July 25, Discovery Bay, 47.2 Miles, Avg=8.3mph

We all fussed around with our gear in the morning as the minutes and then the hours slipped by. I always enjoy the start of a trip, especially with friends. Even at 62 I can enjoy the excitement and anxiety I felt on my first boy scout trip. The unknown calls us out for adventure but we have to wrestle with the anxiety anyway. I suppose we cope with the anxiety with banter and teasing, just like nine year old. Interestingly, once again the focus our our attention and banter are bicycles and not women. Maybe life really does go around in cycles, bicycles perhaps.

 

 

 

 

 

The crossing was pleasant, on the other side we stopped to pick up some snacks, dinner, and a McDonalds lunch. We started on Highway 104 headed for the Hood Canal bridge but implausibly the highway changes to 307 and one must make a right turn to Port Gamble after a few miles. I saw the sign pointing to the right for Port Gamble but for some reason I thought it was an alternate route. I should have learned by now to read maps more carefully. Having missed the turn we ended up in Poulsbo, I think we lost about 8 miles with the detour. We did eventually find the Hood Canal bridge and Tom found the first of his flats. In the middle of the bridge we had to stop with the weekend traffic roaring by to remove a 3 inch nail from his tire and replace the tube. Until today I thought it was impossible for a long nail laying on the roadway to achieve the angle necessary to puncture a tire. Our current best theory supposes that the front tire kicked up the nail so that it landed tip up just in front of the rear tire.

Air pressure restored and spirits only partially deflated we pressed on in the hot sun over a long series of hills, some rather long. The free coasting down the other side never makes up for the work going up. Just as we reached the top of the longest hill we found Monte, a friend of Tom's and mine for many years. He of course knew were on the road here and drove out to see us. We had a nice chat and arranged to meet later in Discovery Bay.

Time was slipping by rather rapidly now, we were about two miles of downhill from Discover Bay, with rain threatening, and long shadows on the road when Tom got the second of his flats. This time we could not determine the source but we did find the hole, patched it, pumped up the air pressure and moved on toward the waiting ocean. It started to sprinkle in Discovery Bay. The very kind people at a small restaurant just west of the almost dead small town let us stay in their grassy area out back. Actually, perhaps it's more accurate to say they let us cross their property to camp on the state fisheries land next to the bay. While I was talking to the proprietress about camping she twice mentioned that "we would just keep this between ourselves". That comment puzzled me but because we were getting a nice place to stay I didn't question it. Later, I found out were actually camping on state fisheries land. In the next morning a state fisheries officer drove by but smiled and wished us well as we were packing up. This ended up being a wonderful camp. We had a large fir tree to shed the rain off our bikes as we deployed our tents, and later we had a filling meal and cold refreshing drinks at the small restaurant.

It was a tough day first day for Tom and Roy. It started OK with big breakfast at Jack-In-The-Box and high spirits, but it was very hot and the hills of Bothell and Edmonds are unmercifully steep. Tom and I had to walk twice. Tom and Roy had practiced a little with loaded bikes but still they looked a little wobbly, I felt a little wobbly as well. We finally got to the ferry, just in time to catch the next ride to the other side. We had been sweating like horses in the hot sun until we got within a few hundred meters of the water where the temperature must have plummeted 10° F or more. It turned into a baptism of fire for two newbies to cycle touring, a hot busy ride with route finding errors and flats into an unknown camp near dark. Not my worst day but a tough day by any standard.

After dark, another cyclists turned up, also seeking shelter from the rain. Renaldo tours and photographs out of Seattle. An ironman, he's on a four day trip that requires him to get to La Push (more than 100 miles) tomorrow, photograph for a day, then cycle back to Seattle for his day job. With that kind of energy I expect he makes some wonderful photos.

Mistake: not topping off our water in Kingston when we got off the ferry. Blessing: a wonderful dry tent in a steady cold rain. Bummer: misbehaving air that would not stay inside the tube where it belonged.

