Traveling as a Tree-o
One more day until Double Donation Wednesday! PLEASE make our day GREAT by donating tomorrow!!! HERE is the link
Total distance traveled: 781 miles
Cumulative elevation: 41,207 ft.
Today's scary route profile: click HERE
Sketchy GPS tracker: Hopefully will remember to turn it on later this morning!
Vlog link click HERE (no making fun of Captain Whitebeard!)
After the frustration of yesterday's gravel-o-rama, we were excited to get back the magical element that seems to accompany most legs of our trip. Today's best chance at that was the Avenue of the Giants--a 32 mile stretch of road that parallels the 101s and winds through the redwood groves. I had high hopes for a nice day!
We rolled out of the Fortuna Comfort Inn around 11:00 after demolishing their complimentary breakfast--best waffles around! Again, so happy they were able to support our ride--great folks. Getting on the 101, we had a solid tailwind and we were cruising pretty quick--for us anyway. As I looked in my mirror, however, this rider comes up from behind us and he is really moving! Seeing the panniers on his bike meant he was a touring rider--which automatically meant a conversation was on tap.
There is such a camaraderie among cyclists. If you pass someone going the opposite direction, it is certain that both riders will wave to one another as a gesture that says, "nice work on that bike." If someone is traveling the same direction as you, the faster rider will slow down, have a quick word before taking off again. Today's rider was Dan, an Aussie that was up here riding from Astoria, OR to Los Angeles in 15 days! I thought that averaging 57/day was tough? Try 80/day! And he had relatively little cycling experience before this trip! We talked for a little bit before sending him on his way up the road.
A hour into the ride, we turned onto the Avenue of the Giants. It did not disappoint! The redwood groves were dark, quiet and beautiful and few cars were using the road. We traveled leisurely along before coming to a market. As we got there, Dan was just getting back on his bike--he must have been there for a quick break. We caught up to him and decided to ride through the park together. For the next 20 miles, we became a trio and had a good time talking about our trips down the coast. For example, we were interested to know where he was when the rain started pouring (it sounds like he got the worst of it). Turns out that at one point, we ate at the same restaurant just hours apart from each other and had the same waitress.
We passed Dan's campground but with nowhere to eat, Dan decided to ride 10 more miles with us to have lunch. Then, after lunch we continued 15 more miles onto the town of Garberville while Dan went back to the campsite. Now let me set the picture for you: tomorrow is a brutal day on the bike--the hardest climb we will face on this trip. From Garberville we will be traveling 65 miles to Fort Bragg. Dan is also riding to Fort Bragg but is now 25 miles behind us--I am tired just thinking about the day he will have tomorrow. Regardless, it is nice knowing that there are other people out there on the road and knowing that once in a while our paths will cross. It is also good for Katelyn who has become very good at conversing with strangers and making new friends.
Overall, today was one of my favorite days on the bike. I've said that quite a few times before. I have no doubt I will be saying it many more times before this trip is over.
Finally, we would still love to hear from you if you have any specific questions about our trip. We will try to answer them in our Vlog while we are riding. Bikingthecoast@gmail.com
See you in Fort Bragg!
Total distance traveled: 781 miles
Cumulative elevation: 41,207 ft.
Today's scary route profile: click HERE
Sketchy GPS tracker: Hopefully will remember to turn it on later this morning!
Vlog link click HERE (no making fun of Captain Whitebeard!)
After the frustration of yesterday's gravel-o-rama, we were excited to get back the magical element that seems to accompany most legs of our trip. Today's best chance at that was the Avenue of the Giants--a 32 mile stretch of road that parallels the 101s and winds through the redwood groves. I had high hopes for a nice day!
We rolled out of the Fortuna Comfort Inn around 11:00 after demolishing their complimentary breakfast--best waffles around! Again, so happy they were able to support our ride--great folks. Getting on the 101, we had a solid tailwind and we were cruising pretty quick--for us anyway. As I looked in my mirror, however, this rider comes up from behind us and he is really moving! Seeing the panniers on his bike meant he was a touring rider--which automatically meant a conversation was on tap.
There is such a camaraderie among cyclists. If you pass someone going the opposite direction, it is certain that both riders will wave to one another as a gesture that says, "nice work on that bike." If someone is traveling the same direction as you, the faster rider will slow down, have a quick word before taking off again. Today's rider was Dan, an Aussie that was up here riding from Astoria, OR to Los Angeles in 15 days! I thought that averaging 57/day was tough? Try 80/day! And he had relatively little cycling experience before this trip! We talked for a little bit before sending him on his way up the road.
A hour into the ride, we turned onto the Avenue of the Giants. It did not disappoint! The redwood groves were dark, quiet and beautiful and few cars were using the road. We traveled leisurely along before coming to a market. As we got there, Dan was just getting back on his bike--he must have been there for a quick break. We caught up to him and decided to ride through the park together. For the next 20 miles, we became a trio and had a good time talking about our trips down the coast. For example, we were interested to know where he was when the rain started pouring (it sounds like he got the worst of it). Turns out that at one point, we ate at the same restaurant just hours apart from each other and had the same waitress.
We passed Dan's campground but with nowhere to eat, Dan decided to ride 10 more miles with us to have lunch. Then, after lunch we continued 15 more miles onto the town of Garberville while Dan went back to the campsite. Now let me set the picture for you: tomorrow is a brutal day on the bike--the hardest climb we will face on this trip. From Garberville we will be traveling 65 miles to Fort Bragg. Dan is also riding to Fort Bragg but is now 25 miles behind us--I am tired just thinking about the day he will have tomorrow. Regardless, it is nice knowing that there are other people out there on the road and knowing that once in a while our paths will cross. It is also good for Katelyn who has become very good at conversing with strangers and making new friends.
Overall, today was one of my favorite days on the bike. I've said that quite a few times before. I have no doubt I will be saying it many more times before this trip is over.
Finally, we would still love to hear from you if you have any specific questions about our trip. We will try to answer them in our Vlog while we are riding. Bikingthecoast@gmail.com
See you in Fort Bragg!
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| Ok, we didn't get far this way, but it was worth taking a picture |
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| Had a great stay at the Comfort Inn in Fortuna--sure appreciate the hospitality and their generosity! |
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| Feeling lucky? Loved all the clover growing among the redwoods |
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| Starting the 32 mile drive down Avenue of the Giants--pumped to see it! |
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| This was one of the only pictures I got of the Eel River. Such a pretty place! |
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| Ok, the next three pictures are of the "Chimney Tree." Back in the early 1900's, a fire burned the tree from the inside and left it hollow the entire way from the top to bottom This picture is us standing inside of the tree. The third picture is looking straight up over our heads at the hollow hole going out the top. The crazy thing is that the tree from the outside looks perfectly fine! Nature just finds a way I guess. |
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| Garberville! Home after Day 14! |
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| Even with the often cloudy conditions, the tan lines are forming fast. I would expect the ugly short-leg tan, but the half-finger tan is particularly nice! |
I can only imagine all of the amazing singletrack you must be passing up!
ReplyDeleteI think it’s spelled Treo.
ReplyDelete