Day 15

Monday June 30th

It's six miles to camp mills creek but since was all up it took long and when we got the to the turn off 101, it was 2.5 miles down  another road, down and down  and was low, small and buggie. 

Up naturally in the morning we must haul back up the two and a half miles.  

Once up and out on 1zero1 it's a beautiful excursion for much of the rest of the day through huge slightly tapered gray furred columns of red wood trees.

Breakfast was a diner in klamath which was pretty good. 

Side roads through the giants proved satisfying. Stopped next food store in orick produced mostly poor choices  except for the cheesecake.

Later in the afternoon a jipo lumber truck seemed to willfully come close to hitting and later B reported same incident with same truck.  Also his load of boards had shifted indicative of reckless driving. Got to pis and never saw him again.

Visited park headquarters and watched a video about the trees (did you know they drink dog?

Good serious push to Patrick's Point sp. 

biker spots far out on a rocky promontory and empty. New shower/restroom nearby. Water temp tepid. 

Prolly go backroads to Trinidad for bkft if looks good otherwise push on to arcata

or McKinleyville. 

McKinleyville RV park could be our he tomorrow. 

Ferndale fairgrounds the following night.

Less than 300 miles to SF. 

Fog and dark now. 

60 mile day. 

Day 14

Sunday June 29th

Very good fish tacos at the Barnacle Bistro in Gold Beach. 

Put air in low back tire; better ride now. 

In truth from Gold to Brookings best of show. By ocean with strong north breeze. 

Rolled into Harris Beach sp had some fruits down front on bench. 

Recon the town - had a pint down at the old timers restaurant at the port listening to the stylings of Gil Kirk on vocals and keyboard even while watching American classic muscle car auction on screen. 

Hit Zola's pizza for the younger scene and slice. Apparently they deliver to state park but we were in the neighborhood.

Spoke with man from Quebec - good accent - Rene levec, Pierre Trudeau , FLQ, etc. prolly see him at del Norte redwoods this evening. 

Trouble is have no good tubes and the 

only bike shop (which is just a sporting goods store with bikes) I don't think is open Mondays. Search for bike shop in cresent city results in only one and the owner died last year and they are or we're just dumping the inventory.

So...

Have two tubes but both have tiny holes that we can't find (even took one down to the creek at humbug to submerge but no bubbles  

So...

Day 13

Saturday June 28

Finally left Bandon and first warmshowers  experience.

Rolled fairly hard into port orford sky becoming blue and blue.

Rolled into Humbug Mountain sp on softening tire.

Spent not much time actually putting tube and emptying two co2 cartridges and quite a while trying reinflate with pump (that because I started messing with things when should have not). Best showers of all. 

Anyway a good night under a big Bay tree.

Coffee concoction and on the road to 

Gold beach at 9 with good wind in back.

Day 12

Friday June 27th

No big storm last night. Bit of rain, small wind. Continental breakfast in tent. 20 mile ride to Bandon on backroad atop high ridge in fog. Stop to buy lube for bike at south coast cycles (the first of many visits to this rather nice bike shop with a novice woman and cranky know it all boss).
Old town Bandon for lunch with 4 recent college grads from South Dakota. They scored a warmshowers.com spot for the evening from cafe. I found low pressure front tire and decided to head back 1/2 mile to bike shop for fix and quick lesson in the ways of flats. 4 grads show up with broken tandem at same time; shop starts to hop, boss gets short with Nels over pressa valve issue. Get very interesting blow by blow on tire tech from boss, assistant warned repeatedly to watch the floor. B says he has to get out; too tense. I stick for a while and am told my front brake caliper is misaligned and since it is apparently mine to figure out I go outside and work on front brake.
Meanwhile B has gone to library and signed up for warmshowers.com and gets a place a couple of miles out of town with a fellow named Brian Kraynik and family.
We kill a couple of hours at high-end eatery overlooking the water - two glasses of tempranio and a plate of gnocchi.
We head out for Brian's place but he wanted some beer (Deschutes Summer Twilight) and hamburger buns so we stop at Ray's Food Place for those items.
Arrive at home of Kraynik and are greeted by Mr. Peepers who may bite according to Kraynik but he will not break skin. Mr. Peepers is a push-over and soon whole family arrives from How to Train Your Dragon in Coos Bay.
The little boy of the family hails us with the phrase his daddy taught him to say to all bike tour people who come for the night (500 and counting) and it is, "Pay some taxes!"
Brian is a true believer, is 6' 5" and requires a history reading of the building and effects of the Erie Canal on Google Docs and a subsequent comment on the goodness of a dedicated bike lane on 101 down the Oregon coast.
Then hamburgers and beer are consumed.
Nicole Kraynik is starting full time teaching at Bandon school district in the fall and Brian continues to develop his portable basketball hoop system called the Drive-by-Shooter.
Watched a bit of Frozen and then all to bed.
Said Goodbye and thanks to Brian in the morning and back to the same restaurant in which the process had started the day before; the cheap lunch place not the high-end gnocchi joint.

