Strawberry Fields Forever - Day 39

As we said, we camped right next to a huge strawberry field ripe with strawberries. We resisted the urge to take any and were rewarded this morning. Hispanic strawberry pickers arrived about 7:30 in the morning and began picking right next to our campsite. One of the supervisors then gave us a 2 lb. box of freshly picked strawberries. They are so flavorful and delicious.  As we rode today, we passed miles and miles of strawberry fields and also some artichoke and celery fields. We saw so many Hispanic workers in the strawberry fields with backs bent over picking strawberries. It made us realize that our country would probably have a problem harvesting the produce if it weren't for the Hispanics who are willing to do this back breaking work. We also noticed that they are hard-working, very friendly and seem happy to do it.

We only got 5 miles down the road when Ed got a flat in his BOB trailer. Patching didn't work so put on a new tube but then discovered there was a slit in the tire itself so we used the $1 bill trick that Steve at Full Cycle in Fort Collins told us about where you use a $1 bill to line the inside of a cut tire to reinforce it.

While stopped with the flat tire, Laura (from Toronto) came along. Laura rode with us all the way to Monteray even stopping with us for lunch. In Marine, the 3 of us happened to get our own personal guide. Larry rides his bike from Marine to Monteray every day and loves to direct people to the bike path which is confusing to find without help so he joined us, directed us and pointed out the sites. We rode 33 miles and arrived at the Veterans Memorial Park & Campground in Monteray. The campground is located  right  in the middle of Monteray up a very steep 1 1/2 mile climb. There we met another married couple, Tim & Leslie from Idaho who were doing a one month tour from Leggett to Monteray. There are more locals/transients using this hiker/biker area for a cheep campsite than there are actual bikers.

Surf City - Day 38

As we were departing Santa Cruz looking for a grocery store, a biker came along and saw we were checking our map for directions. His name was Tom and after telling him where we were going, he suggested we turn around and follow the coastline, which was much more scenic than the way we were going and even told us where we could find a grocery store along the way.  He said he was on his way home and we followed him along the shoreline drive. He led us past marinas and a spectacular bluff where there were a couple hundred surfers seen below catching the waves. He even offered that we could camp in his backyard but we wanted to move further down the coast. He noted the nice waves and left us to go surfing. After spending some time watching the surfers and eating lunch, we only travelled 20 miles to Sunset State Beach Campground.  We passed fields and fields of strawberries and artichokes that are being harvested. In fact, our campsite is only 10 yards from a very tempting strawberry field.

Santa Cruz - Day 37

We were surprised to meet Laura again at camp. She's an engineer from Toronto who is taking a year off to do some biking and hopefully some humanitarian volunteer work before grad school. We have been at the same camp on several occasions since Oregon. 

We planned a 50 mile ride from Half Moon Bay to Santa Cruz. It was a pleasant ride with some fabulous, coastal views even though it had plenty of climbs and descents as it went from sea level to a few hundred feet.  We had been told about a RV site in Santa Cruz but when we got there, we found out it was 4 miles up into the redwoods. Ed thought about going further down the road to the next state beach campground but by then it was 5 o'clock, cold and Sharla didn't want to ride any further. Besides, we decided we didn't want to leave the Santa Cruz beach area without spending some time there. Ed negotiated on the price of a motel across from the Boardwalk and got it down from $140 to $70. Had a nice walk and dinner along the wharf and we were glad we decided to stay.

Devil's Slide - Day 36

The ride from San Francisco to Half Moon Bay involves another section of road that is dreaded by bicyclers. It is 3 miles of a very narrow, two-lane, winding road with NO shoulders for most of the section. It is known as Devil's Slide and is a moderately steep ascent and descent and can have a lot of traffic including sports cars who like to speed around the corners.  God again blessed us with not a lot of traffic and no zooming sports cars. Everyone gave us a lot of room and there were even unexpected pull-offs where Sharla made sure we pulled off and she caught her breath.  Overcast and foggy all day with a bit of a head wind but overall, it was a good 34 mile ride.

Down Days in San Francisco - Days 34 & 35

We took 2 days off in San Francisco for some down time, but the time passed quickly and we didn't get to relax as much as we had hoped.  Trips to Fisherman's Wharf, Ghirardelli Square, Trolley car ride to Chinatown, shopping, eating at a couple of nice restaurants, and rotating the bike tires filled the two days. Even though we didn't ride the bikes, we did a lot of walking and did have a nice time.

