Oh, The Pacific Ocean

Tuesday July 19th Westport OR to Seaside OR 43 miles

I woke up well rested and headed over to the Berry Patch for some breakfast.  Stan was working the morning shift, and Troll was laying about at his side, which seems to be the usual.  After eating Stan took me on a little tour in the building next door.  He is planning to start canning and selling various soups, chowder if I remember correctly.  He is building a little commercial kitchen and canning factory next door and let me check it out.

So this is my last day.  It was an odd feeling.  All I had to do was get on the bike and start moving my legs and I would eventually get to the Pacific Ocean.  The end of a 4,000 mile trip.  It was so difficult at the beginning dealing with the Appalachians, not being in shape, and towing Russell.  I am sure Wallflower remembers when I stayed with him in Virginia that I was a bit down.  He encouraged me to just stick with it and that it would get easier, and he was right.  It is crazy to think that I went from day one, barely being able to sit on the seat after 20 miles, to casually chugging through the Rocky Mountains and beyond.

Anyways, back to today.  I rolled into Astoria around lunch time.  Astoria had been my intended destination for the longest time.  It is the end, or start, of the Trans America Trail.  It is where the Goonies was filmed, and the home to the Columbia River Maritime Musuem.  It is at the mouth of the Columbia River as it dumps into the Pacific Ocean.  Astoria however is not directly on the beach, and I did not pedal this far to get to a river delta.  I sat about in the sun outside the Maritime Museum for a while, then hung out in a coffee shop in town.  I really stretched today out.  It was only about an hour south to Seaside and the ocean.  I stopped at the bike shop in Astoria on my way out and inquired about being able to put a bike on the bus that leads back to Portland.

from Astoria I jumped on highway 101 and was soon being welcomed into Seaside by the roadside sign.  I stopped at the hostel in town to find out it was full, they agreed to let me take a shower though if I was freezing from jumping in the water.  The beach was just a couple of blocks from here.  I navigated my bike through the sand down to a large log by a fire pit and plopped myself down.  Chester Copper Pot and I had last been at the beach April 29th in Yorktown, Virginia.

I literally laid here for hours.  I napped for a while, ate the cherry’s Stan gave me, and collected sun burn.  A older Asian man eventually came out to the sand and set up some kites in the brisk coastal wind.  I sat up against the log watching these kites flutter around for sometime.  I was a one minute walk from touching the water and completing this journey and instead I was watching these kites.  I half expected that when I saw the water I would sprint to it in excitement.  Turns out I went the opposite way and milked the last few hours out of this trip.

 

So I guess I have pedaled across the country, fancy that.

Written on September 19th, 2011 , Everything Tags: , ,
Oregon Hospitality

Monday July 18th Portland OR to Westport OR 79 miles

When Monday morning rolled around everyone was up and off to work.  You can argue I was as well.  Spending the day in Portland made me feel like I was done already, but there was a little more work to be done.  On Sunday morning we tried to eat at Jam on Hawthorne but the place was packed so we moved on.  I went against my general rule of never going backwards, and pedaled a few blocks east to check it out again.  I got a seat and they even had Challah bread french toast.  I had been hankering for some challah french toast for a day or two.  Between that, a side of bacon and many cups of coffee I was ready to hit the road.  Before I left I chatted with my waiter a bit about my trip, seeing as it was my second to last day he ended up paying for my breakfast!  Great food and friendly people, Portland was certainly growing on me.

The riding today was surprisingly hum drum.  Holly helped me devise a vague plan to get through the city and over to route 30 which would take me all the way to Astoria.  After leaving Portland there are many small towns along the Columbia River.  Seems like I was hitting one every 10 or 15 miles or so.  I pedaled with no urgency today.  I couldn’t decide if I wanted the trip to end, so I just chugged along at a steady pace.  Certainly not a dash for the shore.  At about 65 miles I got to the town of Clatskanie, which had a town park that lets cyclists camp for free.  I was tempted to stay, but I had pie on the mind.

I had forward pie scouts ahead on the route.  In Missoula, MT Billy and I both decided to switch to the Lewis and Clark route.  He however keeps up an insane pace and was a couple days ahead of me by this point.  Billy, as most people I met, was well aware of my love of pie.  He sent me a message that I needed to stop in Westport, Or at the Berry Patch for some pie.  Westport was only about 15 miles past my current location and I had plenty of daylight left.  Lodging options were less certain then in Clatskanie, but I believe I had my priorities straight and continued on for pie!

