Day 23 - Black Sand

Langlois, OR to Port Orford, OR - 20 miles

Time to finish yesterday's ride.  The weather was so nice today that it seemed almost a shame to stop after just 20 miles.  Tomorrow is a big day though, so it was nice to rest-up.  We got to our camp site around 2pm, did some school with the boys and then played on the beach.  There was a stream flowing into the ocean where we played, so school continued with lessons on fresh water vs. salt water, rate of flow and aquatic vegetation.

The sand on the beach was nearly black.  It reminded me of the black sand beach on the Big Island near Kilauea.  There, I took a picture of my slippered feet in the sand to prove the color, so I had to repeat the photo here.  In 2006 we moved to Oahu, and spent 3 wonderful years there.  We left the island on September 26, 2009 to spend a few days on the Big Island, then move to Idaho.  Ironically, today is our 5th anniversary of leaving Oahu.

At Humbug State Park, we met a fellow rider who started his exodus in Austin, TX.  He is circling the whole US in stages.  He is currently riding the San Francisco to Vancouver, Canada stretch.  He will take a break once he reaches Vancouver this fall because it will be too cold to continue.  He, of course, was loving yesterday's south wind!

Day 22 - Nemesis

Bandon, OR to Langlois, OR - 24 miles

We had planned a 38 miles day, but it didn't happen.  I thought rain would be this journey's nemesis, but I was wrong.  I would take the rain any day of the week over a south wind. The reason that most cyclists bike north to south, rather than south to north, is the wind.  It typically blows from the north along the coast, so it makes riding more pleasant.  Today was an exception.  The only benefit of the wind was that it blew the remains of the storm past us, so we are now out of the rain.

One thing Stephen has noticed when searching for campgrounds along our route is that Google is not always complete.  State campgrounds typically show up on the map, but county and privately owned campgrounds are well-hidden gems.

When we were about 20 miles into our ride for the day (it was already 3pm), Tan took a little spill.  He went off the shoulder into some gravel and toppled over.  He was fine except for having straddled his frame.  Ouch!  While we were parked, a gal drove by and stopped to chat with us.  She told us about a county campground not for from where we were and gave us directions.  We were grateful for her suggestion, but didn't think we would need the information because we already planned to stay further down the road.  About a mile past the turnoff for the county park, we decided to turn around.  Being blown back the other direction towards the county park was a welcome change.  Apparently we aren't the only ones who have a hard time finding these camps.  Besides the hosts, there are 6 occupants tonight, and we are 4 of them.

Day 21 - More Devils

Charleston, OR to Bandon, OR - 20 miles

It rained all night long.  Hard.  By time morning rolled around, the rain had stopped, but everything was soaked outside.  Thanks to our cabin, we and all of our belongings were dry and warm.  This morning was a little different than others.  We waited until "out came the sun and dried up all the rain" before we started riding.  With the extra time, we did other activities that more resemble a typical school day at home.

We had planned to ride only 20 miles today because we knew they were going to be tough.  Seven Devil's Road was our destination.  We left at 1pm and made it up the first devil in no time at all.  Someone had even painted "Devil #1" on the road just above the first really steep part -a nice touch.  Devils 1 - 3 flew by and we wondered if we overestimated the difficulty.  It was tough, but nothing my 8 and 9-year-old couldn't handle.  l seriously question the numbering system, however.  There were at least 3 or 4 devils included in the official #5 by my standards.

Tan let me know half way up the mountain that maybe it wasn't such a good idea to come on this trip because "it's going to cost a lot of money."  I had to laugh at his circumventing the true reasons for not wanting to be a touring cyclist on this particular day.  By the end of the day, he was singing a different tune.  He loves down hill riding so much and he let me know later it was all worth it.  In fact, he wouldn't stop chatting with the other bikers who rode into camp this evening about the "awesome hill."

