bother trying to get the bike across all the sand to them, or else they are down a steep cliff. Just south of the busy part of Gold Beach we found a Visitors Center with beach access that looked just right!

We drove down into the parking lot, then along the short path to the beach. The last few feet of the path were sandy, and we had to push a good bit and it was hard to steer, and then we were on the beach. We struggled for several minutes to get the bike the seventy feet to where the waves were washing up. Brett edged the bike into position while Jenny set up a time delay shot with the camera on a piece of driftwood and a pebble. Click!

Jenny documents the wave and front wheel meeting.

But then things got a little less fun: a bigger wave came before we got the bike turned around, and Brett's shoes and socks got soaked, as well as the part of the bike's wheels. Oh well. So much for simple pictures and staying dry. After that, we got the bike up out of the way of waves, took off our shoes and looked for cool stones. We didn't find any agates, but a few nice beach stones nonetheless. There were so many cool stones to pick from, and many with stripes or lines.

Jenny documents a more dramatic wave while Brett tried in vain to stay out of reach while holding the bike.

Before we left the beach, we asked a family if they would take a few photos of us with the bike, so we have a few more moments captured by the camera, and that was fun. We weren't in the best of moods, though. Brett's shoes and socks were a mess of wet sand, plus we were having trouble communicating with a tenant back home. It's tough to be present in the moment when you're trying to solve things back home. We like solving things back home, it's just hard to switch back and forth smoothly. Later today we spoke on the phone and resolved much of the stuff that had come up, and made plans for some of the rest.

Two barefoot travelers, happy to be along the Pacific Ocean after so many miles across the continent!

After sitting around a while in our funky mood and all the pictures at the beach, we wiped off the rims of the wheels and headed on. Brett chose to wear his Keen's instead of his wet and sandy bike shoes. He is used to riding on the small “clipless” pedals back home in any kind of footwear, so it wasn't too hard for him. Jenny was hungry, and we decided we'd stop at the next place to get lunch, since it was a little after 1:30.

We see these signs a lot around here, and we think the pictures look hilarious, even if the topic is a serious one.

Unfortunately, the town was behind us and with it all the restaurants, and the hill was ahead. We hate backtracking, so we just went for it and started up the hill. We'd been eying the hill on the maps with other bicyclists for days, so we'd built it up quite a bit: “The big hill just past Gold Beach.” Just as we started to really climb, a woman caught us and then pedaled by after quick hellos. We tried to keep up with her, as we do really well in that situation. She was pretty fast, but she took breaks, too, so we kept her in our sight most of the way up the hill that ended up being not that long, and never terribly steep. It was only a mile or two up to where it levels off a bit, and with someone ahead of us, we were up it in practically no time. Jenny kept wondering when it was going to “go up.”

You can see by the white on the water that it's a bit windy, but so beautiful!

So, we had pictures from the beach all taken, even if we want different ones later. We had the hill climbed. It was only about 2:30, and California was looking so close! We absolutely flew down the south side of the hill, with the wind behind us but also swirling a bit. It was scary at times, but we enjoyed our super high speed of 45.6 mph! As we reached the bottom, we spoke a few minutes with the woman who had passed us and was now photographing the amazing seascape before us. She was nice, and we offered to take a few pictures of her with her camera. She accepted, and we found out she also is headed to San Francisco. She had already done 88 miles today! We were a little jealous.

The downhill was long and fast! Here we are, almost at the ocean again.

We were still hungry for lunch, but when we realized we'd biked past the turns for Pistol River just to the east, we decided for now just to consume some of the many snacks Brett's mom sent us in the package. We also om nom nom'ed some more of the delicious blueberries we picked yesterday. Yummmm!

Queen Anne's lace.

The views of the ocean for a while after that were incredible. We saw so many large rock formations in near the beaches. We saw arches with the sun reflecting on the water underneath. We saw pristine beaches all over the place. Maybe this will be our favorite part of the trip. The good weather sure doesn't hurt!

Somewhere near Cape Ferrelo we took a short walk through the woods down a path to look at these beautiful arches.

The short walk through the woods was the perfect break.

We look so happy.

We made it into Brookings around 5ish, and were really ready to eat a meal. Brett steered us into the Fred Meyer parking lot to get fuel, but we were so hungry we ended up eating prepared hot foods there rather than go anywhere else. This is also when we ironed out stuff with a couple tenants back home. The food was okay, and taking care of business felt really good, but now we were drained and it was after 7. Brett grabbed an over-priced and under-sized cannister of fuel (yay), plus a couple oranges to juggle to help him relax at the campground, and then we (gasp!) backtracked the mile and a third to the very nice Harris Beach State Park.

Tired, but glad to be at the nice campground for the night.

Supposedly, this beach has some of THE best sunsets, but we got in just a bit too late, and were bushed anyway. The rest of the place looked nice enough, and you can't beat the price for hiking or biking in: $5/person per night. Thank you, Oregon! (California, you'll have to wait until tomorrow...)

Day 79

2010-08-25T15:49:00.013-04:00

Stats
Banton, OR →Nesika Beach, OR
Net Elevation gain: 55 ft. (43 ft. to 98 ft.)
Average Speed: 10 mph
Top Speed: 38.0 mph
Time spent biking: 5 hours 41 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 11 hours 29 minutes
Miles biked today: 57.0
Total for trip: 3931.8 miles

Brett was up first this morning and got to have a nice long phone conversation with his mom while Jenny slept. Once we were both awake, the day began as it usually does with some breakfast, taking down the tent and packing up. Brett cooked up some eggs with salami, cheese and broccoli. It was fun to have so many bikers around to talk with over breakfast!

Morning at the campground.

At 9:26, we were, for the second day in a row, the first to pedal away from the campground! All these other bikers are making us feel good about our recent early(ish) morning starts. We were excited to get going today, partly because we knew that we'd make it through Port Orford. We knew that there would be a package from Brett's mom waiting for us at the post office there! And in that package, we had a guess that there just might be homemade chocolate brownies waiting for us.

As soon as we turned back onto the highway, we hit traffic. Yes, even on a bicycle, traffic still can cause delays. The bridge just ahead is under construction, with only one lane passable, and sometimes they close even that for the construction workers to use. After a twenty minute wait, we finally got our turn to go across.

This morning was misty along the coast, and the pictures were amazing! Well, they would have been if our camera had been charged. We tried to charge our camera off of our laptop, but the laptop had almost no battery left, so we only got enough charge into the camera for one shot. We were sad about the lack of pictures, and sad for yet another delay, but we couldn't stay sad long with such nice views.

The only shot we have from our morning ride. The views were breathtaking with the mist so thick over the water.

A couple hours into our day of riding, we came across an exciting place to stop: a pick-you-own blueberry stand!! We excitedly tied some plastic buckets to our waists and headed out to pick. There were several varieties, and we sampled and picked a bunch before we finally decided that we had enough. We might have picked more except we were afraid they might go bad before we could eat them all. We did get several pounds, though!

Jenny shows off our blueberry score. No pictures of us picking them because the camera was out of battery.

Only a few miles after our blueberry score and snack, we came upon the tiny village of Langlois (with a population of 50 according to our map) that has an outstanding deli. We bought two sandwiches, and both were amazing! As we were finishing up and getting ready to move out, the three guys we'd stayed with two nights ago (and last night) came pedaling up. It was fun to see them, and we told them the sandwiches were the definite choice!

After lunch, we had fourteen more miles of (camera-less) biking before we pulled into Port Orford. We were so excited, the first thing we did was ask directions to the post office. When we got there, we knew we wanted a picture of the package, so we charged the camera in the post office lobby for just a minute or two, enough for a couple shots. There were so many yummy treats and snacks in the package from Kathy! We were amazed at how much food she was able to get into one box. Thank you!

Yay!

Next, we went to the library, backtracking half a mile. Going back the way we had come was with the wind, letting us know just how much the strong wind has been slowing us down today. We spent a few hours charging our electronics and using the Internet. We also made some phone calls, dealing with things back home with the rental house. Right next to the library was a food store, and although we had enough treats to last us, we picked up some more food for square meals. We also checked the hardware store in town for fuel for our stove, but no luck there.

The library was a good rest stop, but we still wanted to get a good bit further before camping for the night. For several miles south of Port Orford we were biking right along the coast, but up on the cliffs. It was from there that we first noticed the whales spouting in the Pacific Ocean. What an amazing sight! The whales (there were definitely several) didn't seem to be doing anything more than hanging out somewhat near the rocky shore, but it was mesmerizing to watch for them to surface just enough to spout out their last breath and take in a new one. It was hard to get a good picture, because they didn't necessarily surface in the same place, but we had no trouble watching them some more until we got a few good pictures, and perhaps a good video clip.

No parking... but there are whales over there!

Whales are amazing creatures, and we feel really lucky to have caught a glimpse of some!

We tried to capture the spray on video.

Finally tearing ourselves away from the whales and applying ourselves to the task of moving further south, we soon came upon Humbug Mountain State Park. The sun was beginning to set, and we suspected that there might well be some friends staying in the hiker/biker area there so we were torn, but we decided to press on because we wanted to get in more than 35 miles today.

It is amazing to be so close to the ocean all day.

Mmmmmmm!!

Traffic was light, though the light was waning quickly. We happily pedaled another ten or twelve miles before we had to make another choice. The Adventure Cycling Association route would take us off Route 101 and to several options for camping in ten to fifteen more miles. But, the closest camping option was further along 101. We weren't sure why the route deviated from Route 101 anyway, and we were starting to get tired, so called ahead to the nearest camping spot, an RV park just off Route 101.

Brett, bathed in sunlight.

The lovely sunset.

When we got to the RV park, however, a mean man greeted us, and told us flat out that we would not get the rate that we told him we had been quoted over the phone. He told us we must have misunderstood the woman we spoke with. Brett was sure of what he had discussed explicitly with the woman on the phone, and we again had a decision to make. Should we just stay and pay a few more dollars than we were quoted for what looked like a nice RV park, or should we move on and try the next RV park only a few miles down the road?

Again we called ahead, even though the daylight was getting pretty dim. A pleasant man answered the phone and quoted us a fair price, so we decided to push on once more. We just really hated the idea of supporting a business that was so mean! It made us really angry, so when the man came back and brusquely asked us if we had made up our minds yet, we told him we would keep going because he didn't stick to the price quoted. He didn't seem to care.

Before we reached the next RV park, it was dark, but we had our headlight on and our taillight blinking behind us. We found the place, and it turned into a very happy ending for the evening. The man there was really friendly, and although he charged us the rate he had quoted over the phone, he let us stay in a spot closer to the wireless Internet signal rather than the usual spot for tenting. We were so thankful, and we explained to him why we had left the other RV park. He said he's heard things like that before. Sheesh!

We were hungry and it was dark. We set up the tent and then had lots of snacks: blueberries, crackers, nuts, etc. We did have to listen to a really upset couple a few doors away argue with each other, but that didn't keep us from falling asleep with our electronics plugged in and our head on our comfy pillows.

A bonus shot for the day. The views were amazing this afternoon!

Day 78

2010-08-24T15:48:00.008-04:00

Stats
Winchester Bay, OR → Bandon, OR
Net Elevation gain: -78 ft. (121 ft. to 43 ft.)
Average Speed: 11.5 mph
Top Speed: 35.5 mph
Time spent biking: 4 hours 22 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 6 hours 30 minutes
Miles biked today: 50.1
Total for trip: 3874.8 miles

Jenny slept really well last night. Brett also got some good rest, except for waking up around 5:00 to a sound outside the tent that he thought might have been raccoons. Once we got up, we set to work taking down the tent and cooking some breakfast. We were the first in our campsite to wake up, so we were quiet as we moved about. We were in good moods and we decided to make that potato soup again for breakfast. While Brett was cooking, Jenny packed up, checked the tire pressures, and lubricated the bikes chains.

Jenny shakes out all the sand and crumbs from our tent.

Once they woke up, we got to ask our fellow travelers more about their trip. Turns out that they took the train from San Francisco up to Seattle, and are in the process of pedaling home. We all exchanged ideas and experiences with different biking and camping equipment. They admired our bike, so before we left we let two of them try it. They were struggling to get it going and were about to give up, so Brett offered to drive. Off they went, and Brett's passenger was so excited and happy for the chance to try the tandem.

Our new friends try to get the Screamer going.

Five happy bikers!

The park ranger came by this morning and after figuring out just what had happened last night with the campsites and payment, the five of us were able to split the cost of the single site we'd shared. We were glad it all worked out the way it ought to.

Since we had packed up early, and the others hadn't eaten breakfast yet, we were the first to leave. It wasn't an early start, but we were in such high spirits, we were well fed, and it was a beautiful day! Off we went, up the hill and out of the campground.

Snacking at the next campground.

A few miles after we started, we found another campground and stopped for a bathroom break and a quick snack. When we turned back on to Route 101, we noticed that there were two touring cyclists ahead of us! We wanted to catch them. Keeping them in our sights, we followed behind them for miles. They set a good pace and kept us pushing to keep up. In North Bend, the bike route turned off of the main highway and we got a chance to introduce ourselves to the two cyclists. They also have a blog about their trip: http://roundthebendpedaltour.blogspot.com!

The chase is on! What a nice view of the upcoming bridge, too.

Traffic was patient while we crossed the bridge. Crossing bridges isn't exactly relaxing, but it's fun and everyone is nice.

We got to meet Giana and Joe, and we really hit it off. They seem like so much fun!

While the four of us were talking, the lady who lives in the house we were stopped near came out and offered us cold water! She was so sweet and full of energy. “I used to bike all around when I was younger!” she said, very enthusiastically. She was a tiny lady, a year away from her 90th birthday. The large pitcher of filtered water from her refrigerator was too heavy for her to pour, so Jenny filled up water bottles while the sweet old lady told us about her life and asked us questions. After wishing us well, and repeatedly asking if we needed anything else, she went back inside with a smile on her face. Some people are so happy and kind, it's amazing.

The four of us decided to bike together and try to find an ice cream place while we were in the town. It turned out to be a larger town then we'd been through in a while and navigating traffic was a a little overwhelming and stressful. After a few miles, we still hadn't found a place to stop for ice cream. There were mostly big strip mall type stores. When we neared a Walmart, we decided to stop and go in to check to see if they had some fuel for our stove. Joe and Giana biked on, but we hoped to see them tonight at the campground we were both heading for.

