Port Orford

Oct. 29th. I am writing this from an internet café in Port Orford. Had a good day pedaling. The terrain is fairly easy riding. The hills are short and not too steep. Lot’s of sheep grazing out in the pastures. It is cranberry harvesting time hereabouts. On the uphill portions, I have been amusing myself by looking for cranberries that have blown off the trucks. When I see one that looks okay, I try to snatch it up without stopping. If I get it, I blow the sand off it and eat it.

We stopped at the post office in Langlois and thought we were going to ship some unused items home. I was headed into the Post Office when a lady we had met just a short while earlier at a store up the street got out of her car and said “Well, you didn’t make it very far.” I said that we were just stopping to ship some stuff home and she told me that the Post Office is not open on Saturday. I had completely lost track of what day of the week it was. So had Candy. We felt a little stupid. Later on though, I reflected that not knowing exactly what day it is must mean we are doing the right thing. Or doing this thing right.

The weather has been good to us today, just a couple of light sprinkles. I think we will stay in the Humbug State Park a few miles south of Port Orford tonight. We are getting close to the California border. We should be crossing the border within the next 4 or 5 days. Ron.

Tad's Property

Oct. 28.  Spent the night on private property just south of Bandon.  Candy had struck up a conversation with an older fellow named Charles in a store and deli where we stopped  for supplies, and we just happened to see him again later on down the highway at a house that was under renovation, just as we were needing to stop for the night.  We stopped to say hello again and ask if we could camp there, as there did not appear to be any public camping ahead of us.  Charles was actually not the owner of the property, but did point out the fellow swinging the hammer on the house that was being renovated.  His name was Tad.  Tad turned out to be a really nice guy and was happy to help us out.  If Candy had not taken the time to make a friend named Charles at the store, I don’t know where we would have camped that night.  We hit the sack without a hot dinner, just ate some cold food, then slept for about 12 hours.  We broke camp early with no breakfast, just snacked on some cheese and other stuff.  Ron.

Bandon

Oct 27.  We are camped at  Bullard state campground just north of Bandon.  It is raining as I am writing this from my sleeping bag.  Hope we get to break camp without the rain in the morning.  

The bicycle route from North Bend to Bandon really, really sucks.  The route does not follow 101 for this section, and I don’t know why.  Whoever is responsible for routing cyclists on Seven Devils Road should be beaten with a large stick.  The road has no shoulders the entire length, no scenery to speak of, unless you like to look at timber clear cuts and numerous illegal garbage dumps next to the road.  Plus it has numerous short, very steep grades, with tight corners, especially the first climb out of Charleston.  If I had known the nature of the road, I would have stayed on 101, no matter how heavy the traffic.  I guess the single saving grace of the Seven Devils Road is that traffic was light.  Ron.

P.S.  Morning came with broken blue skies and no rain in sight.  Got a late start on the road.  Very tired, probably only go a short distance today.

North Bend/Coos Bay

North Bend/Coos Bay

Oct 26. We had our best day ever today, mileage wise. About 28 miles from Winchester Bay to the south side of North Bend. Too tired to set up camp, we coasted into a cozy little motel, unloaded our gear into the room and ordered pizza. We expected to be rained on a lot today, but got pleasantly surprised by a mostly sunny ride. Not a single shower hit us.

On our way through North Bend, we were stopped twice by folks wanting to know about our machine. The first stop was on a quiet residential street, where we let a couple take the Greenspeed up the street. They came back gushing about cool it was, how easy to ride, how natural the riding position feels. Things we’ve heard before of course. The second was two older fellows in a van that pulled over and walked back to us. As we came closer, they asked if we would be willing to stop for a moment to talk with them about the trike. Of course, we did. We are always willing to do that.