I rolled into Westport around dinner time.  The Berry Patch was not hard to find, it was the only restaurant in town.  I coasted into the parking lot and a sense of dread comes over me.  There aren’t any cars in the parking lot, it looks mighty dark through the windows.  I prop my bike up along a brick pillar and awkwardly strut over to the door.  Saturdays closed at 3 pm.  I had pedaled all day with this pie in the back of my mind.  Now I was going to have to pedal up a big hill to get out of town to a campground, no pie in belly.

The realization of this weighed heavy on me and I slouched up against the side of the restaurant and just moped for a while.  At the adjoining building was a man hosing down the sidewalk, his poodle Troll came over and consoled me.  Eventually the man, Stan, joined him and came over.  He asked where I was planning to spend the night.  I told him I didn’t know, that I had pedaled all day to get this pie, and now it was just out of my reach and I didn’t know what to do.  Stan replies, “Well lets see what we can do”.  He pulls out a key ring and walks over to the Berry Patch’s front door.  Troll and I obediently follow.  Turns out Stan was the owner.  He gave me a free slice of marionberry(a kind of blackberry I believe) and a big bag of cherries from the local fruit stand down the road.  He warned me of the big hill leading out of town and suggested I might be able to get a cheap room at the motel across the way.

Seeing as it was potentially my last night out (I wasn’t sure if I was going to spend the night in Seaside the next day), I took Stan’s advice and went across the street to the Westport Motel.  I haggled the price down a little, and happily slept in a bed and showered up.  I felt a little guilty spending the money on a room when cheap camping was just 5 miles or so farther, but why not spoil myself on my last leg.

Written on September 19th, 2011 , Everything Tags: , , , , ,
Portland!

Saturday July 16th West of Hood River OR to SE Portland 60 miles

Some morning rain caused me to sleep in a little today.  Plus it was only 60 miles or so to Portland, I was not in much of a rush.  My campsite roommates were not around when I awoke so I tossed some money under there tent’s vestibule and pedaled off.

Today’s ride was one of the best.  I was in the heart of the Columbia River Gorge and the riding was great, albeit a tad hilly.  The first few miles were along the interstate, but once exiting I entered a narrow scenic road smothered with trees and green.  This part of the gorge is packed with roadside waterfalls.  I was a little turned off by the crowds at them so I did not linger terribly long.  The light rain also prevented me from taking my camera out unfortunately.  In fact I was a big slacker at taking pictures from here all the way to the coast.

At one point I got passed by a group of road bikes out for the weekend.  I am never a fan of getting passed so it motivated me to chug along a little faster.  I eventually caught up to one of them and pedaled along for a few miles chatting.  I forget her name by this point but she was an older lady from Portland who has done several iron mans.  Makes my jaunt across the country napping and eating pie seem pretty wimpy in comparison.

I played a little leap frog with this group throughout the day, and eventually made it to a riverside bike trail that would take me the rest of the way into Portland.  City Squirl and her roommates Holly and Lucas put up with my smelly biker butt and let me crash at there awesome house down in SE Portland.

Portland is a huge bike town, it was a little odd to have to be sharing the roads with not only cars but bikes all of a sudden.  On my way across the city I also managed to take a digger when my wheel got stuck in some trolley tracks.  Alas Chester Copper Pot(my bike) and I were fine.

I took a zero day on Sunday and lounged about, ate and hung out with Squirl and her roommates.  I felt pretty melancholy about my trip at this point.  Portland is so close to the end, about 100 miles.  One big day or two easy ones.  I was certainly ready to be done with the bike.  If I never had to sit on a bike seat ever again, I would have been OK with that.  Either way, it had been a great trip and while excited to finish, I was a bit sad to see it end.  It wasn’t that long ago that the cross country ride was nothing but a seed of an idea planted by TC, that punk.

 

Written on September 17th, 2011 , Everything Tags: ,
Venturing into the Columbia River Gorge

Friday July 15th Roosevelt WA to West of Hood River OR 80 miles

In the morning I stocked up on treats and coffee at the general store in Roosevelt and trudged on towards Oregon.  The first hour or so the wind continued to slow me down, but it eased up eventually.  Around lunch time I crossed over the Columbia River into Biggs, OR.  I am now in Oregon to stay at this point.  From here I will be following a combination of Scenic route 30 and Interstate 84 all the way to the coast.