The Walmart was out of our fuel, but they did have some Ben and Jerry's Chunky Monkey ice cream! We sat outside on the curb and finished the whole pint together. This really wasn't our kind of town. Maybe it was just because we were in a Walmart parking lot, but it seemed like everyone was in a rush with frowns on their faces. As soon as we were finished eating our treat, we set off again.

The afternoon brought some nice biking. After a break in Charleston where we made sandwiches for lunch, we started our climb up the Seven Devils. A set of hills that earns that kind of name can't be tame. It was a long climb up and was fairly steep on parts. The views from the tops were lovely. We could see the ocean, way down there, past the many partially logged hilltops. Also, the downhill off the ridge was a blast! We cruised down to find the state park not far past the bottom of the hills.

A view from high up on the Seven Devils hills.

It was early evening still, and we were among the first bikers to arrive at the campground. This one had a very large hiker/biker area. Just as we finished setting up the tent and unpacking our cooking gear, other started to arrive. Joe and Giana were not far behind us, and after them were the three guys we'd shared a campsite with last night. It was like a family reunion! We also got to meet a really nice man from South Korea who is visiting the United States to learn how to fix bikes, and is biking from California to Oregon in between classes. We all compared maps and gear and talked about the terrain to the north and south. It's so much fun to share the experiences of the road with other cyclists!

One of the best parts about tonight: This campground had HOT SHOWERS! Oh, the little joys in life. Another joy in life is food, and Jenny did us proud, cooking up rice and beans, with broccoli, carrots, onion, garlic and spices! Compared to others, we have a tiny stove, but we would stake our cooking against any other's out here on the road.

About to eat our yummy dinner, after hot showers.

It was a good thing that the showers were hot, because the evening got pretty chilly, and it wasn't long before we were diving for the tent. The others around us were settling down, too, and we all enjoyed a good rest.

A lengthwise view of the Hiker/Biker area in Bullards Beach State Park.

Day 77

2010-08-23T15:47:00.007-04:00

Stats
Searose Beach, OR →Winchester Bay, OR
Net Elevation gain: 62 ft. (59 ft. to 121 ft.)
Average Speed: 8.8 mph
Top Speed: 38.9 mph
Time spent biking: 5 hours 30 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 10 hours
Miles biked today: 48.5
Total for trip: 3824.7 miles

Today didn't start off as nicely as the past few. Jenny did gather a few more nice pebbles from the beach, and Brett did write more for the blog, but our moods were low for whatever reasons, and we didn't finish striking camp until 11:30. When we did leave, we were hungry for pizza.

Our first tunnel on the coast. It even had a flashing light announcing bikers!

Heceta Head Lighthouse.

In Florence, we found a Fred Meyer store, but we forgot our mental shopping list and just got a Lara bar and vitamins. We wanted to get fuel, among other things, but we aren't out yet. Further on in the town that shares its name with our hometown, we found a pizza place, and we ordered up a whole pizza for ourselves.

This pizza was SO good.

That pizza was great! It satiated our hunger, and lightened our moods. We also felt good about posting two more entries to the blog with a wifi signal from the hotel across the street. We really want to catch up before we fly home. Before we left, Brett called his parents while picking blackberries in the parking lot and Jenny called the airline company to find out if we could fly standby or move our ticket up a day or two sooner. We're not there yet, but it seems like we're making good time and might get to San Francisco a bit early. Delta doesn't allow anyone to fly standby anymore, and it would cost a bunch to move our tickets, so September 7th it is!

Jenny takes a break from biking to enjoy the ocean views and to pose for a picture.

Riding out of town, we weren't really feeling very much in the spirit of pedaling. We did pass the place that many, many cross-country cyclists begin their journey on the TransAmerica trail (also mapped by Adventure Cycling). We rode for a while, but then we turned into a park because we wanted to see some of the great sand dunes before we left this unique area of Oregon. It ended up being a big downhill into the park, and we dreaded climbing it later. The park didn't offer any good camping, plus the price was $20 (not the $5/person we have become accustomed to recently).

Sand dunes!! (These were encroaching on the Fred Meyer parking lot.)

Bird chasing person with hula hoops?

Maybe it was hunger that was making us grumpy, because it had been a while since the pizza, and when we stopped to eat a snack before we climbed back up the hill to get out of the park, it helped our moods greatly. After munching on apple and peanut butter, carrots, and a banana, the hill wasn't as bad as we feared and we felt better in general.

Our snack spot. It was a little chilly, so we cuddled close to stay warm.

All day, the temperatures have stayed cool or even chilly while in the shade, but fairly warm in the sunshine. This is okay, but it's a little hard on Brett who has to keep adding a layer for downhills and taking it back off again as soon as we're climbing or in the sun. He finds it frustrating. Another thing we dealt with today was the terrain, which was a bit hillier. Our average speed reflects that.

An artsy sand dune shot.

We found another campground that we considered staying at until we realized that it also cost $20 and seemed to have no shower facilities. So, onward we pushed in the late afternoon, looking for a better spot. We had to climb a big hill, but then we got to go down the other side. The downhill put us in a town that was somewhat like a ghost town. It seems to once have had a larger population, possibly from a factory, but is now quiet and small.

We love all the bridges we get to cross.

Evening was falling, but the full moon was rising, and we got some beautiful photos by a bridge. We were reminded of our night in South Dakota riding by the light of a full moon. It's really neat to think back on something that was a month ago, but is strangely also a part of this amazing trip.

Playful shot of us approaching another bridge.

Two moon photographs in the early evening.

Passing through Reedsport, we remembered to grab one of the supplies that we had meant to buy earlier: matches. We aren't out of fuel, but we were out of matches! It was getting dusky by this point, and we continued on, knowing from our map that several camping options awaited us in or around Winchester Bay.

Jenny saved us considerable extra work when she realized that the map didn't tell us to turn off of Route 101 as we'd thought. We got to check out one of the camping options (not so great) before we realized our mistake, but we weren't far off course and quickly got back on track. Up one more significant hill, and then we got to turn off the main route to a nice state park campground: Umpqua Lighthouse State Park.

Evidence of the ever-present logging industry.

There is a steep downhill to reach the campground from the main road, but it was dark by now and even though we weren't looking forward to climbing it in the morning, that's something we'd just leave for tomorrow. We put our payment envelope in the slot, having paid for two people in the hiker/biker area, a total of $10. But when we got to the hiker/biker area, it was clearly both smaller than the corresponding areas in previous parks we'd stayed at and more full.

Instead of trying to squeeze into the small area in the dark, we decided to go in search of an empty regular campsite. Further downhill, we found something better than an empty site: we found fellow touring cyclists who had also found the hiker/biker area full! The three young men were busy roasting chicken, and cooking mac and cheese, all over a fire pit. They happily welcomed us to their site.

Henry, Brandon, and Charles(?) were excellent to talk to and we shared a few things before turning in for the night. Once again, the showers weren't hot at all for us, and we were mightily disappointed. We were tired, and after a snack and brushing our teeth, we went to bed in our nice warm tent, listening to the sound of a fog horn in the distance.

An old and unused train bridge outside of Gardiner.

Day 76

2010-08-22T14:08:00.010-04:00

Stats
Otter Rock, OR → Searose Beach, OR
Net Elevation gain: 0 ft. (59 ft. to 59 ft.)
Average Speed: 10.1 mph
Top Speed: 32.8 mph
Time spent biking: 4 hours 30 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 12 hours
Miles biked today: 45.7
Total for trip: 3776.2 miles

Having gone to bed earlier than usual, we woke up around 2 and 5, then got ourselves up at 7. We slept so long, though! We were gone from the campsite by 8:09, even after a few really fun pictures. We were amazed that two days in a row we started earlier than the previous day. Originally, we had planned to take some nice pictures with the bike by the ocean this morning, but since it was so chilly, we wanted to ride to warm up instead.

We were so excited to get going, we took a silly photo
of us "racing" to jump on the bike.

The terrain was rolling hills, and they did warm us up. The misty morning was pretty neat to ride through. We found a breakfast place for the first meal of the day and to charge our electronics. Jenny had a great omelet, but Brett wasn't particularly satisfied with his French toast with peaches on top. That's okay, because he got to eat a lot of Jenny's omelet.

The misty morning.

Although we were somewhat eager to ride, we wanted to post a bunch on the blog, so we took time out almost immediately after breakfast when we found an ice cream parlor/coffee shop. We bought a small treat so we would be okay to use the place for Internet and electricity, and then we posted three whole days, plus uploaded more pictures for future entries.

Jenny waits for photos to upload.

At last, we left Newport and continued in our new direction: south! After heading west for so long, it's a little strange to be going south now. We saw pretty ocean scenes here and there, as well as pretty wildflowers on the roadsides. Plus, we could hear fog horns along the coast!

We thought this flower looked like cross between a day lily and an iris. Anyone know what it is?

A close up.

Bird on a rock.

We found a picnic area on a cliff by the ocean for a nice rest stop. While we were stopped, we called home, wrote more on the blog, and enjoyed the sunshine that was now abundant. This afternoon, we took lots of little breaks, too, because there were so many picturesque moments, looking out at the ocean. Consequently, we never quite found a riding groove, but we're still really excited that we are riding along the OCEAN after so long across the continent.

We crossed a bunch of bridges today. Many of them have a button to push for bikers who wanted to ride across. When pushed, the sign flashes, letting cars know that there is a biker on the bridge! We think it's brilliant.

Another lovely bridge we crossed.

One neat spot we saw was Cooks Chasm, where when the tide is high you can see the water shoot up through a “spout hole.” We didn't get to see that, because the tide was out, but we did get a better view of the impressive chasm, and we marveled at the power of water to erode rock over time.

This is Cooks Chasm. We wish we could have seen the spout, but it was just the wrong time of day. Pretty neat anyway though.

Looking for a spot to buy groceries for a few meals is still a challenge, but at least we have a map that tells us when the stores are coming. This afternoon we were looking for a store that would have some good food. We found one that provided nice free Wifi, but didn't have anything we wanted to buy. We posted to the blog again, and enjoyed the comments people had left.

Further on, in Yachats, we found a store to buy food in. We stocked up with zucchini, salami, carrots, broccoli, canned chicken, swiss cheese, yogurt, some Odwalla juice and CheezIts. Our food bag was empty enough to accommodate most of that, and we were excited to have good foods with us again. Also in Yachats, we saw the bike of a touring cyclist parked, so we knew that the fellow we have seen a couple times is still right around our pace. Later, at the campground, we'd find out that he is from Germany and touring the coast, much like us!

Not far past Yachats, we stopped to play on the beach and look for agates! Strawberry Beach is a nice beach because it has sand for walking on one side and rocks and stones on the other side for those who prefer that. We climbed over some rocks to get down to the rockier side because we were excited to look for agates (translucent rocks). We found some nice ones, and took lots of pictures. Feeling satisfied with our beach experience, we dragged ourselves back to the bike.

Jenny shows off her balancing skills!

Balancing on a log, copying Jenny!

Jumping photos are always great!

Jenny, looking ecstatic!

Some calmer time spent poking around the tide pools and rocks.

It was only another six or seven miles to our campground for the night. We stayed at another State Park and that seems to be par for the course here on the coast. This is a welcome change from overpriced RV Park after overpriced RV Park. The state parks in Oregon only charge hikers and bikers $5/person! For the second night in a row, we could hear the sound of the surf from our tent! What a great sound to hear after all these miles. There was one moment of panic while cooking dinner when water spilled on the stove and put it out (but the stove was re-lit and dinner was delicious!), the showers weren't nearly warm enough so we were a bit chilly, but other than that we were happy and satisfied with another fun day of biking!

We leave you with a gorgeous view from our afternoon.

Day 75

2010-08-21T14:05:00.009-04:00

Stats
Grand Ronde, OR → Otter Rock, OR
Net Elevation gain: -341 ft. (400 ft. to 59 ft.)
Average Speed: 11.2 mph
Top Speed: 34.7 mph
Time spent biking: 4 hours 15 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 7 hours 27 minutes
Miles biked today: 47.8
Total for trip: 3730.5 miles

Up and ready to go by 8:55, it felt good to be on the road even earlier than yesterday. It seems rare for us to get going before 9:00 in the morning. Maybe for this third half of our trip we will be turning over a new leaf?

After a few miles of biking we found a nice little pull-off leading to a hiking path in the woods, and that's where we stopped to eat some breakfast. Figs, apple and cheese, avocado, bread, and hummus filled us up for the hilly (and a bit chilly) biking that lay ahead. By the time we crested the top of the hill we were so close to the ocean, we could feel it!

The trees are getting big!

We were in a good mood, and the roads were fun. There were beautiful mossy trees all around us, and the road actually went both up and down a fair bit. We do love when an uphill yields a fun downhill! After three decent climbs, with downhills in between, we weren't feeling fast, but the rest was pretty much all downhill.

These trees were so beautiful with all their moss clinging to them.

We weren't the only ones heading to the coast today, though. Traffic got pretty heavy the closer we got, but because it was heavy it wasn't very fast and we felt quite safe, even with small shoulders on the road. We actually got a bit of satisfaction out of being able to bike past all the bumper to bumper traffic in a few places.

Cruising through the tiny town of Otis, we hit the highway we've been anticipating for a long time: Route 101. We headed south, leaving Route 18 behind, and we were so excited to see the ocean any time now! Pedaling into Lincoln City, we postponed our date with the ocean to check a Goodwill store to see if they had any good games or comfortable sports bras. They had neither, and we poked around the bargain food store next door before we got back on the bike. We bought some cheese and some candy bars.

Then we got to see the Pacific Ocean! We stopped for pictures at D River State Recreation Site, but it wasn't our best opportunity for spending time at the beach or photo opportunities. Instead, we took a picture or two and realized we were hungry.

Sometimes you don't get the best pictures when you put the camera precariously on a railing and set the timer, but that's the Pacific Ocean back there behind us!

Our hunger today was specifically for Chinese buffet. The area was touristy and populated enough that we figured it might just have a place for us. After passing by several restaurants we might otherwise have tried, we found one! We parked the bike, brought the laptop with us, and headed in for a meal. It wasn't the big buffet we had pictured, but it was good enough for today, and the price was pretty cheap. It really did make us appreciate the excellent Chinese buffet restaurant we have in Northampton, though!

Well fed and rested, we were back on 101 heading south when we saw a group of four bikers turn on behind us. They caught up and passed us, but we were able to keep them in our sights. While stopped together at a red light, we exchanged a few tidbits of information. They were on an organized century ride, but when they heard where we were biking from, one of them commented, “That's mildly terrifying.” Terrifying? Hardly, but “Awesome,” yes!

