Day 30, 31 & 32 Nehalem, Cape Lookout and Devils Lake State Park.

June 23, 24 & 25

The Oregon Coastal Bike Route really is great to ride. Pretty much had a good shoulder all the way today and even with a lot of traffic on the road it wasn't uncomfortable. Yes the constant traffic noise does get to you and I know some cyclists wear ear plugs, but I would rather hear what is coming up behind me.

I didn't take many photos today.

I was looking forward to getting to Tillamook. Ever since I had started planning this trip I had heard about the Tillamook Cheese Factory and as Brett said "Tillamook sounds like fairy town name".

Well I got to Tillamook....rode right past the cheese factory. The car park was full of RV's all wanting to get their freebie cheese. The town of Tillamook itself is nothing at all like a fairy town! and I couldn't wait to bike through it. I did stop and eat a burrito from a mexican food truck though, and it was very, very good.

I arrived at Cape Lookout with plenty of the afternoon left, so it was good to catch up on washing and then sit on the beach and read my book. Brett was camping there along with a couple of others from the previous nights camp.

So here are some pictures of Cape Lookout State Park, just to give you an idea what the state parks are like. This one had a wee amphitheater for talks, all the state parks seem to run some sort of educational programs for adults and children and some even have stages for concerts.

Quite often the hiker biker site is located furtherest away from the amenities block, but that also means you do get lovely sites with no RV's right next to you crowding you out, and Cape Lookout was exactly like that. You can just make out my pink towel drying at my campsite amongst the trees.

Woke up bright and early, I knew today I had a couple of big hills to tackle and the first one was right after I left camp... 1000 ft climb over 2.7 miles. The hills are so different than the hills at home. These are long slow gradual climbs whereas at home most of the hills are a lot steeper and shorter. I didn't find the hills on this trip a problem at all, even with 20 kg on Birdy.

The road was pretty busy today...it was Saturday and there were a lot of cars with trailers, RV's and pickup trucks. Most seem to be carrying dune buggies and I found out why. I was passing through Pacific City and Cape Kiwanda and there are these sand dunes that people roar about on their dune buggies. 

They also like to park their cars all over the beach...the car park was also full to the brim. They did have a great brewery/cafe here...The Pelican Brewery and since I was really hungry I treated myself to an overpriced but very good burger.

The day was really warming up and I knew I had one more hill to get over, my water was running low so I decided to stop at Neskowin to top up my water. There was a store and this was where I had my only accident on the bike. Its an embarrassing way to come off a bike, well I wasn't even on the bike! I had passed the turn off into the store so pulled off the side of the road and wheeled my bike down a small grassy slope. There was a narrow gap and as I wheeled my bike through it, I slipped down onto a woodpile and Birdy fell on top of me! A lady came rushing over to help me get Birdy up and we were both fine. I did end up with a whopping bruise on my thigh but I think my pride was more injured.

So after that and getting water I headed off towards Devils Lake State Park on the outskirts of Lincoln City. I still had one more big climb to do and the temp was now hitting about 36 degrees. I passed a very odd sight, well I thought it was odd...pine trees growing out of the sand. It looked so weird to me.

I made it to the top of the last big climb and sat down at a view point to recover and eat an orange. A guy on a road bike cycled up and starting chatting. It wasn't long before he was asking me if I knew all about the gospel etc. Now I don't mind what people believe, but when I am sweating like anything, hot, tired and just want to eat an orange and to be left alone, I don't appreciate someone thinking they have every right in the world to tell me what I should believe. Theres a time and a place and this wasn't it!

Finally arrived into Lincoln City and stopped and got some groceries. A lady at the supermarket told me it was 98 degrees today which is nearly 37 degrees Celsius, so no wonder I felt a bit warm! Missed the tune off to Devils Lake State Park as per usual, but people are always so helpful when that happens. This was a very odd state park...right on the edge of the city and the hiker biker site just a vacant block of land up the top of a path, surrounded by suburban houses. But it did have lockers with USB ports, a bike maintenance stand, tools and Brett was there!

It was nice camping but being so close to town. There was a kite festival on in Lincoln City the next day so I decided to stay an extra night and check it out. There were huge kite displays and also displays of kite flying choreographed to music. Really enjoyed sitting on the beach for most of the day watching it all.

Christophe turned up at the campsite that afternoon so we all decided it would be good to have a pizza and beer evening around the fire. Another great reason to stay at Devils Lake state park...you can walk to the pizza place! I think it is often the people that you chat and camp with that makes a place enjoyable, just as much as the location.

Woke up to a drizzly rainy morning and a wet tent again. Quickly packed up and headed off down the road to South Beach State Park.

Day 27, 28 & 29.... Cape Disappointment, Astoria and Nehalem State Park.

June 21, 22 & 23

All of my riding at home has been on back roads and trails. I had never ridden on main highways or through urban areas until this tour.
Today I was heading to Astoria and over the Astoria-Megler Bridge. I had heard good and bad stories about the bridge and biking across it. With my lack of experience riding on roads I decided maybe the best thing would be to catch the bus from Ilwaco to Astoria...so for the grand sum of 50c I avoided riding over the bridge, which in hindsight I kind of wished I had now!