Kraynik home

View from front yard

Day 11

Thursday June 26

Rain's effect on even staunch biker

The sign to look for when pedaling up

Let's see yesterday...

Got to Honeyman but it was not sweet. 

Dark, standing water, many hunkered bunkered bikers randomly strewn about a small lumpy area.

Today? Cape perpetua. High headland, sea lions on rocks like driftwood.

Drove hard for hours to reach bfast in Reedsport. Enjoyed the 3 egg Mediterranean Vegetable omelet. 

Rain had finally stopped 18 hours after it began. 

Another 30 mile run to North/Bend Coos Bay consumed the day. 

Spoke with Hilda, the Norse nurse on her way to the tip of South America, as we met just before the high bridge into coos bay area.

She gave me some duct tape to fix hole in my sleeping bag. Huge weight off mind. 

Gnarly run from towns to county park called biederdorfer (Bastendorf actually) or some such where now I sit awaiting the next storm at midnight. 

Had a beer with cal government guy

B on phone for 40 minutes

I finished his gift beer and chat with cal guy who was half Panamanian.

Waiting for rain. Wind (that made last part of day so gnarly) has died but....

Photo Typical

Day 10

Yaquina Lighthouse - Gray Whale feeding just out to sea from here

Wednesday June 25

Rain concern drives b to head to Yachats in rather a hurry

Bucket girl passes me ( see last pic from day 9)

Msg from b swing in to alder restaurant and bistro

Bucket stops in to say hello and moves on - doesn't do this kind of food

Veggie Benedict ordered

Regular Benedict delivered

Sad

No asparagus no portobello

Oh well

fog at Beachside state park hiker biker spot

Light mist/drizzle gets heavier approaching Florence. B stops at laundromat on hwy into town. Turns out to be one of the best such institutions on the planet.

8 miles to destination - Honeyman state park.

Day 9

Tuesday June 24th

Yaquina Light on most distant point

B in still moment

Leave Lincoln city after bfast at corner cafe - salmon omelet - too much

Pulled into Boiler bay wayside but forget why

Uneventful til otter crest loop off the big road

Huge vista south to Yaquina light & devils punch bowl

Newport and library

Lemonade stand - Kori and cj proprietors - 25 cents

Left over lunch at park Yaquina bay 

Sketchy  lads in bush selling mj to teens in classic datsun

Waldorf bridge beautiful

50 seals basking on sandbar below

Guy walking bike on my side

Had to get off and still hit him with bag

Why was he there?

MSG from b

Beer at flounder in

Conversation with girl with low affect

Rays food place for groceries

Young traveler outside with plan for 3 years travel on foot and light weight raft

And a glock 9 mm pistol on hip

Said you just don't know who you might meet

B thinks his name was pj key

Seemed like a nice kid

Said he hadn't pulled the glock as yet

On 3 miles to beachside sp

Girl from Brownsville only biker there

B set up for predicted bad weather

Shower

Sleep

Sleeker than it may look load-wise

House proud

Brownsville bucket girl

Day 8

Drying time at County Line county park between Longview and Cathlamet

Monday June 23rd

Major up over cape lookout

Major down

Used brakes

Beautiful off 101 to pacific city and long brunch.

B made contact with cafe and located coat

Made deal to have it mailed to 

Brookings.

Problem solving

Heading to devils lake

Tar crew on road

Long chat with flagger

Return to 101

Okay - flat and light traffic

Oh no long mountain - suishaw nat forest or something

Went on and on

And on.

Off 101 to east devils lake rd

Light rain

Many short ups/downs

D lake state park on both sides of lake

Picked wrong side

Around bottom to101 and into small hiker/biker space with many bikers

One of whom had been run off road earlier that day - upset south Texas girl

Not such a 

Short day after all.  