It was very inspiring to see them working to finish their century. They weren't dressed all in lycra or riding fancy bikes. These are normal people, just riding a long way. Now we really want to do one back home sometime! We wonder often what things will be like when we go home after three months on the road. Will we bike every day? Will we be as nice to each other, keep our good habits from the summer, and stay off the computer as much as we have on this amazingly great trip? We guess it'll be different than before, but that some habits will be hard to break, even if we haven't been in them all summer.

It was also fun to pass by people on the sidewalks and have them clap and cheer us on, saying, “You're almost there, now!” because they thought we were also doing the century ride.

Route 101 is a pretty road when not in the midst of a town. The towns are just “enh,” and too touristy for us. We were having fun viewing the ocean at times, and just riding under trees and between green hedges at other times. Then, we caught the four riders we'd seen before. They passed us again when we stopped to take pictures of sea lions (or are they seals?) lounging on the rocky shore in the sun. SEA LIONS! Yay! Add that to our mental list of animals we've seen.

Beautiful view from up high.

This would have been a nice view, even without the cute animals!

While we were stopped, another touring bicyclist came along. He liked our bike a lot, and said he is riding the West Coast. He left before we did, so when we started again, we biked fast like we had been to catch the other riders. It felt really good with the sun on our faces, the breeze from the ocean and the wind behind us.

After a little while, we were starting to get tired, and ready to be done for the day. We wanted to get a good rest for another good ride tomorrow. Following our Adventure Cycling map (a different thing for us, since we made our own route across the continent), we were led off Route 101 onto Otter Crest Loop. This turned out to be a magical little road! After a little bit it turned into a one-way road with a bike lane on one side. Plus, the trees around us were beautiful and the world seemed so enchanted and quiet. It made Brett think of the people where he works at The Hartsbrook School, and how much they would probably enjoy this stretch of road. Also, it wasn't as uphill as Route 101 would have been, and it was fun to keep up with two more century riders that passed us.

Brett steers us along the quiet one-way road while Jenny documents.

Back on the highway, we went downhill quite a bit, but it was only a mile or two until we found the turn for Beverly Beach State Park. A few minutes later we were at our campsite for the night, and it was only 4:42! That may be the earliest end to any day yet on the trip! We got to eat a (big) snack of avocado, bread, hummus, cheese, carrot, trail mix, and banana, and then take a nice walk on the beach. It was really windy and cold, though, so we didn't linger too long. Also, there were these really cute kids around, who were finding all these neat paths and “forts” and “secret” places. They pretty much insisted we come and see for ourselves, which we were happy to do (once).

Brett rests. We made it to the campground so early! There was so much daylight left! Also, we had the whole hiker/biker area all to ourselves.

It was chilly at the beach, but we took a few pictures.

Seaweed!

(He made it.)

This was pretty neat to see at the campground.

After our walk, it was dusk, and time to eat more food, clean up, turn in, and get some rest for tomorrow.

Play Always. We are so excited to have made it to the ocean!

Day 74

2010-08-20T14:05:00.009-04:00

Stats
Hillsboro, Portland, OR → Grand Ronde, OR
Net Elevation gain: 200 ft. (200 ft. to 400 ft.)
Average Speed: 9.5 mph
Top Speed: 29.8 mph
Time spent biking: 7 hours 28 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 11 hours 40 minutes
Miles biked today: 71.2
Total for trip: 3682.7 miles

After a good night's sleep, we maintained our great moods from the end of yesterday and started packing up fairly early. Before we left, we had a nice breakfast and said our good-byes to Eddie and Beverly. Eddie did a really neat ceremony for us, wishing us good alignment with the elements and the hills. The tinkling of the tiny bells was a beautiful sound, and we're excited to wear the bracelets he gave us made by children in South America.

Brett and Eddie.

By 9:50, we were on the bike and on the road once again. We really wanted to reach the Pacific Ocean today, but we knew it would be a long haul. Having a goal like that is very exciting to us, however. We hadn't planned any exact route through the suburbs of Portland, but we knew the general direction. One thing became clear as we made our way west and south: nobody around here knows the roads by their highway number, they know them only by name. We had picked out two numbered highways, but it looked like we had to just guess from our sense of direction.

Along the way this morning we found a yard sale to poke around at, some fruit trees that didn't yield much, and lots of quiet roads and nice weather. We were getting hungry when we reached an intersection that had a diner. We'd been riding along and the suburban sprawl had abruptly given way to farmland and fields. Then this diner appeared! It turns out they had wonderful food and we split a buffalo burger and a delicious milk shake.

We really like food. The buffalo burger tasted a lot like a hamburger.

Shortly after we got back on the road, we started climbing. We knew we'd have a few climbs today and we were prepared for them, but it was still a long few miles of steep uphill before we made it to the top. A break in the middle of the climb yielded a perfectly ripe peach and two very large, tasty looking apples from trees along the road, picked by Jenny. We also had a beautiful view of Mt. Hood.

Beautiful view from our climb today.

Taking a very, very, curvy and steep downhill put us in the town of Gaston, where we picked up Route 47 and headed south after a quick stop to fill up our supply of water at a store. The rest of the afternoon we biked pretty fast and didn't take many stops. There were a few short rests to pick blackberries or take a picture but mostly we just pedaled and watched the world go by.

18% grade? Yikes! Down we go!

Throughout our day of riding we passed by many nut tree farms. These were the first we had seen. It was interesting that underneath the trees there was nothing growing, not even a blade of grass anywhere.

In McMinnville, we stopped to eat some more food from our bags, and explored a thrift store for a few minutes. Brett found a game he thought might be worth the $2. On the way out of town we passed a Great Harvest Bread store and stopped in for their signature free slice! Jenny sampled the rosemary bread, while Brett tried the sweet bread that was more like dessert. Fun!

Brett snacks on hummus, carrot, avocado, bread and cheese.

As the evening started, we were getting ready to be done biking for the day, but we weren't sure when we would find a campground. We were only about 35 miles from the coast but knew it was too late for our tired bodies to push to make it there tonight. Plus, it was starting to get dark. We stopped at the first RV park we saw, but after we pedaled the mile down to the actual RV park, we saw signs that said that they didn't offer tent camping. Hmph. On we went.

A little while later, a very nice lady rolled down her window when we both were waiting at a stop sign and we asked her if she knew of an campgrounds in the next few miles. She said she was pretty sure there were none, but after asking us a couple of questions about our trip, she kindly offered us her backyard to camp in. We were tempted to take her up on the offer, but after thinking about it, rather than bike several miles in the direction we weren't heading to get to her house, we decided (maybe unwisely) to push on toward the coast and hope that we came across something. Our headlight had full battery and we really didn't want to go miles out of our way if we didn't have to.

By the time it was fully dark, we still hadn't found a place to stay for the night. We stopped at a diner just before Grand Ronde and got a lead that there might be a campground just a few miles further down the road! Yay! We were starting to get pretty tired and it had cooled off considerably so we were really excited at the prospect of almost being done for the day. It turned out that there was an RV park not too much further on, with an empty site for us to pitch a tent, locked bathrooms and nobody in the office to ask. We set up the tent and climbed inside to eat some dinner before going to sleep. It had been a long day and we hadn't quite made it to the ocean, but that's what tomorrow is for!

Days 72 & 73

2010-08-19T01:35:00.011-04:00

Stats
Downtown Portland, OR → Hillsboro, Portland, OR
Net Elevation gain: -82 ft. (282 ft. to 200 ft.)
Average Speed: 8.2 mph
Top Speed: 32.6 mph
Time spent biking: 2 hours 40 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 7 hours 30 minutes
Miles biked today: 22.1
Total for trip: 3611.5 miles

Our first full day in Portland was a rest day for us. We didn't do any biking. In the morning we walked across the street to Whole Foods with Timmy to get some breakfast. Brett played Scrabble with Eddie when we got back, while Jenny and Timmy spent some time resting and talking. In the early afternoon, Timmy caught a bus into the city to take his train back to Seattle. The rest of the day we spent just sort of hanging around, enjoying our time off.

In the evening, Eddie took us out for dinner to one of his favorite places in the area, and we enjoyed the outdoor seating, surrounded by flowers We had hoped to catch some music, too, but the band didn't start until just as we were about to leave. The food was excellent, though, and so was the conversation. We learned some about Eddie's explorations into Shamanistic approaches to the world, and we shared some fun experiences from our trip so far. A few more games of Scrabble (and one of a variant called Clabbers) capped off the evening, while Jenny relaxed and rested.

Brett studies the menu in the sun.

After breakfast the next morning, which ended up being around ten o'clock, Eddie drove us into the city so that we could retrieve our bike and ride it back to his house. After we maneuvered the bike back down the stairs and out of the building, it took us a while to get into the groove of biking. We had two mostly empty panniers with us and that was it. We weren't even wearing our normal biking clothes. It's definitely different to ride the bike mostly unloaded. We noticed that people didn't stop and talk to us as much.

The streets of Portland were lovely to bike around once we got off the main streets and started taking the back roads. The houses and different parts of the city reminded us of Seattle with all of its unique little neighborhoods. There was so much in bloom! After a bite to eat (again at the Whole Foods we visited two days ago), we felt much better, more relaxed and ready to explore and enjoy the afternoon. We weren't biking many miles, we weren't going to a new place for the evening, we were just doing whatever we felt like. It was a great sense of freedom, different than the kind we've gotten used to this summer.

A silly picture of us about to eat some food.

We explored thrift stores (Jenny found two shirts for biking she liked!), the beautiful test rose garden, climbed a really fun, windy, steep hill (and got to go down the other side!), and passed by the back side of the zoo. We saw LOTS of other bikers and one man gave us directions that were really helpful. We used bike lanes, bike paths, and bike routes, as well as “normal” streets. But, the most exciting thing was yet to come.

Near the entrance to the test rose garden.

Jenny takes a break.

Another mirror shot with the two of us, the roses, and a cute little kid who jumped in the photo at the last minute. He was very curious about our bike and had lots of questions.

Jenny enjoys the roses.

We biked passed Powell's Book Store.

A view of Portland from the top of the hill where the rose garden is.

We were pedaling along up a gentle hill when Jenny cried out, “Figs! Figs! I saw some figs!” We stopped immediately, and parked the bike. Jenny had spotted a large fig tree with figs that looked ripe!The tree was on the side of the road, sort of along someone's driveway, but it was clear that it wasn't being picked, and it was well away from a yard or a house.

Figs!! There are figs up there!

The more we started to look, the more ripe figs we found! Jenny loves figs. In Florida, her Papa grows lots of fig trees. If we are lucky, sometimes the fruit is ripe when we go to visit. That is pretty much the only time that we get to eat fresh figs, making this find all the more special. Unlike the kind that Papa grows in Florida, the figs we found were the yellow-skinned Calimyrna variety. We filled up a bag with as many as we could reach.

There were so many to be picked. If we'd had a ladder we could have gotten even more.

Yum!

Excited about our incredible fig find, and the miles of downhill most of the way back to Eddie's house, we were in great moods. It had been a lovely day of exploring the city and we felt rejuvenated and hopeful about tomorrow and the possibility of making it to the Pacific Ocean. We had biked all the way from the east coast to Portland, Oregon! Amazing. In a way, we felt like we had completed our trip today. Now on to part 2: The West Coast and Beyond! Back at Eddie's, Jenny cooked up some tofu, Brussels sprouts, and pasta for dinner while Brett and Eddie got in a few more games of Scrabble.

We should explain for those of you who don't know, that Brett is very involved in the competitive Scrabble scene. He co-runs an organized club that meets weekly, he plays in tournaments, and he even runs tournaments. Eddie was the director of the first Scrabble club Brett went to, in Exeter, NH. The last time Brett and Eddie had played before now was when Eddie was closing in on “expert” while Brett was a raw novice. Since Eddie hasn't studied in two years, and Brett has gotten significantly better in the same time, all seven games they played were close and fun.

The first game went to Eddie, because although Brett closed with a bingo, he lost 20 points from going over the time limit. The second game was a lower-scoring affair until a few turns from the end Brett played EXTERNAL (to the L, the T was a blank) for 80 points, which gave him the game. Eddie won games 3, 4, and 5, although in one of those games Brett was particularly proud of finding an 88-point bingo holding the tiles AGILRSZ, through an E on the board. The second night while Jenny was cooking a delicious dinner, Brett beat Eddie twice. In the first of those, Brett scored 428 points. A fun word from the last game: Eddie played DHOOTIES. It's good.

Thanks Eddie and Beverly!! We enjoyed your company, your hospitality, and the games of Scrabble!

One last picture, of more pretty roses. There were so many!

Day 71

2010-08-17T01:34:00.008-04:00

Stats
Cascade Locks, OR → Portland, OR
Net Elevation gain: 88 ft. (194 ft. to 282 ft.)
Average Speed: 9.7 mph
Top Speed: 28.3 mph
Time spent biking: 5 hours 30 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 10 hours
Miles biked today: 54.0
Total for trip: 3589.4 miles

We woke up to a green world, a nice change from our past couple of days in the brown, hot dessert. Timmy had some little red potatoes that he'd bought at a farm stand yesterday, and we cooked those up with the canned chicken we had and some curry spice. The result was a delicious potato, chicken curry soup! It was great to come up with a new meal after so long on the road.

Timmy and Brett getting ready to eat some breakfast.

Timmy's legs were pretty sore from all the biking he did the day before, and from the hiking he did a few days before that. Jenny gave him some ibuprofen and that helped a lot. He had climbed up some pretty large hills his first day out and biked about 40 miles!

Leaving the campground, we didn't have to get back on the highway. We took a bike path for a while, and it was so shady and cool! What a difference from the exposed highway. There were lots of ripe blackberries to be picked, which was a lot of fun. Timmy had biked this route on his way yesterday, so he knew which way to go and we had a blast talking and biking together all morning. The small shady roads and bike paths were relaxing and beautiful. This was what we had pictured when we thought about biking in the Columbia River Gorge!

This photo shows the narrow old highway, built sometime around 1915. Much of it has been maintained, but there are several sections where no cars are allowed. We loved the railings with a little character, the quiet, and of course the views!

It's fun to have some pictures of both of us on the bike! Yay for Timmy visiting and taking pictures!

One, Two, Three... Blackberries!

Um... there seems to be a problem with this "bike path"...

Up we go!

We made it to the top!

When we got to the waterfalls the gorge is famous for, we stopped to take lots of pictures. Timmy was kind enough to stay down below at Multnomah Falls so that he could get a photo of us on the bridge. Thanks Timmy!