San Francisco! - Day 33

After about 8 miles on the road, the bike route got us off into neighborhoods and small town streets.  It was a flat route and very enjoyable--we even stopped at a bakery mid-morning for juice and scones. There were several cyclists on the route which was a good thing because we needed to keep asking directions as the zig-zagging our book told us to do was confusing.  We had a few hard, short climbs before and after Sausalito, the community before the Golden Gate Bridge where it was sunny and we saw tons of sailboats out in the bay.  The Golden Gate Bridge, however, was engulfed in fog and very chilly riding across. We couldn't see the arches above and could hardly see the water below.  We arrived in San Francisco!  We found our quaint, little motel on the west side of Lombard Street and didn't have to climb any steep streets to get to it. A 32 mile ride tod

The Need to Fuel the Tank - Day 32

Left camp early without breakfast thinking we would stop in Bodega Bay a mile down the road and get breakfast there.  The only restaurant we found open was expensive so we got a danish, coffee and OJ at the gas station, mini mart.  After a few miles down the road, we could tell that breakfast didn't have the power in it that our usual oatmeal, bagel and fruit does. Food is our fuel and it is important to keep the tank supplied. The day still had its ups and downs as the road goes around cliffs and canyons.  There were hundreds of cyclists on the road... most going the opposite direction of us as there were several charity rides going on including a large one for MS.  The best part of the ride was the last few miles when we had a bike path through the redwoods with no vehicle traffic that took us directly to our campground--Samuel Taylor State Park. It is nice to be amongst the redwoods again. We meet all types. There is a gal in this hiker/biker camp area who looks like a guy who has gone through a sex change. There is also a middle aged guy, Tod, who was at the same campsite as us last night. It was another great day for riding with warm temperatures and blue skies.

Ultimate Ride - Day 31

Today was a marvelous day--a warm, sunshiny day with clear blue skies. Much of the ride was on cliffs high above the Pacific Ocean and it seemed like you could view the coastline for miles and miles. There were several ascents and descents that veered around rivers and bays. The book described one 500' descent as an exhilarating switchback that was a better road for cycling than driving. Ed careened down the switchbacks well ahead of a red sports car. As he was climbing up the other side, a passenger in the car gave him a thumbs up as if saying it was a job well done. In the meantime Sharla was using her brakes almost all the way down and allowing cars to pass her way behind Ed. This was a day that the stunning coastline view and gorgeous weather helped fulfill Ed's dream journey down the coast.

 Arrived at Bodega Dunes State Park in the middle of the afternoon after going only 25 miles with lots of stops to admire the views (and catch our breath). By the time it got dark, there were 13 bikers in a small hiker/biker campsite. We met Joe who is a landscaper from California that had gone Santa Cruz and now was returning home. We also met Bob and Marilyn, who are a brother/sister team from Nova Scotia and Vermont. Neither of their spouses camp so they are touring together to San Francisco. They are the first ones we have met who are probably at least 5 or so years older than us who are enjoying themselves and doing great.

Grand Day for Biking - Day 30

Sun started coming out through the fog before we left camp. Another day with lots of little hills. Ed kept calling them free hills. He would get going fast enough going down the hill that he could sometimes make it to the top of the next hill. That didn't work for Sharla because she would be using the brakes going down. If there is no traffic, no wind hitting her on the side, and no curves, she doesn't use the brakes as much but that doesn't happen too often. We found a little Mexican food restaurant in Gualala to eat at for lunch.  Sharla got stung by a bee when one hit her in the face while riding and got caught between her face and sunglasses. Hurt a bit but not too bad. Made it as far as we were going to go today...43 miles to Stillwater Cove State Park. Arrived early afternoon. We were visited  by a couple tame peacocks in our campsite. Another bicyclist, Mike, joined us in the hiker/biker campground area. Around a campfire that he built, we had a great conversation and found out he is a believer as well. He is in between jobs and searching for what the Lord would have him do next. He would desire it to be doing something where he is making a difference in people's lives.

5th Week on the Road - Day 29

The. book showed lots of ups and downs for today but we were mentally ready this time.  There was one hill that was extremely steep that we had to walk up and even that was difficult.  Met some people doing a tour with Adventure Cycling that will end in San Francisco.  Adventure Cycling provides supported tours so you don't have to carry all your gear. We ended up with a nice campground at Manchester State Beach after a 39 mile ride. Enjoyed a nice afternoon in camp with warm sunshine.

