Cycling For A Cause - Alaska to Panama by Bike

[Muttsta]

Day 39 ? Feels Like Christmas ? 137.23 km
This morning I got a much later start than usual. I decided to sleep in a little since I had stayed up late the previous evening reading Lance Armstrong?s book: ?It?s Not About The Bike?. I must say that it was an excellent read, I enjoyed it thoroughly and would really recommend it to others. Anyhow, 10 AM rolled around and I realized that I needed to get rolling as well.

Although it was slightly cloudy in the morning it soon cleared up, providing me with blue skies for the rest of the day. At times the wind was pushing me up hills, but at others it was pushing me back down them. In general the winds blow from the north-west, which is beneficial to me since I am traveling south, but I guess the wind get?s mixed up sometimes.

In the town of Port Orford I passed by a café called the ?Wild Wind?. Although I wasn?t overly hungry, the sign on the restaurant read ?Internet Access?. There is nothing better than being able to sit in a nice place with my laptop plugged into a power outlet and being able to use the internet. It isn?t the most fun experience in the world to travel around neighborhoods looking for wireless internet access, then having to balance your laptop on your knee while typing.

After I placed my order for a soup and salad the owner of the café came by and asked me what cause I was cycling for as well as some other things about my trip. He must have really liked what I was doing since he told me that he would cover the cost of my lunch! I thanked him sincerely, and being in a better mood already since I had saved $10 ate up my lunch and did all my bureaucratic doings on my laptop. I thought that things couldn?t get any better, but I was wrong. On my way out I was also bestowed with a bag full of baked goodies and two packs of beef jerky. I thank the great folks over at the ?Wild Wind? in Port Orford once again!

Being in great spirits I pushed on once more. The road was once again littered with brilliant views of the Oregon shoreline. There were several medium sized climbs: trivial with a tail wind, slightly harder with a head wind. I passed over Oregon?s tallest bridge today: 325 feet. Let me tell you, that?s pretty high, and what a view it was from up there. I wish I could have gotten a picture of this bridge from the side but there were safety barriers all over so I couldn?t get out to the edge of a cliff to take a picture. Perhaps that?s a good thing after all!

I am currently camped out at the Harris Beach campground which is located very closed to Brookings, Oregon. I can hear the waves of the ocean in the distance. It sounds just like those nature sounds CDs you can buy, very relaxing! I am only a few miles from the California state line, which means that tomorrow I will be ?California Dreaming?! All in all it was a very manageable day, may there be many, many more just like it!

 

[Muttsta]

Originally posted by: S Freud
Are you still in Oregon? Its really great to hear everything that you are doing. Gets my really excited for the tour I hope to take in the spring.

Hope everything continues to go well for you(for the most part).

Just made it into California today

 

[Muttsta]

Originally posted by: sygyzy

Originally posted by: Muttsta

Originally posted by: sygyzy
Muttsta - It's taken nearly 7 years, at a slow but steady 4 posts per day, but I can't think of a better thread to use my 10,000th post. I greatly admire what you are doing, both the journey as well as sharing it all with us with your entries. Thank you!

It's an honor! Your from somewhere along the coast in California if I recall?
Perhaps we can meet up, maybe I can even crash in your backyard

I am in Santa Barbara, which is more like the north end of Southern California.

Map

I don't have a backyard but you can sleep on my couch. We can also go get lunch or dinner depending on what time you roll in.

Question - Do you think you would do better (maybe ride further, be less tired, etc) if you ate a little bit healthier? I very much admire that you aren't some fitness freak and eat whatever you want (like me) but surely all those buffets and giant burgers can't be good for the health aspect of your ride. I don't care about the gaining weight or having high cholesterol but in terms of energy and fuel, surely there are more efficient means.

Sounds great! Will be sure to drop by. As for the whole diet thing, my diet surprising isn't all that bad. I load up on carbs like you wouldn't believe. I eat a lot of bread as well as pasta. Burgers provide protein, which helps build muscle. I also stop at fruit stands along the way etc. I wouldn't say I'm eating terribly healthy, but on the other hand I'm not loading up on fast food all the time. For now I think i'm doing OK

 

[zeruty]

Muttsta, if you happen to notice the sign for the drive-through tree in the redwoods, make sure to go down and get a pic! When I drove through there, it was dark and I didn't have a flashlight, so I didn't make it down to see it. You should get a picture of your bike inside it or something for size comparison!

 

[ViviTheMage]

awesome pictures, make me almost want to take a drive out to the west coast sometime.

 

[MrDudeMan]

why isnt there a spot on the webpage for total mileage? id like to see it updated every once in a wihle to see where you are and how far youve traveled.

good job so far and good luck!

 

[Muttsta]

Originally posted by: MrDudeMan
why isnt there a spot on the webpage for total mileage? id like to see it updated every once in a wihle to see where you are and how far youve traveled.

good job so far and good luck!