My final thoughts for today are a tribute to my amazing husband.  We rode past a weigh station a few days ago and he stopped on the scales just because he was curious.  350 pounds.  Subtracting his 215 pounds of body weight, that means that the weight of his bike (which isn't much) plus the gear he's pulling is 135 pounds!  For every mile the rest of us ride, I think that entitles him to log at least 1.5 miles.  The odometer doesn't show it, but he is working harder than any of us!  On top of that, he is our navigator (left, right, straight), our GPS (grocery stores, laundromats, camp sites) and logistics coordinator (we have to go X number of miles each day to make it to a chapel by Sunday, easier day one day because the next day is going to be difficult, etc.).  Me?  I'm just riding and writing.  He is the real brains and muscle of this journey.  I'm a lucky gal because he walked into my life 14 years ago!  Stephen, please don't delete this paragraph when you post it to the blog.  ;)  Did I mention that he's also the web master?


  

 

 

Day 20 - Rain!

Winchester Bay, OR to Charleston, OR - 30 miles

When we left the campground this morning, the rain was just starting to fall.  Luckily, it was only a mist and not a monsoon.  We planned on getting soggy, but not soaked, damp, but not drenched.  The only problem is that a mist while you're standing still turns into a monsoon when you're racing down hill.

MythBusters did an episode once where they tested if you would get wetter by walking through the rain or running.  They concluded that you get wetter by running through the rain even if it does get you out of the rain sooner.  Our experiment yielded the same conclusion.  The faster we rode, the wetter we got.  Within minutes we looked like we had been swimming.  It was a blast!

Before crossing the bridge into North Bend and Coos Bay, Oregon, we stopped at the Bay Bridge Motel to use the restroom.  It turned out to be a fortuitous stop.  Bay Bridge Betty told us about a fabulous restaurant in town that we should visit.  We took her advice and are so glad that we did.  We rode up to the Crossroads Community Cafe and saw a sign in the window that said, "$1.50 Lamb Stew or Potato Leek Soup."  The place is open for lunch only from 10am to 3pm.  It's a non-profit that started to provide inexpensive, hearty meals for the local homeless and elderly populations, but they are open to the general public.  Lunch included a beverage (coffee, tea, water or pink lemonade) with one free refill, a bowl of soup, bread and butter and a slice of pound cake for dessert.  We ordered 4 bowls of the lamb stew and 3 of the potato leek soup for a grand total price of $10.50!  Yes, I know there are only 4 of us, but our appetites are growing with all the extra exercise.  The food was divine!  Stephen and I both left in awe of the whole establishment and it's beautiful simplicity.

When the rain started in the morning, Stephen began researching options for this evening.  Did we really want to stay in a tent during a downpour?  Would it be better to spring for a hotel?  Did the state campground we planned to stay at have any available yurts or cabins?  The rain subsided within an hour however, so we stuck to our plan of tent camping.  We had a lengthy stop in North Bend for lunch, a few groceries and a laundromat, with the weather cooperating the whole time.  2 miles from camp this evening, the rain started up again.  Stephen made an unexpected turn into a county campground we saw along our route and asked if they had any cabins.  The camp host said that he had just finished cleaning one that we could rent for the night.

Amazingly, he said that all of the cabins had been booked since May!  This was the first opening in 4 months.  We are now sitting in this snug little cabin singing "Count Your Many Blessings" to the percussion accompanyment of rain on the roof.

Day 19 - Firsts

Day 19 - September 22 to Washburn State Park - Winchester Bay, OR - 42 miles

Well, it finally happened.  We had our first flat today.  About a week into our trip, Stephen had a valve break on one of his tubes.  He had to replace the tube, but it wasn't due to a flat.  During the second week, one of Bin's tires was low, but we couldn't find any holes.  We filled it up again and it has been fine ever since.  Today, we finally had our first true flat tire.  Stephen ran over a piece of class and punctured his tire.  We are amazed that 4 bikes and 2 trailers made it 575 miles before getting a flat!  That's 2300 bike miles.  Phenomenal!

It's also ironic that today we had another first.  We had our first rainy ride.  We have been expecting rain for the last few days and it finally came.  Luckily it wasn't very hard and it didn't last long, but we did have to break out the rain jackets.  The forecast calls for more rain over the next week, so we may take a rest day.  I'm sure we'll all be glad for the break.

Day 18 - Border to border to border....?

Waldport, OR to Washburn State Park - 21 grueling miles

We had an easy morning with a short 2 mile ride to church.  When we arrived, we found out that today was their branch primary program.  For as long as I can remember, the primary program has been one of my favorite Sundays of the year.  Adorableness, pure innocence, nervousness and unforeseen mishaps always combine for a healthy dose of sabbath appropriate entertainment.  The Waldport Branch primary did not disappoint.

