Cheating isn’t always wrong, right? In order to make it to San Francisco and back home on time, my dad and I got a little “boost” from my mom and sister, who were on their way into the San Francisco area to visit relatives before taking us home on September 2nd. After going out to lunch, we were dropped off just before Leggett, CA, where our routes parted ways. Fortunately for my dad and I, we skipped the easiest 200km of that portion of California. We also had the highest climb of our trip right in front of us. After reaching the top and cruising down to the coast, the view was incredible.
The coastal portion of the ride blew my socks off.
Here’s day 17’s Flickr set.
Day 16, Eureka!
My dad and I were planning on meeting my mom and sister in Eureka, CA and stay in a motel for the night. The ride into Eureka was pretty relaxed and flat, so it was a pleasant day for our legs. My mom and sister started driving around 4am, and made it to the motel around 7pm.
Day 16’s Flickr set.
Day 15, Big ol’ Trees.
Day 15 was a pretty spectacular day. That is, if you find massive uphills, downhills, and looking at gigantic trees spectacular. We found a little place to stop for lunch right next to a field with emus in it. It was ridiculously exciting.
I was surprised that neither my dad and I had to patch or replace any tires that far. Then, jut as we left my dad’s front tire went flat. After replacing it, we ended up having to stop twice more because despite all of our checks, the source of damage to the tire was still there. There was a piece of glass lodged in the tire… After finding and disposing of it, the rest of the day was smooth sailing.
Here’s day 15’s Flickr set.
Day 14, Welcome to California
Day 14 was quite the journey. After leaving Gold Beach, we encountered one of the biggest climbs in Oregon. If it weren’t so foggy, I bet it would’ve had one heck of a view. We stopped for lunch in Brookings before leaving Oregon, then decided that we could make it all the way into Crescent city. We stayed at a nice little motel called the Curly Redwood Lodge, since there wasn’t much camping nearby.
View the whole days Flickr set here.
Day 13, Another long day.
Yesterday, my dad and I decided to try and make it to Gold Beach, in hopes of cutting down the Oregon part of our trip by a day. It was a fantastic day in the beginning, but by the end of the day, it was foggy, windy, and a little bit miserable. Once we finally saw the bridge leading into Gold Beach, everything felt better, and we finally got to rest.
Here’s the Flickr set for day 13.
Days 9, 10, 11, and 12.
It’s day 13 now, and we finally found a coffee shop at a convenient stopping point for morning tea and Internet access. We’ve been through most of Oregon now, and we’re aiming to get to Gold Beach today. We’ve been staying at state parks with Hiker/Biker campsites for the entirety of Oregon, and it’s been quite the experience. Meeting new people is by far the best part. Surprisingly, we’ve met more people from around Vancouver than anywhere else.
Here’s another link to my Flickr page with all the photos from my phone.
You may notice that there aren’t any photos from day 11, and that’s because my phone was out of batteries.
Days 5, 6, 7, and 8, Wi-fi is hard to find…
I’m in Oregon now, and places with wi-fi have been increasingly hard to find… Some notable places we’ve passed by since the last time I posted are Raymond WA, Astoria OR, Cannon Beach OR, Cape Lookout OR, Pacific City OR, and Lincoln city OR.
Here’s another link to the Flickr page containing all the pictures I’ve posted so far
Days 3 and 4, motels are nice.
The rides weren’t as hard these last two days, and camping hasn’t been easily available where we’ve been stopping, causing us to stay in motels, so it feels like I’m truly on a family vacation!
The rides haven’t been incredibly scenic, so I haven’t taken many pictures these last 2 days.
Here’s something though.
Here are more pictures from day 3 and day 4.
Day 2, Hills. Nothing but hills…
Saturday’s ride was killer. We started at about 9:30 out of Larrabee State Park, and biked to Fort Townsend state park. Although it was roughly the same distance as day 1, there were many long steep hills. By the time we got to Fort Townsend, it was dark. Fortunately we ran into another group of cyclists from Vancouver, and they were kind to let us camp with them for the night.
The ride may have been hard, but it was also incredibly scenic. It’s a beautiful place.
Day 1, Coquitlam to Bellingham
Yesterday’s ride was quite a good way to start this cycling journey. It had ups, downs, a border crossing, bridges, and lovely people cheering us along as they drove by.
I wish I could’ve posted this yesterday, but there was limited Internet access.
We stopped at a lovely place called Larrabee State Park, and at sunset, the view of the water was incredible.