Nothing Like Moose Tracks to End the Day - Day 28

Woke up to a soggy, wet  morning. Since we were planning a short day, we took our time breaking our camp and drying things out. We only had a 20 mile ride to Fort Bragg. To our surprise, there were numerous 200 and 300' descents and climbs as we crossed rivers and coves along the coastline. We had not closely reviewed the map and were not mentally prepared for some of the strenuous ascents. We had planned a leisurely day but by the time we found a motel, did laundry, and grocery shopped, the evening had arrived. It ended up being a sunny, beautiful day. We ended up eating a microwave lasagne dinner in the motel and  1 3/4 qt. of Extreme Moose Tracks ice cream.

Updates: Talked to our friend, Connie Greenlaw, and her husband who had the stroke, is still very critical. We continue to pray with Connie that the Lord's will be done but our desire is that John would recover with a qualitative life.

We would also like to update that RE I has offered to reasonably compensate us for the damage they caused in shipping our bikes. We appreciate Kim's (from REI Fort Collins) efforts to correct the mis-packaging job that was done to our bikes.

Miracle Day - Day 27

After a day of agony that continued some into the night, Sharla woke up to no pain.  She was worried it would set in at any moment but it didn't.  We praised God all day for answered prayer. We went up and down hills for 14 miles until we reached a point when we had to make a decision. Do we stop there at a campground at 700' in elevation or do we go on and conquer the highest mountain on our journey--2000' in elevation. My leg was doing good so we went on and conquered that mountain.  We were stopping every 1/2 mile on the way up.  Later we had a 750' hill to climb which was also tough since it was steeper in parts.  After being inland for the last few days, we left Highway 101 and are now on Highway 1 which headed to the beach. We had some sunny, warmer days but now we're back in clouds and fog. We stopped after putting in 41 miles at Westport Union Landing State Beach.  We are up on a bluff with the ocean right below us. We will go to sleep hearing the waves. Another milestone today was the completion of 1000 miles of our journey. We accomplished this in 27 days which included 3 rest days so our average is about 43 miles on days we ride.

Day of Agony - Day 26

Sharla got up with no pain but by the time we left camp, the pain in her lower leg was there and didn't go away all day.  That has never happened before so it was frustrating for her.  We finished going through the Avenue of the Giants which is fairly flat and enjoyable but it was tempered some by the pain.  Our free-spirited bicycling neighbors said Garberville was a good place to stop so we stopped there for lunch.  We could see why they liked it... we had never seen so many free-spirits in one area. The deli we ate at even had a poster about smoking pot. We had some hills to climb in the afternoon. We went 30 1/2 miles until we made it to Richardson Grove State Park about 3:30 in the afternoon and called it quits in order to give Sharla's leg more of a rest before tomorrow.

Sharla's Almost Dream Day - Day 25

Didn't leave the motel room until after 11 and the fog had mostly lifted. It was a fairly flat ride with only a few small climbs.  During the time we were on Highway 101, it had 8 - 10' shoulders which made for a stress-free ride although it did still have a lot of road noise. The sun came out as the route turned inland and we entered The Avenue of the Giants which is a route off of 101 that goes through a towering redwood forest. This was a dream ride and an excellent way to appreciate these giant trees.  Traffic was very light along this route and we rode slowly admiring this magnificent forest. Along this route, we also found a little produce stand that provided some excellent, home-grown tomatoes and even excellent homemade blackberry popsicles. In the hiker/biker camp at Burlington Campground, we met some interesting fellow bicycling characters.  They remind us of hippies from the 1960's.  As soon as they arrived, they lit some incense.  They seemed to be carefree and traveling on their bikes from place to place. They also told us about being vegetarians and attending big gatherings of other free-spirited people.  The day ended with a 47 mile ride. Ed never dreamed Sharla would say a 47 mile ride would be an almost dream day.

Down Day in Eureka - Day 24

Got up to a really wet, foggy morning.  After a 5 mile ride, we got a nice room at a boutique type motel  in Old Town Eureka.  We found Eureka to have a really nice old town area with restored late 1800's Victorian architecture. They also had a bike shop where Ed was able to replace his mirror that got broken when the wind blew so hard it blew his bike over 4 days ago. The sun came out in the afternoon and we walked the downtown area, had a couple nice meals and a great cup of fresh made ice cream. Days off are a nice change from on the bike but they are still busy as we have laundry to do, shopping for groceries, exploring the town, catching up on the blog and sometimes drying out the damp camping gear.  Still helps our bodies to have a break.