This was one of the first waterfalls we came to. Beautiful!

Multnomah Falls.

The upper falls is 542 ft. high and the lower falls is 69 ft. high. Together, Multnomah Falls is the second highest year round waterfall in the United States. Nearly two million people each year come to look at it!

Jenny had the brilliant idea to ask for bike maps at the Multnomah Falls information shop. It took them a minute to locate, but then we had a cool guide to biking in the Gorge. It shows elevations of different routes you can take through the valley on a single chart for comparison. We quickly noted the point at which the scenic route started climbing significantly, and made plans to go only as far as that before getting on the highway for the last stretch into Portland.

Can you see that pointy spot on top of the cliff? That is where we would have been if we hadn't decided to take the highway. We thought the view was very nice from below.

The miles pretty much flew by on the highway. Timmy set a good pace, and we all pushed pretty hard to be done with the noisy route. Soon enough, we got off and found a path that the bike shop we were headed for recommended. It took a long time to make our way into the city, however. In a way, that's a testament to how thorough the bike routes and paths are in the Portland area because they extend far beyond the downtown streets.

Timmy races a big truck.

We were VERY impressed with the way everything was labeled for bicyclists on the paths. For instance, at intersections, they mark how far in miles and minutes it is to certain destinations along the different paths. Some of the route we took was pretty much right alongside Interstate 5, and it was fun so see traffic in a holding pattern while we pedaled away. By this time, we were pretty darn tired, and try as we might we kept getting slower and slower, and there were plenty of hills to climb.

Houseboats on the outskirts of Portland. It's very different to see stuff like this compared with the dry, dry, dry parts of Washington and Montana.

As we made our way off the paths and back onto roads, we knew we were getting closer. We stopped at a Whole Foods store for some yummy chicken, a few drinks, and another snack or two. That helped our spirits and our bodies. In a few more minutes, we reached the bike shop that specializes in recumbent bicycles but works on all kinds.

We made it into the shop with 45 minutes for them to work on our bike. The repair guy asked us what the priorities were. Brett told him the steering column was the biggest thing, but also the timing chain that had fallen off four or five times just today. The steering column had two possible replacement parts: the equivalent RANS part that had been there in the first place, or a different make that is more expensive but doesn't wear out the same way. We went with the cheaper RANS part. Adjusting the tension on the timing chain came down to simply moving the tensioner around, but they mentioned that our whole drive train is pretty well shot, and should be replaced. It'll work okay to the end of our trip, but it's just too worn to really give it a proper tune-up anymore.

Our bike, about to get looked at.

After leaving the bike shop, the three of us set out to find Brett's friend's Eddie and his wife Beverly, who we would be spending the night with. Eddie was Brett's Scrabble Club Director, years ago when they both lived in New Hampshire. About four years ago Eddie and his wife moved out to Portland.

The address that Brett had for Eddie's work space in the city, where we planned to meet them and leave our bikes, turned out to be west from the bike shop. It took us a while to bike there, because we were tired and there were some hills in the way. When we arrived at the spot where the address should be, we couldn't find it. A phone call to Eddie revealed that their work space was actually a good deal east of the bike shop. Oh no! When Brett told the other two the news, both Jenny and Timmy said in unison: “But, we don't WANT to bike all the way back there!”

Tired as we were, we did end up biking back through the city, passed Whole Foods again and did find Eddie and Beverly. It was quite the feat to get our bike up the stairs and around the corner into the room we would keep it in that night.

We had to maneuver the bike very carefully up these stairs. We took it slow and together we got it all the way up. Teamwork!

The four of us had a tasty dinner at a Lebanese restaurant just around the corner before we got in the car and drove out of the city to Eddie and Beverly's house. We were all very tired. What a change to be in such a large city after a day of biking in the woods and looking a waterfalls! After showers, we went to bed, Brett and Jenny in the guest room and Timmy on the couch in the living room. Thank goodness for friends welcoming us into their home. It sure feels good to be inside in a warm house, sometimes.

Day 70

2010-08-16T17:23:00.010-04:00

Stats
Mary Hill, WA → Cascade Locks, OR
Net Elevation gain: -6 ft. (200 ft. to 194 ft.)
Average Speed: 10.3 mph
Top Speed: 29.4 mph
Time spent biking: 6 hours 30 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 12 hours 45 minutes
Miles biked today: 66.9
Total for trip: 3535.4 miles

We woke up excited today because of the possibility of reaching Timmy, who was arriving in Portland with his bike in the early afternoon and then biking towards us! Portland was about 100 miles away still from where we were, but we figured if we could do about 60 miles, and Timmy could do 40, it would be perfect and we'd meet him somewhere near Cascade Locks, OR in the evening.

This was our view from our campsite. Amazing to wake up to this after coming in under cover of darkness.

Jenny packed up everything while Brett cooked some breakfast and we were out of the campground pretty quickly. Less than a mile away was the bridge over the river. The bridge didn't look friendly to bikes at all. Postponing the crossing just a few minutes, we stopped at a fruit and vegetable stand. We got peaches, apricots, and a small zucchini for later. A few feet before the bridge we got our first view of Mt. Hood to the southwest!

Jenny enjoys a peach we just bought.

First glimpse of Mt. Hood in Oregon.

Our luck was good with the bridge crossing. When we started onto it, there was no traffic behind us at all. By the end, a few vehicles were behind us, but it wasn't so scary as all that. After we got off the bridge, at the next intersection, a driver rudely cut us off, but that hasn't happened often. There wasn't much on the Oregon side of the bridge in the way of nice stores to buy food supplies, but we found one little market that would do. We bought cheese, chocolate milk, juice, corn tortillas, and a freshly baked banana nut muffin. The muffin was so good we went back in and bought a whole loaf!

It was eight miles to our next stop at a small park for a break. We were happy to stay off the Interstate for those miles on a frontage road, even though we'd have to get on when we left. We drank some juice, Brett rested in the shade, and we both used the restroom there. We left about 11:00, and the riding was sunny and pretty warm, so the going was a little slow.

Some history we came upon, crossing a part of the Oregon Trail.

The train is about to go into that tunnel! Pretty neat.

Timmy called from Portland, saying that he was heading toward us. Jenny talked to him for a little while, telling him where we were and our plans for the day. We made a plan to check in later, but made a tentative plan to meet. Meanwhile, we stopped beneath an overpass near The Dalles Dam for some shade and to transfer pictures from our camera to our computer.

A different mirror shot!

Back on the highway, it was still hot and noisy but the views of Mt. Hood were getting spectacular. We have taken so many pictures on this trip! It's going to be fun to look at them all on a big screen when we get home. The blackberries by the side of the road were plentiful throughout the day. It was a nice excuse to stop for 5 minute breaks every now and then we we saw a particularly good looking patch.

A sad thing happened when we ran over a some sort of a diaper on the side of the road. Our rear fender snapped. The thick plastic from the diaper got stuck between the tire and the fender and the pressure of it pulled the fender with the wheel so that it broke. It made a very loud noise and we thought at first that we had a flat tire until we got off and checked. Picking up the pieces and shaking our heads at the sad state of the amount of trash on the roads, we pushed on. Why do people throw so much trash out of their cars?

Brett straps the broken fender to the back, while holding the tools he used to take it off.

Stunning Mt. Hood rises above us.

In The Dalles, a cute town, we stopped for lunch and a much needed long break inside a nice air conditioned cafe. We both ordered salads, one with chicken and one with bacon and sun dried tomatoes. They were both very tasty and Brett got a scone for dessert. It was so good he got another.

These tasted as good as they look, or better!

About 3 or 4 miles down the road, Brett remembered that we'd left Jenny's phone plugged in to charge back at the cafe. Luckily, we had the phone number of the chamber of commerce on a map we'd just gotten there, so we called and got the phone number of the cafe with Brett's phone. Then we called the cafe. The lady was really nice and said she could mail it ahead for us. Then we hit upon a better idea: her daughter was leaving and driving right past where we'd be in few minutes!

After our we met the young woman in Rowena, and gratefully received our phone, we made a choice between the much hillier small road that might offer us a chance at a bike-only path, or the busy highway which would be less hilly. We chose the highway because we were getting a little tired and we really wanted to get as far as we could to meet Timmy.

The highway wasn't very exciting, and we made two more stops because it was very hot and we were slogging. Looking up at the hill we would have climbed as we pedaled on the gradual highway, made us feel happy, though. We stopped for a quick check of the Internet and a milkshake at McDonald's, and also for bit of a break at a rest stop where we splashed each other with some really cold water from the drinking fountain.

The big water we've been following for a couple days.

Evening sky from the shoulder of the highway.

Dusk was coming on, and still we hadn't made it to the campground that Timmy had found. We were getting close, though, and we pushed on in the cooler evening air. Using our headlight just a bit as it was getting darker, we pulled off the highway at last into the town of Cascade Locks, and found the campground. Timmy already had his tent set up, so we set up ours next to his and made some dinner: beans, rice, cheese, zucchini, and some of an onion we'd found on the side of the road a few days back!

It was so much fun to see Timmy! There were hugs all around and we exchanged stories from the day. Timmy had seen a mama bear with a two cubs, and he'd climbed a big hill on the smaller roads from Portland. He was really tired. Before we brushed our teeth and went to bed, we took a nice hot shower that felt really good.

Day 69

2010-08-15T01:55:00.008-04:00

Stats
Plymouth, WA → Mary Hill, WA
Net Elevation gain: -207 ft. (407 ft. to 200 ft.)
Average Speed: 10.9 mph
Top Speed: 40.8 mph
Time spent biking: 8 hours 5 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 13 hours 10 minutes
Miles biked today: 88.6
Total for trip: 3468.5 miles

Up early, around 6:30, we were both tired. It was a clear sunny morning and we spent a couple hours slowly getting ready to leave. By 8:30 we were putting the last of the 7 pound bag of ice we bought from the campground into our water bottles and looking forward to getting someplace nice and shady to eat breakfast.

Our rocky sleeping place (picture from previous evening before the wind came.)

It took us a good 5 miles to find a spot. Shade is hard to come by in these parts and the pull off by the side of the road were we stopped only had a little. It wasn't the nicest place to have breakfast, but we put down the tarp and spread out the food we had. The watermelon was delicious!

Watermelon! What a fun way to start our day.

It was strange to see a patch of green when everything else around it was brown.

Knowing it was going to be another hot day, we put on sunscreen before heading out again after our meal. We didn't expect this part of Washington to be such a desert climate. There wasn't much to look at as we biked on, except for the occasional green vineyard. By early afternoon the temperature had reached the high 90ies and we were having a hard time standing the heat. We saw on our map that there was a place to swim at Crow Butte Park, a little island, only a mile or two off our route. When we got to the turn, it was downhill (that we'd later have to climb back up), but we took it anyway.

We got the feeling that there was a lot of power in this part of the country.

The park was a green haven in a brown world. There were trees providing tons of shade and coolness; there was grass that felt nice on our bare feet; there were picnic tables and lots of families eating and playing. We planted ourselves at the first free table we saw and after a few minutes of just sitting there in the shade, set about cooking some lunch. After our yummy meal of egg noodles, cheese, broccoli and sausage, we went for a quick dip in the water. It wasn't the nicest place to swim because it was crowded and the water was kind of mucky, but getting cool still felt wonderful.

Cooking.

Ready to eat!

It was about 2:30 when we left the park behind. The temperature was now nearing 100 degrees. We rode the mile or so back out to the small highway, moaning at how quickly the heat struck us again. Buying ice at the park was a good move on our part, so at least we had cold water to drink for a while.

We didn't see any snakes today, but we made sure to be aware of them.

This is Crow Butte Island. We were just over there in that nice shade!

There still wasn't much to look at. Even the river/lake was sometimes hidden from view and pretty monotonous when it wasn't. At least we could tell we were making very gradual progress into the gorge as we traveled further west.

Roosevelt was the next town after the park, but there wasn't much town. We stopped inside a little convenience store and wanted to linger in the air conditioning! We bought a few things, including something we hadn't see before: canned chunks of chicken. We thought it would be a good idea and something different after so many meals that seem so similar. Outside in the shade, we ate a treat or two, and spoke with some folks who also stopped by the store. One man who came over to us, Richard, works on the electrical parts of new wind turbines, and it was fun to talk with him about the geography of the area as well as the usual stuff about our trip. Catching a free wireless signal, we read a few nice comments on the blog and some email before loading ourselves back on the bike and heading out into the heat again.

Brett straps things on the bike. See all that ice? It turned into water pretty quickly.

As early evening approached and we biked further into the gorge, the terrain started to have more ups and downs to it. Eventually we started to get into the riding again, but it was slow going and we wondered if it might have been a smarter idea for us to have stayed at the free campground back in Roosevelt. Oh well, too late now! On we went. Brett started to get very tired and cranky, maybe because he was hungry. A break by the side of the road and a snack of hummus and carrot helped him feel a little bit better. While we were stopped we noticed a cute little gecko by the side of the road. We really were in the desert. At least now that evening was coming it was starting to cool of a little.

A train, a boat, and cliffs.

A few miles more after our snack break we noticed the daylight was fading. The moon off to the left was beautiful in the sky and though we knew we'd probably end up biking in the dark again, we felt ready to take on the challenge. We were moving along faster than we had all day. A couple miles before the John Day Dam we started to climb. It was hard to watch the traffic on the other side of the gorge stay right down by the water while we climbed up a mountain. But, with the red flashing lights of the wind turbines on the mountain tops flashing us on, we pushed and pushed up the hill. At one point we thought we had gotten a flat tire, but the noise turned out to only be a piece of straw stuck in the chain. Whew! While stopped, we used the opportunity to replace the batteries in the back light. We had an incredible view looking down at the dam all lit up in the darkness when we reached the top.

Our descent was chilly! For the first time all day we needed more layers of clothing. Coasting down long hills in the dark can be a bit scary, especially when they are curvy. Brett kept us safe though, and we made it to an intersection where we had to make a choice: keep going along the north side of the gorge to one campground which would lead us to stay on that side tomorrow as well, or continue downhill to the river/reservoir, where there was a different campground/state park and we'd probably cross over to the south side in the morning. We chose the way that led more downhill.

When we go to the bottom and turned into the park, the sign on the gate said “Campground Full.” Another couple in a car were pulling out of the gate and we asked them if they knew if the sign was correct about the fullness of the park. They said that yes, it was full. Well, gosh. It was late, and this was our stop for the night. We decided we'd go in anyway, look around and find a place to pitch our tent even if there weren't any open spots.

