Sound to Sea with Adventure Cycling

Adventure Cycling tour, Aug 3 - 16, 1997

Tour Roster (left to right):Jean-Philippe Genon, Vannes, FranceTom O'Brien, Portland, OregonJean M. Silverio, Willimantic, ConnecticutAbigail J. Wahl-Genon, Vannes, FranceVicki Crum, Frederick, MarylandRon Etzel, Beltsville, MarylandJim Wilson, Reno, Nevada, (Leader)

Our route was from Seattle, WA to Eugene, OR. The tour was a fully self-contained, we carried all camping and cooking equipment on our bikes. My bike weighted 88 pounds which made every rise a hill. Before the tour I had replaced the small front 30 tooth chain-ring with a 26 tooth, giving me a 23.4 inch low gear. This new lower gear came in handy. I also replaced the 27 X 1 1/8 tires with 27 X 1 1/4 tires, giving me a little more rubber on the road.

I took this self-contained tour to gain experience as all my past tours have been credit card tours, motels and restaurants. In fact the leader, at our pre-meeting, asked each of us for one word to describe what we wanted from this tour. Mine was experience. I learned how to shop and cook for seven, how to do wash on the road, how to plan your day so that you get a camping site and lots of other little things, all of which make for a successful tour.

A quick summery of the tour would be: The best weather you can have, new friends, beautiful scenery, fine cuisine, great leadership, hard work and a wonderful time.

Itinerary:

• Day-1 I took Amtrak from Portland to Seattle and then rode to the Hostel - 3.79 miles.
• Day-2 Seattle to Twanoh State Park - 26.27 miles.
• Day-3 Twanoh SP to Elma (City Park) - 57.00 miles.
• Day-4 Elma to Lewis & Clark SP - 60.00 miles.
• Day-5 Lewis & Clark SP to Cathlamet (Marv's RV Park) - 39.66 miles.
• Day-6 Cathlamet to Warrenton, OR (Kamper's West RV Park) - 67.25 miles.
• Day-7 Layover day - 26.60 miles.
• Day-8 Warrenton to Nehalem Bay SP - 51.30 miles.
• Day-9 Nehalem Bay SP to Cape Lookout SP (Tillamook) - 43.39 miles.
• Day-10 Cape Lookout SP to Devils Lake SP (Lincoln City) - 45.63 miles.
• Day-11 Devils Lake SP to South Beach SP (Newport) - 33.72 miles.
• Day-12 South Beach SP to Honeyman SP (Florence) - 87.00* miles.
• Day-13 Layover day - 24.40 miles.
• Day-14 Honeyman SP to Eugene (Ramada Inn) - 74.08 miles.
• Day-15 Eugene to Salem (Tom only as I rode home) - 68.12 miles.
• Day-16 Salem to Portland (Tom only as I rode home) - 63.29 miles.

* = I was the swift rider for the day and after securing our camp site for the night I rode back to meet the group. (swift rider = A rider sent ahead to secure a camp site)

• Total miles = 761.5 (including my ride home)
• Total hours riding = 66:46
• Average MPH = 11.41
• Average miles per day = 47.59

Meals on tour (dinner)

• Day
• 2 Chicken in cream of broccoli over rice, green salad, green beans, bread, cantaloupe
• 3 Fettuccine with Alfredo sauce, corn on the cob, green salad, ice cream with chocolate sauce
• 4 Spaghetti with meat sauce, green salad, bread, smores
• 5 Eat out - Pizza
• 6 Taco's
• 7 Chicken stir-fry over noodles, bread, fruit cocktail, chocolate pudding, smores
• 8 Eat out - Spaghetti with meat sauce
• 9 Omelets of your choice, muffins, fresh fruit
• 10 Hamburgers, fresh vegetables plate, chocolate pudding
• 11 Pancakes, bacon, apple sauce, chocolate pie
• 12 Steak or salmon, spaghetti with sauce of your choice, bread, cheese cake
• 13 Eat out - Chicken fried steak, potato, vegetable, salad, roll, blackberry cobbler
• 14 Eat out - Prime rib, potato, vegetable, bread, salad, mud pie When eating out you had your choice of items. We drank lemon-aid with our meals

