May 28 update

I haven't posted in several days because there was no internet available and I was pretty tired each day.

Here's a picture of the inside of the Log Cathedral in Buckhorn. It seats about 800 people, but currently there are only about 60 members. The co-pastors, Tom and Gail Burns, let me stay in the fellowship hall, invited me to dinner, and washed my clothes. Tom also played the guitar and we sang a few songs. Thanks again Tom and Gail!.

When I got to Booneville, the valleys started to open up a bit, to the point where you could work the ground with a tractor instead of a hoe. I am so glad to be out of eastern Kentucky. The poverty and trash everywhere was quite depressing, and the hills were endless. As I've progressed westward, the land has become rolling and I've spent a lot more time up on ridgelines  than in valleys. There have still been a few tough climbs and a lot of short steep hills, but the climbs are not endless gutbusters and you can get up a little momentum and stand and climb over a lot of the short steep ones. It's still pretty hard days though. We only average about 11 miles per hour and there has been a good head wind for the last two days.

I camped behind a fire station in Berea on Friday night where I met a fellow traveler from Western Canada named Ian. He's a little younger than me (55) and a strong rider. We have ridden together the last two days and tonight we are in a volunteer fire department in White Mills, Ky. This is great accommodations with shower and kitchen. Also my friend Malcolm is here. He took the Mammoth Cave option and met his dad there and arrived at the fire station just before us. So the three of us will ride together for a few days or longer I hope.

I feel like I'm getting a little stronger and I'm past the worst hills, so barring something unforseen, I should be okay for a while.

So now I'm going into the kitchen to heat up a couple of cans of Beanie Weanies for dinner, and then to bed.


Malcolm and Ian

Advice on my birthday

Coming by Little Robert's tonight after choir practice, and as usual, there is a crowd of young smokers sitting around outside in those ratty theater seats he has out front. It is an now incontrovertible fact that smoking is hazardous to a persons health and statistically greatly increases one's chances of developing life threatening conditions. Yet they still smoke. It makes me wonder about their outlook on life and their future. Of course, young people have always considered themselves invincible. That's why they make good soldiers, have more car wrecks, and in general make unwise decisions.
                                                   

   It was hard to pick an image to put here, the pictures of people smoking are just so unappealing.
   Thankfully it's not nearly a common as it used to be.


But I wonder if there is not more to it than that. I suspect that our culture has instilled a new level of nihilism in our youth that goes beyond the normal definition. That is, not only the skeptical and cynical view that life is meaningless, but also perhaps that the future is so bleak that there is hardly any point in trying to prolong it as much as possible. As of tomorrow, I become officially an old man when I turn seventy. So far I've had a good life, and mostly by just plain old good luck, I have, so far, avoided catastrophic events that could have  changed my life for the worse. And, at my age, barring the pitfalls of old age, I will probably get through the next 10 or 20 years leading up to the final event, without experiencing too much of the existential pressures that threaten the younger generations. Now, with the wisdom of my age, I'm going to offer some advice to the younger generations who are on the fast track to becoming as old as I.

I'm going to use an analogy to "Pascal's Wager" which, in a nut shell, advises that, whether or not you believe in God, if you live a good life, and you never find God, then at least you will have lead a good life and you will have lost nothing. But, if you live a bad life and it turns out that there is no God, then you will only have lead a bad life, but if it turns out that there is a God, then you will have lost everything.

This principle can be applied to almost everything in day to day life. If we believe that we have a future, and we act accordingly, then the chances are that you may have a future and that we may avoid the existential threats to all of our futures. On the other hand, if we continue to act as if we have no future, then, individually our futures are in doubt, and collectively mankind's future is in doubt as well. Two other bits of advice as well: Quit smoking, and no tattoos above the neck.

July 22 update

I don't have much to say about my ride today. I didn't take any pictures, although the ride was very scenic. We rode along a busy highway, a bike path lined with cherry trees and along side vineyards and hazelnut groves. This climate seems to favor flowers, especially petunias and roses, but also many other species I don't recognise. The farmers are harvesting wheat and the fields have more of a golden color than the grain fields at home.