Mary Hill State Park was very large. As we pulled into the first section of sites, we noticed an open spot. Funny that the other people seemed to think it was full. We left the bike at the site and walked back the short distance to the information board and confirmed that the site we had found didn't appear to be reserved. Perfect! Happy to be done, we quietly set up the tent and then ate some food before brushing our teeth and settling into our cozy little home for the night. Tomorrow we would hopefully meet up with Jenny's brother Timmy and see more of the Columbia River Gorge!

Sunset over the gorge.

Day 68

2010-08-14T01:55:00.008-04:00

Stats
Reese, WA → Plymouth, WA
Net Elevation gain: -105 ft. (512 ft. to 407 ft.)
Average Speed: 11.4 mph
Top Speed: 36.8 mph
Time spent biking: 3 hours 15 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 6 hours 10 minutes
Miles biked today: 37.2
Total for trip: 3379.9 miles

Some campgrounds feel luxurious, too, it turns out. This morning we woke up and took a long while packing, planning, and writing on the computer. We cooked a good breakfast, too. Sometimes we take it for granted, but we love our stove because we can make such yummy food from almost scratch in almost any place. Good food really helps us maintain our good spirits.

Enjoying the shade and green grass at our campsite.

This preying mantis wanted to come with us.

At times, we have a hard time feeling good about all the pieces of our trip: the biking, the sightseeing, the blog, etc. The blog is an important part of this trip for us, and we really enjoy the writing. It's fun to see how current we can keep it, even if we are falling further behind. The pictures are really fun to see, too. Plus, it gives us a link to our friends and family, and our newfound friends following along from wherever. So, although it gave us a later start when we knew it would be hot out, we loved taking the time to write a bunch in the shade at a picnic table at a quiet and pleasant campground in Washington.

We we did leave, it was getting pretty toasty. It wasn't as overpowering as some days in Montana, but it was hot. We knew we would meet up with the Columbia River today, and that is something we've been looking forward to eagerly. We hoped we'd finally see some lush greenery...but we didn't. Even when we did get to the big river, most everything was still brown and rocky. It was neat to ride along the south side of the river and see trains pass frequently on both sides of the Columbia.

A good shot of the cliffs on both sides of the river.

Some of the rocks were a green color.

Two exciting things that happened in the middle of our hot day were that we crossed into Oregon and we got to go swimming! State crossings are always fun, but the swimming was great. The water was so cool and refreshing. We love to go swimming with our clothes on so that even when we get out and back on the bike, our wet shirts are still keeping us cool for a while.

Yay! Oregon! Our second to last state!

Jenny, about to go swimming.

Portland is on the sign!!

It was such a beautiful clear day.

A large boat in the river.

By the time we rolled into Umitilla we were hungry and it was time for an early dinner. After biking all the way down the main street and then back up to the beginning again, we chose a Mexican restaurant to eat at. You never know what you're going to get from a restaurant you've never been too before, but sometimes things seem to just work out perfectly. The portions were HUGE and the food delicious! The menu was fun because it also was very large and had pictures of every dish to help you choose what to get. Jenny ordered the super burrito and Brett got the steak enchiladas. The owners even let us wear the sombrero on display when they saw us taking pictures.

So much food!

Really, it was a LOT of food! We had leftovers, even though we were tempted to eat it all.

After we were fed, we thought it would be a good time to do some grocery shopping before heading back over the bridge into Washington for the night. The store had a good selection of food and we got stocked up on food for our next few meals. Knowing we weren't going much further tonight, we even decided to get a little watermelon for breakfast in the morning.

Onions! Bags and bags of onions!

These very large spiders were all over the place. Their webs were huge!

The campground we were headed to on the Washington side of the river turned out to be an RV park that was not well equipped to deal with a tent and two people on a tandem bike. There was only one spot left in the whole place, and there wasn't any grass anywhere on the whole lot. Why are people even here? We were just in for the night, but there was nothing of the area that seemed attractive.

Back into Washington for the night.

In the end, we were given a spot where they usually park boats or other extra vehicles. Still no grass, just pea stone that was hard to stake the tent in. We were able to use the Internet, but only with the help of a cord from the nice lady who ran the place. When we decided to go to bed, the wind was incredible. It was so strong and noisy that it was constantly rattling the zippers, and flapping the rain fly. We weren't afraid of rain or cold, so we took the fly off, and Brett tried to tape the zippers so they wouldn't rattle. Still, it wasn't easy to get to sleep. Eventually, the wind did die down in the night which made sleeping more restful.

Day 67

2010-08-13T01:54:00.004-04:00

Stats
Dayton, WA → Reese, WA
Net Elevation gain: -1086 ft. (1598 ft. to 512 ft.)
Average Speed: 10.6 mph
Top Speed: 35.2 mph
Time spent biking: 5 hours 20 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 13 hours
Miles biked today: 56.9
Total for trip: 3342.7 miles

Some mornings we wake up groggy, and making the move to get out of the tent is hard. This morning it may have taken a little competition, but after waking up at 6:50 we were gone from the campsite by 7:30! Jenny let the air out of our mattresses, and we raced out of the tent (“Last one out's a rotten egg!”). We used the bathrooms and filled our water bottles, but we were still out of the campground gates before 8:00!

Brett packs up. He won the race out of the tent, but only by mere seconds.

We stopped after a few fast miles at the White Stallion diner for breakfast. It was decent food, but a little pricey for what it was. After another easy bit of downhill into the town of Waitsburg, we turned south and began to climb right away. Before we left town, we really wanted to find a free wifi signal. It only took two tries, but Jenny can sometimes tell which neighborhoods might have enough houses, and one is bound to be unlocked. The second neighborhood did the trick, and we got to read lots of great comments on the blog. They were so sweet, thoughtful, and inspiring!

Free Internet signal and fun comments to read! Yay!

Golden fields.

That's not a cow... or a horse... or a deer...

We biked past many wheat fields this afternoon as we approached Walla Walla. We were hot and cranky, and looking for a shady park to rest up in. It took us a long time to find one, longer than you might think. Some sandwiches from Subway helped us a little, but really we just needed to rest. Sometimes it's so hard when we don't have our safe and quiet house to relax in. Finally finding some shade and some grass in a little park, we rested. After a few hours there, we felt ready to push on some more, though we talked about just finding a hotel in town and calling it a day.

Walla Walla had a very large welcome sign.

Even though we knew we wanted to continue west, finding our way out of the city wasn't as easy as that since we had gotten good and lost finding the park. We asked directions at a grocery store (where we bought a few different drinks to perk us up), but the young clerks were completely unable to give us directions. A nice man outside was helpful and calmly gave us two choices of where to get back on Route 12. It took us one more time of asking after missing a turn, but we did get to go through a triple rotary! There were three rotaries in a row all flowing in to the next! Fun!

Once on the highway it was very windy, but it was partly behind us and we felt like we were zooming! Pedaling the easy 20 miles to Touchet (the locals pronounce it Two-she), we stopped at a convenience store to get some cold water and a few other food supplies for the evening. A local man, in the store to get his ginormous refill of soda (we later affectionately nicknamed him, “soda man” and would refer to him as such many times that evening), overheard us asking about camping in town, and he suggested next door by the school before he remembered that there wouldn't be bathrooms there. Then he told us about an RV park 4 miles further on, “down by the river.”

Jenny was really hot and thirsty by the time we reached a place to get some cold water. She was so glad to have it.

Us, happy after we've had some cold water to drink.

On our way out of town we spotted this neat contraption.

Well, let us be the first to tell you that four miles west of Touchet takes you almost to the top of a large hill. It wasn't quite as big as yesterday's unexpected climbs, but we were pretty mad when we got to four miles and there was nothing and no one in sight. We had no choice but to pedal on, but we made many unkind references to the “soda man.” When we say there was nothing around, we mean there were big fields that stretched beyond seeing, and not much else, and those fields were not green and inviting, they were brown and golden. No trees to speak of.

A whole lot of wind turbines off in the distance.

The sun was setting, though it wasn't nearly dark yet. We spotted a sign that advertised lodging to the right, down a hill and then up a hill to a large mansion. We were pretty tired and called 411 just to get the number for the establishment that turned out to be full. The woman said if she hadn't been full, she would have cut us a “really good deal” from her usual rate of $240 per night. Yeesh.

As luck would have it, our campground, and likely the one soda man spoke of, happened to be just around the next bend, only 9 miles past Touchet. It was only 99% dark by this point and we were glad to find an empty spot to set up our tent on nice green grass. Brett talked to the owners of the park, who came over while Jenny was finishing the last of the set up inside the tent. They were very friendly and curious about our trip. It's still fun to tell people about our travels, even after all this time!

Falling asleep was easy tonight.

Our stuff all spread out in the dark. We were so happy to reach the campground!

Day 66

2010-08-12T12:54:00.008-04:00

Stats
Clarkston, WA → Dayton, WA
Net Elevation gain: 820 ft. (778 ft. to 1598 ft.)
Average Speed: 9.3 mph
Top Speed: 35.8 mph
Time spent biking: 8 hours 5 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 11 hours 20 minutes
Miles biked today: 75.6
Total for trip: 3285.8 miles

This morning, Brett decided that his knee brace had outlasted its usefulness. His knee hasn't been bothering him for a while and the brace has started to fall apart. We hope it was the right decision to throw it away. If not, we can get a new one.

Bye, bye knee brace. Thanks for all your support!

It's always sort of a treat to wake up in a hotel room. There is so much space to move around, no tent to take down and pack up, and you don't have to go outside to use the bathroom. It feels almost luxurious. We took our time getting ready to bike. By the time we were packed and out the door, we were hungry for lunch, even though it wasn't quite lunch time yet. We second-breakfasted on yummy sandwiches of our own creation, then headed over to Albertson's to get something to drink and a treat before heading out of town.

A picture of lots of logs and barges on the other side of the river as we were leaving Clarkston.

Shortly after we left Clarkston we started climbing. The temperature was high and the road was long and the grade was fairly steep. Pushing up the hill, we kept expecting to round the bend and see the top, but it was a long time before we finally saw the rest area at the summit. We were running out of water by the time we reached it, but the only water spigot there was questionable, so we only filled up one bottle. There were plenty of sprinklers running, though. We did see that this hill has a name and was even labeled with an elevation: Alpowa Summit, 2785 feet. No wonder we struggled to climb it! It was about 2000 feet higher than the start of the day!

Is the top around that bend? Nope!

A hay truck at the top of the mountain.

It felt good to get to the top! It took so long.

Resting at the top was okay, but it was hot enough even in the shade, and we wanted to get some more miles done. At least there was some decent downhill into the next town. We got a gas station convenience store just before they closed at 5:00, and we bought a drink, filled our water bottles, and Brett bought a cookie as a treat. We asked for advice on which way to go next, but the clerk wasn't very helpful. He confirmed that staying on Route 12 had one good-sized hill, and that there were basically two climbs on the shorter way, and probably some gravel.

Lovely fields in the late afternoon light.

After hemming and hawing a good deal, we decided to just stay on Route 12. Who knows if that was a good decision? The road that started the short cut showed a steep climb right off the bat. Route 12 was significantly longer. In any case, we'll never know. The way we did go was fine for a while, and then it started to climb. We felt like twice in the same day we had to climb something that we had no idea how long it would last, but it must be almost over. It wasn't. It was getting dark, and still we were climbing.

Some folks might have panicked or just found a place by the side of the road, but we plugged on. There were hawks above us that seemed very upset that we were there. Climbing slowly as we were, we were in their territory for a long while, and they kept flying around us, nearly dive bombing us. It was a bit scary, actually, and in the coming dark, Brett would sometimes turn the headlight on to see if that would help keep them away. They never did attack, but it was a while before we relaxed from that.

At least one really nice thing came out of that climb into the darkness. We both got to see lots of shooting stars! There must have been a named meteor shower happening (we're sure Brett's mom would know which name), because we saw about a dozen between us. The ones we liked best were the ones we both saw.

Now fully dark, we were still climbing. We counted the seconds from the time a car would pass us until it rounded a bend in the road, disappearing from sight. We listened to hear if it was still going uphill or not. Finally, we did reach the top, and started down the other side. Brr! It was cold, descending in the dark! We stopped and put on another layer each to try to warm back up. A bit more downhill and we saw the lights of the approaching town, Dayton. We guessed there would be some sort of camping in Dayton because our map listed it as having something, but we wanted to find a bit more food, too, if we could.

There wasn't much open in Dayton, but we got to one convenience store just before it closed. We bought chocolate milk and a couple treats because they didn't have much else. The clerk wasn't helpful, thinking the only RV park was already behind us. (Did we mention we hate to backtrack?) We asked a couple of really nice fellas outside the store who had just pulled up. We enjoyed talking to them about our trip for quite a while, and they mentioned a few more possibilities for camping west of town. Perfect! One was an RV park they didn't speak highly of, and the second was a state park.

Did we want the Internet of the RV park or the quality and maybe price of the state park? We wanted both, really. When we saw the lit sign for the RV park (“Shangri-La”? Really?), we pulled in to investigate. It was a little creepy, but we used the bathrooms and tried to go on line but their connection was locked. Darn. State Park, here we come!

The riding was flat and easy and it was only a few minutes before we found Lewis and Clark Trail State Park. We pulled in, picked the first open site and set up quickly. It felt so late at night, though it was probably only about 10:30. Still, we didn't do much besides drink some water, snack a bit and then our heads hit the pillows and we fell asleep listening to the sounds of the coyotes in the distance.

Day 65

2010-08-11T12:53:00.003-04:00

Stats
Orofino, ID → Clarkston, WA
Net Elevation gain: -219 ft. (997 ft. to 778 ft.)
Average Speed: 10.2 mph
Top Speed: 26.5 mph
Time spent biking: 4 hours 3 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 8 hours 30 minutes
Miles biked today: 41.8
Total for trip: 3210.2 miles

Brett woke up this morning at 7:20, but we had a really slow morning. Jenny hadn't slept well, and we were feeling a bit low. Brett talked with Bill, who was touring around by bicycle from Steamboat Springs, CO. Then he cooked up some breakfast: egg noodles, broccoli, and sausage. Even after we ate we weren't feeling like riding, so it was a later start today.

Jenny spent some time sitting down by the water, looking at rocks, while Brett cooked breakfast.