A few miles past Biggs is where the Columbia River Gorge Scenic Area begins.  I got pretty lucky with the lack of wind today.  This was a breathtaking area to pedal through.  I am glad there wasn’t a pesky headwind around to dampen my mood.  After a second lunch in The Dalles the road started to get steep and curvy.  It was really a blast chugging up the hills and blowing back down them.

The day ended with a great bike trail into Hood River.  Although I missed the entrance to the trail at first and wasted some time/miles.  Hood River was a very neat little town, full of bicyclists to.  A local showed me the way into downtown.  I was tempted to stay for the night, but it was not a cheap town.  I grabbed ample treats at the grocery store and jumped on I-84, and chugged a few miles out of town to a state park.

Upon arriving at the park I was downright appalled by the price.  So I poked around looking for someone to share a sight with.  I eventually ran into two older ladies pulling into the park with bikes on the back of there car.  At first they were a little surprised and skeptic of my request to share a sight.  After all I was a dirty smelly vagabond on a bike.  They eventually agreed though, hurray.  Turns out they have plans to do a cross country ride in the future.

Pictures below


Written on September 14th, 2011 , Everything Tags: , , ,
Grumpy McGrumpster

Thursday July 14th Middle of nowhere to West Roosevelt WA 79 miles

So because of a suggestion from Xan to TC, I started reading The Alchemist.  Last night I went through a good chunk of the book until the batteries on my light died.

The main character is on a journey of his own.  At the beginning he experiences beginners luck.  He is told by the end he will be tested of everything he has learned along the way.severely.  Within the next few days I will be going through a headwind tunnel. My map warns me of ferocious winds.  Whenever a local sees I am going west they feel the need to rub in the oncoming winds.  They suggest, “most people go with the wind”.  “Buggar off” is what I would like to respond with.

In the morning I felt bad for thinking less then positively about my  gypsy like neighbors.  Everyone was wearing shirts by this point.

After struggling to get my tent folded up in the wind(it just would not let up).  The man to my left must have seen my troubles and offered me coffee.  Someone from the group to my right came over to chat as well.  They had invited me over the night before, but crawling into my tent to lay down won out.

From here on out the rest of the day was atrocious.  Headwinds the entire time.  I had to fight for every mile.  The first few miles were scenic, but then Oregon let me down with a wimpy welcome sign.




I pedal all the way from Virginia and my last state can’t even give me a proper welcome.  I actually wasn’t in Oregon long.  In Mcnary I crossed over the river back into Washington.  McNary let me down with nothing but gas station food.  I was really craving a good hot breakfast.

The rest of the day was slow grunt work through ugly terrain.  Desolate, power lines, train tracks and various signs of industry.  Route 14 decided it’s nice wide shoulder should be bumpy, I was not a fan.  Ten hours on the bike today for just 80 miles or so.  It was pretty difficult to keep my mind distracted when the wind was holding me down to an 8mpg average, plus there was nothing to look at to boot.

When I pulled into Roosevelt I got into the only bar in town just in time to get a burger.  The fryer was already turned off, but thankfully the grill was still going.  Down the road a little bit is where I am camping at a very nice town park; its free and even has hot showers. This place is absolutely packed considering how tiny the town is.  The crowds are brought here for the wind surfing on the Columbia river.  While I had a terrible go at the wind today, the surfers surely enjoyed it.  They tell me the wind is suppose to lighten up the next few days.  I might get lucky getting through the gorge.

Written on September 14th, 2011 , Everything Tags: , , , ,
Dances with Gypsies

Wednesday July 13th Dayton WA to the middle of nowhere WA 60 miles

When camping out, and sleeping on my less then stellar sleeping pad, I generally wake up many times throughout the night.  A motel’s bed is always a nice treat, and I had the pleasure of something other then my discomfort to awake me.  This morning I was suddenly awoken by the small Indian man who owned the motel, poking his head into the room.

I had no idea what time it was.  I was so exhausted the night before, did I over sleep the checkout time?  It was only eight apparently. I reckon he expected me to get an early start on the day.  Alas, I was lazy and in no rush this morning.

I grabbed some groceries from across the street and headed out.  I had really wanted a big hot breakfast, but everything in town was the opposite direction.

