The rain started right when it was supposed to at 2:00am but was finished by the time we woke. Those in the yurts stayed dry, but so did we who were in tents. However . . .

. . . the 45 degrees morning temps called for a third cup of hot jojo!!!

Right out of town we took a ferry across the river, leaving WA behind and beginning our journey through OR. WA had a great ‘Welcome to” type sign . . .

. . . and I met Dale and David who were venturing over into OR for a breakfast of flapjacks with merryberries. They dated for ten years, meeting half way from each of their homes in Cathlumet, and decided when they got married two years ago to move here permanently. Nice story!!!

oh . . .  and we did see a few sasquatch’s heading down to the river for a morning drink!!! (local farmer humor).

On the other side of the river, Oregon DOT had not gone out of their way to make us feel welcome!!!!

Right off the ferry it was time to climb, which certainly took care of any chill one may have still had . . .

. . . top of the first pass . . .

. . . where a state park afforded great panorama views

I had made it to the 9:00am ferry and I could see the 10:00am version hauling more bikers across the river.

. . . there was our host town.

. . . the bane of bicyclists, the de-laminated steel belted radial tire. INSTANT flat if you encounter some of the steel belt strands. So far on the trip we have had about a half dozen flats. Two folks have had multiples!!!

. . . ahh hopefully not today!

About 5 miles out of Astoria, a trooper passed me on a curve with his lights on . . . around the curve I saw why. The two young men sitting on the tailgate of the truck had run off the road, tipped upside down . . .

. . . and crawled out the car through the windows as the car laid upside down in a creek with two feet of water. Unbelievable that neither of them was injured.

. . . living on a house boat doesn’t mean you can’t have a basketball court . . .

. . . someones weekend dream that never materialized!!!

. . . if I hadn’t been so close to Astoria I would have stopped for coffee and talked to anyone who would listened about forestry in the Pacific NW.

oh yeah, there were a few more hills along the way!!!

. . . but drivers were  courteous as we rolled into town.

. . . where we were greeted by a group of sea lions barking at us. Nice!!!

Click above to HEAR the movie!

A five mile boardwalk along the water took us to Hwy 101. A great way to see town, just need to keep an eye on the rails. Don’t fall in the crack!!!

Seems to be lots of homeless in WA and now OR. They tend to congregate in areas, with all their worldly belongings towed in a shopping cart. Here some one had set up a food station behind their car for those who needed a meal.

Quite the bridge. Jenny had ridden over it in that past and said it was quite the experience!! Maybe tomorrow.

We are staying at a KOA and have a rest day tomorrow. So no cooking tonight and into town for dinner. Here Ryan is giving us our ‘allowance’ for dinner, in cash . . .

. . . and we all had a great meal at a local brewery. Rich enjoyed his burrito although there was a ‘guacamole incident’ !!

Cozy cabins at the KOA allowed us to finally dry everything out and sleep out of the rain for a night.

What a GREAT surprise when Mike P. (aka ‘Evil Mike’), from our 2017 Northern Tier ride, showed up at 8:30am with donuts and coffee for the whole gang. Mike, Anne, Hugh, Denise and I were all on the ride from Anacortes, WA to Bar Harbor MA. Great to catch up and find out what was new in everyone’s lives since that great crossing.

We miss you Wade. Keep riding that BMW!!!

I was the first in yesterday and after stopping at the ‘Ranger Station’ to get the wristbands, maps and keys for our luxury camping cabins, while biking the 1/2 mile to our cabins my chain/hub broke locked up and the wheel would not turn (see the chain hanging in photo above). I carried the bike the rest of the way to the campsite and took a closer look. After removing the chain, the wheel would still not turn. Ryan arrived about a half hour later. I took off the wheel and we headed to town  . . .

. . .  where Scott, owner of Bike and Beyond after a quick diagnosis began exploratory surgery on Connie’s rear hoof.

After removing nearly all the bushings,  washers, spacers and packing, the hub would still not turn. I guess after 10’s of thousands of miles on the hub, it just disintegrated. Luckily he had a replacement wheel, a new state of the art Mavic on which he installed my cassette and tire. I brought the rest of the bike in today, he put it all together and I was back on the road!!!