As we were leaving Winchester Bay this morning, a lady walked by us and remarked that our vehicle didn't look very comfortable. It always amazes me a little that anyone looking at the trike would not just intuitively know that it would be much more comfortable for long rides than the standard upright "ass hatchet". Plus it's ten times as cool. Not a day goes by that we don't hear people shouting from their cars, "Cool Bike, Man", or get a thumbs up, or a short toot of the horn and a wave. It's become a normal everyday part of our ride. I sometimes feel like a minor celebrity. Ron.

Winchester Bay

Winchester Bay

Oct 25. We made it to Winchester Bay today from the Tahkenitch Lake campground. We rode most of the way in the dry, but it started raining pretty hard just as we finished a little grocery shopping at Safeway in Reedsport. Not knowing how bad the rain would get, we thought we might ride it out to the next state campground. But, by the time we got to the small community of Winchester Bay at about 3:30 pm, just south of Reedsport, we lost our enthusiasm for continuing in the rain, and got a motel room at a pretty decent price, $48.00. It turned out to be a good decision, as it rained hard for several hours after we checked in. Somehow, I just cannot get excited about riding in the rain for several hours, then pitching camp in a driving rain, then trying to prepare dinner inside the tent, then crawling into the sleeping bag with the prospect of breaking camp in the rain the next morning. A dry room with HBO and a hot shower always seems like a much better idea.

Having no restaurants nearby did not prove to be a problem for dinner. We cooked in our room, rib-eye steaks, fried potatoes and onions from Safeway, and the piece-de-resistance, the Chanterelle mushrooms we picked on the way from Lake Tahkenitch. How did we learn about Chanterelle mushrooms, you ask? We asked a man who was picking them on the side of road. Shortly after he showed us what they looked like, and where they tended to grow, I stopped to pee and spotted some. I picked those and then we started watching for them. We ended up with a two gallon zip lock bag full of them. So anyway, I guess they were not poisonous, since I am typing this and not dead yet. Oh yeah, they are pretty tasty, too.

Candy had a low blood sugar today, just before we got into Reedsport. It was really low, at 52. It’s kind of scary when that happens. It was kind of weird, as we had just had some lunch about 45 minutes earlier. She says she needs to reduce her meds for the exercise she is getting now, and take her blood sugar more often.

I guess if it is still raining hard tomorrow, we might stay put here at the inn for another day, though I would rather keep moving. Ron.

Tahkenitch Lake

Oct 24th finds us in a nearly deserted campground overlooking Tahkenitch Lake, just off 101, south of Florence. We are in the middle of the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area, an incredibly beautiful part of the coast. We stopped by a place that rents atv’s and other vehicles to play in the dunes, but since all they had were individual atv’s, Candy decided she didn’t want to be brave enough to ride her own machine out into the dunes with me, so we bagged it and continued on down the highway. We had our picture snapped at least three times today by different people we came across. One was a guy that passed us, turned around and came back, stopped on the opposite side of the road and snapped us. We have a pretty good climb ahead of us tomorrow, according to our map. We should easily reach Reedsport by mid-afternoon.

I can’t say enough about how much approval and validation we get from folks we meet. Nearly every time we stop we get to talk to people that just seem drawn like moths to a flame to our machine.

We went for a short walk in the woods next to our campground after dinner tonight, and noticed some of the many different types of mushrooms coming up through the pine needles. I would like to try using some of them in my camp cooking, but I don’t dare until I get a book and learn about them. I am probably walking right by some delicious eating Chanterelles and such. Ron.

Happy Birthday to my brother Roger. Ron.

Happy Birthday.

Let's Play in the Dunes

I think we are going to go just a short distance from Florence tomorrow, maybe camp at the Honeyman State Park.  I want to show Candy the Oregon Dunes.  I am thinking we will either rent a sandrail or take one of those other vehicles that haul bunches of people out for a tour.  I have been in the Dunes before, but Candy never has.  It is a totally different world from the dripping coastal forests we have been riding through.  It should be fun.  Ron.

