August 23 Crossing America

Bandon, OR – Pistol River, OR distance 59 miles.
Total miles traveled through today 4,630, 3,962 of them on a bike.

Eagle Sculpted from debris found along shore line by art students from a studio near Suzy and Ed's home

Suzy got to be my SAG driver today as Dale had an opportunity to earn some money and be checked out for working with an Apache helicopter on forest fires.  Sounded exciting and though he offered to pass the opportunity I told him go do it.  Besides Suzy had expressed a desire to see what it was like being a SAG driver.  She was great!  You’re hired for the future Suzy.

Today Suzy and I began my ride from intersection of the road leading to her place and Hwy. 101, just south of Bandon with the intent to ride to Gold Beach about 60 miles away.  It’s another nice day (meaning I wasn’t freezing while riding down hills) with gentle rolling hills made the ride from the start to Port Orford, a distance of 20 miles, go by much faster than I had anticipated.  At the south end of Port Orford Hwy. 101 makes a 90˚ bend to the east while going straight you notice a steep hill with giant white words written on the pavement “Ocean View”.  Well it had been an easy ride and this hill though steep was short so I rode to the top, glad I did.  Not only does it offer a fantastic view of the ocean it also looks over the docks of Port Orford.  Interesting instead of the small fishing and leisure boats being moored at the dock they are actually sitting on the dock.  I later learn from Suzy the harbor is too shallow and it’s much safer for the boats to be lifted out of the water by a giant crane each day.  Being ahead of schedule Suzy had not yet arrived so I phoned to check where she was.  She, Ed and Dale (before he headed to Eugene for the day) had driven to Camp Blanco State Park which has a beautiful trail along the coast line for about a mile and half.  Suzy was concerned she hadn’t kept up with me and offered to leave the trail immediately and drive to me.  I assured her there was no problem and we’d connect at our Ophir our pre-arranged lunch stop.

The going between Port Orford and Ophir wasn’t nearly as easy as this morning’s section.  I had to ride away from the coast up and over Humbug Mountain at 1,756’.  Of course when you go over a mountain the road always narrows at the steepest point of the climb giving me concern for having to ride in the roadway as there was little to no shoulder.  About midway through this section there was some road construction with only one lane open.  Just as in the two previous road construction zones I passed through the Flaggers (guys and gals who hold those stop and slow signs) held traffic from both ways while I navigated the ½ mile of one lane road.  I thanked the Flaggers on both ends for their thoughtful consideration for my safety.  They stressed my safety was most important and bid me a continued safe ride.  I have to say I have been duly impressed by Flaggers in both Washington and Oregon for my safety.  Now if the governments of these two States could afford to put in a safe bicycle lane would be terrific.

Suzy phoned me suggesting I stay on Hwy. 101 at Ophir as it was a much flatter with a nice shoulder instead of riding on Cedar Valley Road as shown on my Adventure Cycling map.  Later in the day when we were driving back to Suzy’s home, she took the Cedar Valley Road to show me how hilly, winding and no shoulder the road had.  Nice call Suzy, I appreciate your checking both routes and choosing the safest as well as easiest route for me to ride.

By staying on Hwy. 101 Suzy and I were able to enjoy our lunch at Nesika Beach overlooking the ocean.  This section of beach had nice waves rolling in and I was surprised there were no surfers enjoying them.  After lunch, Suzy and I checked the map and decided I made such great time and seeing as there was a major hill south of Gold Beach I’d continue riding onto Pistol River State Park in order to make my ride on the 25^th shorter.  Suzy decided she would stay awhile at Nesika for a walk on the beach taking advantage of this very nice day.

Suzy and me checking the map to see how much farther to ride this day

While having lunch at Nesika Beach the wind had picked up and by the time I mounted Spirit I’d guess the wind was reaching 40 mph which is not uncommon for this stretch of road according to Suzy.  Whew wee!  That was fun, the road from Nesika to Pistol River did have a steep 750’ climb but with the tailwind was a piece of cake.  The run down to Pistol River was a delight.  Again I made it to Pistol River really quick beating Suzy there by about 10 minutes.  I have to say it was mighty tempting to continue riding south with this great tailwind and nice sunny day but we had told Ed we’d be back by 5 PM and if I’d gone another 10 miles we wouldn’t have arrived back before 6:30.  On the way back to Bandon Suzy and I stopped at a couple of scenic view points to enjoy an unobstructed view of the ocean.  Previous days there had been a bank of fog just off shore or sometimes coming onto shore obscuring not only the view of the ocean but of the road I was riding on too.  I like the sunny days.

Back at Suzy and Ed’s place, Suzy went for another swim while I passed the opportunity settling instead for a hot shower.  Suzy prepared another great meal for dinner with before dinner Margaritias made with Loganberries (at least I think that was the berry) which were great.  One thing for sure my ride down the west coast I’m not going to lose any weight.  Most likely the opposite I’m gaining weight with all the great meals I’ve had at Larry and Charis’s, Mark and Jenni’s, Denny and Nancy’s and now at Suzy and Ed’s home.  Need I mention how much more enjoyable of a journey I’m having on the west coast compared to the Spartan crossing of the Trans-Am route?   What a trip being with friends, enjoying fantastic food and seeing and being up close and personal with the west coast’s rugged cliffs and coast line, the lush forests of giant firs towering above me.  I could almost forget the stress of riding on poorly kept roads with traffic whizzing by me only a couple feet away or sometimes much closer.  It is difficult to decide if the latter outweighs the good?  Guess I have to say being with friends old and new has made all the difference, I like the Northwest Coast.

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