When we got going, we knew we would probably make it to Washington today. All we had to do was keep on Route 12, right through Lewiston, ID and into Clarkston, WA. Our biggest challenge while riding today was trusting the logging trucks as they passed us. This section of Route 12 doesn't have much shoulder, and it's often full of loose pebbles and other debris. The trucks aren't willing to slow down except in emergency situations, so they come barreling by. The first few didn't seem to move over much even though they had room to, and that annoyed us.

We shared the road with many logging trucks today.

Then, we started waving in a friendly way to the logging truck drivers headed in the opposite direction. Whether this helped (via radio contact with the drivers on our side) or not, the rest of the drivers seemed to give us as much room as they could after that. We know they are on a schedule and want to get their loads in, and we appreciate their situation, we just want them to move over when they can. By this point, we're pretty used to riding right next to speeding traffic, but the big trucks and huge RV's sometimes scare us when they blow by.

Pretty hills. It seems like we say that a lot.

Pretty hills. Just kidding. These are beautiful!

We stopped at a rest area sometime in the mid-afternoon, and chatted with a fellow who used to work with the logging truck drivers, and he mentioned that he's never known any of them to intentionally buzz a bicyclist. He said they might not appreciate us being on the road when they have to get by, but they warn each other of us on the road via the radio. He also asked us all the usual questions about touring and our trip. He's getting back into riding, and is thinking of trying a weekend trip sometime. We wish him the best, because we think this is a blast! It's such a great way to travel.

We finally found some ripe fruit!!

These weren't quite ripe, but we ate some anyway.

These plums were SO sweet and juicy. The tree (in the picture above) was covered with them, and they were perfectly ripe.

Our stomachs were grumbling as we neared Lewiston, but our excitement level at nearing Washington was growing, too. We went down the main street to find a restaurant, preferably with Internet. One listed wifi, so we picked that. It featured Italian-American food, and from the prices on the menu, we were looking forward to nice big portions of chicken alfredo and beef stroganoff Sadly, the dishes we were served were pretty small, and left Brett still feeling hungry after we left. Also, the Internet was not a strong connection, and we had to change tables to even get it. Sheesh.

After our early dinner, it was only a hop, skip, and a pedal or two over the bridge into Washington! It occurred to us that Massachusetts to Washington is pretty much “across the country” and that felt really, really good. It was fun to think that we had “made it,” in a way. We are excited to see lots more on this trip, but it was great to feel like we've really accomplished part of what we set out to do.

Crossing the bridge into Washington!!

We spent a while lining up this shot.

Yay!!!

It was time to buy some groceries and snacks for the coming day, and luckily for us the grocery store was right on our route just past the bridge into Clarkston. We were pretty tired and by the time we got done in the store, we came out to darkness. We talked it over in the parking lot: there was a hotel just a block back, and there was a campground several miles further on, and we were pretty tired. We decided to check the hotel's rate.

The hotel had a reasonable price after their “fishermen special” discount. Note: Most hotel clerks seem to have the ability to give you just about any discount they have access to, without you qualifying for them. Our room was great. It's always fun to stay in a hotel room. We get a nice bed to sleep in, a hot shower and Internet, and we even took advantage of the coin-operated laundry facilities!

Before heading to our room we chatted with three motorcyclists who were also staying at the hotel. They were also touring the country and were so friendly. They had lots of questions about our bike and our trip and we talked about all the wildlife we'd see along the way and shared other stores from our rides. These three were really the first motorcyclists that we've met that we've felt were trying to have the same type of a trip as ours. It was refreshing to meet some with whom we enjoyed talking.

Day 64

2010-08-10T10:59:00.011-04:00

Stats
Lowell, ID → Orofino, ID
Net Elevation gain: -604 ft. (1601 ft. to 997 ft.)
Average Speed: 10.7 mph
Top Speed: 29.7 mph
Time spent biking: 5 hours 45 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 11 hours
Miles biked today: 61.8
Total for trip: 3168.4 miles

The rain poured down most of the night and everything was soggy when we got up at 6:45 this morning. There was mist over the mountains giving the morning a cool, quiet feel. Since our picnic table was all wet from the rain, we moved into the club house building to eat some breakfast and answer some email. The eggs we cooked this morning didn't come out as well as the last time we made them, but it still gave us something to eat. We stayed around long enough to let things dry out, and wrote as much as we could during that time.

Mist over the mountains in the early morning.

When finally set out biking for the day, we had to remind ourselves that it wasn't a race. Bob and Linda had gotten going a little ahead of us, maybe by 15 minutes, and we found ourselves pushing hard in an attempt to catch them up. After talking about what we really wanted out of the day, we realized that slowing down and enjoying the day, each other, and the beauty around us was a better idea than racing to catch people. Plus, there were so many blackberries to pick and eat!!

Yay for fruit!

We stopped several times to fill up a bag.

The blackberries were so sweet and ripe and delicious!

The first bunch of miles were still downhill, much the same as the day before. The place we camped was also known as Three Rivers because the Selway and Lochsa Rivers come together to form the Clearwater River. So now we followed the Clearwater River downhill through the twisting valley, headed generally southwest. We planned to eat lunch out when we got to Kooskia, so when we got there we had to make a choice between a few different establishments. We chose to go with Chinese food, which ended up being good at a reasonable price.

After lunch, we wanted dessert and some Internet access, so we walked up the street to a cafe. We each got a sweet treat. Both the chocolate cake and the orange cream cake were tasty, but filling! After using the computer some, Brett went across the street for some quick grocery shopping while Jenny finished with the computer and paid. Brett came back pleased with his purchases that would supply us for the next few meals.

Cake!!

Then we were away, heading back to Route 12 which mostly goes west at this point. This area is part of the Nez-Perce Indian Reservation, though you'd hardly know anything was different except in the towns where the culture seems just a bit different. We weren't moving slowly today, but not overly quickly either, so we had plenty of time to enjoy our surroundings. The dense evergreen forests gave way to more barren landscapes that reminded us of Montana. But here things were different, because there were always at least some trees, and along the roads some of them were fruit trees! The fruit wasn't quite ripe yet, but we hope to find more fruit trees with riper fruit in the next few days as we get into Washington.

Crazy rocks.

Bare spots.

At first we thought these were Ranier cherries. Upon further inspection, we think they are actually small plums. Either way, they weren't quite ripe.

These weren't quite ripe either.

Finding a campground that we wanted tonight was an adventure all in itself. We were headed toward Orofino, and moving along pretty well. As we got to Orofino, we saw an RV park, but it was just pavement and cement! We asked some teenagers in a park about campgrounds heading west and heard there was one a bit west of town. It was dusk as we were leaving Orofino, but we figured we'd be to our spot soon.

We saw lots of deer today.

We had to ask at least one more time about the campground we were headed to, and it was quite dark by the time we actually pulled into the park. It was a self-pay system, but there was an active host who helped us find a site for our tent. There was another touring bicyclist there, too, but he was already asleep. We were very tired and it was starting to sprinkle, so we silently, but quickly set up the tent and went inside for the night. It was hard to get to sleep, especially for Jenny who was a little over tired.

We turned across the bridge into the town of Orofino, which wasn't actually where we wanted to go, but when we turned around, there was this beautiful rainbow behind us. We probably wouldn't have seen it if we hadn't gone into Orofino.

Day 63

2010-08-09T12:18:00.004-04:00

Stats
Powell Junction, ID → Lowell, ID
Net Elevation gain: -2231 (3832 ft. to 1601 ft.)
Average Speed: 13.0 mph
Top Speed: 32.1 mph
Time spent biking: 5 hours 20 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 10 hours 15 minutes
Miles biked today: 69.3
Total for trip: 3106.6 miles

Today we biked wicked fast! We started to think that it really was all downhill to the ocean from here. When we woke up in the morning, we had no idea what time it was. Our cell phones didn't work and we knew it was probably earlier than it felt because of the time change. Brett got us going, and it was nice to have an early start.

After we got up and packed up the tent we decided to bike the short distance up to the lodge above the campground, thinking it would be a nicer place to cook breakfast. Plus, they had wifi there. Once up the hill, we chatted with the three fellow bikers, one of whom we met the night before. They are riding the TransAmerica Route to raise money for the National Food Bank.

Biking across the country to support the National Food Bank.

Breakfast was quickly cooked and eaten: sausage, ramen noodles, broccoli and carrot. We were eager to be on our way because we had something special planned for today: hot springs! It was only about eleven miles, still following Route 12, to the parking lot for Jerry Johnson Hot Springs. It only took us a short time to bike the miles, but we stopped many times to pick the abundant and delicious blackberries which grew all along the sides of the road.

We followed the river all day. It was so shady and cool.

We walked the bike across the bridge and along the trail about a mile, until we spotted the first circles of stones built to capture the hot water running out of the side of the steep river bank. These first pools weren't very hot, although the supply from the bank was too hot to sit under. We enjoyed them a bit, and then moved on, leaving the bike by the side of the path.

Pushing the bike over the bridge to the path.

The wooded path was about a mile and a half long. There were many tall cedar trees along the way.

Walking around exploring the other pools was a welcome change from biking. We saw a bunch of different spots, and then picked one to try that was right next to the cold river. We soaked for a while in the shallow but comfortably warm pool, dipping in the river when we felt a little too hot.

Brett soaks in the first hot pool. The waterfall was hot, but most of the pool wasn't.

Jenny enjoys the hot springs.

The cold river near the hot springs.

After a while, Jenny spotted several people pointing in the same direction and taking pictures. We stood up, and there across the river was a mama moose and a baby moose! Brett grabbed the camera and got two pictures before the large animals turned back into the forest on the other side of the river. We had wanted so much to see a moose on this trip, as we'd never seen any in the wild. After passing through New York, the U.P., and Minnesota without seeing any we had pretty much given up hope, but we got to see two!

Moose!

We had been soaking for a while, so after the moose we headed back to the bike. We pushed it some and rode it some back to the roadway, very happy with our stop. We continued on our way downriver, following Route 12. It was a gorgeous ride with the river almost always in sight, and the steep, forested hills on both sides making for a wonderful feeling of serenity. Some of the cedar groves we passed through smelled amazing! It was fun to go downhill all day, even though sometimes we felt like we ought to be going faster. Toward the end of the day, we did get going faster, and our average speed for the day (13 mph) reflects just how easy the riding was.

Jenny is happy to be near the river.

A couple of times we stopped for breaks. One break not long after the hot springs was for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and a couple others for small snacks (including some chocolate candy bars) or to take pictures. Mostly we just rode down the river, feeling amazed by how beautiful it all was, and marveling at how different it was from the bare, open landscapes of the Montana and the Dakotas. We could feel the cooler air as we passed by streams running into the river, too, and that was fun to notice.

We pulled into Lowell, and it was the first real settlement since the lodge and campground we left from this morning. It had been about seventy miles of trees and river. We stopped a bought a few things for dinner from the tiny store in town, and then headed for a campground a little further on. We were across the river from one possible campground when we heard an excited yell, “Jennnnnyyyy!!”

I guess someone moved away?

The yell was from the restaurant attached to the campground across the river and it was voiced by our new friend Linda. Bob and Linda were having dinner, and we eagerly crossed the bridge to that campground. We asked about the cabins there, but they were designed for families and too expensive for us. We took a campsite, and said hello to our friends before setting up camp and cooking dinner.

Dinner was only so-so. We cooked beans and rice, with garlic, zucchini and spices, but it just didn't taste quite right. Oh well, some meals are like that. We took nice warm showers, and Brett talked to Bob and Linda before turning in. We seem to have so many similar goals and experiences! They also have a blog, with a cute name: OurLifeBehindBars.blogspot.com.

Cooking dinner.

It's fun to know that we're not alone on this long journey, that there are others out here doing similar trips and having similar complaints and similar amazing joys. Who knows what's around the bend for tomorrow?

Day 62

2010-08-08T12:18:00.009-04:00

Stats
Lolo, MT → Powell Junction, ID
Net Elevation gain: 433 ft. (3399 ft. to 3832 ft.)
Average Speed: 10.7 mph
Top Speed: 35.0 mph
Time spent biking: 4 hours 17 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 7 hours 15 minutes
Miles biked today: 46.2
Total for trip: 3037.3 miles

We were up and out of the tent around 9:00, after a somewhat restless sleep and a slow morning waking up. Just as Brett started cooking some breakfast at our picnic table, a light rain started to fall. We moved ourselves and our food undercover to a little sitting area near our campsite. While we finished cooking a delicious meal of pesto pasta, Sandy, a fellow camper, chatted with us about our trip and we shared travel experiences.

Jenny uploads pictures for the blog while Brett cooks.

By the time we had eaten, packed up camp, and uploaded a bunch of photos to the blog, it was no longer morning. When we spotted two loaded down bikers on the road heading west, we really made a push to finish packing up and get on our way!

The tent is down and we're packing up! Funny how our home for the summer fits in that yellow bag.

We were going uphill as soon as we left the campground, but not steeply. Would we catch up to the bikers we saw? We figured we must be moving along at least as fast as them, and guessed we were about 15 to 20 minutes behind. Around each bend in the road we looked, hoping to catch a glimpse the cyclists. We both do so well with a challenge! At some point they would take a break and we would catch up to them. We pushed hard and though it was up, maintained an average speed over 10 mph for the first hour of our ride.

Along the way up, we only stopped twice in that first hour. The first time was almost right away, when we spotted a beaver paddling around in the water right by the side of the road! Another animal to add to our long list for the trip. Traveling by bike is so great for seeing wildlife. The other stop was to talk with a pair of men cycling from their home in Oregon to Missoula. They were nice, and their wives were driving the same route so they all got to stay together each night. Neat idea, but we like our way.

We were excited to see a beaver! So cute!

Brett never got off the bike, and was ready to go catch the others!

We never seem to see any wildlife after these signs. What wildlife?

Just when we started wondering if we would catch the two we saw going uphill, we spotted them taking a snack break in a pull-off! It turns out that Bob and Linda are riding from Chicago to Eugene. We all hit it off right away, and shared lots of cyclist experiences (like odd tan lines and traffic complaints).

Bob and Linda.

When we all started up again, they were a bit faster and pulled ahead, but we really wanted to stick with them. We were in good form, and it felt so exhilarating to push hard up the mountain pass! It was starting to get a little steeper, and it was hard work. Little by little we gained on them, and finally even passed them. Bob yelled to us in good fun on the way by, “You set the pace, Massachusetts boy!”

Bob and Linda share the road with a large RV with a Jeep in tow.

Just because we were pushing hard doesn't mean we didn't take in the beautiful rocky landscape around us.