My typical view -

http://youtu.be/KwkyPgPH8Us

Pooch on Puget Island way back on north side of Columbia River in Washington

Devil's Lake sp - the gathering - dog (not shown) goes in trailer

Value Sandwich

Day 7

Sunday June 22nd

Happy and Grumpy at point unknown

Seaside hostel to cape lookout

Longish ride 65 miles

Nice hiker biker situation at lookout

Good wind in the afternoon

B realized he left rain coat at cafe in seaside

Long discussion of getting coat mailed general delivery.

Sunset

Long sleep

Cape Lookout state park hiker biker - many there in bushes

Day 6

Saturday June 21

Bridge to Puget Island

Ferry ride after breakfast in Cathlamet 

Waiter with the zodiac shoes

Good bu 36 for the 2of us!

Bridge to puget island county ferry off

High climb rest stop high above island and river

Hilly going to Astoria 

Lost track of b

Found at pier 39 Rogue Public house

Had a beer and hummus

Headed thru Astoria on waterfront bike path then

101 causeway across windy bay

Down 101 with tail wind to good old hostel in seaside

Camped on lawn

15 each

Chat with bike tourer Hilda

Surgical nurse from Oslo on her way to terra del feugo

Backyard laundry camping at seaside hostel in...Seaside

feel like it might be cathlamet bridge to puget island

101 causeway out of Astoria

Day 5

On puget island to oregon ferry

101 causeway out of Astoriia

Friday June 20th

Rain late last night at Lewis & Clark

Long ride and search for breakfast

Lucky third score old time cafe in castle rock

Lacey Rha's or something

Off bike map's country roads and onto industrial hwy 411 to Longview.

Hanging on downtown longview park.

Hairy 17 miles to county line park. 

Good place after nerve- wracking ride. 

Muffler-free Joad family arrival at 10 pm provided small disturbance and comment from camp host next morning.

Out of there at 7:30. Sweet breakfast at Cathlamet. Catch ferry into Oregon at 11:00. 

Off ferry heading toward Astoria

Day 4

Actually this photo is day 5 morning- heading to Castle Rock

Thursday June 19th

Hard to remember what day it is let alone what happened

Quick departure from field

Long haul to Rochester (18 miles) and breakfast.

Ma and pa place and good

Centralia long stop

Library, walk around, charge, lunch, groceries

Nice western town 

Out of there some backroads with long climbs

On high ridge a lot of the time - sort of lovely

Finally into Lewis and Clark sp

Place nearly empty

Mosquitos

Showers

Fifty plus

Took a quick dip

Day 3

Wednesday June 18th

Out of camp Twanoh at 7am

Spoke to Kalispel guy 

B said other guy was pompous

But this one seemed fine

Flat along the canal with 106

Staying off map to follow the contour of canal, we came on to the Purdy Cutoff which had very fine trees, water and was flat. 

This led to 101 South which was okay too - big shoulders, wider lanes for big vehicles.

Arrived on a high plateau which steps down to Shelton 

Breakfast at Nita's

Nita still works every day but Wednesday  and she is 96

Good breakfasts

Backroads  mostly - cloqauclam road

Off turned into 2 to 3 year old clear cut for break

Drove up into it and took a look about and stayed an hour

Headed to Elma - 18 miles

Elma clean, stark, bright and working class. 

Chicken teriyaki 

Huckleberry soda

Shopped Everything Place

Apples and cheese gone now. 

Library of Elma 

Movie no got 

Blew out of there after the market (Everythingplace)

Looking for ditch spot

Found one sort of  on the river

Edge of big green field

Good sleep - just lay the two parts of the tent above and below the zlite and the bag. 

Good for dew and ground bugs

Simple

50plus

Day 2

Tuesday June 17th

Back roads toward. Bremerton

Breakfast with ex NYC fireman

Rei sippy cap and lube

Nasty Bremerton bypass

Bel fair on mostly backroads

Blew off making Shelton

Twanoh sp

Ramen, cheap plastic wine

Shower

Nels spoke to two bikers from Kalispel Montana 

Said one was a li bit pompous

Tide is high in hood canal

Jimmy the host stopped in

Wanted us to sign his memory book.

Ranger Kohl who welcomed us right as we rolled off hwy 106 was,

well, welcoming

and

helpful.

Overcast

Cool

Soughing breeze

8:40 pm

45 miles

Day 1

first night

Monday June 16th

Rain, shaky bike 

New fork $135

Keystone sunny 5$

South on Larry trail out of Port Townsend

19 south

Missed a turn

Wound up in beaver valley

Corrected mistake

Took oak bay over ridge to port ludlow

Many hills going south

Hood canal bridge

Port gamble for beer and World Cup

Back track to kitsap memorial sp

Stayed deep woods hiker biker

55 miles