Between Lincoln City and Florence

The moss and the mushroom at the side of the road. Never would have noticed these speeding by in a car or on a motorcycle.
Trying to surf the internet wirelessly from a parking lot in Yachats. It didn't work.
A 22 year old cyclist named Walt making the Pacific Coast ride. We are a little richer for having met him.
Sunset at Beachside State Park on 101.
Crosses for Oregonians killed in Iraq. Part of the Cindy Sheehan thing, I think.
At a wayside on 101.

Riding under the roots of a giant Sitka Spruce tree. I can’t remember what park we were in.

My sister may very well be a stalker, a nice stalker, but a stalker just the same.

It was very important to her to be at our departure of our 3 year journey. Sense we passed her office I expected to say good bye as we passed and we did. Right after passing Seaquest Park and a bit of a hill, passing Mardell’s (cousin) house, Claudia comes running out of the drive way. We visit with family for a while, what can you do?
We pedal on to Chuck’s to fill up with water and rest after the big hill; we visit with tourists from India that was checking out the bike. Claudia drives up, we visit, what can you do? We finally get out on Delemeter road and Claudia goes driving by.

The next morning as we are leaving Delemeter and heading up hill on Woodside Claudia shows up again We used her this time, she stayed behind us until we reached the top. How the road made it as a bicycle road I’ll never understand, there are no shoulders.

That night she brought cold refreshments to county line.

The next night she spent with us at Rod’s float house.

After we left the daughter and grand daughter in Astoria and nephew and new wife in Seaside, we were sure we were family free and our trip was really started. Sunday morning the room phone rings, Claudia wants breakfast, she’s in the lobby

She’s a stalker.

Florence, OR

Rolled into Florence about two hours ago, scored a cheap room with free wireless internet, had a decent Mexican meal. Now I feel like taking a nice afternoon nap. The last two days of riding have been really good, with terrific warm, sunny weather. We are now closer to the California border than the Washington border, so we are more than halfway down the Oregon coast. We are probably setting the world's record for the slowest cycling trip of the Oregon Coast, but I don't care. We are both visibly losing weight, seeing fantastic scenery, meeting lots of nice folks and feeling like we really can do this.

Florence seems to be a sweet little town, but is destined to change a lot in the next 10 years, as I understand it was selected as the top place in America to retire recently. The motel manager told me that real estate prices have already skyrocketed.

We decided to spend two nights in a motel here in Florence just because we have spent every night in a tent since Lincoln City and we feel like everything is just kind of clammy and damp. Our clothes, sleeping bags, etc. Plus, I need to do a little maintenance on the trike. The right front disc brake caliper pads are not retracting all the way, so they drag on the disc a little. It's probably the salt air and sand. Should be an easy fix. And there is a bike shop in town if I need it. More later, Ron.

Seaside and the Newest Mrs. Hunter

Seaside, our first "left" turn, found us visiting with Jeremy Hunter and his new wife Gretchen.

Pictures from Astoria

We spent several days in Astoria drying out and visiting with Kem and Tiina. I love you both...Mom

Almost One Month on the Road

Ron has been after me to enter something to the blog.

Short thoughts...
The ease of the down hill ride does not cancel out effort of the uphill ride.
Slugs get on and in everything.
Racoons do not have beady little eyes, they are slant eyed.
You can do dishes without a dishwasher.

I believe our ancestors were the bravest people ever. They didn't have motels to dry out in or daily shopping at grocery stores to replenish supplies.

The Oregon Coast has the best park system for camping, it is so beautiful. The rain is not a problem for us, it helps cool us down as we pedal along.
I don't like racoons, I do like campfires. Candy

Pueget Island Float House, Thanks Rod

Newport

Passing through Newport right now. Posting from a public library. The trike is down the street at the bike shop getting a smaller chain ring installed, to make it a little easier for us to pull the steeper grades. Spent the night last night at Beverly Beach State Park, probably spend tonight at South Beach State Park or maybe Lost Creek State Park. The weather has been great for the last two days, and we are still having fun!! Ron.