Daily Log

Day 1

Lois (my wife) dropped me off at the Portland Amtrak station. I picked up my ticket and was told to get in line at gate 7. This gate was for special loading. I was the only one with a bike but there were a lot other people there. It turns out that the others were some kind of team who all wanted to sit together. This train arrived 20 minutes late. I rolled by bike, fully loaded, out to the baggage car. The baggage handles told me that they would load the bike and that I should get on the train. I told them the bike was heavy. Since the train was 100% booked and I wanted a window seat, I got right on. I found a window seat on the west side on the train and could look out and see the baggage handles struggling trying to load my bike. The train ride was very nice and with the cost of $18.50 for me and $5.00 for my bike very reasonable.

I arrived in Seattle four hours later and helped unload my bike. I checked over the bike and found no problems. So, all I had to do was to put on my riding shoes and head for my first stop. My first stop was Davidson's bike shop to look at their touring bike. I also wanted to visit the makers of the Erickson touring bike. But when I called there was no answer. My super bike, a Trek, was destroyed in a bike shop fire and I will received a insurance settlement. So I have been looking for a new bike.

Arriving at the International Youth Hostel I checked in a began meeting the others on this tour. We had a privet suit, if there is such a thing at a hostel. There were two bedrooms, each sleeping 4 persons, one bathroom, a kitchen and a meeting room-dinning room combination. Jim, our leader pointed to five piles of group gear and asked me to pick on. One had already been taken. Four of the piles looked ok, but the fifth was the " BIG POT." I took a stove and gas bottle. Vicki was last to arrive and all that was left for her was the " BIG POT." I must admit that she carried it very well

. After eating dinner out we all met back at the hostel for a meeting. Jim asked each of us to introduce our self's, give a little background and give him the one work the best describes what this tour will mean to you. We also pick a partner for cooking, clean-up and security. The three tasks would be rotated daily. Jim would help with the cooking everyday.

Addy and Jean-Philippe will shop and cook the first night while Jean and I will clean-up. Vicki and Ron will be security. I dreaded the thought of shopping and cooking, but it turned out to be the most fun. Who would have ever imagined that I would be cooking Alfredo sauce from scratch to go over Fettuccine. Of course the master (Jim) was at my side. Remember my word was "experience."

Jim went over the route and some of the changes that we might like to try. This will be the fourth time that he has lead this tour. He talked about safety and gave each of us a reflective triangle to be worn on our self or our bike. Now it was time for bed and I am sure each of us had thoughts of what was ahead of us for the next two weeks before we fell asleep.

Day 2

Everyone was up early. We ate breakfast at the hostel. After breakfast we got our bikes out of the storage room and loaded them with all our gear. We soon realized that we could catch an earlier ferry to Bremerton then we had planned on. This being early will soon become the trade-mark of this group. If, the night before, we agree to have breakfast at 7 am we were all up by 6 am and pacing around the breakfast table by 6:30 am. We also found out that four out of seven were left-handed. For the first time lefties rule.

It was a very nice ferry ride but soon came the race from the ferry to the first safe place you could find before all the cars and trucks came after us. Bikes get to go first but the cars and trucks follow very soon. It is kind of a race to see if you can find safety before they find you. The ride to our camp for the night was only 26 miles and went all to fast.

After setting up camp at Twanoh State Park I went for a swim in the bay. The water was dirty but not to cold. The cooks general bought food, for the next 3 meals, at the last store of the day at 4 PM and dinner was around 6 PM. This gave time for the clean-up team to finish their task before dark. Breakfast was cereal, OJ, bagels, fruit and coco. Lunch was sandwiches, fruit and goodies. We would often stop of coffee in the morning. As you can see from above dinners were very good, we ate well. I will not go into shopping, cooking and clean-up each day as it did not change much. Tomorrow would be more that twice the distance we did to day so it was off the sleep.

Day 3

Jim had warned us that we would have a very steep but short hill at the start of today's ride. He was right. About 3 miles into to days ride came the hill. I was riding with Jean-Philippe and we were out in front of the others. Up the hill we went, it was as steep as Jim had told us. The sweat was starting to pour but we kept going. Around one bend in the road that around a second bend and we could see the top, which kept us going. At the top we high-fived each other as it was a challenging hill, around a 12% grade. As I rode on I wonder if everybody in our group would make the hill. I soon found out that they all did, congratulation. The rest of the day went well.