Today we said goodbye to our Swiss biking companion, Olivier, who is heading back to Geneva. His Brompton bike is probably geared too high for a trip like this and he pulled muscles in his leg. A visit to the doctor resulted in a suggestion not to bike for two weeks. Safe trip home, Oliver!!!

Thirty eight degrees when we woke up this morning and there were frost warnings!!! We had breakfast in sort of an open air garage area of the KOA back lot . . . COLD!!!

. . . and as we left camp, we passed patches of grass that did have frost. At this point many of us were thinking . . . and we paid good money to do this!!!

We all headed over to the Lewis and Clark Over Wintering exhibit where the expedition had overwintered before heading back east after their western exploration.

The fort was actually very small . . . less space to heat!!

Sacajawea, an Indian women, was very instrumental in the western exploration being a success.

. . . these cabins were looking familiar . . .

. . . the fort had been the site of many councils . . .

. . . and the interior rooms were beginning to look like . . .

. . .  the KOA cottages we had just left!!!!

. . . as I was warming up in the sun, Rich said I looked like a model for Showers Pass rainwear and suggested I send them a shot for their ‘senior members’ client catalog!!!

Soon we were back on the road heading south, riding fast enough to warm up.

Oregon is VERY friendly to bicyclists and have great modern campgrounds . . . AND TIME LIMIT FREE showers. No depositing quarters for three minute segments!!!

We me David and Mikaela, who were looping from Astoria to Seaside and back for the day. Both were on vacation from their jobs in Seattle.

Soon we arrived in Seaside and had our first sighting of the ocean . . .

. . . which we would follow for the rest of the day BEAUTIFUL, The smells, the scenery, the vistas were fantastic and the temps got about 60 degrees!!!

Down the road we went to . . .

. . . our first tunnel of the trip.

Only a quarter mile long, you push the button on the pole to the left which starts lights flashing on the top of the bridge letting approaching cars know there are bikers in the tunnel.

For three of our riders who passed through at separate times, it was a warning to logging truckers to have some ‘fun’ and blow their air horns as soon as they got next to our riders. Hugh called Oregon DOT to complain, but with out a license number, or company name from the truck, they were not willing to do much.

A REAL Kodak moment around every corner . . .

. . . but watch for falling and fallen rocks on the road!!!

At Seaside we had  big climb and  an unexpected sudden 2 mile long downhill into town. As we approached our home for the night Manzanita, we had another BIG 4 mile downhill but in this case could see the town below . . . BEAUTIFUL!!!!

What a day had it been and we are hoping for three more before the next rain is predicted. AND maybe temps in the mid 60’s tomorrow!!!

Five of the  women have become know as the ‘Yurt Girls’  because they tend to rent a yurt every chance they get, rain or shine!!!

Gina has taken the reins as far as lining them up and has now added Dave and Glen to her list of ‘clients’ in finding them yurts to rent too!!!

As we biked through Rockabye lots of ads for whatever ails you . . .

This would have been a great place for lunch but it was only 9:00am!!!

. . . more weed for sale!!

And a great prop at the Pronto Pup stand!!!

We biked by a coyote, laying on the shoulder, that probably never knew what hit him last night. Beautiful animal.

Great scenery around Wheeler, OR.

We have also been passing lots of oyster processing Plants . . .

These hulled oyster shells are probably headed to curio shops . . .

. . . while these were to be ground up for fertilizer . . .

. . . but not before the gulls ate the oyster remnants near the end of the pile!!

A beautiful owl had also met its demise during the night.

Lots of fisherman in this estuary we passed today. So many so, that there is a  portable toilet anchored in the middle. Nice!!!

Crab races . . . not to be missed in March!!!

VERYYYYYYYYYYYY scenic. great vistas and great roads, so far.

Oregon version of a Vermont covered bridge!!!

We stopped at the famous Tillamook Dairy and walked the self guided tour of the cheese making plant.

I met Brandi and her parents, Patti and Mike. Brandi and Mike were biking for five days and mom was driving the sag. They head back to Knoxville, TN on Thursday. Good timing . . . it is supposed to start raining again!!!!

A cheese tasting bar with  sharp cheddar that rivaled cheddar from WI !!!!

And of course there was the obligatory gift shop . . .

. . . but also a fabulous restaurant. I settle for the monstrous cookie cream sundae with hot fudge  . . . it was only 10:00am!!!

