Day 6b

Day 6a

Day 6

Summary Day 5

Rain...and big wind from the wrong direction, SW...the first 55miles to Port Orford were right into it...then the roads more south so the wind was not as bad...thank you gortex...when planning this ride I would have been surprised to not have a day of it but hope there's no more...the sun and blue sky came out 5miles from Crescent City...no pictures which is too bad as from mile 60 to 110 it was as good as it gets...142miles for the day...

Day 5c

Day 5b

Day 5a

Day 5

Day 4 Summary

Day 4 as a long day...a mix of spectacular scenery and misery...started out just being able to get comfortable on the bike...8 was sqirming around like a baby with a big poo in its diaper...also after about 10miles at Cape Foulweather it started to rain...had to use the gortex...by 2omiles and after breakfast the day began to turn around...no more rain but never sunny...adjusted my position on the bike and was good...lots of sights to see...I didn't capture half of it...the penalty for a picture is it adds time and sometimes a few miles to get to the view...traffic was also better then Sat...at the end of the day more misery...self inflicted...despite perfect directions to the hotel from Sandy, I blindly followed the bike route and it bypassed Coos Bay...it was a 13mile addition I did not need...it really shows that by the end of the day I am worn out...but I got here, did laundrt (yay), ate some pizza and here we come CA...141miles for the day

Winchester Bay

Umpqua Lighthouse

Oregon Dunes 2

Oregon Dunes 1

Cape Perpetua 2

Cape Perpetua 1

Devils Punchbowl

Cape Foulweather

Thunder Cove 2

Thunder Cove 1

Day 3 summary 2

Sorry didn't mean to focus on ride conditions...the scenary is spectacular...the pictures give you the idea

Day 3

48 and coastal fog to start...actually a lot of clouds on all the capes...a cape is a peninsula..all had good climbs, as steep as any I have done, even in CO...longest was 3 miles...crazy downhills at 40mph...very windy in the pm and with only partly sunny it was cool all day...132 miles for the..after 2 pretty long day and since I haven't ridden 100 miles in a day since Labor day 2008 I feel pretty good...so far anyway

Lincoln City motel view

View from Cape Mear

Lighthouse

Day 3c

Arch Cape 2

Arch Cape 1

Cannon Beach

Day 3b

Day 3a

Day 3

Summary day 2

Slept good...temp in the low 50s...just missed getting rained on as the roads were wet the next 40miles...at about 60miles got on the hwy 101 and saw the first PCH bike route sign...most on the riding was through forest and lakes and rivers...a lot of climbing but the wind was not too bad...finally got to the coast and the smell of the ocean...managed the day pretty well with pace, hydration and eating...it never warmed up too much as I finished wearing the same stuff I started in...crossing the bridge over the Columbia was one of the most nerve racking things I have ever done with the wind and Fri pm traffic...all in all a good day...129miles

Bridge #2

Brutal to ride

Columbia River Bridge

Tunnel #1

Day 2c map

Day 2b

On to Raymond

Totum for the boy

Day 2 map

Jurt waiting for daylight.

Day 2

Day 1 summary

My flights were on time with a 10:20 arrival in Seattle...getting my bike, cab to Fed Ex, assemby, shipping the case I was off to the ferry by noon...56 and light rain...the 1:40 ferry was late and left at 1:55...the 45 miles to Shelton was tough...very hilly and 25mph wind...but no rain...mostly pine forest the whole way...arrived in Shelton at 5:30pm...got somethig to eat and in bed by 7pm...it was a long day...

Ferry

In Seattle waiting to take the ferry across Puget Sound..56 and pissy rain

Preface

The Pacific Coast Bicycle Route from Vancouver British Columbia – Washington border to the California – Mexico border is 1816.5 miles long….There no formal route through Washington but both Oregon and California established coastal bike routes in 1976….This route offers some of the world’s most scenic coastline…. A few generalities are the wind blows north to south, the chance of bad weather decreases as you travel south and people and traffic increase as you travel south….and to use a phrase from Paul Sherwin, who commentates for many for pro cycling races, “the route is quite lumpy”….there will be some days where the vertical miles are about half of the days total….

On day 1 Aug 26^th I will begin at SeaTac Airport, head to Fauntleroy to take the ferry across Puget Sound to Southworth and then head southwest to the coast from there….On day 9, Sept 3^rd I will meet up with two friends in San Francisco, Dave Easa and Nancy Valance and they will join in….it’ll be great to have some company….Both have done the ride from San Francisco to San Diego multiple times…. Nancy is going as far as Santa Barbara and Dave and I will finish at his house in Encinitas day 13 Sept 7^th….

This is a “credit card” type of ride, meaning travel as light as possible and stay in motels…. riding a bike all day and then sleeping on the ground has never appealed to me….actually it’s been a long time since sleeping on the ground for any reason has appealed to me…. I like to use a backpack as verses panniers and will carry everything needed for the whole trip with regard to clothes and bike maintenance stuff….it weighs around 12lbs…

I don’t consider my bike commuting to work as training….at least not in the sense of say preparing for a triathlon….but it is what I do and is the base of what I will rely on to have provided the fitness for this ride….I’m not trying to imply I ride to work in the mornings drinking a cup of coffee and eating a donut and cruise home in the afternoon happily eating an ice cream cone….without elaborating there are a couple things thrown into the mix to bump up the fitness level….while this has worked for me in the past, with the average miles per day of this ride greater than any previous multiple day ride I have done before, we’ll see if it works for me now….

Sandy will once again be my lifeline….there are no remote areas as some previous rides so that should prove to be a lot less nerve racking….but I know she is there should I get myself “into a spot of bother”…..and without her support and tolerance this ride would not be possible….thanks sweetie, I love you….

I never imagined myself as a blogger….but the times do indeed change and it’s actually a pretty cool way to provide just about real time updates during the trip….I hope to post some maps of the route, pictures and perhaps some thought or comments on how the days have unfolded….and speaking of maps I would like to acknowledge a book, “Bicycling the Pacific Coast” by Tom Kirkendall & Vicki Spring….this book has been invaluable for my planning and plus I wouldn't want them to sue me for reproducing the maps….