As we pulled into Elma we stopped at city hall to thank them for letting us camp in their park. Showers had been arranged with the local fitness club. We had grass to camp on, tables (4) for cooking and eating and restrooms near by.

Day 4

Today and the next several days we rode through dog country. While there were many dogs who came out after us none of the type that brought fear to you. There were the ones who were chained up and almost broke their necks as they would charge full speed at us and only be stopped as they ran out of chain. I have carried " Halt " on my bike for over 20 years and have never had to use it. If a dog really means business I usually get off my bike, put the bike between me and the dog and walk 100 feet or so. It is not easy to out run a dog when you a loaded.

Our camp today is at Lewis & Clark State Park. A very beautiful place with nice campsites. By the way we had hot showers every night. Some were on a timer, $.25 for 3 minutes. Three minutes were enough time if you moved right along.

Day 5

Today, for the last 20 miles of the ride we would experience our first real traffic. Cars, trucks and the most feared log-trucks. What made it even more difficult was a headwind as we headed west and the shoulder would almost disappeared on all the up-hills.. We would get our only rain today, but we really never got wet. The showers were in the morning and as a shower came overhead we always seem to turn away from it and never got under it. The one time it did start to rain we all stopped under some trees for 15 minutes.

Our camp was a RV park who let us camp on a grassy area. We ate out, pizza, to celebrate our survival of the log-trucks.

Day 6

We would start the day with another ferry ride and leaving Washington and entering Oregon. The roads in Oregon had a little better shoulder and many more cars, but not as many log-trucks. We had agreed to be on our own in Astoria for lunch, the first big city since we left Seattle. Ron, Jean and I stopped at a bike shop of air. In the shop I ran into Bruce a fellow competitor in our local Portland biathlon. Bruce was first overall at one biathlon that I was first in my age group. It was very good seeing him. Outside the bike shop I met Steve, a rider from San Diego, who was just starting on his tour down the coast. We would met many others who were touring the coast now that we were also on the coast. Then we went off the some clam chowder. As we sat at the restaurant I looked up to see Steve coming in so we asked him to join us. Without knowing any of the rides who were touring there was a instant bond between us all.

Camp was at a very large RV park that had a place along the river for tents. Jim had called ahead and reserved the best site. We would spend two days here, our first lay-over day of the trip. The park allowed us to use the sink in their laundry room to wash our dishes.

Day 7

This was a layover day. Those with similar interest went together to explore Astoria. I, being the local boy went out riding. There were several bridges that I had never been over so that is where I went. It was nice to have a day off to do wash and get thing pack where they should be. Over several days Jim found a reason to present each of us with a bike cap, it was a very nice touch.

Day 8

Today we started the swift rider plan. Sending someone head to get a camp site. Camp sites on the Oregon coast fill up early in the day. I was the first swift rider. I rode alone and ahead of the others. It was cool and with some fog. I reached Nehalem Bay State Park by 11:30 AM and was able to get a camp site, but not with out some problems. Every time the lady would give me 2 or 3 camp sites to look at and see if 6 tents would fit. By the time I return she had given them to someone else. On my third try I just picked one and them went to check it out. It was ok. The camp ground did fill up. Most of the camp grounds along the Oregon coast have Hiker- Biker camps and if you arrive on a bike they must take you. But since they charge $4.00 per person and there were 7 of us we were better off with a regular camp site for $16.00.

Day 9

We continued down the coast. It was cool with some fog but no rain. Today we would stop at the Tillamook Cheese Factory. A must stop. We toured the cheese making process but for me it was the ice cream that I stopped for. We camped at another State Park.

Day 10

Most of today was on back roads and it was welcomed. There was on stretch of 10 miles that we had only 2 cars pass us from behind. Again being the local boy paid off as I told the group about the Otis Cafe, home of the best blackberry pie there is. Otis is a town of 25 so it is easy to miss. Our camp was another State Park, right in the middle of Lincoln City.

