Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Baby seal nursery
Lisa caught in the act
Day 15- the room of mirrors
33 miles(53 kms), 3-1/4 hours, rain and wind.
We cut the ride short today because we were both pretty punch drunk from the belting we took yesterday. We seriously discussed abandoning the ride because it's so unsafe. We decided to hang in there and keep slogging. Lisa did it really tough today, spending the whole day in the room of mirrors. She didn't like what she was seeing. Lucky for me I delivered us into a really cool little town called Point Reyes Station. It has an awesome coffee shop and all sorts of cool organic hip shit going on. Lisa found us a B&B that's real cute. Life is looking ok again. We will make SF tomorrow if the weather allows.
We cut the ride short today because we were both pretty punch drunk from the belting we took yesterday. We seriously discussed abandoning the ride because it's so unsafe. We decided to hang in there and keep slogging. Lisa did it really tough today, spending the whole day in the room of mirrors. She didn't like what she was seeing. Lucky for me I delivered us into a really cool little town called Point Reyes Station. It has an awesome coffee shop and all sorts of cool organic hip shit going on. Lisa found us a B&B that's real cute. Life is looking ok again. We will make SF tomorrow if the weather allows.
Regards
Mike from iPhone
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Day 14- toughest day we've done
63 miles(101km), 6-1/4 hrs,4136 ft climbed, 5712. Calories, 30 mph headwind and driving rain.
Today was tough and dangerous. The part of the coast we rode was the most remote section of the whole coast. Riding south into a 30 mph headwind with a forecast for heavy rain we knew we were going to get beaten up. And we weren't disappointed. Some sections on high and exposed narrow road with no guardrail were very dangerous. At times we had to ride on the centerline so as not to risk being blown over the edge. We could not stop as there was know where to hide. We finally made it to Bodega bay in driving rain and in a pretty untidy state. Needless to say we rode straight past the camp ground and rode until we found a hotel. Today was the first time I really questioned the wisdom of bringing Lisa on this ride. Anyway we are here safely and only 2 days ride from San Francisco. 2 weeks on the road and we are feeling fit and really strong. Let's hope the rain eases off for tomorrow.
Regards
Mike from iPhone
Day 13 - storm dodgers
46.5 miles , 2730ft climbing, 4-1/2 hrs ride time, 15 mph headwind
Well we thought today was going to be a shocker. The weather forecast was atrotious. That's why we did the huge day yesterday, so we could get a day in front in case is was too bad to cycle. We got a motel last night so we wouldn't have to pack up in the rain. It rained all night and it was blowing hard and about 6 degrees when we got up. It was looking grim. We walked into town for a coffee heart starter. By the time we got back the weather was on the improve. When we rode out of Fort Bragg we dodged a big storm that missed us by minutes. Then the sun came out. Apart from the horrid head wind the day was magnificent. It reached 19 degrees. The warmest so far. The riding was HARD. We fought for every mile. Lisa had a very sore tummy so she did it super tough. We just took it slow and got through with only one meltdown. Snaps to Lisa for sticking it out. Tonight we made a small port town with a beautiful inn looking over the harbor. Just as we were having dinner our new friends rocked into town. But that's another story.
Regards
Mike from iPhone
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Day 11
Riding thru The Avenue of the Giants(redwoods) today was similar to a museum tour. Felt like you needed to be quiet, respectful and don't dare touch. The trees line the sides of the road like majestic elderly looking down with hundreds of years of wisdom. We were lucky to have good weather and the sun played with shadows along the way.
I spent the day as usual behind Michael trying to catch any sort of free ride I could. I am in absolute awe of him and the amount of weight that Wayne can carry and Michael manages to push along so effortlessly.
Michael took me to a coffee shop this morning in Eureka that he remembered from last trip and it was fabulous. Have had a bit of a coffee shop tour this time which has been very nice.
I spent the day as usual behind Michael trying to catch any sort of free ride I could. I am in absolute awe of him and the amount of weight that Wayne can carry and Michael manages to push along so effortlessly.
Michael took me to a coffee shop this morning in Eureka that he remembered from last trip and it was fabulous. Have had a bit of a coffee shop tour this time which has been very nice.
Regards
Lisa Coates
Day 12 - Holy Shit !! 146 kms
92 miles (146kms), 8 hrs23 mins ride time, 5808 ft climbing, 11278 calories, 17 degrees and sunny.
What a big day. I was ready to make camp at 50 miles before a BIG climb and rest up to attack tomorrow. Lisa wanted to get the 2 big climbs behind us before the bad weather hits tonight. After a 30 minute break, a can of coke and a huge fudge brownie later, we attacked the first big climb. 25 miles and 2 hills later we got back to the coast. We then rode another 20 miles to Fort Bragg. We didn't get to town until 7.30 so we didn't attempt to camp as we were both shattered. A hot shower and a cheese burger and we are ready to go again NOT. Lisa is riding like a pro. Really is wonder woman. We are still havin lots of fun. 5 days should have us in San Francisco.