July 26, Salt Creek Camp, 53.5 Miles, Avg=9.9mph

It was damp when we got up, but a clear sky suggested a hot day. I woke up at 4:40am and worked on my journal for a while then started getting ready for the day about 6:30. We finally departed about 8am. We were lucky to find such a nice camp site late yesterday in the pouring rain.

Port Angeles lies about 30 miles west of Discovery Bay along a gently undulating coastline, the cycling was easy and the morning cool. We stopped too often to make any really good time but it was nice to leisurely make our way to town. Roy had a flat but Tom got no flats today, a good sign. We ended up spending a lot of time in Port Angeles. First we stopped at WalMart to look for a fuel canister for our stove, they didn't have one but with some snacks we headed on to Swains, almost downtown. Before we found Swains we found a McDonalds where we got lunch, then found Swains and the needed fuel canister. Finally, we were ready to stock up on food but had to backtrack to Safeway. Highway 101 west out of Port Angeles is more challenging than the ride in the morning, and the temperature higher. The traffic is incessant and fast but fortunately the highway has a generous shoulder. At the top of the first substantial hill we stopped for some cold drinks and a little rest. One more good climb brought us to the junction of 112 and 101. We decided to take 112 as it follows the coast more closely. We'll need to ride a little on our rest day tomorrow to make up the extra distance and stay on schedule but the traffic is much reduced the I expect the temperature will be much lower closer to the water than on 101.

Tonight's campground is really special. I've camped here before with my wife but were not as lucky as tonight. We found a free site just on the cliff with a great view of the ocean below and easy access to the toilets and showers. We had time today to enjoy the camp site and even a short hike to a scenic overlook. The views out on the straits of Juan de Fuca and across to Canada soothed my tired body and made me feel privileged to live the life I do. Well, I guess we did have one problem, the turd someone left in the men's shower. Someone, evidently couldn't wait for a free toilet and used the shower room for a pit toilet. Desperate, I showered anyway.

Mistake: not getting that milkshake in Port Angeles when I had the chance. Blessing: a spectacularly beautiful view from our campsite of the straits of Juan de Fuca. Bummer: that turd someone left in the men's shower.

July 27, Tumbling Rapids Recreation Area, 43.88 Miles, Avg=8.4mph

I think with the right attitude this would have been a great day of cycling, but expectations matter. We rose early, expecting to ride only 20 easy miles along the coast to another seaside campground, easy enough we could call this a rest day. Twenty eight miles later after some difficult climbing, a campground closed, and with little water the day turned sort of sour. We had to push on to a campground on highway 101. At the junction of 113 and 101 we met a group from Vancouver BC on a circle tour of the Olympic peninsula. They had the always great ACA maps of the route and showed us there was a campground 1 mile south instead of the 2.5 miles north we had planned.

 

 

 

 

Highway 112 between Salt Creek and Pysht is a pretty road with very light traffic and a good shoulder, but it is seldom close to the water. Well, as the crow flies it's maybe close but down some very steep mountain sides. Soon after leaving Salt Creek we passed through the private campground at Crescent Bay, leaving the last flat cycling behind the road took us into the interior, climbing steeply up into the surrounding mountains. Eventually a long descent brought us back to the coast for the last time. We were lucky to find a little dirt road that breached the tidal embankments so we could get down to the beach for lunch, otherwise we'd have been sitting along the dusty road. I think we could have camped there even though there was a private home nearby but we were not carrying water for camping and we thought there was a campground about 10 miles further so pushed on.

 

 

At Pillar Point Campground we found it was now day use only, and the private campground had disappeared back into the primeval forest years ago. Disappointed we considered some wild camp sites but the paucity of our water pushed us on up another steep hot climb and even longer descent to the junction with 101. I struggled to the top alone instead of lagging behind with Tom and Roy. It was very hot and I was short of water and food, with only a few blackberries to relieve my oversight. Tom and Roy finally rode into view looking very hot and tired. I really felt badly that I had not stayed in Salt Creek for a rest day as I should have. I've found that the third day is the worst and in the past have always taken the third day as a rest day, to give my body a chance to recover from the first two days of new demands on it's muscles and ligaments. Without knowing the ride would be very easy, we should have stayed in our tents.