Then the grade got a little steeper. It was about four miles of 6% grade up to the top, and we really didn't let up that much. It was hard, hard, work to keep that pace, and we were huffing and puffing. To keep our cadence and to distract ourselves a bit we sang a couple songs, even though there were some awkward pauses to just concentrate on breathing.

We all made it to the top within a minute or two of each other, and we were whooping and hollering in excitement! The top marked our last mountain pass, as well as our last time zone change, and a new state to boot! Idaho! We had made it out of Montana, a state we'd been in for quite a while.

WooHoo!!!! With an elevation of 5233 ft. it must be all downhill to the Pacific Ocean, right?

We're still following the path of some of the Lewis and Clark expedition. Pretty neat to think about some of that.

After lots of pictures at the signs with Bob and Linda, we made our way to a nice shelter to crack open our much-anticipated treat: watermelon! It was so good. We were hungrier than a watermelon could satisfy, so we cooked a nice concoction of sausage, broccoli, carrot, and pesto over egg noodles. Pesto was such a great idea!

Food always tastes better atop a mountain, but this was pretty good anyway!

The rest of the day was all downhill. We coasted down the Idaho side of the pass, enjoying the fruits of our labor, and checking out the views from a few of the pull-offs. At one, a man in a truck stopped and gave us some of his new product on the market: freeze-dried eggs perfect for camp cooking! Thanks Tom!

A shot of the downhill to come.

Thanks to the ranger for this great shot of the two of us together.

Some of the informational signs were about forest fires, and we even spoke to a ranger on watch for fires. We've been singing a song about forest fire in Montana recently: Cold Missouri Waters. We know the version by Cry Cry Cry, but it's written by James Keelaghan. We knew all the words and only had to look up a few.

Another informational sign, this time about the interesting ownership pattern of the forest land here. The yellow is private land and the brown is National Forest property.

Coasting down to the campground was fun. Bob and Linda were staying in the cabins, and the campsite we were at was very quiet. There were a few other bicyclists around, too, heading the other direction. One of them continued on up the mountain as we got there, and three others stayed the night nearby. It's so much fun to see so many cyclists all of sudden in the last few days.

We fit right in with the other bikes on the road, but we haven't seen any other tandem recumbents yet.

For dinner Brett cooked up a package of the eggs with salami and cheese in it. It was pretty rich, but pretty good! Adventure Egg makes a decent product, and we liked that it didn't have anything but eggs in it.

Today we topped 3,000 miles. That is an accomplishment in itself, just to have kept going long enough to cover such a distance.

Day 61

2010-08-07T12:11:00.006-04:00

Stats
Rock Creek Recreation Area, MT → Lolo, MT
Net Elevation gain: -184 ft. (3583 ft. to 3399 ft.)
Average Speed: 10.4 mph
Top Speed: 25.5 mph
Time spent biking: 4 hours 5 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: hours 44 minutes
Miles biked today: 42.9
Total for trip: 2991.1 miles

Waking up in the morning at Testy Festy, all we wanted to do was get out of there. It was early and many people had finally fallen into a drunken sleep. A few people were milling around, and probably had been all night, some still with drinks in hand. Two men rode on four wheelers slowly swerving around the tent spotted field, beer bottles swaying in their free hands as they stared blurredly ahead. We couldn't pack up quickly enough.

A quick photo from our corner as far from the craziness as possible.

On the way out of the field, Jenny snapped a few photos of all the tents and people, but we don't think the shots do the festival justice. Pedaling 6 miles into the little town of Clinton, we found what looked like the only place to get something to eat at a gas station/food store.

We spent a while eating a breakfast of cheese, salami, jo jo's (potatoes), avocado, and juice outside on the curb. There were a lot of the Testy Festy folks around, and it wasn't exactly a great spot, but we felt much better after breakfast, and were eager to move on.

As we neared Missoula, we made one short stop to see if we could get an Internet signal. We wanted to email a rental application form to Selena who would be showing an apartment for us today to a prospective tenant. No luck though, so we continued on after calling her and filling up our water bottles.

About a mile later, we spotted another tandem on the other side of the road pedaling towards us! The couple had also come across the country and were on their way to Seattle! They informed us that Adventure Cycling headquarters are in Missoula and that they give out free ice cream if you stop by.

Yay for tandems!

Below the car bridge in Missoula, they had a bike path bridge! How neat!

That was enough for us: we pedaled HARD to get to town in time. We got a little lost, but still made it in the door before 1:00! We wanted that ice cream! The folks there were so nice. They took our picture and put it up on the wall with all the other touring cyclists that have been through there this year. They even stayed open a few minutes late so we could take our time looking at all the cool old bikes on display and photos on the walls. They gave us a free year's membership, making the two maps we bought for our trip down the Pacific Coast cheaper.

Awww!

A few pictures from the headquarters/museum. Our photo is the last one with the orange background!

After our ice cream sandwiches and some photo ops, we thanked them and left the building. Outside we met a nice couple from Germany who were doing a long loop in the western United States. We love seeing folks who are also out here doing this amazing thing.

A bunch of bikes outside Adventure Cycling Association headquarters.

Next, we went to a cafe just around the corner for a while. We knew we didn't have too much further to go today to put us in great position to climb our last mountain pass tomorrow. We spent a couple hours in the air conditioning working on the computer and some correspondence.

We ate a little and relaxed a lot.

As evening neared, we got back on the bike and made our last stop in town at a grocery store. We explored the bike paths to get there, though they were a bit confusing. It wasn't a co-op, but it was GREAT. We got things for the next day, and also some sandwiches for dinner, eating some now and saving some for later. Then, it was time to leave Missoula, even though it seemed like a decently cool city.

This store was great! It supplied clean containers for buying bulk foods into. They had a huge selection of bulk items, including mustards, sauces, mayonnaises, salad dressings, etc.

Some food for now, and a small watermelon for the top of Lolo Pass!

The ride out of the city wasn't very pretty or noteworthy. We had a couple hills to climb (haven't had those since before Butte!), and then we found the campground we were looking for. It is a dance center as well as a campground, and they were in full swing with their Saturday square dance. Most people at the dance were older and very dressed up in colorful, frilly attire. It looked like fun, but we were tired and a little intimidated.

Brett reads the sign talking about the historic Lolo Trail.

They had scales in the bathrooms and we were excited to weigh ourselves for the first time since we left. Brett had lost about 15 pounds, and he was shocked. Jenny weighed exactly the same as when we left. We don't understand why one of us lost a significant amount and the other didn't. Different bodies deal with things differently, we guess. We were both a bit perplexed. We set up camp, snacked on foods again, and went to bed hoping for a good climb tomorrow.

Day 60

2010-08-06T12:10:00.007-04:00

Stats
Butte, MT → Rock Creek Recreation Area, MT
Net Elevation gain: -1198 ft. (5581 ft. to 3583 ft.)
Average Speed: 13.0 mph
Top Speed: 39.2 mph
Time spent biking: 8 hours 20 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 13 hours 44 minutes
Miles biked today: 107.8
Total for trip: 2948.2 miles

Jenny woke Brett up at 6:19, and we rolled out of bed by 6:30. We took showers and straightened up the room, then headed over to our complimentary breakfast! It was so refreshing to have such a warm night in the hotel room after such a long cold descent from the mountaintop the evening before. We were looking forward to biking today, and excited to be feeling so well and to have gotten up so early.

Cute pictures in the hotel room mirror.

After we ate, we finished packing up our things and were on the road by 8:00! The first few miles were ho-hum, and then we got on the big highway. It was busy, but not as bad as we feared for being so near to a city. The hardest part was navigating past the exits and on-ramps. Only a few were busy, though, and soon we were past the city exits.

Once we climbed the few hills on the busy parts of the highway, it seemed like everything was downhill. We started to really build up speed, and because there weren't uphills to slow us down, we just kept up our fast pace without much effort. It was amazing! We felt like we were flying! Perhaps we also had a tailwind, we're not sure, but either way, the miles just zipped by.

So much downhill!

We stopped for a few short breaks here and there. During one, Brett spoke with a coworker at his school, arranging things for the fall and checking in. But mostly, we just rolled down the slight declines and cruised across the flats. Brett kept checking the bike computer, because it was so exciting to see the miles mounting up so quickly. Since we were going almost 20 mph, we were adding another mile every three minutes or so. We raced the clock and had 30 miles done before 10:30!

When we are surrounded by hills and mountains like this we feel very much in awe of the world and all of its differences.

Sunscreen. Jenny doesn't like it, but it's better than getting burned.

Eventually, we found Frontage Road again, and we used that instead. At one break, Brett had a nice little conversation with his dad, and then we were on our way again. We made it past the fortieth mile and were hardly feeling winded. Our hunger did kick in, though, and we stopped in Deer Lodge. Our plan was to use the Internet at a cafe while we ate a nice lunch. We even got a good recommendation for a cafe that would work. Instead, we went into a bakery looking for bread and found lots of sweet treats awaiting us. We got two, but also noticed they had beef pasties for sale. What fun! We hadn't seen any since the Upper Peninsula (of Michigan), and they sounded so good that we got two. They heated them up for us, and we ate them right there.

Yum!!

We still needed groceries and ice, so we found the supermarket in town, and stocked up. It was hot and getting hotter, though not as bad as some days. The ice mostly went into water bottles and a bag to keep important groceries cool. That bag would later become nice cold drinking water. We love our systems.

Taking a break.

Buffalo! They weren't in the wild, but still it was fun to see them.

Wow.

Heading out of Deer Lodge, we were really happy that it was still relatively early in the day. We kept holding our breath, wondering if our amazing stretch of downhill would end any minute, but we could see from the map that it probably wouldn't as we would be following a river as far north and west as Missoula. We were right. Fifty miles came and went. Then sixty! It was still only mid-afternoon when we stopped at a rest area (we were back on the freeway). We had a conversation with Selena back home, and when we asked her to guess how many miles we'd gone already, she guessed exactly, without hesitation, “Sixty two.” How'd she do that? After a snack at the rest area, and some more fluids, we kept going. There wasn't a whole lot else to do, and it was pretty exciting to keep piling on the miles.

A break in the shade at the rest area.

The limit screw for the steering column broke recently, but the bits still help hold it up. We plan to get this fixed when we can. It doesn't seem to be a safety issue, just a little annoying for Brett.

Our stretch of amazing luck did run out before the end of the day, though. We were on the freeway still, getting just a little bit tired but still rolling quickly when we heard the sound of a flat tire coming from the rear wheel. Sure enough, we were losing air pressure. We didn't want to have to change a flat on the freeway and it looked like it might rain any minute, so we decided to try to ride it while it still had some pressure in it. That didn't last long, but we pumped it up really fast and tried again. We got a little way towards the next exit, only two miles ahead. We tried one more time, but abandoned the idea of pumping it up and riding to the exit for fear of damaging the rim on the rear wheel.

There was one more option besides fixing it on the freeway: walk to the exit and fix it there where it would be quieter, there might be somewhere to lean the bike or put our stuff, and maybe even shelter from the rain that seemed likely. That mile or mile and a half gave us a great appreciation for just how fast we *do* go on our bike. It was actually kind of hard work to push and steer the bike, too. We took turns steering the bike, and although we talked some, mostly we just pushed on hoping to beat the rain.

The rain clouds moved faster than we were walking, though, and just before the exit ramp, we started to get a little wet. Not wanting to stop and get rain coats out, we pushed on (literally). We got a bit wetter than we would have liked, but we finally made it to the underpass to the town on the other side of the freeway. We were wet, hungry, and frustrated we had to fix a flat tire on such a great riding day. Jenny made Brett a peanut butter and jelly sandwich while Brett started working on the bike: taking off all the bags, flipping the bike, and removing the rear wheel.

Jenny pumps up the new tube.

It's easier to change the back tire when the bike is flipped over like this.

We stayed there under the highway for quite a while, actually. We talked to a prospective tenant on the phone for our house back home, changed the tube and the tire, as well as snacking voraciously on salami, avocado, cheese, etc. At that point, it was early evening, perhaps 6:30, and we weren't fresh. We had ridden a whopping 74 miles and it would easily be a good day if we found a place to stop and camp. We asked a few locals about camping spots, and found out there was one right in town. We inquired about places a little further along and got some mixed reports, but basically nothing much for a little while other than one place that sounded sketchy.

To go or to stay, that was the question. We both didn't quite feel done, but weren't sure how much more we should try to do. The sky was grey after the rain, but not threatening. It wasn't hot, and that in itself made us feel like we should push on. Plus, there was one idea that seemed too magical to be real, and it dangled in front of us...

Before we left on this trip, we had tried to picture how many miles we would ride each day, on average, and how had both hoped we would have at least one day where we'd ride over 100 miles. A “century” ride is nothing to snuff at, no matter what kind of biking it is, but it's not so easy to do anywhere near 100 miles while touring, we've found. But here was our chance! We might not get another, and so we pedaled on, in the dusk of evening, feeling well-fed and hoping for a better camping spot, but mostly intrigued with the idea of reaching that 100-mile mark.

We had to make the decision of whether to proceed on the highway or Frontage Road. We almost always enjoy Frontage Road far more, so we made what we thought was an easy choice. Perhaps we should have gone the other route. Frontage Road and Route 94 both have some hills northwest of Drummond, despite both following the river, but the hills are much steeper up and down on Frontage Road. They were kind of fun, but a bit disappointing after the consistent downhill earlier and especially so when we looked over and saw the highway just barely going up or down. We even tried to get on the highway again at one point, without success.

As usual, there were a few things to see on the smaller road that we would have missed otherwise; there were some neat flowers and some nice views in this section. Our spirits were sagging a bit, though, since we were spending lots of energy and using up daylight climbing the steeper hills. We hit eighty miles pretty easily, but the next ten just dragged on, each one a struggle.

These beautiful flowers were growing all over the sandy/rocky mountains. The bees loved them.

And then the gods of tires cursed us once more. This time, the front tire went limp. Darn! We had close to ninety miles, and the mosquitoes were starting to swarm us while riding, never mind when we stopped. Brett calmly (but quickly) gave directions and we changed the front tube in record time. This was only the second time we had to deal with the front tire on the whole trip. Not bad!

A rock was helpful in propping up the bike while we quickly changed the tube.

A few mosquito bites later, but not too many minutes later, we were back rolling. It was still mostly downhill, similar to earlier in the day, following the river as it flowed toward Missoula. We pushed on, even though we were now both getting tired. Clearly we could and would make it to 100 miles. If two flat tires and mosquitoes couldn't stop us, nothing would, certainly not the fact that we had to get back on the freeway as the “old highway” ended. Brett had to turn his headlight on to read the digits on the bike computer, but it became official: we'd just done our first century ride together!