Regards
Mike from iPhone
Friends on the trail.
We have met some nice people on the road. I have already told you about Tim the trans america cyclist and our German boy.
I forgot to tell you about the 2 chicks from Seattle who decided to ride down to san Francisco. We met them in Oregon and had a great chat. We camped with them in the hiker biker. One of them had decided to fit spd pedals to her bike just before they left. She blew up both her knees and was in lots of pain. She was riding with 2 knee braces. The were great girls and had ridden through some appalling weather on washington state.
2 nights ago we met a Swiss boy in hiker biker. He was riding north from SF. He came and shared a meal with us. He was on his way to Alaska to meet some mates. They are going to build a log raft and sail it down the youkon river for month.
Most all the travelers are young. We feel like real oldies. At least we are still having a go.
Can't wait to see who we meet next.
I forgot to tell you about the 2 chicks from Seattle who decided to ride down to san Francisco. We met them in Oregon and had a great chat. We camped with them in the hiker biker. One of them had decided to fit spd pedals to her bike just before they left. She blew up both her knees and was in lots of pain. She was riding with 2 knee braces. The were great girls and had ridden through some appalling weather on washington state.
2 nights ago we met a Swiss boy in hiker biker. He was riding north from SF. He came and shared a meal with us. He was on his way to Alaska to meet some mates. They are going to build a log raft and sail it down the youkon river for month.
Most all the travelers are young. We feel like real oldies. At least we are still having a go.
Can't wait to see who we meet next.
Regards
Mike from iPhone
Day 11 - into the redwoods again
65 miles ( 104 kms), 5 hrs 1mins,6500 calories, 1700 ft clbing, 17 degrees fine and mostly sunny.
After doing our grocery shopping to keep us going for a few days we headed out of town on the freeway. First stop was the Lolita cheese factory where we saw cheese being made by hand. Got some yum. Next stop was ferndale. A Victorian town perfectly preserved. Had a sandwich at the butchers shop as we saw the locals going in there. Great experience( whole other story). Then we rode through beautiful diary country in empty roads until the mountains. Then we went up. We rode 20 miles of the avenue of the giants. Lisa was taken aback. You have to come. Changes how you look at the world. Arrived on camp late after a hard day. I was shattered after overloading my bike with food. Spent a couple of ours in the room of mirrors. Lisa cooked risotto for tea. It was bloody awesome. I am in bed and it's not dark yet. I am a wreck. Another hard day tomorrow and bad weather is coming.
Regards
Mike from iPhone
Day 10 - Suns out yeehaa
53 miles (85kms),4hrs25 mins,4913 calories ,1744 ft climbing, sunny and 18 degrees.
Even though the sun came out it was still cold in the wind or shade. We had a nice tail winds and a mixture of mice quiet country roads and busy freeway. The last 18 miles on the freeway was hair raising and stressful. Once we got to eureka all was quickly forgotten as we immersed ourselves in the magnificent Victorian mansions that are beautifully preserved. As there is no camping ground in eureka we have booked into a beautiful Victorian guesthouse. Off to the laundromat to catch up on the washing as the next few days are in the bush camping. We had a beautiful 5 course diguststion menu dinner at the restaurant at the guesthouse. Was a lovely experience.
Even though the sun came out it was still cold in the wind or shade. We had a nice tail winds and a mixture of mice quiet country roads and busy freeway. The last 18 miles on the freeway was hair raising and stressful. Once we got to eureka all was quickly forgotten as we immersed ourselves in the magnificent Victorian mansions that are beautifully preserved. As there is no camping ground in eureka we have booked into a beautiful Victorian guesthouse. Off to the laundromat to catch up on the washing as the next few days are in the bush camping. We had a beautiful 5 course diguststion menu dinner at the restaurant at the guesthouse. Was a lovely experience.
Regards
Mike from iPhone
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Fwd: Day 9 - The giant redwoods
>
>> 34 miles (55km), 3hrs40min, 2374ft climbing,8-12 deg, 5328 calories.
>>
>> We left crescent city nice and early so we had plenty of time to spend in the redwoods. About 2 miles from town the road headed up. By the time we summited the climb it was down to 8 degrees. After a 6 mile descent poor Lisa was hypothermic. We went into a tourist attraction shop for her to warm up. After an hour she was no better. We rugged her up and put chemical warmers in her shoes and gloves. We then started riding again to see if another 1000 ft climb would warm her up. Thank goodness it seemed to work. We decided to not stop again until we made camp. After a final 7 mile descent to the campground she was starting to get in trouble again. We quickly wrapped her in a sleeping bag, made a cup of tea and some 2 min noodles. She started to come good again. Then it started to rain. We got the tent up quickly and got everything undercover. Lisa went for a shower and came back chipper.
>
> Nice dinner and nice fire and early to bed
>
>> Regards
>>
>> Mike from iPhone
>> 34 miles (55km), 3hrs40min, 2374ft climbing,8-12 deg, 5328 calories.