Its right on the homepage at the very top, lol
It says where I am, what day I am on, and how far Ive travelled

 

[Muttsta]

Day 40 ? Into The Woods ? 108.30 km
Today in the morning I traveled through my last seven or so miles of Oregon and then made it into California. Yet another state, yet another stepping stone of my epic journey. I?m really surprised at how fast this is all going by, it seems just like yesterday that I landed at Anchorage International Airport.

I must say that it was quite exciting to see my first palm tree of the trip. That?s when it finally hit me as to how far I have actually traveled, since there isn?t any way that palm tree would make it up in Alaska. My joy would soon be subsided as I would soon be entering Redwoods National Park.

I will admit, there were a few decent climbs today. I have gotten lazy since British Columbia as I have been graced with a multitude of flatness, however today that changed. Although I had to struggle a bit, I made it to the tops of the hills with no problem.

The Redwoods are truly a magnificent sight to behold. They are the tallest trees in the world, quite a bit of which reach heights of well over 200 feet. Riding down this road it felt as if I was riding between skyscrapers in a large metropolis. The size of these trees is really something you have to see to behold, as pictures merely do not convey the same effect. The only downside was that these trees provided a large amount of shade in which it was actually quite cold!

Although most of the road today was simply stunning I will not bore you with details. It is best to check out the pictures in my album to see these amazing trees for yourself. Two trees of interest that I saw were the ?Corkscrew Tree? and the ?Big Tree?. The corkscrew tree simply looks as its name describes, like a corkscrew winding up into the heavens. Quite a neat sight to behold, really makes you wonder how it ended up growing like that. The big tree is once again true to its name, big. It is 304 feet tall with a diameter of 21? 6? and an estimated age of 1500 years. It really was true to its name, the thing was simply massive!

I am currently camped out at a campground located not far from these magnificent Redwoods by the name of Elk Prairie Campground. I?m really starting to like these hiker/biker campgrounds as they are simply a great deal. Camping today cost me a staggering $3, tax included! Luckily I managed to find myself a new guidebook today, the same one that I lost, so I can find these sites a little easier.

 

[theknight571]

I agree that pictures don't do the giant redwoods justice.

I was able to visit a redwood forest in the Santa Cruz area while on a business trip.

I took pics, but it's just not the same.

 

[Googer]

Originally posted by: theknight571
I agree that pictures don't do the giant redwoods justice.

I was able to visit a redwood forest in the Santa Cruz area while on a business trip.

I took pics, but it's just not the same.

4x6 inch photographs don't do it justice, but 16x24 foot enlargements will.

 

[Googer]

I think his website is down

 

[kalster]

if you drive by close to sacramento give me a shout out

 

[ViviTheMage]

Originally posted by: Googer
I think his website is down

works for me!

 

[zeruty]

info about the drive thru trees is here
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/attract/CAPHItree.html

 

[MrDudeMan]

Originally posted by: Muttsta

Originally posted by: MrDudeMan
why isnt there a spot on the webpage for total mileage? id like to see it updated every once in a wihle to see where you are and how far youve traveled.

good job so far and good luck!

Its right on the homepage at the very top, lol
It says where I am, what day I am on, and how far Ive travelled

didnt see it before

 

[Googer]

Originally posted by: ViviTheMage

Originally posted by: Googer
I think his website is down

works for me!

It's back now, but there was an outage that lasted for a while.

 

[Muttsta]

Day 41 ? A Step Back In Time - 158.54 km
The day begins just outside of the Redwoods at Elk Prairie Campground. I received a nice and early start as I knew that today would be a longer day. At the next town I stopped by the grocery store to grab some milk, cereal, and bagels; a fine breakfast and lunch! I also dropped by the post office to send some stuff home which I didn?t need anymore.

I moved pretty quickly on highway 101. The highway is now much flatter, but is unfortunately a wide interstate. Although there are wide shoulders, you still need to be very cautious at the on and off ramps as to avoid being hit by traffic. Although the miles go by quicker, they are nowhere as enjoyable as on the scenic side roads.

Right at the entrance to the city of Eukera I experienced my second flat tire of the trip, once again due to a shard of glass being embedded within my poor dying tire. To anymore out there who has ever thrown glass onto the side of the road, I seriously hate you. The wide shoulders on the freeways are nice as they are much safer with respect to traffic, but at the same time they are usually littered with glass and other potentially hazardous obstacles. No matter, I fixed up my flat tire and was good to go. Unfortunately, in the process I had also somehow lost one of my rear break pads. Don?t ask me how, but it happened. I decided to visit a bike shop to get my brakes looked at as they were giving me a little trouble anyhow.

It seems that this area of California is very well known for its? stunning Victorian buildings. I must say that some of these buildings are very unique and beautiful. They are generally very ornate and encompass bright colors. One building in particular which I liked was the ?Carson Mansion?. Unfortunately it was not possible to go inside as it is now a private men?s only club.

Leaving the hustle and bustle of the city behind I moved on. Highway 101 was once again flat as a pancake with little or no winds to hold me back. I passed through several small towns with nothing interesting in them. The only interesting thing I did was buy a map of California at some gas station, which proved to be useless as it is far too general.

