I had Diana wait for me in Crescent City, CA. When I rolled into town I called and asked where she was. She was so fascinated by watching whales spout that all she could tell me was to "Come to where you're gonna fall in the water." I wanted to tell her that with water along the whole Pacific Coast, that wasn't particularly helpful. I finally got a street name out of her and we both got to see the whales together.
Our next stop came after the first big climb of the day, over 1200 feet. It was at Trees of Mystery. Here I am by a carving of an Indian called "End of the Trail."
Unfortunately, I was only 45 miles into a 106 mile day, and not anywhere's near the trail's end. I left there and immediately encountered a 1475 foot climb. All of this made for two harrowing descents that were thrilling and exhilirating.
I was tired but determined by the time we stopped in Orick, CA for a cool drink, but it took another two and one half hours to finish up. So tonight I'm trying to recover from a "mile high century" (almost 6000 feet of climbing and 106 miles of distance). Here's a profile.
Tomorrow's ride is 76 miles along the Avenue of the Redwoods. It should be beautiful.
Diana's Discoveries:
- Brookings, OR is the "Banana Belt" of the Oregon Coast because of a jet stream that keeps is particularly mild year round.
- Almost all Easter Lillies in US come from bulbs produced in Brookings, OR.
- Diana saw grave markers from the early 1800's in Crescent City, which specified where the settlers had come from. Many died young.
- In 1942 the Japanese bombed the Oregon coast with an incendiary bomb hoping to ignite wild fires. A wet year kept it from working.
- Jurassic Park II was filmed at the Trees of Mystery near Klamath, CA.
We love and miss you all. God's blessings to each of you.
1 comment:
Enjoy that ride, and those trees! I did the exact ride you did in my 20s, only backwards (that is south to north, not driving backwards!) and on a motor scooter. The corners you're going to encounter are going to be exhilerating. And careful of the pot smell as you approach Arcadia...! There's a great breakfast place for lumberjacks and fishermen in Arcadia, right on the water. Check it out!
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