Day 24 - Destination Yosemite

Today was not a very exciting day; it was a functional day.  I mean how exciting can getting from Pleasanton CA to Yosemite be.  Let me tell you,  if you haven't had the pleasure of driving it,  it is not exciting g at all. Interstate,  dry roads,  traffic out the wazoo and heat.  Lots of heat.  We hit 101°f as we were sitting on the asphalt keeping the bikes upright while we waited fur traffic to move again.  Not all just beautiful pictures,  huh?
But it did give me the chance to think about yesterday and the journey down the California coast in the fog.  I rode by Patrick's Point where 100 years ago Angie and I camped before we even had children.  I rode through Sea Ranch where in 1988 I planned and organized an Easter Egg Hunt for adults and then watched as the competitive side of a bunch of adults kick in as they hunted / scrambled for the Easter eggs I hid in the house,  eggs that were full of lotto tickets,  cash money and notes for special prizes.  And then as we rode through San Francisco where I saw Sansome Street,  Bank of California,  the Calera in station,  and Julia's diner where a friend met me for dinner after spending 3 months in isolation before becoming a priest - he was so out of it then but a very fine priest today. Memories flooded my mind as I danced through that thick,  wonderful fog that night....
Funny,  the things I like the most about these trips are rarely where I have been and mostly about the places these trips take my mind. 

Day 23- Fog, trencherous and beautiful fog

Today was a beautiful cruise down the Pacific Coast of California.  About 2 hours in we turned off the main freeway (Hwy 101) and on to the much quieter Hwy 1, a 2 lane road that hugs the coast of California for 200 miles all the way down to San Francisco.  For me,  the first 50 miles from the freeway to the coast is perhaps one of the best rides in the USA, better even than the mighty Tail of the Dragon.  Amazing scenery,  goes on for 50 miles and is so fun to ride!  Once we reached the coast the cold damp fog welcomed our return and we had to stop for some hot coffee.  Unfortunately the fog obscures most of the beautiful coastline but it has its own  beauty -  a mystery wrapped in the heavy dense fog.  Everything felt smaller and more isolated.  We met other people at the gas station or post office and exchanged stories of the fog.  It was a shared experience we all had in common.  A battle won.  But....  The fog was not giving up without a fight.  When we got down to San Francisco,  the mighty Golden Gate Bridge had a response waiting for us.  When I say the fog was thick I mean I could not see 25 feet in front of me.  I was on the bridge before I even realized it.  The photos below make it look like we had better visibility than we did.  The wind was howling as the bridge heaved up and down.  Thank God the speed limit was 35 mph.  As we inched our way across,  we were welcomed by heavy Friday afternoon  rush hour traffic followed by the Oakland Bay Bridge.  Although quiter is was still an ordeal.  The hotel that night was well deserved. 

Day 20 - The big turn back south and east

Today was that day in every one of these trips where I reach the point I can't go north and west anymore and have to turn back south and east.  It's always bitter sweet -  I don't want to stop exploring the north west but I also miss home and my work.  And so without fanfare we reached Cape Flattery WA,  the northwesternmost point of the continental United States and then had to turn east and then south.  Our journey has now changed from going there to coming back.  And that is good.  But sad.  But good......  sadly.

Day 21 - Oregon and it beautiful coast

Yesterday was a day of extremes.  The first half of the ride was purely functional -  get from the beautiful islands around Bainbridge to the beautiful coast of Oregon via the industrial southern end of the Olympic peninsula.  And so we did.  All I can say about that it that it is amazing how many trees get cut down up there.  I am imagining it is all sustainably harvested meaning they grow back as many as they cut.  But that is a lot of trees.  The second half of the trip was wonderful as we reached the coast and began our journey south.  We reached the Ft Clatsop National Monument which marked the official ending place of the Lewis and Clark Trail.  And so it is done -  we rode the Trail from one end to the other with a few adjustments in Montana.  Amazing amazing amazing journey those men and one woman undertook.  I am so glad we mimicked it as best we could.  Respect.
One of the side activities of these trips is finding a place to stay.  We don't have any reservations anywhere and just roll into a place around 4 pm and start asking around until we find a place.  Well last night I got nervous and booked a place online that turned out to be terrible.  $250 a night each and the furniture was so old the varnish had worn off and the wood underneath was soiled and disfigured.  It was bad.  It was on the beach (nice) but we couldn't see it because of the thick fog.  I did get a chance to stick my fingers in the Pacific so that was good.

Day 22 - In to the California coast

Today was a day spent in the fog.  From the moment we woke up in Lincoln City OR until the moment we checked into the hotel in Eureka CA, 9 hours of riding,  all of it in and out of cold damp fog. And it was beautiful.  In Atlanta I don't get to see fog literally rolling in, especially in off the coast.  Like watching smoke off a fire,  you just watch the eddy currents swirling and rushing in off the ocean,  over the dunes,  roads and up into and over the mountains. 
The coast of Oregon is a amazing geological creation but unfortunately the fog was hiding most of it from us today.  The cold made me ask several times "if it is this cold in August what is it like in February?"  They say the weather is about the same year around except maybe 20° colder.  Yikes.
What I did see,  and this really caught my heart,  was a couple sitting on the beach in oversized beach chairs,  all by themselves,  relaxing and staring at the Pacific Ocean.  I imagined they were sitting there on silence.  Holding hands,  listening to the crashing waves taking in the quiet wisdom of the ocean.  They say the ocean has no memories but I like to think it has ass the memories of time,  it just doesn't talk about them unless asked in a quiet way.  I imagined this quiet "conversation" was taking place and I loved it.
Tonight I sleep in a windowless room.  I should sleep well in this dark.

Day 19 - A push into Olympic National Park

A great ride up into Olympic today.  Rain and more rain to start and then beautiful but cold.  When we arrived at the Lake Quinault Lodge we checked in and had a beer overlooking a beautiful lawn and a tranquil lake.  We met Vito and Anna from Amsterdam and they joined us for dinner.  Good to meet and make new friends!  It's time for bed.  Short blog today.

Day 18 - The Columbia River Gorge

There comes a time in every trip when I just run out of superlatives.  Amazing? done. Georgeous?  done. Beautiful?  done.  Breathtaking? done. Awe inspiring? OK maybe.  But if you have ever ridden or driven down this gorge you know what I mean.  Cliffs of 1,000 ft on both sides of a beautiful river that is a mile wide.  And those Cliffs are part of the Cascade mountain range which still has snow on it.  Mt. Hood was in the distance as we rode along the cliffs.  And in the middle of nowhere we came across the "Bridge of the Gods" from the Reece Witherspoon  movie where she hiked the entire PCT.  It looked a lot cooler in the movie but it was a cool thing to stumble on in the middle of nowhere. And we visited with our old friend and college Jim Kacena who packed up and moved out here 12 years ago.  My goodness what a beautiful house with an incredible view! Great seeing Jim and spending time in White Salmon! What a country....