>>
>> We left crescent city nice and early so we had plenty of time to spend in the redwoods. About 2 miles from town the road headed up. By the time we summited the climb it was down to 8 degrees. After a 6 mile descent poor Lisa was hypothermic. We went into a tourist attraction shop for her to warm up. After an hour she was no better. We rugged her up and put chemical warmers in her shoes and gloves. We then started riding again to see if another 1000 ft climb would warm her up. Thank goodness it seemed to work. We decided to not stop again until we made camp. After a final 7 mile descent to the campground she was starting to get in trouble again. We quickly wrapped her in a sleeping bag, made a cup of tea and some 2 min noodles. She started to come good again. Then it started to rain. We got the tent up quickly and got everything undercover. Lisa went for a shower and came back chipper.
>
> Nice dinner and nice fire and early to bed
>
>> Regards
>>
>> Mike from iPhone
Friday, May 13, 2011
Day 9 - The giant redwoods
> 34 miles (55km), 3hrs40min, 2374ft climbing,8-12 deg, 5328 calories.
>
> We left crescent city nice and early so we had plenty of time to spend in the redwoods. About 2 miles from town the road headed up. By the time we summited the climb it was down to 8 degrees. After a 6 mile descent poor Lisa was hypothermic. We went into a tourist attraction shop for her to warm up. After an hour she was no better. We rugged her up and put chemical warmers in her shoes and gloves. We then started riding again to see if another 1000 ft climb would warm her up. Thank goodness it seemed to work. We decided to not stop again until we made camp. After a final 7 mile descent to the campground she was starting to get in trouble again. We quickly wrapped her in a sleeping bag, made a cup of tea and some 2 min noodles. She started to come good again. Then it started to rain. We got the tent up quickly and got everything undercover. Lisa went for a shower and came back chipper.
>
> We left crescent city nice and early so we had plenty of time to spend in the redwoods. About 2 miles from town the road headed up. By the time we summited the climb it was down to 8 degrees. After a 6 mile descent poor Lisa was hypothermic. We went into a tourist attraction shop for her to warm up. After an hour she was no better. We rugged her up and put chemical warmers in her shoes and gloves. We then started riding again to see if another 1000 ft climb would warm her up. Thank goodness it seemed to work. We decided to not stop again until we made camp. After a final 7 mile descent to the campground she was starting to get in trouble again. We quickly wrapped her in a sleeping bag, made a cup of tea and some 2 min noodles. She started to come good again. Then it started to rain. We got the tent up quickly and got everything undercover. Lisa went for a shower and came back chipper.
Nice dinner and nice fire and early to bed
> Regards
>
> Mike from iPhone
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Little boy lost
Very early on this ride we crossed path's with a young German guy walking from Portland Oregon to San Francisco on his own. He told us he was doing a combination of hiking the good bits and hitching through the boring bits. He was a nice boy and Lisa and I have been talking (worrying) about him ever since we parted ways. Well today we bumped into him again while we were riding along a lonely farm road near Smith River CA. He was just walking along. It was like meeting an old friend. We were so happy to see him safe and well. Turns out he got in front of us by catching a bus. He was sick of the bad weather in Oregon. Hopefully we Will bump into him again.
Regards
Mike from iPad
Friends on the road
On our first night out from Astoria we shared our camp with a guy named Tim. He was also on his first day of riding the trans America trail which as the name suggests crosses the US. It's a total of 4100 miles. If you think that's a huge undertaking then wait until you hear the next bit. Tim had no previous touring experience, he was riding a bike that was only 170 miles old, and he planed to do 100 miles a day average in order to finish the trip in 2 months. Despite his inexperience I actually think the guy can pull it off.
We have been following Tims progress via his blog and despite some early setbacks he is making some good progress. If you are interested in following him, his blog is:
Go Tim, you are a bloody hard-arse!!!
Regards
Mike from iPad
Day 8 -Rest day?
39 miles (62km), 3-1/2 hours, 17 degrees. Tail wind, flat.
We decided to cut the day I had planned in half so that we could see the giant redwoods tomorrow at a more leisurely pace. So today we just rode from Brookings Oregon into California to Crescent City. I gave the bikes a clean and service before we left as they were very gummed up from all the wet riding. Then we set out on a Nice sunny ride at an easy pace. We did a food shop for a couple of days in the forest and went for a walk on the harbor. Tomorrow the day starts with a huge hill (2100ft), followed by more huge hills. Off to bed early to rest our legs.
We decided to cut the day I had planned in half so that we could see the giant redwoods tomorrow at a more leisurely pace. So today we just rode from Brookings Oregon into California to Crescent City. I gave the bikes a clean and service before we left as they were very gummed up from all the wet riding. Then we set out on a Nice sunny ride at an easy pace. We did a food shop for a couple of days in the forest and went for a walk on the harbor. Tomorrow the day starts with a huge hill (2100ft), followed by more huge hills. Off to bed early to rest our legs.
Regards
Mike from iPad
Tsunami survivors
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