Tomorrow I will see the Pacific Ocean for the first time, and we will travel over the headlands overlooking the sea. We have 3 big hills to climb, but not mountains, and all three of us are traveling at a more relaxed pace. We only have to do about 50 miles per day to finish Tuesday morning.  When we reach Astoria, we will take each other's pictures, I will go to a bike shop and arrange to have my bike shipped home, and  then make my way to the Portland airport. By Wednesday or Thursday morning I'll be home.

I did not get much sleep last night, I've found that I sleep much better in my tent than in a strange motel room. I tossed and turned most of the night thinking about my trip. I met so many nice people on this trip, and only a very few jerks. I've made some very good friends in Pat and Charlie. Pat and I have traveled together for over half the trip, and Charlie for only slightly less. I feel extremely lucky to have shared my ride with them. I could not have hoped to to have teamed up with a more compatible group. I think I would have finished the ride without them, but it would have been a long and lonely road.

I plan to have some post cards made from the picture of myself at the finish, and send them out with a note of thanks to a long list of people I have encountered along the way.  I hope I can express how grateful I am to them.

July 21 update

It's been over a week since I posted on my blog, and I've covered a lot of ground. I'm only about 200 miles from the finish at Astoria. Between not having internet service, and just being to tired to post, I have gotten way behind on my posting, but I'll briefly try to catch up.

On the fourteenth we got to Baker City, a town of about 10,000 people. We stayed in a very nice hostel just opened this year by a very hard working couple who seemed to have a lot of irons in the fire. We were pretty tired and the hostel was so nice that we decided to stay an extra day. The town was having a big celebration and parade the day after we got there so that was extra incentive to stay. We got so excited about the event that we entered the bed race after the parade. This was a one block sprint pushing a bed on wheels with a pretty girl in the bed. We took second place  in the event and our picture and the trophy bed now resides in a place of honor in the hostel. To be honest, there were only two entries, but we had the prettiest girl in our bed.

The next morning we had a long ride of about 75 miles to John Day, Oregon, where we camped in a park. Then on the seventeenth, we had a short ride of about 40 miles to Dayville, Oregon, where we stayed in a Church hostel. The town did not have any restaurants open, but the hostel had a kitchen, so I cooked cowboy stew for dinner. I guess it turned out okay because we consumed a huge pot full.

On the eighteenth, we had another short day to Mitchell, Oregon where we stayed in one of the nicest hostels of the entire trip. The hostel was run by a middle aged couple who were members of the Assembly of God Church. They had felt called to reopen this failing church as a Church for the locals and as a hostel for bikers and other passers by. The have done a wonderful job with the hostel upstairs in the old sanctuary and a kitchen and new small sanctuary downstairs. The couple, while not seeming to be  overly zealous, seemed to have a very strong sense of purpose.

One kind of funny thing  happened while we were in Mitchell. The only open restaurant in town sold beer, but could not serve it, however, the town allowed open containers anywhere outside in the town. We bought a six-pack and went across the street to the park to drink it. While we were there, a guy in a pickup truck drove up and went in to the restroom shouting for, what we thought at the time, his dog. He drove empty handed back down the street, and returned walking and shouting a few minutes later. As he approached us, he shouted "have you seen my wife", and with his hands spread out wide, said " she's A big girl". As he seemed a bit distraught, we denied any knowledge  of her whereabouts. She finally showed up, and with a less than stellar display of marital bless, they walked away. Well, it was funny at the time.

On the Nineteenth we had a long ride to Redmond, and on the next day we made our last big climb up to McKenzie Pass. This was one of the best rides of the entire trip. The 15 mile climb up from Sisters, Oregon was on a scenic road with vehicle size restrictions that allowed bicycles to use the entire lane. The last five miles to the top ran along side a lava field from an eruption some 1500 years ago. There were great views of Oregon 's big snow covered peaks. Then, at the top, we climbed to the old observatory where there were 360 degree views of the lava field and peaks.

For me, the best part of the day was the 3000 ft descent over 20 miles to the McKenzie river. This was a fast hairpin fall through what became an increasingly dense and shaded northern rain forest. The mostly huge pine forest of the East side gave way to spruce/for and western red cedar and then, on the lower scoops gigantic redwoods.

After the long descent, we camped in a National Forest Campsite beside a good sized stream. We were surrounded by the tallest trees I have ever seen. The campsite did not have showers, so we bathed in the cold creek, and I ate ramen noodles for dinner.