Random Notes

Sitting in the lobby of the Liberty Inn in Lincoln City, OR. I just wanted to post some of the things that have changed with the load we are pedaling. I still think we are carrying too much stuff. We have sent numerous items back to home base, but then we have also added some items since we started. Candy decided we had to have a bigger tent, so we bought one in Tillamook. It weighs over 12 lbs. Vs our other tent weight of around 4 lbs. But it is nice to have the extra room. We can bring everything except the trike itself in out of the weather. We will post some pictures of it soon. We shipped the smaller tent back home for a net gain of 8 lbs. I think I have more clothing than I need. I think I have more tools than I need. I am thinking about sending the notebook computer home, and just using public libraries or hotel computers to check email and post to the blog.

We have gotten our food down to just a few things that are easy to prepare that we both like. Breakfast when we camp is instant oatmeal with sliced bananna and instant coffee with creamer and sweetener. Lunch and energy snacks, if we don't eat at a cafe, is banannas and peanut butter or apples and p.b. and maybe some candy or an energy bar. Supper is usually the Zatarains brand of boxed rice and beans with some fresh vegetables and summer sausage or jerky or pepperoni tossed in. Sometimes it's canned chili with cheese on top, or Candy's fave, macaroni and cheese with ketchup on it. I love mac and cheese, but the notion of ketchup on it kind of grosses me out. So I just don't watch when she eats her portion. Ron.

Lincoln City

Pedaled from Neskowin to the Liberty Inn in Lincoln City yesterday. We plan to stay and rest today, leaving tomorrow. Right now it is raining very hard, and I am glad we are not out in it. Our short trip of 9 miles from Neskowin took three hours, mainly due to another steep, wet, long and exhausting climb. The most amazing thing happened during that climb. In my mirror, I had noticed a car pull to the side of the road about a hundred yards or so behind us. I didn't give it much thought until about 5 minutes later when a guy with a very nice camera came jogging up behind us, passed us, then turned and started taking pictures of us. We stopped and spoke with him briefly, though I can't remember every thing he said, the one phrase he said that sticks with me is "Only in America". I can only surmise that we were quite an astonishing sight to him.

As I said earlier in this post, today is a rest day for us, as we have made two of the steepest and longest climbs on the whole of the Oregon Coast since leaving Tillamook. I can tell I need it.

One thing about the Oregon Coast. It is not a cheap route to bicycle if you don't plan to camp in state and county parks. There is not a motel room to be had for less than $70. If we were inland, I think I could easily find rooms for $50. And restaurant meals are more expensive also. It seems like the average meal runs about 40% more than a person would pay inland.

We have found a few other cyclists on the road, so we don't feel like we are competely nuts for doing this. Looking at the elevations for the remainder of the Oregon Coast is encouraging, as I see only one more big climb between us and the California border. Tomorrow's weather is looking up, so I am sure we will be leaving then, feeling rested and dry. Ron.

Pacific City, OR

Arrived in Pacific City yesterday afternoon. Had a really steep, tough pedal over Cape Lookout. Lucky for us that it is the worst grade we will have to conquer on the Oregon Coast, according to my cycling map. Nice to know that we have that out of the way. We found a really nice little county park to camp in, Webb Park, right off the main street of Pacific City. Only 5 bucks to pitch a tent. I am kind of borrowing the nearby motel's wireless bandwidth to post this. I still have not gotten comfortable with my air mattress. I toss and turn a lot, trying to keep the lower backache away. I think as I loose weight and get fitter, the problem will take care of itself. Candy has no problem with hers. It rained off and on through the night last night, but no rain yet this morning. Weather is kind of misty and damp, as though you could get wet just walking through the air. Typical coastal weather, actually not bad for cycling. I think we will probably make it to Neskowin today.

As usual, we attract attention almost everywhere we park. We must have spent a good half hour talking with people in front of the Pelican Brew Pub about our trike and trip when we arrived yesterday. Well, that's all for now. Next post will probably be from Neskowin.