Tumbling Rapids campground has very little to recommend it. The state seldom comes by to collect the garbage and provides no supervision. It does have a very nice little river running close by where we all went for a nice little bath.

 

Mistake: trusting the map legend and two informants abut our prospective camp. Blessing: a small break in the cliff so we could get to the beach for lunch. Bummer: that last hot climb in the sun on a black asphalt road.

July 28, Forks, 20.8 Miles, Avg=8.8mph

The odometer tells me I cycled nearly 21 miles today but only about 11 were from our camp last night to the town of Forks. We're finally getting a rest day, sort of. Our visions of a shady campsite and warm showers were dashed when we found out the campground in town now only accepts RV's, no tents allowed. We didn't want to leave the town with it's restaurant and stores so we started searching for some options. A local told us that the Elks club let people camp on their grass. That turns out to be true but for members only. I suppose we could have stayed there anyway but we checked with the local police about tenting in the town park. They said it was OK but suggested instead that we stay behind the National Park transit center since we would have fewer unwelcome visitors during the night.

 

 

 

The rest of my cycle miles today derived from cycling around in search of food, a camp site, and a dinner. It's extremely hot outside so we decided against the two Mexican restaurants in town because they are not air conditioned. We finally ended up at a pizza place with some shabby root beer floats and a pretty good pizza waiting for the day to cool down.

It turns out that the book Twilight and movie that has all pre-pubescent girls a twitter was written and filmed in Forks. So the town is now awash with references to the book and movie. Some enterprising folks now conduct tours of various film locations. It's all a little annoying and silly but fun for some. Otherwise Forks seems a nice little town and the people have been very friendly. They must see many cycle tourists and yet they are still friendly and helpful to us.

 

 

I met one of a group of five cycle tourists my age. The one I met told me this was his first self-contained trip, camping and cooking out. I asked where he was camping and he confessed that he was staying in a motel up the road, and that tomorrow night he intended to stay at a hostel about 20 miles south. It seems that they cover about 25-30 miles per day; I didn't find out their destination.

Waiting on the grass at the National Park transit center for dark to set up camp.

Mistake: eating that last piece of pizza. Blessing: friendly police that didn't want to chase us out of town. Bummer: the spread of RV only sites to Forks.

 

July 29, Kalaloch, 37.8 Miles, Avg=9.9mph

Dawn woke us with a noisy bus picking up riders in the parking lot. I had slept well but it was hot and sultry in my tent. Despite the heat everything was damp and clammy. Crawling out of our tents we downed some quick food and packed up our tents. I think we wanted to avoid any confrontations with authorities just in case we had misunderstood the police officer and we wanted to get an early start on another hot day. We managed to get off by about 7:30am.

The road to Ruby Beach was mostly downhill but with a few climbs in the hot sun. Much of the ride was shaded by huge old growth forests while other parts were sunny in the clear cuts. Once we hit the Hoh river the road gradually declined down to the ocean. Traffic was light although the occasional logging truck would roar by belching smoke and towing its own little tornado in its wake. Along the way we stopped for a snack at the Hoh river general store where the proprietress refused to let me use the restroom, they were for RV guests only. Evidently purchasing food from her store did not qualify me to use her restroom. I suggest others avoid this unfriendly store who seem to consider cycle tourists a type of seasonal plague.

 

 

 

We stopped at Ruby beach for a view, it's very spectacular with several "hay stacks" standing out in the water and gentle waves eating at the shore. We had read that Kalaloch Campground filled up by noon so we didn't stay long but pushed on in the heat. We arrived by 11 am to find that all sites were reserved. Rather discouraged, I was beginning to really worry that my fond memories of touring on the Pacific Coast in 2001 were too rosy. Fortunately, some checking around found a ranger who told us they keep site D21 available for hikers and bikers, so we ended up with a site right next to the road but in easy walk to the beach and bathed in warmth giving sunlight. Roy really likes the warm sun and in this case with the cold air and damp conditions it turned out to be the best choice for all.