Today we rode 87 miles to Corvallis, Oregon, a big college town with motels and lots of good places to eat. By our standards, it's quite luxurious. We only have about 200 miles to go and should be finished by Tuesday. I may be at coffee at Ellie's on Wednesday morning!

July 13 Update

The internet connections have been a bit spotty, and I've been pretty tired, so I hve not posted in about a week. Here's where I've been and what I've seen.

Pat and Charlie and I are still traveling together, and we will probably finish up together. We all are of about equal ability and we spend a great deal of time drafting. Each of us takes about a ten minute turn at the front, while the other two have a slightly easier time following closely behind. We seem to get along pretty well, sharing war stories and talking about our families. I'm going to miss them when the trip is over.

We got to Missoula, Montana on the seventh. This is a bit of a milestone, because it is the home of the American Cycling Association, the organization that promotes bike touring and produced the maps we are using. Missoula is an interesting town, a lot like Asheville, NC with a mix of hippies and yuppies. It was very hot there, and I was glad to leave the next morning.

On the eighth, we traveled up the Lolo valley, a long but scenic up hill to the pass where we entered Idaho.We dropped down the other side into the Lochsa River valley and camped At the Lochsa Lodge. The next day we continued down the valley to Lowell on the Clearwater River where we stayed in a small motel.

The morning of the tenth, as we were traveling on down river, we stopped to speak to a 67 year old lady who was walking to North Carolina. She was pulling a small wagon and rough camping whenever she stopped. I felt ashamed to be traveling in such luxury. We continued on to Stites where we had the toughest climb we've had since we left Kentucky. After the climb, we traveled over a high prairie adjacent to the Nez Pierce Indian reservation. Almost all of the land was planted in beautiful golden wheat. We rode in to Grangeville, Idaho where we camped in the back yard of a warm showers host.

On the eleventh, we left Grangeville and after a fairly steep climb we reached a pass overlooking Hells Canyon on the Salmon River.  The descent down to the river was about as exciting as it gets. The 8 mile grade was as steep as 7% and extremely fast. The descent was on a major graded road with long sweeping curves. I breaked enough to keep my speed down to about 35, but I could have easily hit over fifty if I had the nerve.

Someone said that Helps Canyon is actually deeper than the Grand Canyon, but not as dramatic. It was quite spectacular, with high peaks on either side and the Salmon River along side of us. We camped that night at Riggins in a nice RV park. Even though it was hot during the day there, as soon as the sun set behind the high peak to the West, it cooled off quickly.

The next morning we had a 40 mile climb up the Little Salmon River to New Meadow, where we ate breakfast. We had a nice chat with the local coffee klatch characters at the restaurant. We got lots of conflicting advice. We moved on and after an 85 mile day, we spent the night in Cambridge, Idaho.

This morning We left Cambridge at 6:00, made a quick 15 mile climb and then had a steep winding descent into the Snake River Hells Canyon where we entered Oregon. We traveled along the river to Oxbow and then turned South and climbed about 12 miles to Halfway, Oregon, a pretty little town with a nice restaurant and a decent motel where we are staying.

We are now in Pacific time and we are leaving for Baker City at 5:30 in the morning. We have only about 600 more miles to go.

Snake River

Bell's Canyon Salmon River

Overlooking Salmon River, Hell's Canyon

Note the population

The Lochsa Lodge

July 6 update

Pat and Charlie and I got up early on the fourth, ate breakfast and headed out for an early 2000 ft climb. We rode for about eighteen miles on a moderate uphill grade, and then began the real climb of about 4 miles to the pass. After topping out the pass, we zoomed down to Virginia City, Montana. I thought this was the Virginia City of Bonanza fame, but someone corrected me on Facebook. It's actually Virginia City, Nevada in the TV show.

Going on down the valley there was evidence of gold and silver mining all along the creekside. We had a down hill slide for miles through a rocky canyon and then a straight downhill run into Twin Bridges. The grade was so gradual that we barely had to pedal for about 15 miles. Pat said it almost put him to sleep.

Pat had booked a room in Twin Bridges, but Charlie and I decided to push on to Dillon so that we would not have such a long day on the fifth. We had a tough time of it. It was slightly uphill for the 28 miles into Dillon, but the real problem was a mean headwind.

