Point Reyes

Finally, some decent weather! The thermometer hit 20 for the first time this week yesterday, and I'm told it's only supposed to get hotter. That and a beauty of a tailwind make for some excellent riding. Spent last night at Bodega Dunes State Park, a nice little strip of sand about 100 miles north of San Fran. I hiked out from camp towards the beach, but gave up on my quest for the ocean after about 2 miles of rolling dunes. Maybe it's a bit more than a little strip of sand. The highway here (the California 1 for those of you following along at home) is windy, narrow, and very steep. Traffic moves slower than I can bike on the downhills, which makes for some exhilirating descents. Yesterday I made my way down 600ft of shoulderless switchbacks with a cliff face on my left and a sheer drop to the ocean on my right. Needless to say, an experience well worth the ascent that preceded. Tomorrow I'll ride into San Fran, can't wait to lock the bike up and go exploring!
- Nick

Eureka

So I crossed into California yesterday, after a week of rain and headwinds in Oregon. The clouds immediately parted, and I've had two days of sun and tailwinds. I kid you not, this state is magical. The next week is supposed to be wet again, but I'm not thinking about that at the moment, only how nice and warm it is outside! I had a short days ride today, 46 miles from Elk Prairie to the Eureka KOA. Not particularly scenic, as the 101 travels away from the coast in this region. I did take a couple of side trips towards the water during the course of the day, among them Patrick's Point State Park. Sheer cliff walls drop down to a shoreline dotted with sea stacks and a number of colonies of seals and sea lions. A stunning view, paired with the beautiful sunny weather. Yesterday afternoon at Elk Prairie I met a group of extremely Granola outdoor ed teachers preparing to lead a class of kids into the redwood forests. They were a great group, and I took full advantage of their exceptional generosity, eating dinner and breakfast with them as well as generally mooching human company around their campsite. Tomorrow I'm off to Marine Grove, a relatively flat day of about 55 miles. It's a fairly short ride, so I may take the time to check out the town of Eureka in the morning; it's supposed to be a great tourist destination, so maybe I'll see what it's all about.
-Nick

Brookings

It's taken several very wet days of travel, but I've finally made it to the border. I'm a mere five miles from California, and I'm convinced that as soon as I leave Oregon it'll be sunny days and tailwinds to San Diego. I'm kidding myself, of course, but a guy can dream. The weather is supposed to change soon, which will be nice as I'm a bit soggy at the moment. Not to mention bruised, as gravel-sized bits of hail have rocketed to earth three times in as many days. The ride today was absolutely incredible, following a cliff-edge looking out over sea stacks and gold-sand beaches. I spent last night in Humbug Mountain State Park, which is not all as dreary as the name makes it sound. The campground is nestled into the base of Humbug Mountain, a 600ft hill covered in spruce and, more often than not, shrouded in fog. While there I shared dinner with a fellow tourist from Portland, a young vegan anarchist with dreams of living completely off the grid. All in all a very interesting guy to talk to, and talk we did, until the sun dropped like a rock behind the mountains and the bugs came out in force. Today I'm camped at Harris Beach campground, but no other riders have pulled in yet. May have to brave the bugs alone tonight! Tomorrow I'll break camp as soon as the weather allows, as if the pattern holds I'll be rained in until at least 9. The rain should be followed by a brief period of sun to throw everything on the bike, followed again by another torrential downpour and intermittent drizzle throughout the day. Fingers crossed though, as the weather report says sun for tomorrow. For now, I'm off to make dinner- quinoa burritos, anyone?
-Nick

North Bend

So, good news bad news time. The good news is that the hills have subsided, and I have a new camera which I've been taking many pictures with. The bad news is that the wind has turned into a headwind, gusting 50mph, and it's been dumping rain for the past two days. Bad news regardless, my spirits are high, and I've even found some companions to pedal with. Met Walter and David, two recent graduates of University of Michigan Engineering up at Beverly Beach, and have been riding with them for two days. Came across the Oregon Sand Dunes National Recreation Area yesterday, which were absolutely beautiful, even in the rain. I would've enjoyed them more, however, if I hadn't promptly gotten myself stung by a bee upon my arrival. Waiting for anaphylaxis to kick in is never fun, but luckily I didn't react at all; I must have grown out of my childhood allergy. I did get an excellent night's sleep out of the episode though, as the antihistamines I took put me out like a light for 12 hours straight. I'm unfortunately out of posting time, as my computer has a time limit, but if i think of anything more I'll be sure to include it in my next post, which should see me approaching the Californian border!
-Nick