Another Day in the Magnificent Redwoods - Day 23

The book said moderately easy day compared to yesterday.  Sharla would term it as moderate but take the word easy out of it as there were lots of moderate hills. We started the day seeing a doe and a couple fawns right by our campsite, then saw a couple bull elk once we got on the road and we continued amongst the magnificent redwoods.  Our bike route directed us off Highway 101 which was nice going through smaller communities without having vehicles buzzing past us. On one of those roads we were along the coast with heavy fog and could barely see the Pacific Ocean but certainly heard a large gathering of sea lions below. At lunch, we stopped in Trinidad at a grocery store & bought a deli sandwich (what a local recommended) and shared a picnic table outside the store with 5 guys from Italy who are seeing our country by car.  Also talked to a young guy touring by bicycle from Germany that stopped at the grocery store. We stopped for the night at a KOA campground close to Eureka. Not as nice as the state parks but did have the advantage of a hot tub.

The Dreaded Mountains After Crescent City - Day 22

Sharla had heard several people along the way talk about the steep mountain after Crescent City. So, of course, that had her dreading it and lost a little sleep over it.  We got on it fairly early before there was much traffic. We stopped at least every half mile on the way up to rest. Ed led as he is a good pacer. The first mountain was about 1200' elevation gain. At the base of that mountain, there was a tourist attraction called Trees of Mystery that we stopped at. There was a free Indian museum that we enjoyed looking through but we didn't pay the charge to take some tram into the redwoods. In the afternoon we had another 1100' mountain to climb. So we conquered the first 2 mountains of northern California! After that, it was downhill through the redwoods.  We felt we were in the midst of giants.  There was a couple we stopped at...one called the Corkscrew and the other called Old Tree that they figure is 1500 years old, 17 ' in diameter.  These huge, old trees are pretty amazing. Soon after that, we got into our campground--Elk Prairie. About a 9 to 5 workday and 34 miles. After dinner, we sat and talked with a single gal, Laura, from Toronto who we've been at the same camps 3 to 4 times in the last 1 1/2 weeks. She's bicycling from Vancouver to San Francisco.

Goodbye Oregon... Hello California - Day 21

After 8 miles we said goodbye to our 2nd state and said hello to our 3rd and final state.  Today completed the end of our 3rd week of riding... we had 2 rest days out of 21 days and have covered 800 miles.  California welcomed us with a beautiful sunshiny day and the bike route led us away from highway 101 onto lightly traveled back roads through various small farms and dairy farmland.  It was flat with no wind and another "dream" day for riding.  We celebrated our accomplishments by staying in a motel in Crescent City and only a 32 mile ride.

Three weeks of thoughts from our ride include:

- Canada, Washington & Oregon are all very bike friendly and for the most part courteous drivers.

- Logging  is well and alive in both WA and OR.  Almost all log truck drivers respect bicyclists except for 1 obnoxious unloaded log truck driver in OR who had to get on his horn as soon as he saw our blinking tail lights until he was well passed us.  The road section had an adequate bike lane and we were well within it.  We heard him do the same thing to another bicyclist 1/2 mile in front of us.

- We don't understand why a driver, driving a small truck or bus needs a CDL but a driver of a 42 foot, 30,000 lb. motorhome pulling another vehicle doesn't.  Many of them don't even realize how big a vehicle they are driving.

- The weather for bike riding was very good with virtually no rain and only 4 or 5 foggy cool days.

- Mexico is still a long ways away.

- We continue to easily meet some interesting friendly people.

- Food shopping is a daily occurrence.

- Sharla continues to amaze Ed with her bike riding stamina and perseverance.   Sometimes she has had some severe leg cramps in her lower left leg in the morning, but praise God it has gone away by the time we get on the bike.  God has truly blessed me with a wonderful wife!

- The "dream" continues to be alive of seeing God's awesome creation of majestic sea shores, vast forests of thick trees & foliage, and magnificent farm and ranch land.

Another Long Day... Including Lots of Wind - Day 20

Had coffee with RVers so didn't get away as early as we would have liked.  Stopped at Paradise Cafe which was recommended and had the largest pancake we had ever seen - they had to be at least 16" x 10". The waitress told Ed he didn't need to order 2 and she was right. It was a sunny day with a lot of wind but fortunately, it was blowing out of the North.  The first really windy day we have had.  The only camping options were at 30 miles at Gold Beach where it was extremely windy and cold (we did eat lunch there and had some super blackberry pie) so we chose to go on to Harris Beach State Park which was 56 miles... our 2nd long day in a row.  There were several vigorous climbs involved so we had debated whether to go on or not but the wind helped us up them. The wind also made it treacherous going downhill as the bikes were quite unstable so we had to ride the brakes all the way down. The ride had a number of gorgeous views of the coastline.  