Charlie and I split a room in Dillon, Pat got up early and met us in Dillon about 7:00. As soon as we left Dillon, I knew I would be in for a tough day. We had a long moderate uphill climb followed by back to back climbs over two passes. By the time we reached Jackson, I was toast!

Jackson is not much of a town, just a few houses, a hotel/birdhouse where we stayed, and a cafe which was rustic, but had good food. The doors of the cafe were open and a couple of dogs wandered in and out. I don't really mind, I wish every restaurant were like that.

Here's a story my friend Cathy told me about a dog at My Mitchel State Park. She said, while waiting to be seated, a lady with a small dog asked the hostess if dogs were allowed in the restaurant. The hostess in a slow mountain drawl said: "I want you to listen very carefully. Could that dawg be a service dawg?" The lady thought for a minute, and replyed: " well I suppose it could be. " "Well come on in then" said the hostess.

We spent the night in the Bunkhouse dormitory, and got a good night's sleep, although we were awakened by a strong earthquake around midnight. I woke up well rested, and as soon as I got on my bike I realized I would have a good day. We rode to Wisdom, Montana, where 9 riders including ourselves ate breakfast, and then rode uphill through a beautiful wooded valley for about 24 miles, and then had a pretty steep climb up to Chief Joseph pass at 7400 ft.  From there we dropped 2000 ft over 9 miles to Sula, Montana and then had an easy downhill to Darby , where we are staying.

We are spending the night with a warm showers host along with 4 other cyclists who are staying here. The host is really going all out for us, cooking dinner, providing shower and beds for all of us. He's hosted 24 others in just the last few weeks. It's almost unbelievable how nice people have been to us and others we have talked to.

Godley skull bleaching?

Skull bleaching "quick service"

Our warm showers house

The bar where we rehydrated when we got to town. An old bank with a chainsaw motif

July 3 update

We had a good night in Lander Wyoming, a very nice couple put us up in their house and made sandwiches to take with us on our trip to Dubouis.

We had a hard ride into Dubouis, because the weather channel called for thunderstorms after lunch. We nearly got into town when the storm came in. I talked to my friend Malcolm who I  rode with earlier in my trip. He is ahead of me by about a day, and he got caught in the storm at the high pass we crossed the next day. He said it rained and hailed on him at the top of the pass, and he nearly frooze.

Once again, we lucked out. Pat found a motel, and Charlie and I stayed in the Episcopal church fellowship hall. They didn't have a shower, but their was a car wash, laundromat, and a pay shower down the street. We washed out clothes and paid for a shower, maybe the car wash would have been cheaper.

The next day we climbed to the 9600 Pass and then descended into the Grand Teton valley, and on into Yellowstone. We stayed at Colter Bay where they reserve sites for bikers even if the campground is full. We were worried about bears, but did not see any bears nor buffalos in the park. We did see a small herd of Elk right in our campsite, about 7 adults and 5 calves. The road into Yellowstone was uphill with hardly any shoulder, and the traffic was terrible. There's nothing like being passed by a huge RV pulling a car, driven by some old fart even older than me, when I'm going 4 mph and barely staying upright, while he is doing 55 and so close you can touch him.I

The next day we rode to Old Faithful where we stood with about 5000 other people waiting to see the next eruption. We ate some breakfast and then moved on to West Yellowstone. We had a good shoulder to ride on, but the traffic, both ways, was even worse than the day before. Riding a bicycle through Yellowstone on the forth of July weekend is not for the faint hearted.

At the town of West Yellowstone, we stopped at the visitor center and asked the lady at the counter to help us find a place to stay. She said we could stay in her back yard, but she lived in Idaho, so we asked for something closer. She found us a small RV park right in town, and we were glad to get a place to stay there.  The town was a typical tourist town, but we found a good restaurant, with cold beer and good food. We had plenty of both.

Today we had a great ride to Ennis Montana. We rode 74 miles, but it was almost all downhill with a tailwind. We are camping behind the Willies Distillery. No shower, no restroom after closing, but there's shade and grass.

The library was closed, so I walked across the street to an insurance agency and asked to use their internet. The owner offered me a chair and a beer and said have at it.

Tomorrow morning We have a tough 2000 ft climb in the first eight miles, so we will get an early start. I tend to struggle in the early morning, but I'll get over the pass if I have to walk.

I don't want to over stay my welcome, so I will post some pictures on this post later.