I turned off of the busy highway onto a more scenic route called ?The Avenue of the Giants?. I have once again entered the domain of the redwoods. No matter how many times you see these trees, they never cease to amaze you with their size. The ride between these trees provided a nice break from the busy traffic from the highway. I am currently camped in the midst of redwood trees at a place called Burlington Campground, not far from the town of Weott. I had originally planned on staying on a campground two miles before this one, but when I got there I found a sign which told me the campground was now closed. I moved on to find a closed road due to a mud slide. Luckily it was only closed to vehicles and not cyclists, otherwise that would have caused some more delays.

 

[booger711]

cool, good luck!

 

[OREOSpeedwagon]

Thanks for the update! I've been out and about on my new Trek 1000 a lot lately, it's crazy how addicting cycling can be. It's sooo much fun.

BTW those redwood pics are insane! I've never seen them in person but they look crazy big, they make your bike look like a little toy bike!

 

[shoRunner]

cool thread, definately worth a donation from me. good luck!

 

[Muttsta]

Day 42 ? Flats (Tires) and Climbs (Hills) - 115.63 km
Yesterday when I pitched my tent it was already dark, thus I couldn?t really see the beautiful views around me. Today in the morning when I woke up I was in awe as to how beautiful the campground around me was. Redwoods towered into the sky, and in between them all was my humble little tent. No matter how many times I see these trees, they make me gasp in awe each time.

Since I had two punctured tubes I decided I should patch them up in case I get another flat. My tube from yesterday had not one, not two, not three, but four punctures in it. Don?t ask me how that?s even possible, but it somehow happened. After all my handiwork I headed out along the avenue of the giants once more for about 20 miles. I passed through several interesting small towns as well as some neat attractions. I reluctantly paid $2 to see a drive-through Redwood tree, although it was a must see since someone recommended it to me.

After the avenue of the giants ended the road threw me back onto highway 101. It would be smooth sailing for the next while, or so I thought. I felt a little off balance, so I knew something was up. It turns out a received a flat tire in my rear wheel yet again. This is really starting to get quite annoying, but I am intent on riding that tire all the way to San Diego. I swapped the tube out for one I had patched up that morning and was on my way.

About 5 miles later I see that my tire is almost flat once again. No puncture this time, but it turns out that there is some really some hole in my tube that I did not catch in the morning. Great, I fix another flat. I?m pumping and pumping, then boom! Although my tires were under their maximum recommended pressure my tube had exploded. Quite a scary event I must say! It sounded like a gunshot, causing quite the ringing in my ears and causing me to go deaf for a few seconds. Unfortunately the tube was not fixable as the blowout caused a nice five inch gash in it.

Shell shocked and displeased with the fact that I had to change out my tube three times today, I moved on. I made it to the town of Legett where I took a short break to ?borrow? someone?s wireless internet as I like to call it and update all of you back home. The climb out of Legett contains the largest climb of the whole United States portion of the Pacific Coast route. Many cyclists despise this climb, others simply fear it. Seriously, they?re over-exaggerating. Although it was the first decent climb I have had since British Columbia, it is still a bunny hill in comparison with some of the other hills I have conquered. I actually quite enjoyed this portion of the ride. There were barely any cars, great views, and the downhill ride from the top made it all worth it. There is nothing like the feeling of rushing around a corner at 50 km/h.

Now out of the forests and on the coast, I am currently staying at the Westport Union Landing State Beach. Once again I only paid $3 for camping, but this time there isn?t any showers or electricity. No worries, the location of this campground more than makes up for it. I am right beside the Pacific Ocean, thus today the sound of waves will lull me to sleep.

Remember to check out my website for pictures!

 

[Muttsta]

Originally posted by: OREOSpeedwagon
Thanks for the update! I've been out and about on my new Trek 1000 a lot lately, it's crazy how addicting cycling can be. It's sooo much fun.

BTW those redwood pics are insane! I've never seen them in person but they look crazy big, they make your bike look like a little toy bike!

Tell me about it, they're crazy!
The sequois are also quite the sight to see, saw those when I was in California two years ago
Definatley worth checking out if you ever get a chance

 

[sygyzy]

How did you move on if your tire was blown?

 

[zeruty]

Thanks for the drive through tree pictures! When I get the spare money to donate, I'll make sure to add an additional $2 to cover that fee!
Looking at your pictures, it makes me think about how up close and personal you get to be with the scenery and the environment... I drove through oregon and cali on 101 at the speed limit, or above it... This really makes me want to go through again somehow slower paced. I don't think I could ever bike that far, so maybe some day when I finally get around to getting myself a motorcycle... I'll take a slow leisurely ride through the area...

 

[vailr]

Originally posted by: Muttsta
The only interesting thing I did was buy a map of California at some gas station, which proved to be useless as it is far too general.

Try Yahoo Maps:
http://maps.yahoo.com/beta/