It was only 10 miles to the next town, so I waited to eat.  On my way into Waitsburg I passed one eatery, but chugged past into the middle of town expecting more options.  Turns out the place on the outskirts was the only place in town serving breakfast.  I had to turn around.  I had just pedaled ten miles on an empty stomach to avoid going backwards, and ended up doing just that.  I consumed a grand amount of French toast.  I had to send the waitress back multiple times for another round.

Not much to say about the rest of the day.  Lunch in Walla Walla at an Italian establishment.  Fought a moderate but persistent headwind the rest of the day.  I had a bunch of camping options today.  I was still pretty tired from the previous day, so I went with one of the closest spots.  Not a very long day at 60 miles; but 60 miles is still 60 miles closer to the ocean, and steady progress.

 


As soon as I hit the Columbia River (which will eventually dump me out at the Pacific) I stopped at Madam Dorian Campground.  This was a pretty abysmal campground to be honest.  No water, all the grass was dead, and the ground was collapsing on itself as I tried to stake my tent down.

However, there was one big perk, that it was free.  I could have sworn my fellow campers were all gypsies.  There was a short blue school bus one guy was staying in.  Another green popup van was home to someone else.  No one seemed to be wearing shirts, and mustaches all abound.  Ironically I am also rocking a mustache…not a creepy/impressive gypsy one though.  Although you could argue that it is creepy none the less.

The wind continued to blow through the night, setting a bad omen for tomorrow.

Written on September 7th, 2011 , Everything
Washington!

Tuesday July 12th Lenore ID to Dayton WA 97 miles.

I slept amazingly well through the night in Lenore.  In the morning as I munched on a pear, a pair of deer poked right past my camp to the water.  A few minutes later they came right up to my camp.

A couple miles into the morning’s ride a baby deer actually ran along side my bike for about 100 yards.  Alas, that was about the last of my smooth morning.

The road was busy and the surface terrible.  My backpack fell off my bike three times because of the bumpy road surface.


I sprawled out in a shady grove of trees, and enjoyed a mile or two of a smooth bike path.  Soon after I crossed over into Washington, which didn’t exactly have a stunning welcome sign.  I feasted on a late breakfast right over the border at Hazel’s, where the girls treated my smelly biker butt very well.


Leaving town there was a nice big climb.  I haven’t gotten used to the elevation charts on my new Lewis and Clark maps, and underestimated the 2000 foot climb’s steepness.

At the top was a rest area where I slumped up against the privy and lounged in the shade.  I thoroughly enjoyed the orange I had lugged from Missoula.

While I rested a truck driver named Kirby came up and chatted with me.  We talked about the trip a little, he was very knowledgable of the area.  The conversation turned to talking about life in general, and its many possibilities.  He was very encouraging.  Not so much about riding, for I am almost done and don’t need a pep talk about finishing.  He encouraged me to find a way to do what I love afterwards though.

 


By the time I rolled into Dayton at the end of the day it was getting dark and I was absolutely spent.  There was a climb into town that was so much steeper then I anticipated.  I was also doing my best to pedal hard and avoid impeding rain clouds.

I didn’t have it in me to go another five miles past town to a state park.  Instead I grabbed a plesently cheap motel.  I even met George who was grilling out in front of his room and graciously shared some chicken.

Written on August 24th, 2011 , Everything Tags: , , ,
Splitting Off

Monday July 11th Clearwater National Forest ID to Lenore ID 95 miles

I awoke this morning to the unpleasant companion that is condensation.  The air in the river valley was very moist.  This is something I haven’t had to deal with since back east.  Due to the time change I woke up really early, like 5 am early.  The birds must have started going off around 3:30.  I slowly started getting ready for the day.  Breakfast of oatmeal and strawberry peach jam (snagged from the farmers market in Missoula.

My meandering about eventually forced Jason to wake up.  I had hopes that if I took my time my soaked tent and damp sleeping bag would dry off.  Being at the bottom of the river canyon meant direct sunlight was far off.

Wet gear packed up and off we were.  Lowell was a out 25 miles away with hot coffee and a second breakfast.  Today was a rather cold morning.  I have never gotten so bundled up to ride.  I put my new leggings to use, long sleeve shirt and even the dreaded sweat factory jacket, ie my rain jacket.

Many cups of coffee and an omelette were consumed in Lowell.  Next was the town of Kooskia.  This is were Jason and I were going separate ways.  He was stayed on the Trans Am and headed south.  I turned the other way and began following the Lewis and Clark route more directly west.