My favorite part about this particular program was watching Bins.  Since we may not be home in time for our own primary program, Bins decided to participate.  Whenever the primary sang a song at a different tempo or sang slightly different words than he had learned, he made sure to let us know his disapproval or surprise with his facial expressions.  Considering he had never practiced with this primary, he did great.  He even took his turn at the end of the program to tell the congregation at the microphone one thing that he likes to do with his family.  "Right now I like to go on bike rides with my family from Canada to Mexico."  Tan sat with Stephen and me and sang along with some of the songs.

We planned a short day of riding since we only had half the day, but it ended up as hard as any other day we have had.  The wind blew so fiercely it could have blown us back to the Washington border if we were headed in the opposite direction.  We did have 1 mile when a row of trees between us and ocean was taking the beating for us, but apart from that we battled a head wind for 4 hours.

It's fun to stop and look north along the folded coastline and know that we have biked as far as the eye can see.  Freedom!  That's what I feel on a bike.  My own body and a piece of equipment I can lift in my hands got me to that point... will get me all the way from Canada to Mexico.

When we started this adventure, some people thought it was pretty gutsy, even reckless, to attempt such a ride.  Today we were passed by a couple that started biking this summer in Alaska.  They plan to take an entire year and end in Argentina.  Suddenly the length of the United States pales in comparison to their ride from border to border to border to border... you get the idea.  It's not tempting to me though.  I'll stick with touching just 2 ports of entry.  Don't worry Mom and Dad, we won't be checking out for an entire year.  We'll see you sometime before Thanksgiving.

Day 17 - The ups and downs

Lincoln City, OR to Waldport, OR - 42 miles

Of all the campgrounds we have stayed at, I think we left one our favorite this morning - Devil's Lake State Park.  Our site was located only 15 yards from the restrooms, but with a hedge in between so it didn't feel like we were camping on the restroom doorstep.  The restrooms had hot water AND soap (you might think those would be standard in a maintained campground, but not so).  The showers were spacious with unlimited hot water and there was a dish washing station.  It was glorious to not have to warm up water on the stove to wash our dishes.  It didn't have all the amenities of the Astoria KOA (ironing board, hot tub, etc.), but it had all the necessary comforts of home at an inexpensive rate.

I'm not sure why it was called Devil's Lake because I didn't see a lake, but I think I know how the "Devil" part plays in to the name - Raccoons!  Those vandalizing rascals scattered our dishes, left foot prints on our trailers and woke us up in the middle of the night with their fighting.  I had to rewash all the dishes in the morning, but that wasn't such a chore thanks to the dish washing station.   Did I mention how much I enjoyed that convenience?  I can't imagine what our site would have looked like in the morning if we had left food where they could reach it.  Our favorite topic of conversation during our stay was how best to rid the park of their raccoon problem.  I don't think the rangers would have approved of our lures, traps and fire arms, so we kept the ideas to ourselves.

The ride today was stunning!  Biking the coast on a warm, sunny day and watching waves crash on sandy beaches was something I have been looking forward to since we started this trip.  Today was just such a day.  The hills were gradual and seemed almost easy.  We stopped to eat lunch at a park where a crowd was gathered for whale watching and the boys got to see their first live whale.

When we were just 2 miles from the KOA in Waldport (our planned stop for the night), we made a pit stop at Seal Rock Beach Park.  Stephen and I were chatting with a local couple and Tan was riding around on his bike.  He biked to the top of a small rise so that he could race down the path.  Midway down, he left the path for a grassy slope and didn't see the hole until it was too late.  There was a drainage area about a foot and a half deep and the same diameter as his bike.  He hit the far edge of it with his front tire and bounced out, but lost control of his bike.  He ended up on his back with the bike on top of him.  All of his body landed on grass except for his head which landed on the sidewalk.  THANK YOU BIKE HELMET!  He cried for less than a minute, calmed his nerves for another 5 minutes, then started riding around the parking lot again.  No scratches, no bruises, no headache, no doubt that this dare devil boy has an attentive guardian angel!