Gil's Oregon Trail- Starting Out July 30th

Hello All! I've been riding a lot, mostly around Seattle, this past year. A personal goal has been to ride my bike every day. One challenge I've taken on is "the 2 mile challenge". Basically it means drawing a circle on the map with a 2 mile radius around your house. Now any destination ( Library trip, Shopping errand, Neighbor Visit, Etc.) within that circle should be do-able on a bike. Another thing that has helped me is signing up for the Cascade Bike Club's Bike Everywhere Challenge for the month of May. Then I found out about the National Bike Challenge which runs from May through September. These are good ways to appeal to your competitive side, even if you're only competing with yourself. Well, after awhile my adventurous side kept pushing my to explore new routes. It's been fun. You see a lot, when you are out in the open, and going a bit slower. For several years I've done group rides like the STP (Seattle to Portland) or the RSVP (Ride From Seattle to Vancouver and Party). Now I'm more interested in getting off on my own. Last year I put my bike on the train and rode down to Klamath Falls, Oregon and rode my bike up to Crater Lake and the Rogue River country. 

This year I decided to train down to Albany, Oregon and then pedal out to the Oregon Coast, then south to Reedsport, east to Eugene, and north through the Willamet Valley back to Corvallis and Albany.

Day one I got into Albany pretty late ( after 8). Nobody could point me to a bike route to Corvallis and light was fading fast. I found  highway 20 ( good paved shoulders) and by nightfall made the 20 miles to Corvallis. I pedaled to the far side of town towards Bald Hill ( lots of trails out that way), found a secluded spot under some oaks, and spread out my bed roll. I travel light : no tent, just a 36 " pad, a garbage bag for a ground sheet, my down bag, and a poncho in case it rains. I pick rain-free months.

Early in the morning I pedaled off on Hwy 20. Shoulders still well paved and wide. Couldn't find any stores open in the AM after I left Corvallis. The traffic started to get to me, though most people gave me room. I took a side road to Summit -Nashville-Eddyville. It was a good choice: no cars, scenic, and fairly flat (It followed an old railroad line). Along a few mile stretch the neighbors had turned old bikes into yard art with different color paint and decorations. I took it as an expression of encouragement to cyclists. I've got an idea now what to do with my old junk bikes. As I pedaled I saw 2 wild turkeys and a doe with 2 fawns.

Back on the the highway, things were worse: almost no shoulder and speed limits way too high (55 mph) for what was basically country road. Oregon has lots of old covered bridges it seems everywhere you go. I passed the Irish Road Bridge and Chitten Bridge. Maybe good places to hide out if a storm hit. Finally I got to Toledo, a little town close to Newport, I found a store and tanked up on sports-drink and snacks. From now on, if I see a store, I make sure I've got 2 bottles plus water ( 3 liters total). Road ( 11 miles) along Yaquina Bay to Newport was flat ( oyster country) and scenic but from noon on the wind blows strong from the ocean up river. This last stretch is used for the local marathon.

I got to the Newport wharves and got coffee and ice cream. The barristas wore great shirts " Be Positive-Love Your Life". On a dock in town I saw maybe a dozen sea-lions barking and swimming around. I went to "Mo's" for chowder. Really good! 

Getting across the long bridge over Yaquina Bay was hair-raising. I mentioned the wind. I made a mistake riding on the pedestrian ( a narrow strip about a foot above the roadway. Next time I'm going to stay on the road. They do have a good idea: there's a button for cyclists to push that alerts drivers that there's a biker on the bridge - hopefully they'll use caution.

From Newport, it's a short pedal (30-45 min.) to South Beach State Park. As a hiker/biker a campsite is $5/night (you're guaranteed a spot). This park has showers with free hot-water and a hospitality center with free coffee!

More to come...