Now it was time to find a place to camp for sure. We sort of felt we could go on for longer, but there was no point, and it was quite dark now, with no moon to help (practically a new moon this night). A few miles down the highway, we saw camping and lots of it. Lights and RV's were apparent. Perfect! We got off the highway, and sought out the campground.

Only, it wasn't a regular campground. It was the overflow camping for a festival. No problem, we thought. Maybe there would be some good music! It didn't really seem to be our crowd, however, and that's putting it mildly. There was clearly a LOT of drinking going on, and the main mode of transportation seemed to be loud motorcycles. We asked as we rode in, “What festival is this?” We thought they were kidding when they yelled back, “Testy Festy, man!” Oi, what were we getting into?!

The following morning we would find out that this was a very well-known festival in the area, and it was pretty much what we saw: drinking, partying, and some dancing and music. The festival gets its name from the fact that some people consume cow testicles during the festival. Thankfully, we didn't see that!!

We made our way to the very back of the area alloted to camping, set up our tent, and actually cooked a little meal of pasta and cheese before falling into an uneasy but well-deserved sleep. We rarely lock our bike anywhere, but here we made sure to lock it securely. Loud craziness was all around, but we managed to fall asleep anyway inside our cocoon of safety. We were together, and we had biked 107 miles!!!

One of the last photos taken today.

Day 59

2010-08-05T12:10:00.006-04:00

Stats
Cardwell, MT → Butte, MT
Net Elevation gain: 1231 ft. (4350 ft. to 5581 ft.)
Average Speed: 7.4 mph
Top Speed: 30.3 mph
Time spent biking: 5 hours 15 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 10 hours 10 minutes
Miles biked today: 39.6
Total for trip: 2840.4 miles

Originally, we intended to get an early start and have the mountain pass done early in the day to see if we could make a bunch more miles after coming down the other side into Butte. We did get a decently early start, leaving the campground by 8:20, but we hadn't had a real breakfast yet. We struggled through a very slow first hour plus to the next town, Whitehall.

A view from our campsite, looking westwards.

In Whitehall, we found portapotties in a parking lot along Main St, where they also had picnic tables set up. We used the “facilities” and then sat down to snack and cook some breakfast. We also found a free Internet signal, so we got to read a few nice comments on the blog and some email from home. While Jenny did most of the cooking, Brett worked filling in the missing stats from days not posted yet. Now we actually know how many miles we are currently at for the trip. Breakfast was seasoned tofu, broccoli, cheese, and spice over rice. The tofu was a welcome change from things we often have.

Snacking before breakfast is ready.

Across the street from our picnic spot was a little shop that opened up while we were cooking. After our meal, we rolled the bike across the street to ask the friendly shopkeeper for suggestions on which mountain pass to take. We weren't really worried about either since the first one had been such a cinch, but figured it never hurts to get local advice. She said that all the bikers take Route 2 over Pipestone Pass, and that it wasn't as bad as … Pass on Route 90. We stopped for water at another shop, and got the same advice and were told in no uncertain terms that Pipestone Pass was lower than … Pass, despite what we read on our map.

Really cool rock formations.

This looked cool, but we didn't investigate it.

There was at least *some* fun in the sun.

For whatever reasons, every bit of the way up was kind of like torture. We couldn't get a groove, we couldn't seem to get any momentum, and it was slow going the whole way. Even stretches of the approach that looked like downhills were painfully slow. Also, it was hot, hot, hot. The sun beat down mercilessly. We found one shady spot where the stone had been carved out to let the roadway through, and we rested there for a while, but it didn't seem to help our spirits or our energy level. Onward and upward we crept.

Taking a break isn't very restful when it's hot and there is no shade to be found.

We stayed a while here in the shade. No snakes here, but swallows were flying around above our heads.

There were certainly some cool-looking rocks on this climb!

After a while, clouds did cover the sun, but then they started to look ominous. Rather than helpful shade clouds, these looked like a thunderstorm. Great, just what we need: a thunderstorm at the top of a mountain. Just as we approached the top of the pass, that's what we got. We put on our rain jackets, climbed the last little bit, and worried about going downhill on wet roads. But, that's what the drum brake is for, so after hesitating only a little, we started to go down since there was no reason to hang around at the top in the rain.

We were really happy to make it to the top, even if it was raining!

One more picture at the info sign before we go down.

When they tell auto traffic to slow to 15 mph, you know it's for real.

It wasn't so bad, even with tons of switchbacks. We took a break or two, and it was COLD, but safety wasn't a big concern after we realized the drum break would hold our speed in check nicely. Brett's left thumb did get mighty cold and almost cramped working it, but soon both the rain and the grade lessened.

Brett covers his ears to try to keep them warm in the raw, cold wind.

The worst part was that we were now chilled to the bone, despite our best efforts to protect ourselves from the rain. Brett was really freezing, especially since his hands have to be more available to drive. We just wanted to find a public bathroom to change into dry clothes in, but it was miles and miles before we found anything like a business with restrooms. We finally saw a hotel, and although it looked pricier than we'd like, we asked their rates and then directions to a cheaper motel. We got back out to the bike, and Brett realized he really didn't want to ride any more and that he wanted a hot shower NOW. So we went back in, the clerk gave us the lowest rate she could and a room on the first floor so we could roll our bike in easily, and we headed for the shower.

The room we got had a HUGE bathtub, which we filled and then soaked in for a long time. There was also a very large, warm bed to rest on once we got out. Brett cooked up a scrumptious dinner which we both sleepily ate before turning in.

Day 58

2010-08-04T12:10:00.003-04:00

Stats
Bozeman, MT → Cardwell, MT
Net Elevation gain: -470 ft. (4820 ft. to 4350 ft.)
Average Speed: 10.7 mph
Top Speed: 38.3 mph
Time spent biking: 5 hours 34 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 7 hours 38 minutes
Miles biked today: 60.3
Total for trip: 2800.8 miles

We weren't sure we would leave Bozeman today at all. It seems like such a fun town, with a flavor somewhat like our own town, Northampton, MA. When we got up in the hostel, we thought we would take it easy today and get some things done on the computer, and then maybe leave by 11 or noon, or maybe decide to stay. The morning was spent packing up, and then at the co-op eating and working on the computer.

Ready to go after a nice night in the hostel.

On our way out of town, we mailed a package home with a few things we no longer needed to carry.

Our beautiful bounty of food in our basket from the co-op!

In the end, we took a lot longer on the computer than we had hoped, and after some grocery shopping at the co-op, we finally set out at 2:45. We weren't sure how far we'd make it leaving so late, but after we got outside of Bozeman, the miles just flew by! We must have been going slightly downhill for quite a while, because we had a average speed of 12 mph when we reached Manhattan! What fun!

We walked through a farmers market, where we bought a whole plate of caramel nut brownies and lamented the fact that we'd just stocked up on produce. Some of the locals were very inquisitive, very friendly, and very supportive. Continuing on Frontage Road, we hit construction a couple times. The first time we simply rode through it, though Brett's timing chain came off again near the end. The second time we saw construction coming up we tried to avoid it. We tried a bike path that dead-ended at a stream with bridge abutments but no bridge. We went back a little and then got on a bike path a little further on that successfully avoided the construction, but it was quite a little detour.

We had a nice stroll through a farmer's market.

Fields and mountains.

Coming into Three Forks, we had to make a decision: continue to follow Route 90 with the possibility of Frontage Road, or take Route 2 through what seemed like a longer but possibly less hilly route along a river. After a snack and a phone call to a friend back home, and a chat with another touring cyclist passing through, we chose the shorter route.

We break for brownies.

What a crazy next section we had! We felt like we were climbing another mountain pass! Route 90 just kept going up and up and up. It didn't get really steep, but it was super long, especially since the daylight was waning and our bodies were getting a little tired. The sun set and we kept climbing. Dusk turned to dark and still we climbed. Brett had to turn his front headlight on to feel confident about where he was steering on the shoulder of the big highway.

So many different ridges in the distance!

At last, we started to go down. It was well past dark, and the air was chilly as we started to descend. Jenny already had on her fleece, and Brett put another layer on as well. We went faster and faster down a huge hill, though Brett was in control the whole time, never allowing us to go too fast. He used mostly the drum brake, but also the standard brakes, too. It was fun, but really kind of scary as well because it was so dark and there were some curves. At one point we crossed the rumble strip because it felt safer in the roadway while no drivers were behind us. Another time we had to ride in the lane again because we passed a truck that was stopped on the shoulder. Then we started to slow down a bit and there were no more curves, and we pedaled the last little bit to the exit.

A view off into the distance as it starts to get dark. We climbed a lot higher after this photos was taken.

We had no idea from our standard road map that when we decided to head on from Three Forks and took the highway we'd meet such a large hill. We were elated and relieved to be done with it and down the other side. We found the campground behind the gas station just off the exit at 10:23, and set up our tent. Looking at the bike computer we realized we'd gone sixty miles even with our latest start of the whole trip! Crazy.

Day 57

2010-08-03T12:09:00.008-04:00

Stats
Livingston, MT → Bozeman, MT
Net Elevation gain: 247 ft. (4573 ft. to 4820 ft.)
Average Speed: 9.2 mph before city traffic, 8.7 overall
Top Speed: 43.6 mph
Time spent biking: 4 hours 5 minutes
Total time for the day's travels: 5 hours to Bozeman, 12 hours total
Miles biked today: 35.9
Total for trip: 2740.5 miles

Our original plan before we went to sleep last night was this: wake up around 6:00 or 6:30, get on the road by 6:30 or 7:00, and get over the pass! We only planned 25 miles for the day, just enough to get over the pass and down in to Bozeman. Brett had called the Scrabble club there and was planning to meet them for a few games in the evening, which we were both really looking forward to. We were nervous about the pass, but knew it really couldn't be THAT bad because a bunch of those 25 miles would have to be downhill.

A sunny morning. Ready to climb a mountain? Nope. Got to pack up the tent first!

In reality, we woke and got up around 7:00, and didn't hit the road until after 8:00. We were happy to find that the campground we'd chosen was right next to the highway we were getting back on, so less than a mile into our day we were on the big road headed west once more. And uphill.

It was uphill for miles, with only two brief respites, but it was really not that steep. It was long, but not as annoying or strenuous as Day 1 through the Berkshires of Massachusetts, or some of the days in New York. In fact, we pretty much never left the big ring in search of easier gears. Our cadence was a bit slow, but we were moving along at 6-8 mph, and enjoying the scenery. A few trains passed us. Lots of trucks passed us.

Views from our climb.

At one point we pulled onto the shoulder of an exit ramp for a break. It was a long break, full of talking about all kinds of stuff, and then we walked back to the bike. Jenny was in front, and had just gotten to the rear left side of the bike when Brett yelled, “A snake! A snake!” A large rattlesnake was calmly making its way toward the front tire on the right side. Jenny froze: “Where?! Where?!!” The snake never got upset, but ended up choosing a different route, back into the grass along the side of the road. We were a bit shaken for quite a while, and Jenny actually cried a little from the shock, but we were also really excited that we got to see a real live rattler! We both were constantly looking out for snakes after that.

It was pretty big.

Fascinating to watch. We finally got to see a rattle snake!

The rest of the hill was pretty anticlimactic. We climbed a few more miles, for a total of 13 miles, and then we started to drop. On the first descent we reached our top speed for the day: 43.6 mph! That descent was fun, but the rest of the way down was a little more nerve-wracking. The shoulder was a bit narrower, there were more twists and turns, and it just wasn't as relaxing. Still, we made it down without any incident, and by about 1:00 we were in Bozeman, cruising the downtown.

The information sign at the top of Bozeman Pass.

There were so many bicyclists in town! We were amazed by the well-marked bike lanes and by how many people were riding their bikes on the road. We set out to explore the town and to find the food coop. Because it was so early, it felt like we had the whole day ahead of us. We were a little tired from our climb, but mostly feeling excited to have it over and to be in such a cool town with so much time before dark!

First, we located a bike shop, and the guys working there were really nice but we decided not to leave the bike there for a basic tune-up as it was still our transportation for the afternoon. Next, we biked to the hostel in town. It was really cute, but slightly more expensive than we would have liked ($20/person). We considered it a back-up option to finding someone from warmshowers.org, and so we biked on to the next point in our explorations: the co-op. Bozeman's food co-op is amazing. First of all, they have a very large and well-arranged building. Second, they have so much delicious food at reasonable prices. Third, they have a great sitting/eating area on the second floor with plugs and free Internet! Needless to say, we stayed a while there.

An assortment of foods from the co-op. Jenny patiently waits for Brett to take the picture so that she can dig in.

After we reluctantly left the co-op, we headed back down the main street to a good book store where we peeked into a book on hot springs in the Northwest. We copied down directions to a few and then made our way outside of the cute downtown area to find the cafe where Brett had been told to meet folks for a few games of Scrabble.

Brett wasn't sure what to expect, since his Scrabble skills are no doubt rusty this summer, but he defeated his first opponent, Sylvia, handily (394-270) with good luck from the tile bag. Then Marty arrived and he played two games simultaneously. Brett didn't do so well in his game against Marty, and he made the mistake of challenging SEEPIEST (it's good), while Marty played very well and won by a safe margin (416-372) despite a late rally by Brett. After having to finish the last game outside in the blustery plaza because the cafe closed, we said our good-byes.

Brett misses his Scrabble club back home, but enjoyed a few games with nice folks in Bozeman.

On our way to the Scrabble games, we had swung by the house of a person from warmshowers.org, but they weren't home. We went back by after Scrabble, because they had a very neat house and wonderful gardens. There were large solar panels, vegetable gardens in the front and the back yards, and bikes around (including an old tandem). He still wasn't home, so we headed downtown for some pizza to take back to the hostel where we'd get to stay after all.

Brett had never stayed in a hostel before tonight. This was a very nice one.

The cool wall of instructions and information inside the hostel.

Arriving back at the hostel, we found out that although we had missed our chance to book a room to ourselves with a larger bed, there was one dorm room left that had no one in it so far, so we'd have it to ourselves. After consuming our delicious pizza, we biked out one more time to get cash from an ATM to cover the hostel cost and then we spread out our stuff in the room with bunk beds. We met a few other guests, including a father/son duo who were fun to chat with. They were from France, even though the son has been living in Chicago for a while. We took a nice hot shower, and bedded down for the night after Brett did a little writing for the blog. For a nice change, there was no Internet to get distracted by. We were tired, but it was a really fun day.