We once again ran into the group of cycle tourists our age, we've taken to calling them the gang of five. They passed on the Hostel they planned to stay at, giving up their deposit, because of the hostile manager and unsanitary conditions. We met them at the Kalaloch general store where we chatted for a while. They are headed for the California border. They are working on the Pacific coast in stages each year until they get to San Francisco.

Toward the evening the fog rolled in and began to condense on the trees. Soon, it was effectively raining on our camp, especially on my tent. The fog/rain continued all night leaving everything extremely damp, damp sleeping bag, damp clothes, but no damp spirits.

Tom had no flats today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mistake: eating too much junk food at the Kalaloch general store. Blessing: the cool shaded road down out the hot town of Forks to the cool ocean air of Ruby Beach. Bummer: not allowing me to use the restroom at Hoh general store.

July 30, Willaby State Park, 34.2 Miles, Avg=10.6mph

We got up pretty early but stopped for coffee at the shop in Kalaloch. We lingered talking about this and that until the gang of five emerged from the restaurant and got ahead of us on the road. Highway 101 in this section has rolling hills and no long climbs. It started out cold with me wearing my wind breaker vest but by mid morning it had gotten quite hot. I shed the vest and started drinking more heavily. The traffic was relatively light, Tom and I could frequently ride side by side for a while to talk. Roy has renewed his strength and stamina so he now surges ahead.

By noon an easy 30 miles brought us to the turn off for July Creek Campground where we planned to camp. We stopped at the small market for snacks and food. While deciding on what to buy the gang of five rolled in and we had our first long talk with this interesting group of cyclists from San Diego. We chatted about this and that, I ate my peanut butter sandwich and drank some junk food. While we were talking we found out the July Creek campground was closed so we decided to try the Willaby Campground on the south side of lake Quinault. Apparently the gang of five realized the chance of getting closed out of the campground before we did and got off before we could tear ourselves away from year old imitation donuts and soft drinks. By the time we got to the campground we found only one one site left. Rocky and inconveniently located down a flight of stairs (yes stairs in a campground), we were still happy to have a home for the night. A nice swim in the lake to clean off and some hours of relaxation were just the ticket on a hot afternoon.

Later, while waiting outside of the restroom for our rechargeable batteries to charge we were describing our trip to a young couple camping just across the road. They were intrigued, as many are, with the concept and the exertion. Of course I think we enjoy the attention and admiration even while knowing there are many other cyclists who undertake much more challenging journeys. Later, the wife brought us some very delicious pasta salad that we ate as quickly as we could, like dogs finding a tasty morsel at the park. For some reason I'm especially tired today, almost ill. That little taste of home cooking really hit the spot.

Mistake: letting the gang of five get the jump on us. Blessing: cool mountain lake for a bath tub. Bummer: a rocky tent site for a bed.

July 31, Twin Harbors State Park, 74.2 Miles, Avg=11.3mph

We left about 8am. Our longest day so far, we're all in pretty good shape and spirits. I feel better than yesterday evening. We even had energy to do the laundry after we arrived in camp. We had a longer day than planned because the ferry across the mouth of Grays Harbor has stopped running, just recently. That together with a detour to avoid some construction on highway 101 added nearly 20 miles to the days trip. Some of the day was hot but as we neared the ocean the temperature again cooled dramatically. The northwest is having a heat wave this week with temperatures in Seattle of 103° F and in Portland of 109° F. Away from the water it feels like the hot days I had last summer in Utah and Colorado.

 

 

 

We met three girls from Canada cycling to San Francisco. We had been hearing about them from other cyclists but had not actually met them ourselves. They camped in Humpgarden and were just getting started when we got there about 10 am. We caught up with them later in the day but didn't have a chance to talk. We had lunch in Aberdeen, then stopped at a bike shop for a futile search for some brake pads for Toms bike. Later, as we were pedaling toward Twin Harbors I saw them pass us with their bikes in the back of a pickup truck. I guess we won't see them again as they were not in the hiker/biker area.

