The grand cycling (and RV) adventure to cross America

Saturday, July 9, 2022

Oregon: Great ride all the way to the coast

July 1

On day 52 we biked 70 miles and climbed 4500ft in the heat to escape Hell’s Canyon. We did have a nice brunch stop at a cafe in Richland. I can’t recall if I posted about this, but many miles ago in Illinois (I think..) we ate lunch at a bar-restaurant and an unknown cyclist had paid forward for our lunch. So we decided to return the favor at this Richland cafe and left money for the next cyclist to eat at this cafe. After a delicious apricot French toast, we continued biking for 40 miles to get to Baker City. Roger got another flat tire just 7 miles from town. We tried to just inflate it to make it in but alas we had to pull over 2 miles for camp to change out the tube. On the bright side, this rv park has a hot tub 😎

July 2

Saturday was Day 53. We biked 60 miles with 4000 ft of climbing. We got out of the hot desert and into the hilly National forests. We met two other bikers, Eddie and Alice, from Texas who were also heading to Florence OR. They have done a lot of touring over the decades and you could tell based on their neatly packed and lightweight gear. We rode with them for 20 miles until we reached the hills and then we zoomed ahead. We spent Sunday as a rest day at a quiet campground with my sister, Clayton, and Allen.

July 3

We had a rest day in the campground to spend time with my sister Jessica, her son Clayton, and her boyfriend Allen.

July 4
Day 54 and happy July 4th 🇺🇸! We had a late start this morning as we were hanging out with family at the campground for a nice breakfast We had a short 50 mile day today. Missed the small town parades, too early in one and too late in the other. Only 4 more days until the ocean finish!

July 5

On day 55 we rode 78 miles with 4700ft of climbing. The most amount of climbing since Rocky Mountain National Park. We had a nice cloudy day with a few sprinkles along the way. The road traveled through gorgeous gorges, canyons, national monuments and forests, through a nice small town, and over two mountain passes. Anita found a nice campground on the lake for our last RV stay of the trip. She will head to my sister’s house in Eugene tomorrow so my Dad and I will get a hotel after we get over the last mountain pass of the trip. 3 days of riding left!

July 6

Day 56 was a grand adventure in itself. Anita sped off to Eugene to spend the day with Jessica/Clayton so Dad and I will be staying at a forest resort tonight. We rode 90 miles and up and over McKenzie Pass to end the day. We started the day on an annoyingly busy farm road for 20 miles then we veered onto some nice quiet roads through forests, past small organic farms, and a large alpaca farm. After 55 miles We stopped for lunch in Sisters. We had to pick up a couple of extra sandwiches to carry with us as the “hotel resort” we booked for the night was not near any restaurants. The climb up the pass was beautiful, past large pine trees. As we got near the top we saw a massive lava rock field. I had no idea this place existed and it was truly otherworldly! The clouds got darker and the temperature dropped as we were exploring the summit. Once we started descending it began to rain. Not too hard but it was very cold (at least for cyclists without proper warm clothing!) We had a 20 mile descent to the forest resort. Once we arrived we couldn’t find the front desk area. We waved down a car and the couple said you have to check in at their other location, 2.5 miles away! And no cell service so we couldn’t call the hotel. Ah crap, the last thing we want to do is to tack on an extra 5 miles as we are shivering cold! The couple noticed our expression and offered me a ride to check in and return. Such nice folks we meet! Once we got into our room, the AC was blowing but there was no thermostat. At least it had a warm shower! But also no Wi-Fi and a non working 30 year old TV. Then we both slept poorly, I accidentally took my salt pills instead magnesium pills before bed. So my heart was racing and I had to drink two bottles of water during the night! I prefer the RV! Two day left…

July 7

On day 57, we cruised down the highway to Eugene to stay with my sister. Rode about 60 miles, much of it was on the highway until we got a bit closer to town and could ride on some county roads and then crossed town on bike paths/lanes. In a car, this highway would be a beautiful drive but it is nothing compared to the views and feelings you get when cycling on the remote roads that we have mostly been in across the country. Tomorrow, we will ride 80 miles to touch the Pacific Ocean at Florence, OR!

July 8

Day 58 of riding and we made it to the Pacific Ocean!! It took us 80 miles to get there. Clayton joined us for the start and then Jess, Mom, and Clayton all met for the end. I had many feelings and reflections of the entire journey. Just getting to Day 1 was the most difficult aspect of the journey. Once on the bike, life was pretty simple: pedal, eat, sleep, repeat…

Most of all, I feel grateful for many things:

- The loving support of Jess and Rosie.

- My Dad’s desire and motivation to make this adventure happen.

- My Mom and Riley following and leading with the RV and shared in on the fun.

- My brother for helping around the house while I was away. My sister for hosting us in Eugene.

- Friends who helped Jess back home.

- Friends and family who rode some miles with us.

- Many people we met along the way

- Support from my employer allowing me to take so much time away from work.

- And I am grateful for the Facebook friends who encouraged me to document our adventure, without you my GoPro movie skills would never have developed. I will appreciate these videos a lot as time passes. In total, we rode 4111 miles with 178,000 ft of elevation change. We started in Yorktown Virgina on May 2nd, 68 days ago. Tomorrow, I fly back to Colorado to be back with my family.