Met Richard and his daughter from London who were riding from Bellingham to LA.  We also met 2 guys from Germany who had travelled from Anchorage and were going to Las Vegas. 

Sunshine at Last - Day 19

Looked out this morning to mostly cloudy skies with some sun but by late morning, it was mostly sunny. This was a pleasant change from 5days of cool &foggy. After a 10 mile ride to Charleston, we encountered the Seven Devils Road.  The road gets its name from 7 major mountainous climbs (up to 500' each some with very steep grades). We did not see any other tourers for most of the day until late afternoon when we met 3 others all going to San Francisco area. One of them, Brian, was going to continue on across the Sierras to Big Pine. We planned on only doing a 40  - 50 mile ride but there were no campgrounds so we ended up doing 60 miles to a commercial RV campground in Port Orford. A very nice, small RV facility with very friendly owners and guests.  It has advantages over State Parks in that it has Internet service, electricity for charging batteries, as well as coffee & muffins in the morning. Saw some nice coastal views. After some challenging climbs on Seven Devils Road, we had a pleasant ride the rest of the day with manageable rolling hills. Ed is amazed that Sharla does 60 miles without complaining. She notes that she would have been complaining a whole lot more if the strenuous climbs had been at the end of the day.

Another of God's Truths Revealed - Day 18

Exodus 20:9-11 tells us God created the earth in 6 days and rested on the 7th and commands us to toil for 6 days and rest on the 7th.  We hadn't taken a day off from riding for 15 days and our bodies were telling us it was time for a break.  We stayed holed up in the motel catching up on the blog, servicing the bicycles and doing some grocery shopping.  Meals included delivered pizza and microwave dinners.  It was a much needed rest day.

Some more thoughts about our journey:

- We are 240 miles out of 400 miles into Oregon

- Reality has set in on how far it is to the Mexican border

- A day of rest is needed at least once a week

- We are tired of the cold and foggy days we've had since entering Oregon

- We don't know why motor home drivers are not required to have CDL's, as they are every bit as large as trucks.

- Canada, Washington & Oregon have been very bike friendly for the most part.

- Motels are a nice relief from the damp and wet campgrounds and pretty hard sleeping surface

- Except for damp mornings and fog, we have been blessed with good weather.

Sad News - Day 17

Today we rode 45 miles to Coos Bay where we got a motel. The day was again foggy and our route was  described as the most curvy and scenic of the Oregon coast. It would have been nice to have been a clear day but was an enjoyable ride anyway. We stopped in Reedsport for a couple of hours so Ed could participate in a work related webinar. Had a couple major hills to climb. On one of the hills we leap-frogged with a young man hitch hiking to Coos Bay where his wife was in labor with a new baby.

 We received sad news that our very good friend from Fort Collins, John Greenlaw, had a stroke.  Spent much of the day on the bike praying for him and his family.

Another Foggy Day - Day 16

Sharla got up with big pain in lower left leg but Advil relieved it so wasn't painful after we got on the bikes.  Switched to long sleeve jerseys and leggings along with our jackets to help us stay warm.  For the most part, it was an enjoyable ride but would have been nicer without all the fog.  We rode along some of the Oregon Sand Dunes.  Met up with Nick again at Jessie Honeyman State Park... a 51 mile day.

Cold & Foggy - Day 15

We woke up to fog and had fog most of the day.  Despite the weather, we had a beautiful ride and saw some magnificent coastline. We stopped in Newport at a bike shop and were able to get a replacement shifting cable housing that the BOB trailer had pinched.  We travelled 34 miles to the South Beach State Park campground.  We also met up again with our friend, Nick, from Sweden.

God's Amazing Miracle - Day 14

The day brought 2 mountains (gains of about 800' each in elevation with steep pitches) that Sharla was dreading.  Several stops on the way up made them endurable but getting the bikes going again on an incline was difficult.  One of Sharla's attempts resulted in a fall and a skinned knee.  

We stopped in Pacific City at a little cafe for a big second breakfast. The place was quite busy so took us quite awhile.  The day had been cool & foggy and 2 1/2 miles out of Pacific City, the sun was shining so we stopped to take our jackets off and put on sunscreen.  As we were getting back on our bikes, someone drove by and hollered, "Ed and Sharla". We had no idea who would know us up here. It ended up being one of Sharla's college roommates, Ellen Osborn. She lives in Arizona and unknown to us, her daughter lives in Pacific City and Ellen was in Oregon for the birth of her new grandchild.  Ellen knew we were riding down the coast on 101, but wasn't aware of exactly where we were at in our journey and was looking at all bicyclers to see if she could spot us.  It had probably been 15 years since the last time we had seen each other.  God's timing was so amazing in how long it had taken us to climb the hill, how long it took us to eat, and Ellen happened to be on the same road at the same time as us.  It was really special to see her again.