The gang of five did roll in about an hour after we arrived. Actually, this group of 60+ year olds rides separately during the day. It seems to us that they send out their fastest rider to reserve a camp site then the rest show up at a more leisurely pace. One of their group was already in the camp when we arrived. Later I found out they actually plan their itinerary more carefully and make reservations in advance.

We were too tired to cook so we ended up cycling back a quarter mile to a mini mart with a Subway shop and eating sandwiches for dinner.

Mistake: not getting the foot long sandwich at Subway. Blessing: the end of a long day. Bummer: hot humid weather.

Aug 1, Bush Pacific County Park KOA, 53.8 Miles, Avg=11.0mph

We got off to a good start this morning after stopping for coffee at the mini mart. While waiting and chatting with the proprietress we found out that the three Canadian girls I had seen with bikes in the back of a pickup yesterday had gotten the ride because they had blown a tire. The lady running the mini mart told us it was her driving them into camp. They hoped to get the tire fixed and continue but we have not seen them today.

The gang of 5 left before us, on their way to a restaurant about five miles down the road. We passed them as they were eating. They have two fast riders who for the past few days play leap frog with us on the road. We pass them at a rest break, then they pass us on a rest break. Actually, they seem to ride alone, each at their own pace but one rider especially is quite fast and so far has beat us to the campground every day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The KOA here is quite nice with a nice area for bikers. A little expensive at $30, it was worth it to get the plentiful hot showers and the WiFi connection. We even decided to splurge on a nice steak dinner at a nearby restaurant. Well fed for a change and later filled with a root beer float at the KOA, it's time for bed.

Mistake: not getting my steak well done. Blessing: the cool morning ride with just a bit of drizzle in the morning. Bummer: that RV passing too close and in too big a hurry.

 

 

Aug 2, Cape Disappointment State Park, 43.8 Miles, Avg=9.1mph

It wasn't a hard day but we had plenty of time to goof around so our average speed was rather low. Lots of hills, some steep, some moderate, some longish, others short, but relentless all day long. One hill after another, we spent almost the entire day either going up or going down. We did have some flat riding just after the junction with state highway 4 (the more direct route to Astoria) and some flat miles around Long Beach and between Long Beach and Ilwaco, the the last three miles from Ilwaco to the campground were quite hilly and frustrating because we wanted to get to camp and it squashed out plans to ride back to Ilwaco for supper. Fortunately, there is a small convenience mart across from the campground so we got some hot dogs and buns for dinner.

Tom convinced me to try some official Yoga poses, or is this the time I crashed into the picnic table and couldn't get up for awhile?

 

We took a long break in Long Beach, Tom and Roy had a coffee and I got some pastry. Evidently this is the best coffee they have found on the trip so far. Long Beach has the typical tourist services, fast food, pizza, trinket shops, etc. The main street was filled with cars driving up and down but the drivers treated us very well. They were providing some free music downtown, alas it was country western so only I enjoyed it, Tom and Roy don't care for country western. It's not my favorite but I can enjoy it anyway.

In fact, the drivers were good to us all day, with maybe one or two exceptions. The hiker/biker site here is nice, with a couple picnic tables and two fire pits. However, we've go the place to ourselves, no other cycle tourists. I think we've seen the last of the gang of five. They took off earlier than us this morning with the intention of crossing over into Oregon and proceeding on down the coast another 10 miles or so. We saw two eating breakfast a mile from camp but otherwise we didn't see them all day.

 

 

 

 

Aug 3, Cape Disappointment, rest day

Finally a full and legitimate rest day with no cycling. Well, we actually cycled over 10 miles today into Long Beach to enjoy a coffee, do some laundry, and visit the library. Alas, the library is closed during the summer on Mondays so no updates to our blog or email to family. I have my laptop and can use WiFi when available but I haven't been as successful as last summer at finding WiFi access. I think several factors explain the difference. I'm not staying in any motels and few commercial campgrounds so not finding it where I sleep. I'm also generally busier this trip and so don't make the effort to find a WiFi spot and get in touch with family and friends.