Leaving Tillamook Tomorrow

We have had a nice rest in Tillamook at the Shiloh Inn, but need to get on the road tomorrow. Hopefully the spare shifter cables for the Rohloff Hub will be at the Post Office. Candy's sister Claudia and her friend Ed drove down for a visit yesterday. Candy calls her "the stalker", as we have seen her several times on our route since we left. We purchased two pairs of compact binoculars today, the better to take in the awsome Oregon coastline. We also purchased a larger tent to try out. I was satisfied with the small one, but Candy thinks it's too small, which it probably would be if we were stuck in a campground waiting out a storm for several days. The new tent is heavier, but may be worth it. We'll see. Also purchased a weather band radio to stay aware of any severe weather headed our way. I installed two new tires, the heavy thorn resistant tubes and slime on the front wheels. I think the original tires that came on the Greenspeed are great for casual riding, but not up to the loads we are carrying and debris I have been running over. The Greenspeed rims are holding up great, with no sign of a problem, even though I've smacked some pretty good holes in the road.

Some Pictures From the Last Two Weeks

Claudia kept the traffic off our butt coming over the hill. Thank you.






After a hot day, we camped at County Line. First big hill-Delemeter, Woodside drive.







2nd night out, bathed in the Columbia






Chuck's Groceries-our first tourists interested in our bike, from India






Our container, 5th wheel, and our RV. The first day.







My first BP of the trip, Denice, Bella and I.

Taken by my brother at Four Corners Store in Castle Rock, WA.

Tillamook

Had two tire blow outs on the road into Tillamook today, both on the front right. That's the wheel that takes most of the hits from all the shit that gets pushed to the side by traffic. Broken glass, dead animals, big pieces of wood, and of course, gravel. Fixed the first one on the side of the road about five miles from town. The second one was right in town as we were homing in on the Shilo Inn. We pushed the thing right up to the lobby and scored us a nice room. Kind of spendy but what the hell, it rained hard on us the last several miles into town, plus we had no way to get around to find a cheap campground as I had no more spare tires or tubes.

Coming into Tillamook traffic was heavy, it was raining pretty hard, and the bike lane disappeared on the several bridges we had to cross. We have lots of blinky lights facing rearward and I had all of them turned on. It was a little hairy, but everyone saw us and gave as much room as they could. After checking in we hopped a taxi to the local bike shop and bought three new tires, four new thorn resistant tubes, and several bottles of Slime puncture sealant. I don't like fixing flats in the rain!

The state booze store was conveniently located across the street from the bike shop, so we purchased some lubricant for ourselves. We will be camped in luxury here in Tillamook Shilo Inn for the next three nights, as we are held hostage by the need to wait for the Post Office to open on Tuesday because of Columbus Day, to pick up the replacements for the spare shifter cables I used in Astoria. I should have had the cables shipped to a PO further south on our route. Then we could leave tomorrow, but maybe a couple of zero mile days will be good for us. Both Candy and I have begun to notice some weight loss, and it seems like I have more energy. Till next time, Ron.

PS, at our camp at the Nehalem state park two nights ago, 4 racoons invited themselves right up to the edge of our campsite, looking for food. I was sitting by the tent, tending the stew I was making. It was dark and I had my little LED head lamp on when I looked up and saw 4 ghostly shapes and 8 glittering eyes looking at me. It startled me at first as I thought we might be surrounded, but I gathered my courage and ran them off with some yelling and one of the bright LED lights off the bike. It's probably a good thing Candy had decided not to bring her Smith & Wesson .38 along. I might have used it and gotten myself into big trouble with the local constable. Later we went to bed, kind of worried about our gear getting torn open while we slept. About 12:30 am I awoke to Candy making sounds I've never heard come out of a human before. The racoons had returned and were almost nose to nose with her on the other side of the tent screen door, and she was making a sound that was a cross between a scream, a grunt, and a growl, with just a hint of a chant thrown in. Like I said, it was a weird sound that I don't think could ever be duplicated. I guess it worked as the coons left and didn't come back. I can imagine them retreating, asking each other, "Dude! What the fuck was that?" She also scared the shit out of me and the guy camped nearby, named Aaron. He had awoke and was inquiring in a loud voice, "Hey what the hell is going on"? Or words to that effect. We had a good laugh about it in the morning.