The Cape Mearse loop has been closed for three years because of a a slide area . . .

. . . but bikes were allowed to pass through the 15 mile stretch. Glad we did . . . our own road, NO CARS!!!

. . . and here was the lighthouse . . . sort of a mini version, but it is located high on a cliff . . .

. . . and soon it was time to ride down that cliff down to our home for the night, Cape Lookout State Park.

Another cold morning, 45 degrees, but by 7:15am the sun is up and the world looks a lot different than by headlight . . . although it is still COLD!!

Jenny and I started out together. She has kitchen duty tonight and wanted to get into camp early. Quite the clearcut to the left, and on such steep slopes!!!

A half mile out of camp we began a LONG two mile uphill where we climbed, and climbed and climbed!!!

. . . and from the top there was quite a view.

. . . and of course what goes up must come down and we had a BIG downhill . . . you can sort of see the road cut . . .

. . . and here is a better view showing it.

Someone should do their dissertation on how people pick the names for their second homes. Would be interesting. Not sure what the story is here but I bet these people are FUN, and eat well!!!

We climbed again and here was a great view of the sand islands that form at the mouth of many of the harbors we ride around. Probably formed by sand that is washed down, and deposited, from the the many mountain streams.

Hey look . . . here is a herd that supplies some of the milk for the Tillamook Dairy!!!

We’ve had some discussion about tsunamis and figure if one happens we are probably toast . . . but we could plan ahead and rent an RV!!!!

On one our  big descents today we passed sand dunes that had formed right at the foot of the forest. Nice!!!

Lots of fisherman, wall to wall, along every river crossing. LOTS of salmon to be caught!!!

Around a corner I went and there was Brian, from Scotland. He has a special wheelchair built bike that he pedals with his hands . . . we had a nice chat and up ahead met Anna, who he was traveling with on this great adventure.

They started at the Canadian border September 9 and hope to make it to Mexico by December 3. Their longest day so far has been 44 miles. Anna carries two panniers and tows Bryans wheelchair with more gear bungeed to it. Brian carries two panniers and several gear bags lashed to the side of his bike. Real nice folks!!

Our guide Ryan, leaves his logo EVERYWHERE!!! ( not really, it just looks like him!!)

Now . . . not sure what this was all about . . . thought the guy might be a plumber or maybe thinks the world is ‘going down the crapper’. Had the display on the top of his flat topped garage!!!

. . . another high tide or tsunami proof house. Hope they don’t ever need to find out if it works!!!

oh yeah, everyone wants their own little piece of heaven to themselves . . . even beaches!!!

We took a 15 mile loop off of Hwy 101 onto Old Hwy 101. One of the best stretches of road on the trip . . . LOW traffic counts. I think I saw three cars on the whole loop. But there was a six mile uphill!!!

We traveled through the thick and lush Suislaus National Forest . . .

. . . where  you don’t want to stop too long for a water break because moss might start growing on you and your bike, like it is on bridges and the road!!!

I can’t believe the number  of marijuana dispensaries we have seen in WA and OR. Hard to believe there is enough business for all. Maybe there will be a shakeout period . .

Hey, it’s the Oregon version of the famous Wisconsin Dells Ducks!!!

. . . another one with quite the sign. They’ve got to get you into the store before you can buy anything and the advertising is quite persuasive!!!

Make love not war, baby!!!!

Went by Timothy’s memorial today and it was quite elaborate . . . he must have been a great salmon fisherman . . .

. . . someone had left him some special lures. It’s always interesting to see what people leave at memorial sites.

I didn’t see any whales today although many of the riders did. At one area there were three Zodiac inflatables. I figured they were folks out on a whale watching expedition and the guides would know where the whales were.  I  watched from shore to see if any would rise.  After five minutes none had, so I ventured on towards camp. Some of riders came upon the same scene and saw several.

After one more big climb on Otter Crest Loop, one could see land ahead. Somewhere down there was . . .

Beverly Beach State Park,  our camp for the night. Rain predicted for the next three days starting tonight at 5:00pm.

I helped Jenny and Joe set up the popups and get the stove in position. By the time I had my tent up, Jenny was ready to cook. Just needed her sous chef, Dave, who was still out on the road.

