Day 15: Devil's Lake to South Beach - 29 miles

Somehow messed up my back brake last night, thought I knew how to fix it but since they're disc brakes I decided not to risk damaging them even more. Which meant that it was a 20 mile journey to Newport on one brake. Which was OK, the sun was shining and there was some nice scenery so was happy taking my time. Stopped into the shop to be told that they have a room upstairs for touring cyclists to hang out which was really cool, TV, video games, books and a computer. So spent a few hours there in the end. Got to the campsite for the night and was greeted by a host for the hiker biker area who was a legend, gave me an Oregon state bike map and gave me some route advice for the rest of the trip. Also warned me about a huge storm on the way and advised that I get as far south add possible as soon as I can. It was the first time that I was the only cyclist in a state park but it didn't matter as it was the best one I've been to yet. Beautiful scenery and a room to chill out in where I charged all my electronics and took advantage of the free tea and coffee.

Day 14: Cape Lookout to Devil's Lake - 44 miles

Pretty miserable day today. It had rained all night but once there was a break in the rain in the morning i packed up my stuff and made a move. About 5 minutes later the heavens opened and i got soaked, it was the middle of nowhere too with absolutely nowhere to take shelter so i just had to keep going. To top it off i was straight into a mountain pass with a really steep climb for around 3 miles. Couldn't even enjoy the descent as the rain was too sore to go at too high a speed. After the descent i lost concentration for a second and took a bit of a spill at the side of the road, just a few scratches and a bit of dirt on me but it couldn't have happened at a worst time. The weather picked up just as i reached Pacific City, the first proper town of the day, and as i sat in a coffee shop the sun started shining outside. I then left to take on the second mountain pass and right on cue got drenched again. Again nowhere to shelter and for 25 mins i didn't see a single car or house. At least this time the rain stopped at the summit so i got to enjoy the switchbacks on the way back down the hill which was a lot of fun. Was in better spirits once i had showered and drank some tea at the campsite and looking forward to the promise of sunny weather later in the week.

posted from Bloggeroid

Day 13: Tillamook to Cape Lookout - 14 miles

Not really a proper day today, caught a bus from Portland in the morning back to the coast and then made the short journey over to the nearest state park. Was delayed in the drizzle for quite a while by a pickup truck being dragged out of a ditch. The weather was still a bit dodgy when i got to the campsite and the tarp i bought in Portland worked perfectly and kept me dry all night.

Day 10-12: Portland

Spent the weekend in Portland with Kathy who travelled down from Vancouver. Recharged the batteries by watching some football, drinking craft beer and eating lots of food!

Day 9: Nehalem Bay to Tillamook - 28 miles

Not much to talk about today, got up early and had to make a burst to Tillamook to catch a bus to Portland, where I'll be staying until Monday. Unfortunately had to skip the free tour of the Tillamook cheese factory but made it to the bus station in time and bike attached to the front of the bus, am ready for a few rest days and lots of craft beer.

Day 8: Fort Stevens to Nehalem Bay - 47 miles

Today was mostly spent sticking close to the coast which, along with some steep climbs, gave some amazing views of the Pacific ocean. Spent the morning exploring the old fort where they've preserved a lot of the old artillery etc. It was actually shelled by a Japanese sub during WW2 and the decision of one general to hold fire was the only reason there wasn't a land war in the states. There were some tough climbs at the end of the day including the first tunnel of the trip. You wait for a gap in the traffic, press the button that lets drivers know there's a cyclist in the tunnel and then pedal as fast as possible. It was also uphill and I was pretty shattered afterwards with 2 mountain passes still ahead. Made it over both slowly and was asleep in the tent before 9.

Day 7: Bay Center to Fort Stevens - 49 miles

Left the campsite around noon today, soaking up the comforts of having laundry and Wi-Fi, and made my way on the highway south towards Oregon. Had a bit of a climb inland and then descended into the spectacular Columbia river mouth, facing a savage head wind as I pedaled towards the coast again. Made it to the 4 mile long Astoria bridge over the river, and the cross wind, small shoulder, traffic, and roadworks at the top of a huge hill at the end of the bridge made for a very interesting crossing. Descended into Astoria and my second state, Oregon, and made my way west to Fort Stevens state park, next to an old civil war and WW2 fort.

Day 6: Port Townsend to Bay Center: 52 miles

Woke up this morning with everything slightly damp but when I got out of my tent there was a friendly little yellow face poking his head out of the clouds. We left camp separately but kept meeting up and overlapping during the day. Caught my first glimpse of the Pacific ocean early on which a great feeling and then moved slightly inland. We all met up in the town of Raymond for food/coffee, and also bumped into the cyclist, Maryanne, who I called with on day 3. On the way our of Raymond I caught up with Eric who had his second puncture in 2 days. Their pump had stopped working so they were pretty relieved to see me. They ducked into the nearest campsite which was less than a mile away and the rest of us met up at the commercial KOA campground which has laundry, Wi-Fi and showers. Soon after 4 more cyclists arrived so there was 8 of us in camp altogether. The rain is fully gone at this stage and I'm hopefully looking forward to a few dry days. Writing this in the campsite the next morning where I'm preparing to take on the huge Astoria bridge and into Oregon!

Day 5: Elma to Port Townsend - 45 miles

Woke up this morning to a crazy thunderstorm that shook the hostel and torrential rain, so made up my mind to spend an extra day in the hostel. Once the first storm had passed I (probably stupidly) changed my mind and made a break 

for it. First 10 miles to the next town was fine and then the heavens opened. Just had to put on some visible gear and deal with it. It wasn't very fun, which is pretty obvious by the fact I only took my camera out once all day. Met 2 more cyclists in Kurt Cobain's home town, Aberdeen, who were going the same way so I was glad I wasn't the only one having to deal with the weather. Met up with Eric 

and Ashley in the campsite and we split a site. Then got invited over by the couple in the next site who had a tarp over their bench and hot drinks which was 

very welcome. Their names were Daniel and Kirsten and turned out they had cycled all the way from Anchorage. It was a nice change having 5 people in camp and it was fun swapping stories before heading off to my tent which was starting to accumulate puddles.

Day 4: Dosewallips to Elma - 70 miles

Long ride today on pretty easy terrain, wasn't too much to see on the way until I got to my destination. Most of the towns I went through were old Indian towns which would typically have 1 general store and around 5 fireworks stands. There were a crazy amount of mean looking biker hangs around as well. Elma is a town in the shadow of an old nuclear power plant, the 2 cooling towers overlooking the town look pretty ominous. I was staying in a hostel that was recommended by my book, which was on the edge of town next to a NASCAR type really that had just started in a big stadium. The hostel was run by a really nice couple who cycle toured on a tandem when they were younger. I was the only guest there and it felt more like I was just starting in someone's house as you can just walk into the sitting room etc. Jay drove me into town to pick up food for the night and then took me out on his 18 hole disc golf course. It was really good fun, although I couldn't help shake the feeling I was in an episode of Louis Theroux's weird weekends as he was telling me how serious people in the neighborhood took the game and the merits of different discs.