7 Day Coast Post

Sorry it has taken so long to write another blog post. I have been having too much fun and meeting many interesting people. Expect a very complete trip report sometime in June. I am writing this exhausted on a phone before bed, so there's no way I can cover 7 full days of Oregon.

After 7 days I have logged 410 miles and my legs feel pretty good. The worst day was my first day when my legs hadn't adjusted from the long train ride. My longest day was 95 miles and my shortest day 43 miles.

The weather has been incredible. It was uncharacteristically sunny and warm with a tailwind for six days! It stormed today and I am currently drying everything out. The forest is incredibly green and the size of the trees here blow my mind (how will I react to the redwoods). I realized very quickly that I can't take every picture worth taking or I would never get anywhere! I have had campsites alone, steps away from the ocean and tucked deep into the woods. Very few other cycle tourists this time of year so I am enjoying the solitude. I am sleeping very well with the ocean soundscapes!

I am in Bandon OR and should be about 2 days from the California border. I appreciate the support and concern from friends and family. I feel safe and comfortable riding. I find confidence and good hand signaling are the best method to prevent passive aggression in drivers. I can't wait to share with you my pictures and experiences soon!

Pacific Coast Tour

I am now a college graduate and the reality of it all has not yet sunk in. I am writing this from a train car somewhere in Eastern Washington waiting for the trip of a lifetime, so it seems reality will have to wait just a little while longer.

Graduation day was a success and the giant exhale after receiving the diploma came with some unexpected emotion. There is no doubt the degree was hard to earn, but I believe Michigan Tech prepared me well. I will miss the friends and professors, but I thank them for the experiences that made it so enjoyable.

My next adventure is a bicycle tour from Portland, OR to Fort Bragg, CA. I will follow hundreds of miles of Pacific Coastline and travel through the redwood forests. Each day will be roughly 50 miles of riding with no daily stopping points certain. I will be using Adventure Cycling maps 2-3 on this ride.

It is inspiring watching America transform from southern WI bluffs to never ending plains and eventually snow-capped mountains outside my train window. I have been in the same seat nearly 44 hours and have been constantly captivated by the scenery. I met a retired man from Chicago heading west to visit his brother. We shared stories and set aside the rivalry to experience the sun set over Glacier National Park.

We are almost to Portland where I will assemble my bike and kick off the station. I will spend a few hours experiencing the town and then head to my first campground 1/4 the distance to Astoria. People are asking why am I biking and why alone. I guess I am not exactly sure, but Ernest Hemingway got it pretty close.

It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them. Thus you remember them as they actually are, while in a motor car only a high hill impresses you, and you have no such accurate remembrance of the country you have driven through as you gain by riding a bicycle.

~Ernest Hemingway

I want to thank my family and friends who have been so supportive throughout college and preparing for this trip. I will be safe and I will have fun!

I will add pictures soon.