Thursday, July 7, 2022

Idaho: Varied and magnificent landscapes

June 27

Day 48. We had no cell service for the last two days. We biked up and over Lolo Pass into Idaho. Then had an all day descent towards our campground. We rode 85 miles. The day started off frigid cold, 35 degs, but felt even colder as we started our descent in the shadows. I was shivering as we cruised down to a lodge to have a breakfast and warm up after 20 miles. By afternoon, it was well over 90 deg to make today one of the hotter (and colder) days we have ridden. Remember the TransAm race… Our bike friend Loic who we met to Colorado ended up finishing in 5th in just under 21 days. Then on todays ride, we met the last place racer of the TransAm, Thomas Camero. He is an 80 year old who is doing this race for the 5th time. He was in excellent spirits and is a great example of how you can participate in a race without the goal of trying to win. It is all about the experience and internal satisfaction while the race provides bit extra motivation. We ended the day at the most beautiful campsite right on the river with its own beach! I took a cold dip. A wonderful day.

June 28

We had a lot of variety on Day 49. We traveled 75 miles and we biked past… two huge rivers, lush forests, a few small towns, a steep climb up to a farmland plateau, some curious cows, across many bridges, under a huge bridge, over a mountain on some gravel, and sped down a massive descent. - A 7 mile long 2100 ft drop at a perfect grade and great road conditions. I was traveling over 30mph for 10 minutes and reached my top speed of the trip at 49.5mph! That was a blast! It got a little hot but overall was a very good day. We camped along the Salmon river and I took another brief, cold, refreshing dip.

June 29

Day 5-0! We biked 75 miles with 3500ft of climbing. The first half was gorgeous, biking upstream the Salmon River. We got to a section of rapids where there must have been 100 people fishing trying their luck to catch a huge salmon. We also saw numerous roadside waterfalls. We broke away from the river and biked up into the forests. We were on a dirt path that paralleled the highway for awhile until it turned into a bumpy double track and decided to go back into the highway. That turned out to be the wrong choice as the highway went past a lumber mill where many large and small logging trucks where busy hauling. We found out many of them are rather inconsiderate drivers which made for an unpleasant 10 mile stretch as the highway quality diminished drastically. We made it over the hill and quickly descended to our rv park in Council to enjoy a cold Dale’s.

June 30

Yesterday was Day 51 and we found ourselves in Hell, the canyon that is. A beautiful yet hellish and unforgiving terrain that makes it hard to imagine how the early settlers/explorers made it through here establishing the Oregon trail. We started the day on a nice yet bumpy 20 mile rails-to-trails path to get off the busy highways. From there, we climbed and descended into Hell’s Canyon with some breathtaking views as we crossed the river into Oregon! We stayed at a nice oasis of a campground and had another river dip to cool off.

Monday, July 4, 2022

Idaho/Montana: Into the Big Skies

June 21

We finished day 42 after 75 miles. We biked over Teton Pass, a monster 2000ft climb at 10-13% grade. We met some folks riding the Continental Divide Trail at the top. After the descent we entered Idaho! There we cycled through a few small towns and vast hilly farmlands. We still had magnificent views of the backside of the Tetons most of the day. We ended at a nice and quiet campground along the Warm River.

June 22

Day 43 is done and we are now in Montana. We rode another century today. We decided at lunch at mile 30 to go for it. We really had perfect conditions. After summiting the pass at the border we had a nice downward slope for the next 50 miles including a 10 mph tailwind. We averaged over 15 mph for the day, our fastest day of the whole trip so far. Aside from the first 20 miles in the forest, the road were pretty crappy. A poor shoulder/bike lane with lots of traffic. Hopefully we will have some quieter roads coming up.

June 23

Day 44 finished off with 72 miles with the last 30 into some strong headwinds. The wind giveth and then taketh away the next day! We rode through a couple historic towns, Virginia City and Nevada City which was nice. Then later we had crappy shoulders and busy roads. So far I am not very impressed with Montana cycling conditions. We road with this guy Russ for much of the day. He is a strong 70 year old rider, used to race back when he was a young 60 year old! He is biking to Oregon as well but then turning around and cycling back to the East coast! Also we don’t know why every farmer and home owner was irrigating their crops and lawns. In the heat of the day with 15-25 mph winds. Makes no sense to me and seems quite wasteful although we did periodically get a nice mist on the highway.

June 24

Day 45 and we are 3/4 complete on our journey to the Pacific. Today we had headwinds again but at least had some quiet roads. We rode 65 miles, over a mountain pass and into Big Hole Valley. Lots of mosquitoes at our campsite, staying at an American Legion Park in Wisdom.

June 25

On day 46 we climbed to the Lost Trail Pass at the border of Montana and Idaho. Then descended down Bitterroot Valley towards Missoula. We biked 95 miles and stayed in Stevensville at a local brewery. We woke up in the morning to 32 deg and frost on our bike seats. So it was a chilly start to the day. The first 30 miles were very quiet and pretty as we climbed up to the pass. We put on our cold weather gear again to descend as we had a pretty fast 15 mile downhill section. The road continued on down slope all the way to the brewery so we got in some good miles today. There is a surprising amount of traffic in Montana, luckily we had a separate bike path for the last 20 miles but certainly not peaceful.

June 26

We made day 47 a half day. Biked 42 miles up Lolo pass to stay at a hot spring ”camping cabin”. Took a dip in the hot spring pool, had a nap, ate a couple of times at the restaurant, and watched the Avs win the Stanley Cup on the laptop! We met a number of East bound cyclists. They all ask about the dogs in Kentucky. Anita drove off to visit her cousin for the day/night. We will meet her tomorrow at an Idaho campground.