Lincoln City

A mild disaster struck yesterday. To my great disappointment, I managed somehow to lose my camera along the way, so I have no pictures of Washington, and Oregon will have to wait until I can find a replacement. I've come across a rather large town though, Lincoln city, so I should be able to pick one up before I head south again. I'm shooting for Beverly Beach today, another 25 miles down the road.
Met my first fellow tourists yesterday, up in Rockaway Beach. They're the hardcore type, on the road for almost two years, and have been up and down both coasts a number of times. They've also chased the warm days down in Utah, and ridden tailwinds straight across the Great Plains.
While picking up camp fuel in Tillamook, came across another rider, headed for San Francisco from Seattle. He had a giant duffel bag strapped to his full-carbon fibre Specialized, and I felt a bit of empathy for this less than prepared racer-turned-tourist. He was making excellent time though, riding around 100 miles a day. Very impressive.
I've come into real coastal territory today, over Cape after pass after Cape, some nearly 1000ft high. I'm just thankful for the tailwind, it's the only thing pushing me up these hills at this point!
-Nick

Cape Disappointment

I find myself at the end of Lewis and Clark's famous route, and I have to say, Cape Disappointment is not a fitting name for a place as pretty as this. After spending a night in Raymond, a riverside town a ways inland, I pulled into the Cape around lunch time yesterday. The beaches are beautiful, dotted with ancient lighthouses and an old artillery base. The short clam-digging season is upon us, so everyone is out on the beaches with shovels and buckets. It's times like these I wish I was still a meat eater...
Spent the afternoon yesterday cleaning and organizing my gear a little better; went to great lengths to reduce the weight in my pack. After picking carefully through maps, bottle caps, webbing and string, I managed to drop almost 7 pounds of dead weight. Got some great pictures at the beach, I'll get them posted as soon as possible.
Hoping to make it to Rockaway Beach today, though at this point I'll be lucky to make it to the Oregon border, 5 miles away. Maybe I'll have to settle for Cannon Beach, a resort town not too far over the interstate bridge.
-Nick

Amanda Park

Well, internet cafes (and civilization in general, for that matter), are not as proliferous as I expected in Washington, so here I am posting at 8 in the morning...
I've covered a lot of ground since Victoria, and the weather and winds have been in my favor. Took the Coho ferry from Victoria down to Port Angeles, where I picked up a few essentials. Spent the remainder of the afternoon riding, past Marymere Falls and the Sol Duc hot springs. Finally ended up in Beaver, a small town with everything I needed (ie running water). Camped for the night, then picked up and rode through Forks, home of the Twilight saga movies. Vampire paraphernalia abounded, but I resisted the urge to pick up a Team Jacob T-shirt. Space is tight already on the bike. Came upon the town of Queets, where I was told of Quinault lake, a beautiful little town with plenty of camp sites. I had already ridden 40 miles or so, but figured it didn't look that far on the map, maybe an inch or so. Of course, 25 miles later, I wasn't so sure. Made camp in Quinault, and took my first warm shower since departing Victoria. Gorgeous. Awoke this morning to the sunrise, and walked down to the world's largest sitka spruce. Everything's bigger in Washington. Today I hope to make it to Twin Peaks campground, about 60 miles from here. Hopefully the bike holds up, as there's not much in the way of towns between here and there!
-Nick

Victoria

After a weekend of being shown around the best parts of the Vancouver area, I find myself in Victoria. Attended a kegger for cancer research on Saturday evening with Carolyn Deady, and personally discovered the next best thing on the west coast music scene. Move over Aidan Knight! Also heard an albums worth of Tragically Hip covers- those guys just seem to follow me everywhere I go! Spent Sunday climbing the Chief, and despite the kegger still fresh in recent memory, managed an excellent hike. Beautiful weather, and the local chipmunk population was friendly, as discovered by our Australian friend Carmen. Today, caught a ride out to the ferry with Carolyn. Coincidentally ran into Rejean Phillips of Physi-Kult fame, for the second time in three days, on the ferry. Rejean ran the Sun Run yesterday, in an impressive 30:41, putting him 8th overall.
Upon arrival, readied my bike for the road with a liberal application of both twine and positive thinking. Rode the 30k into town to the house of Denise and Greg, a pair of family friends who have taken me into their home for the night. Tomorrow I head for the border, taking a ferry to Port Angeles. I'll be entering the unknown once I cross into the States- with no friends along the coast I'll be relying solely on the generosity of strangers should I run into trouble. Can't wait!
-Nick

The Adventure Begins

Greetings from Vancouver! I departed Kingston yesterday, finding myself, much to my surprise, on the same plane as fellow members of the Physi-Kult running group, on their way here for the Sun Run 10k. After a relatively uneventful, if unusually turbulent flight, was picked up at the airport and brought to the home of the Deady family, who have graciously taken me in for the weekend as I get my feet on the ground and my bike put together. I all goes as planned I'll be on the ferry to Victoria on Monday, where I'll begin my journey proper. Time now to get the bike reassembled and take it out for a test ride. Happy mother's day to everyone (especially you, mom!), that's all for now.
-Nick