What’s wrong with this picture??? There should be five other tents on this site!!! The ‘Yurt Girls’,  and most of the others, decided to seek inside shelter tonight, in yurts,  because of the predicted rain. Our guides Joe and Ryan, and me, all have our own sites since there were three reserved!!!

Ryan was good enough to start a fire this morning trying to ward off the chill. It was still raining but Rich and I got the breakfast and lunch chow out on time.

Even though we had kitchen duty, we managed to get on the road by 8:10am, it was 42 degrees!!!

Right away there were some great views but you REALLY needed to watch the road. In some places it is slipping into the sea. Not good for bikers!!!

Just five miles down the road I had, as Phil Ligget says, ‘a puncture’!  BIG sharp rock went through the tire and it will need a boot to repair it. There was gravel in the hole through the tube!!

The rain slowed to a stop and soon the sun actually came out, the morning light illuminating our views to the west. Beautiful time of day!!

There always seems to be traffic on Hwy 101 and even though there is a wide shoulder a rider needs to stay vigilant . . .

. . .  and remember to look down at the road once in a while!!!

There seems to be a rest stop or viewpoint every 10-15 miles along the Oregon Coast. Mostly state or federal property. The birds have this scoped out of course and are patiently waiting for the next group of tourist to drop some ‘chow’ they will be happy to clean up!!

Seagulls are everywhere . . .

Talk about a million dollar view . . .might even be better than the Yellow Farmhouse,  Snaren!!!

Rich and I pulled in for a little lunchy and met Janet and Larry from N. Carolina. They were touring the coast before heading back to the Carolinas. Good luck Larry!

We no more left Janet and Larry and it started raining again . . .

so in Walport, we stopped at the Goren Bike Coop and got a piece of boot from Rick, one of the retired volunteers, at the bike coop . . .

. . . and, he let us use the bike wash to get some of the grit off our drive trains. The 70 years olds who man the coop during the day leave at 2:00pm so they can go home and take a nap. Nice!!!

. . . another bridge to cross that at least has a wider shoulder. Many have no shoulder and when there is a car, a logging tuck and you all meeting at the same time it can be a ‘perfect storm’ for disaster. The logging trucks generally do not move over and don’t cut you any slack!!!

. . . another tunnel today, but it was a shorty. They do all have the flashing light system letting motorists know there are bikers in the tunnel.

We tied up with Gina and Pam at a lighthouse overlook, and although we all look stellar . . .

. . . it’s hard to compete with the coastline views.

. . . Connie and I wish you were here, Smoochie!!!

Great sand dunes along the way . . .

. . . and million dollar views. We arrived in camp after the rain had stopped and tried to dry off our wet tents. Unsuccessful!!!

48 degrees when we woke up and no rain . . . things are improving!!!

We are now off the coast for a bit and climbing in BIG timber country . . .

. . . lots of highline clearcut logging operations . . . this is where many of the trucks loaded with logs come from !!!

Funny!!!!

As we rode through Umpahati, there was a Coast Guard cutter trying to get to the open ocean through the waves coming in through  the break water. They finally made it after several attempts.

Rich and I took a short detour UPHILL to view the Umpahati lighthouse. Still a working lighthouse, it’s 2 ton bezel cut lens, ground in Paris, France, beams out into the ocean.

On the way up to the lighthouse we passed out of the tsunami zone. I wonder how accurate this blue line is!!! Hope the locals never need to find out.

We rode along the Oregon Sand Dunes monument area today and in some locations the dunes are fighting with the roadway for the same space!!!

miles and miles of sand . .

. . . of which some has been opened up for dune buggies, hopefully a minimal acreage. These areas, environmentally, are very fragile

. . . at our map meeting last night Ryan had briefed us on what has been described as the ‘most horrific riding experience’ on the Pacific Coast ride. The 1.5 mile long high bridge we needed to cross. Soon it came into view . . . gulp!!!

. . . no shoulder, no ‘riders on bridge’ flashing lights and high winds. What could go wrong???? Lucky for all of us, nothing did go wrong. Four of our riders got ‘coal-rolled’ on the bridge, including me. BUT . .  as I crossed the last high span there was no traffic coming behind me and I could see a large truck in my rear view mirror. As we rode off the bridge, I could see it was a fully loaded logging truck with its four way flashers on, that had held traffic back as I rolled across the last quarter of the bridge. I gave the driver a thumbs up, he flashed his truck lights, and we both went on our way. A redemption in my mind for all the ‘other logging truck experience’s we have had!!!