After 5 nights on the ground, we decided to get a motel in Lincoln City and do our laundry. Milestones we accomplished today included completing our first 500 miles of the journey and crossing the 45th parallel which is halfway to the equator.

Cape Lookout State Park - Day 13

After a great hot breakfast with the Hanke's, we had another short day of 22 miles to Cape Lookout State Park. On the way we toured the Tillamook Cheese Factory but the production line was down due to it being Labor Day.  This State Park has a great beach but the weather was cool & windy so we didn't go down to the water. The hiker/biker campground was again nearly full by early evening. We had a chance to meet several of the other tourers. 

Visiting Friends in Garibaldi - Day 12

After a leisurely start, we stopped in Wheeler, OR, where we met Wheeler Dave. He is wheelchair bound, paralyzed from the waist down and told us the story of how he saved a little girl from drowning 4 years earlier. He was on the dock when he heard a splash and wheeled over and dove into the water. The  girl had sunk to the bottom where he found her and pulled her up. After getting her up on the dock, she was not breathing and after giving her two resuscitation breaths, she began to cry and her Mother came over and got her. This is how he became known as Wheeler Dave. 

 After a short ride of 22 miles, we met our former Pastor, Mark Hanke and his wife, Kerri, at her Mom's house, which was the dairy farm where Kerri was raised.  It was fun to meet Kerri's Mom, Marilyn, and her brother, Darren and his family.  Mark gave us the tour of the dairy farm that Darren now owns and operates. He is the 3rd generation to operate this farm. We got to see all of Mark & Kerri's kids as well, including Tyler's wife, Audrey, since they all met at the farm too for Labor Day. They fed us royally including some delicious homemade pies and cake. We really appreciated Marilyn and her family's hospitality.

Goodbye Washington - Hello Oregon - Day 11

Today is the day we leave Washington and have to face the Astoria Bridge crossing the Columbia River.  This bridge is infamous for bike riders in that it is 4 miles long, only 2 lanes of traffic, traffic is typically heavy, winds can be quite strong, steep climb to allow large ships to cross underneath, and minimal bike lane. One of the park rangers suggested we go up river another 40 miles and take a ferry and then ride 40 miles down the Oregon side to avoid the bridge.  This was not an option for us because  didn't want to spend 2 more days just to avoid the bridge.  He also said he rode it once and would never ride it again. We decided that we wanted to cross it early in hopes of avoiding lots of traffic and before the wind picked up.  An early start allowed us to get to the bridge about 9 a.m.  Traffic was relatively light and there was no wind. A car accident occurred halfway up the steep climb that stopped traffic in our lane.  Sharla felt God used this situation in that it gave her a chance to catch her breath.  The bridge was conquered safely and everything worked in our favor.  

We had hoped to see one of our former pastors and his wife, Larry & Shari Rydman in Seaside but they apparently are out of town.

Today's journey was 59 miles and included 3 difficult hills.  We are camped at Nehalem Bay State Park.  The hiker/biker campground is pretty full for the first time on our trip. We were glad to see Nick, who we have camped with on 2 previous sites. Nick is from Sweden and is a full time bike tourer. He began this trip in Anchorage and will travel to San Francisco.  He will then travel to South America and bike tour Brazil, Chile, Peru, and other countries. His touring makes ours seem small.

Cape Disappointment State Park - Day 10

Wasn't really a disappointment at all (don't know how it got it's name) but we welcomed it in the early afternoon after 38 miles of riding. We stopped at a grocery store and got lined up to make bean burritos with chili flavoring for dinner.  We walked almost a mile to get to the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center and then walked another 3/4 mile to the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse.  We then walked back to our campsite and walked a mile the other direction to get a view of the North Head Lighthouse. This is a treacherous area where many boats have shipwrecked through the years as they dealt with the currents caused by the Columbia River meeting the Pacific Ocean.  It is also the final destination of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Met Joey and Megan from Port Angeles who are on a northbound journey from San Francisco. They arrived early evening after crossing the Astoria Bridge which they said was horrible.  Lots of traffic and faced a head wind.