Day 11

We were back on highway 101 again. There was one place that we tried to take a side road but it was closed due to a washout from heavy rains early in this year. We were able to take part of it later down the road. Our camp was at South Beach State Park. Camped next to us were two very nice people, David Bible and Judy Mac Donald from Eugene, Oregon. They took some of our food and kept it in their refrigerator, made coffee for us in the morning and were just nice to talk to.

Day 12

I was the swift rider again and this time I received $5.00 to buy breakfast along the way. This allowed me to be on the road by 6:30 am. But I missed the coffee made by our neighbors and I heard it was great. Again it was cool and there was some fog. I stopped in the town of Yachats for breakfast. I picked this town because it would also be where Cycle Oregon 10 would end this year. As I sat down for breakfast the waitress asked me right off if I was going to be one of the 2000 rides on Cycle Oregon 10. She said that they are ready us all. What we both did not know was that the last day of Cycle Oregon would a nightmare, see day-7 on the Cycle Oregon 10 page. Our camp tonight would be at Honeyman State Park, a very popular place. I arrived at 11:37 AM and was able to get a camp site for the night. I could get it for two nights as this was to be our second layover place. The place filled very fast and the next day being Friday they were full for the weekend.

I found out from Jim that I was the only one of his 4 Sound to Sea tours who were able to even get a site at all. On the other tours they camped in either the Hiker-Biker or the group camps. Both costing more money. I had talk to the rangers about keeping us in mind for any kind of site the next day, but I got the feeling that I did not make much of an impression. Later when Jim got in he talked to the rangers and they told him that they would have someplace for us on Friday. Some of us have it and some of us don't. After setting up my tent I rode back to meet the others. This would give me my longest day, 87 miles.

Day 13

Today was a layover day but we did have to move camp. We were give camp site A-4, right on the main road and it being Friday with over 175 reservations coming in tonight we were in for a noisy night. But that aside we had a place to camp and that was a relief. After moving Jim, Ron and I went into Florence for lunch at Mo's, another must if you are on the Oregon coast. After lunch we walked around town and then went our separate ways. I rode out of town along the river and just enjoyed a warm and sunny afternoon. Dinner was eaten out.

Day 14

This was the longest day of the tour, 74 miles. But by now we were tough. Breakfast was eaten out on the road at Gingerbread Village, "Where the Elite Meet to Eat." Great cinnamon rolls.

The road was very busy at times and we had one tunnel to get through. At the town of Noti we had a choice of a longer back road or stay on the main road. It was a no brainier, we all took the back road. It was a very good choice as it was quite and had some shade. Soon I could tell the Eugene was within reach and I began to get that end of the tour blues, but on the plus side was, a real bed and I still had two days to ride home. At the motel we showered with all the hot water we wanted, turned in the group gear and put our wet camping gear out to day.

Our final dinner was out. We had money left over, as we were under budget most of the days so he had a most wonderful meal. I will not go in to it all but it was first class. All to soon we were saying our goodbys and turning in for the night.

Day 15

Our group went may different direction today. Jean took the early train for Portland. Addy and Jean-Philippe took the later train for Portland. Vicki headed for the airport in Eugene. Ron rented a car and headed for the airport in Seattle. Jim drove home. I got on my bike and started riding up I-5 towards Portland. Ron would pass me and give my that friendly honk bike riders like to here. I would take two days to get home. Today it would be to Salem and I would be there in no time as I had a great tailwind.

Day 16

I would leave I-5 and take the long way home through Newberg. This was because I-5 had construction and there are places that are just unsafe when you are riding a bike that is load with all the stuff you need for a self-contain tour. Soon I was home and looking forward to Cycle Oregon Ten.

After touring alone so much of the last 3 years it was fun to have fellow riders along. Also must of my touring was on I-5 going south, and therefore I would not even see another rider and on this tour we ran in to many others who were on they own adventure. Many along the Oregon coast.

I will repeat my quick summery of this tour. The best weather you can have, new friends, beautiful scenery, fine cuisine, great leadership, hard work and a wonderful time. If you want to get a taste of a fully self-contained tour take this one. I now fell ready to go coast-to-coast in 98.

If you find mistakes in this text please send me an e-mail.