Soon we were along the coast again, the sky was blue, the temps above 60 degrees and we rolled into Charleston, and Sunset Beach State Park, our home for the night.

Ryan and Mike had cooking duty tonight,  and produced a wonderful meal of peppers stuffed with rice, hamburger or tofu, a BIG salad and roasted Brussels spouts!!!

. . . Jenny helped out with the salad. Ryan likes to take a ‘hit’ of olive oil every once in a while just for the fun of it!!!

Mike likes to sleep with his Lynskey bike in his tent. The joke is, they have already had three tricycles from this affair!!!!!!!!

Coldest morning of the trip so far a chilly 32 degrees . . . hard to climb out of the sleeping bag and into cold clothes. They say there is no bad weather just bad equipment. But when it is this cold . . . yikes!!!

Anne has her saddest face on after she discovered her sandwich, which she left laying on the picnic table of the adjoining site for only five minutes, had been ‘discovered’ by one of the crows that cruise the campsites just waiting for a little snack to appear. The other night Glenn had to ward of two pesky raccoons with a stick!!!

. . . good advice, but it also reminds me of emJay and my weekend martini tradition. I miss you, Smoochie!!!!

This research facility was up ‘in the middle of nowhere’. Staff must have one heck of a commute!!!

Along one of the timber sales I saw this Christmas card laying in the ditch. I moved it to the fog line so the other riders behind me could enjoy it. Actually I think Santa has a tremendous resemblance to Wade, one of our riders from the 2017 Northern Tier. Wade, hope things are going well for you and you are continuing to make progress!!

What a great’ running water’ fountain advertising gimmick for this septic system company!!!

Once again we continued to climb . . .

. . . and climb and soon we were on ‘Seven Devils’ road and above he clouds!!!

Great vistas . . . and more timber sale activity.

After my flat the other day, I repaired it in camp and as I pumped it up, the tube blew out, sounding like a shotgun blast. Everybody in camp came running!!! I needed a new tube so today I stopped in town to pick one up and there was Anne, having her front wheel inspected by mechanic, Mike. She had hit the wheel on a curb or some hard object and he was recommending a new wheel. He didn’t have one but suggested a bike shop in Crescent City, CA. He trued it up the best he could and she was on her way.

Mike’s store will become a TREK dealer in December and he was in WI last January for the intensive six day TREK mechanic school held in Waterloo. We agreed the best thing to do might be to get out of WI in January like I did by biking in Thailand, and avoiding the whole “Polar Vortex’ phenomenon! Make sure to visit Mike at: South Coast Bicycles

Geesh . . . 100 year old trees are a ‘dime a dozen’ out in the Pacific NW!!!

I’ve seen two Ocean Spray cranberry juice factories on the ride and wondered where the bogs were located . . . here was one they fill with water pumped in through the white riser tubes in the field.

Back along the coast and 65 mile temps, and a tailwind, . . .  all was good . . .

Kodak moment around every corner . . .

There are always lots of people walking the beaches. Many times with their pups. I bet there are lots of good sniffs!!!

Joe is driving the van today and helping with breakfast since Pam and he had cooking duty last night. Here he is at ‘0 dark thirty’, by headlamp, ’ slicing strawberries for us to put on our oat meal. Such service!!!

Ryan is a taskmaster and doesn’t allow any breakfast or lunch prep until 6:55am. However, coffee is served earlier via French presses. Dave, Gina, Ann and me are allows in line trying to ‘push’ the five minutes ‘plunge time  . . . but he is strict . . . FIVE MINUTES EXACTLY!!!

. . . ahh, finally that first cup. YUM!!!

These folks were set up right outside of the bathroom. A tent inside a tent. Must not like bugs, although at this time of year there a virtually none!!!

Soon we were on the road and although the scale of this photo does not do a good job of representing the 300 foot headwall of timber in front of us as we exited the campground, we all wondered how we were going to get over it. But we did!!!!

Once again, Oregon DOT looking out for us!!!

More fantastic views as we skirted the coast in the morning light.

Shadows are harsh at this time of the morning . . .