So today ended up pretty much being a non riding day. I had to pick up a parcel at the bike shop in Astoria, and since it was after lunch by then I decided to stay the night and explore the town a bit.
Got a bed at the Norblad Hostel and I can highly recommend this place..bike friendly, super clean, extremely comfortable beds and right in the downtown. I loved Astoria...some beautiful architecture, great micro breweries and quirky shops. I sat having a beer with some hipster dudes I met, hearing about life in Astoria and looking at a great view over the huge bay.

Had a great breakfast in Astoria, then headed off down the road. My goal today was Nehalem State Park...a nice easy 79kms. I love Oregon Highways...the shoulder is so nice and wide, lots of places to stop and look at views so it all made for a great days riding.

I stopped at Cannon beach for lunch. This is probably the first really touristy town I had been in, but given the time of year it wasn't that busy. But wow! the number of really bad souvenirs you can buy is overwhelming, probably a good thing I had limited room. The beach was very nice and I quite happily spent quite a bit of time munching on my lunch and people watching.

Next stop was Manzanita for supplies. I do like it when a State Park has a town not far away, means a nice fresh salad will keep until its time to eat. Had a couple of climbs but nothing major, and the views certainly made them worthwhile.

Also got to ride through the first of two tunnels. This was a nerve wracking experience....you press a button that lets cars know there is a cyclist in the tunnel, then you put your head down and pedal as fast as you can through and hope that you don't have a huge truck coming the opposite way. I think it wasn't so much the riding as the noise in the tunnel that made it kinda scary.

I really like Nehalem State Park..it wasn't the most beautiful place I had stayed in but I finally met some other touring cyclists! There were 5 or 6 other tents in the hiker biker site when I got there and a couple more arrived after me. I met Christophe from Montreal and Brett from Arkansas..these 2 guys were great and we ended up meeting up for quite a few nights after this.

Nehalem has a beautiful beach and we wandered down to watch the sunset. I realised while I was watching the sun go down...I couldn't remember the last time I just sat somewhere with such a good view and watched a total sunset.

Today I clocked over 1000 kms since I left Vancouver.

Day 25 & 26...June 19 & 20

I was really looking forward to today, only 64 kms to the coast. The coastal scenery so far had been beautiful...tidal mudflats, gorgeous bays and inlets, but I love the ocean and the sound of the surf, walking along the beach or just investigating rockpools.

The highway was mainly through trees, trees and more trees but it was nice easy riding. I met a woman on the road who was walking / running every state of America. She had already walked / ran across Canada! Her husband was driving the support vehicle for her, but in a few days he had to return to work and she would be on her own. I'm not sure how she was going to manage all her gear without the vehicle.
And I saw a woodpecker today. I first heard this noise and looked up and there he was up on a power pole. So cool.

Finally left the trees and got into some open country.

Arrived at Long Beach, stopped by the Visitors Bureau then headed along the cycle trail that would take me to Cape Disappointment. But first I had to do a detour and see the Pacific Ocean! 

I have to admit it was like a breath of fresh air being on the coast finally and in a funny sort of way the start of a whole new trip.

Had a lovely ride to Cape Disappointment State Park, mainly on the cycle trail. Saw three snakes though, but at least they were little!

This is a very nice state park and thank goodness for the critter lockers for food. The raccoons here are not afraid of anything and will quite cheekily stroll into your tent. I was the only one in the hiker biker site tonight, unless you count the millions of mosquitoes that kept me company. Went for a bit of an explore after dinner and found this beach full of wood and some interesting beach art type stuff. I have no idea how or where all this wood comes from.

Sea mist started coming in so time to head back to the mosquitoes and my tent.

I woke up to rain in the morning and a very wet tent again. I really wanted to explore Cape Disappointment so decided I would treat myself to a yurt for the night. I had wanted to stay in one on the trip at some point so this seemed the perfect time. Luckily they had one vacant...$75 for the night but at least I could dry out all my gear again, and not worry about getting soaking wet when I go exploring. I don't mind getting wet if I have a dry place to sleep.

One great thing about Cape Disappointment is they have a cafe with free wifi right opposite the park entrance, so after a good hot breakfast I headed off to the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse. An enjoyable ride up to the track even if I did get a bit lost again, then a very nice walk up the hill to the lighthouse.

Spectacular views from the lighthouse, I imagine on a clear day you would be able to see miles up and down the coast.

I wandered down the track via the Lewis and Clarke Interpretive Centre. I had never heard of these two gentlemen, but they were the first American explorers to cross the Western part of the USA. The centre is very interesting with big panels explaining the journey as well as other bits and pieces from the expedition. I spent a good couple of hours reading all about their epic journey. Right near the centre are the buildings left over from the old fort and battery.

Then I decided to ride to North Head Lighthouse.

When you come to a fork in the road with no idea which direction to take and there are no signs, its obvious you will take the wrong one. That's exactly what I did and ended up in Ilwaco. Not such a bad thing as that is where I need to be tomorrow to get a bus.

I have the Astoria Bridge to cross tomorrow and have decided to catch a bus across it, but I will explain more about that in the next post.

I enjoyed Cape Disappointment and the one night I was not in a hiker biker site...a whole heap of cyclists turned up!! I did meet them in the morning and hopefully our paths will cross again.

So its goodbye to Washington State and hello Oregon!