At the next town of Kamiah I was given an interesting option by my map.  Stay on the recommended route and climb a 2000ft hill…or… Take the river alternate.  The map strongly discouraged the alternate due to no shoulder, and heavy tractor trailer traffic.  The river route as you could imagine is very flat though.

Of course I took the river.  It surely wasn’t care free cycling, but our route has put us on worse roads before.  I tossed my tent up to tonight along the banks of the Clearwater River in the sleepy hollow of Lenore.

Written on August 16th, 2011 , Everything Tags: , ,
Idaho

Sunday July 10th Missoula MT to Clearwater National Forest ID 98 miles

A marathon was going on this morning in Missoula.  This caused us to have to take a detour.  This detour just happened to take us past The Shack, voted best breakfast in Missoula.  The coffee was great and my farmers omelette huge.

Missoula was a side trip, so today started with backtracking 13 miles to Lolo.  I was pretty grumpy about this, but what can you do.  Billy had slowed down so Jason and I could catch him in Lolo.  He said his goodbyes and blasted off like usual.

From here was a decent climb up to the border of Montana and Idaho, which was right at the top of Lolo pass.  I also entered Pacific time zone at this point. 

The rest of the day was cruising downhill through a lovely river canyon.  Winding roads through some of the greenest lushest scenery to date(considering how dry most of the country is, not saying terribly much), while following along a healthy flowing river.  It was some of the most scenic riding to date.  The only knock I had is that everything was the same.  The river just kept bending back and forth with the same view after rounding each corner.  Either way, one of my favorite days.

 

 

At the end of the day shared a campsite with Jason somewhere in the Clearwater National Forest.  Was tempted to go further but the canyon was pretty deep and daylight wouldn’t last as long as usual.  Plus my legs turned to jelly as soon as we stopped at the turn off to the campground.

Written on August 16th, 2011 , Everything
Missoula

Friday July 8th Wisdom MT to Missoula MT 123 miles

 

I joined Jason and Billy at the restaurant in town for breakfast.  Both of them are coffee drinkers, something I have avoided for the most part on this trip.  It dawned on me that I am notoriously slow in the morning though.  They were both shooting to get to Missoula over 120 miles away.  I figured if I was going to keep up, some caffeine wouldn’t hurt.  Several cups later, and I was hooked for the rest of the trip.

With my new found morning energy I even beat Jason over Chief Joseph pass and down into Sula about 40 miles away.  Not that he was rushing, but normally I would have been miles behind already.  The ride up Chief Joseph pass was very peaceful.  Very green, streams flowing from every direction.  I kept expecting to spot a moose getting a drink, but it never came to be.

The downhill from the pass was also huge.  Curving downhill roads for about 7 miles.  Soon after a headwind kicked in though.  My motivation to make it all the way to Missoula was waining.  The wind however was indecisive today.  After about 10 miles of headwind, it pulled a 180 and switched to a tailwind.  I pedaled my butt off trying to take advantage.  This went on for the rest of the day.  Slow going when it was against me, and cruising when it was at my back.

Most of the ride today was trending downhill, either way, when I made it to Missoula after 123 miles I was beat.  I caught up to Jeff today, he was also in Missoula.  I went and had dinner with him.  Then I headed downtown to meet Billy and Jason for a drink, and to crash on the floor of there motel room.

 

Saturday July 9th Missoula MT zero day

A lovely day off in Missoula today.  The Adventure Cycling Association (the organization that sells the maps for the route I am following) has there headquarters in downtown Missoula.  Missoula is a very bike friendly town.  Bike lanes abound, and bikes are parked all over the sidewalks.  I stopped in at the ACA headquarters, snagged some free soda and ice cream, had my picture taken.  Most importantly though, I bought some new maps, for I was switching from the Trans America trail to the Lewis and Clark.  The Lewis and Clark was a much more direct route to the coast.

Missoula was popping off with life today.  There were several farmers markets scattered throughout downtown.  There was also a festival of sorts in the park, with free concerts.  After doing some much needed laundry I lounged about the park listening to the music.  A marathon was going on the next day.  Jason the crazy ultra marathon runner that he is, was tempted to join in for a short run.

 

Written on August 3rd, 2011 , Everything Tags: , , ,
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A young man's cross country bicycle journey