On Our Own Again

To Charleston, Oregon -- 54.2 miles, 13.5 mph, 2325 ft.

For the first time in over two weeks, we were on our own today. We’ve now started what will be the final section of the bike ride after fourteen months away from home.

Looking back on the ride, I’ve mentally divided it into six segments: the East -- Massachusetts and New York -- the cold, hilly, sore-knees beginning of the ride; the Great Lakes -- Ontario and Michigan -- some sun, the Erie Canal, and flatter terrain; the Midwest -- Wisconsin and Minnesota -- family time with Meg’s near Milwaukee and and mine near Minneapolis; the Northern Plains -- North Dakota and Montana -- sole sapping wind, friendly people, and wide open stretches between small towns; the Mountains -- western Montana, Idaho, and Oregon --  long climbs in high heat, shared with fantastic friends; and now, finally, the Pacific Coast -- Oregon and California.

A lot of pedalling -- Sudbury, MA to Florence, OR

Mother Nature, today, seemed to be trying to make up for some of the hardships she threw at us over the last ten weeks. So, my prediction for the next two weeks: cool sunny days, smooth pavement, beautiful scenery, carefree days, and the wind at our backs.

The Pacific Ocean off in the distance

We let Dex and Kylie sleep in a bit this morning, so didn't get on the road until just before 9:00. We were asked by a half dozen folks today where we are riding from. With so many bike riders taking trips down the coast, it’s fun to see their reaction when we say we started outside of Boston. With stops, it took us just over ten weeks to get across the country -- 61 riding days.

The Pacific

We did indeed have some climbing, 2300 ft in all, but with the cool temps, shorter grades, and northwest wind, it was a veritable breeze. The first town we came across was Reedsport at 23 miles -- the perfect spot for a second breakfast. Actually, for the kids, and Kylie in particular, it’s really a first since she eats little to nothing in the morning. Fortunately, I always stock my handlebar bag with a selection of easily accessible snacks (mostly for me) -- Pop Tarts, Cliff bars, Gold Fish, Jolly Ranchers, beef jerky….

Restaurant companion

The rest of the day went without drama. We’ll be getting pretty well aquatinted with highway 101 since that’s our main route all the way into the northern part of California. The shoulder today was pretty good but on some sections drops down to literally a few inches. A cross country ride in the US means you’d better be ok with cars, trucks, and semis racing by, often within just a few feet.

Coming into Coos Bay we stopped at the long, two lane, truss bridge and pushed the button to alert drivers of our presence. We waited for lines of cars and big trucks to go by, but it eventually became clear that we were just going to have to go for it. Even for me this was a little nerve racking. I concentrated on the white line, eight inches from the tall, narrow walkway on the right, trying to ride up hill quickly without scraping the panniers on the curb. Since the oncoming lane was carried a consistent line of incoming traffic, the logging truck behind Meg patiently waited the two minutes for us to get all the way across, .

Riding into Reedsport 

The Coos Bay Bridge

Meg was particularly interested in a hotel tonight, so we got a spot at Captain John’s Motel just a stone's throw from the Portside seafood restaurant here in Charleston. Just two more weeks on the road, smelling the sea air and enjoying our carefree, vagabond life.