But as the sun rises the colorama comes alive!!!

Lots of geologic activity along the coast and there are many slide areas. Usually there are signs warning drivers and bikers . . . but as a cyclist one ALWAYS needs to be aware.

Coastal communities seem to have a fascination with BigFoot and dinosaurs . . . here is one of several dinosaurs parks we’ve seen along the way. Nothing moving here . . .

. . . except this poochie who was  back and forth in the window like a duck in a shooting gallery!!!

Hope Joe saw this and stopped by Ray’s for the meat bonanza (whatever that is). Could be some good eatin’ for our carnivores!!!

Along the way today we met Gerald who is biking from Canada to South America. Safe travels!!!

. . . mile after mile of coastline.

I was curious about the type and size  of house that must be up the hill from here, with having such an elaborate, and expensive, entry gate . . .

. . . I looked back and saw part of it but their must be more hidden out of view.

Several more miles of beach and  . . .

. . . we arrived in Gold Beach, a town of several thousand. There was an Apostolic Church, on the main drag, that was really rockin’, as I road by.

Click above to hear  sample!!!

Great local art on the municipal building!!!

Not sure what this deteriorating tug was all about but there must be more to the story. Not really ‘sea worthy’!!!

What a coastline . . .

. . . and if you have an RV, you can just pullover anywhere it is safe and enjoy a nice picnic lunch and some sunshine!!!

 

Soon we crossed the highest bridge in Oregon . . .

. . . here it was a LONGGGGGGG way down . . .

. . . looked like a giant erector set (for those old enough to remember what that was).

. . . but it had a good shoulder, no 18 inch elevated sidewalk and a chest high guard rail. Bicyclists were not going to fall over this one in high winds!!!

When you are biking along at 13 miles an hour you have time to take in visually what is presented to you. Here was a local ‘art display’ presenting what, maybe a message about modern transportation, waste of natural resources, returning to the rock of the earth . . . or maybe it was just some hiker or kids having fun. A rock on every post!!!

Communication both data and cellphone coverage have REALLY been a problem for us along the way. The state parks we stay in do not have wifi and cellphone coverage is almost non-existent. Thus, a hard time keeping this journal up to date. Tomorrow is our rest day and as Anne and I rolled into Brookings, OR and Harris State Park, our home for the next two night, there were three cell phone towers right out side the park. Shouldn’t be a problem here!!!

Since check-in was still two hours away, Anne and I went downtown to look for the laundry and scope out the other necessities one needs for a rest day and met Patti. Very friendly and she gave us the 411 about everything Brookings had to offer!!

We are all staying in yurts for the two nights and David and his family had a yurt between our three. They are leaving to head back to their home in Vancouver, WA and were kind enough to give us their extra firewood. Thank you David!!!

My back is acting up again and I could hardly get out of bed on our rest day. Here Denise, my road wife,  retired physical therapist and sadist/dominatrix leads me through the “cobra’ exercise that is supposed to help. She was reassuring and my back actually seem to get better. She prescribed 10 reps, six times a day. Sometimes when she has back pain while riding, she stops and exercises alongside the road!!!  Got to get some Ibuprofen, too.

Not for the faint of heart!!!!

Ryan was riding sweep yesterday and while on the last mile of the ride, swerved to miss a truck that was not yielding to him. Unfortunately, he went down hard and after 3 hours in the ER came to camp with his two broken arms in casts!!! End of the ride for Ryan . . . but at least he didn’t hit his head!!! He spent a restless night in the yurt with Rich and me and will fill his hydro cordone prescription today which will hopefully give him some relief.

Most were vanning the 1.5 miles into town today because they had too much laundry to carry on their bikes. Rich, Denise and I decided to bike in and first . . .

. . . have a nice breakfast that was something other than Instant Oatmeal. YUMMMMMMMMMMMMM!

Some of the gang at the laundromat . . .

. . . where we met Tom and Jan who are from the UK and traveling the same route we are AND are also staying out at Harris State Park.

. . . and we met Ebony, who with her cutie pup Sadie, was doing some wash before she headed into San Francisco by car. She had spent a month at a campground neat Klamath where she worked for free lodging. She is making plans to head back to Spain and rejoin her family after a 17 year absence. A singer, you can checkout her Facebook page at:  Ebony Str8upruesound