Seaside

Today we made it out of Astoria and down to Seaside, where we are staying overnight with a nephew of Candy's named Jeremy and his wife, Gretchen. The pedal down from Astoria was comparatively level, the shoulder nice and wide, and the weather terrific. I wish the rest of the journey down the Oregon coast could be just like today. Had to install a new tube in the rear tire at Jeremy's place. Gretchen, Jeremy's wife is envious of our trip. As usual, the trike drew a small crowd of onlookers when we parked on the promenade in Seaside and had lunch. Ron.

More From Astoria

We have decided to stay in our Astoria motel, the Lamplighter, through Monday night. It is going to be raining all day but is supposed to clear a little tomorrow, I think. Plus we still have some shopping to do here. I need to purchase a spare tube for flats and a few other items of clothing. Also need to do laundry and visit some of the local attractions. Any excuse not push ourselves out of our room and down the road in the pouring rain works for me. Ron.

Thoughts from Astoria

We will probably be in Astoria through Sunday the 2nd. We have developed a mechanical problem with the gear shifter on the trike that needs to be fixed. I can barely turn the shifter to select a gear.

It is raining again, but we have some new poncho's and rain pants to try out. There are a bunch of fools running across the Astoria Megler bridge for a charity event, in the rain, if you can believe it. Just kidding of course. I wish you could have seen both of us when we arrived in Astoria two days ago. We walked into the Safeway on the east side of town looking like we had just crawled out of the river. We left puddles of water wherever we stood. One Safeway employee gave me the usual cheerful greeting, but I thought I saw a faint look of alarm in his face, as if he were concerned we might be homeless folks looking for shelter...

We stayed there a good two hours eating and drying out in front of the gas fireplace in the deli eating area. I am now a fan of Safeway.

Our room at the motel is a disaster area. Like two teenagers living in it.

I am itching to get on the road again. Maybe tomorrow.

Day 6 From the Road

This is our first update since actually starting to pedal down the road. Day 6 finds us holed up in a cheap motel in Astoria Oregon, with the rain coming down, down, down. As it did all day yesterday while we pedaled from Knappa, OR, a distance of 15 miles. So far we have stayed on private property through the kindness of strangers 3 times. The first was on our first night out in a pasture owned by Dorothy, not far from Castle Rock, WA. The second was on our third night out, which turned out to be a very nice floathouse on Puget Island. The third was in a grass covered lot next to Loggers Restaurant in Knappa, OR. on our fifth night. A nice lady in a restaurant overheard us asking about a place to camp and volunteered her property.

Today in Astoria is the first time we have used a motel. We felt we needed to get dryed out after arriving in town soaking wet, plus we needed to get an internet connection to update the blog. The other nights we stayed in a publicly operated campground (County Line) and then in a private camp in Cathlamet.

Riding in the rain yesterday, my rainsuit failed miserably. It was an old one though, so I feel justified in purchasing a new one today in Astoria. Plus, I need to look at ways to try to keep the water from splashing up from my front wheels when I hit a puddle... Maybe I can zip-tie some plastic panels to deflect water... We will be here in Astoria for at least one more night, as Candy's daughter Kem and grandaughter Kristiina want us to attend church with them on Sunday, for some kind of special event.

To all of our friends and family reading our blog, we are in good spirits in spite of the necessity of riding in the rain. We plan to push on down the Oregon Coast no matter the weather. What we are finding out is that riding in the rain is actually less stressful heat-wise than riding in warm sunny weather. We will try to post some pictures later today or tomorrow. Ron.