Day 7: Tuesday, April 11

Unfortunately, Greg's knee had been bothering him from the beginning of the trip, and this morning it really started to hurt. Rather than risk permanent damage, he stopped in Monmouth to catch a Greyhound back to California.

Shayne and I made it to Corvallis by late morning. The stretch between Corvallis and Eugene was amazing. The weather had become absolutely perfect. It was nice, sunny, and, most importantly, flat! That afternoon, we ran into two other Oregon bikers who were heading down to California.Late in the day, as we approached Eugene, it finally started to drizzle. Tonight we are staying in the Eugene International Hostel. While this is the first time I have ever stayed in a hostel, I am not that impressed with this one. Shayne, who has stayed in many hostels across the country, agrees with me. However, I was glad that we weren't outside in the rain.

Today was a really fast day. We rode over 70 miles averaging over 13 mph most of the way. Making it to Eugene marks a significant accomplishment in our trip... we have completed the first section of maps (only 11 more to go!) The next section begins with our first real challenge: the 5,324 foot McKenzie Pass.

Day 6: Monday, April 10

Today was a long, relatively uneventful day. This morning we took our time breaking down camp as we enjoyed the Pacific Ocean for the last time. We stopped at the several overlooks along the highway to admire the view.
After 30 or so miles, the route turned inland. We crossed several hills and the weather kept trying to rain on us, but could never really make up its mind.We rode close to 80 miles to Rickreall (just outside Salem) where we are camped at the Polk County Fair Grounds. After the long day, the hot showers here sure felt good! There are several shelters here that allow us to spread out our stuff so that it can dry overnight. It rained last night and drizzled a little bit during the day today. Shortly after we pulled into the fair grounds, there was a rainbow that appeared in the sky.
All three of us have computers on our bikes to keep track of distance, speed, etc. It has become a little competition to see who can set the top speed. Today, I broke my old record of 34.4 mph by clocking 37.5 mph. We'll see how long that holds...

Day 5: Sunday, April 9

Today was another light day. The MacDonald's invited us for lunch after Sunday morning meeting. Then we said our good-byes and rode about nine miles to Tillamook, where there was a cheese factory. The factory had a museum that we spent a good hour or so exploring. The route continued around Tillamook Bay. After a good climb up a pretty steep hill, we stopped at Cape Meares State Park, where there was a beautiful view of the ocean and a lighthouse. After 35 miles for the day, we stopped for the night at Cape Lookout State Park. While the sun had already set by the time we set up camp, this has to be the best camp so far. My tent is within 5o feet of the ocean, and I am able to fall asleep to the sound of the waves hitting the shore. Since tomorrow we will be heading inland, this is the perfect way to spend our last night on the coast.
This was the view from our camp:

Day 4: Saturday, April 8

All of our waterproof gear was tested today. We woke up to a light rain, and after spending an hour or so at the campground in Seaside hoping the rain would pass, we realized that this was to be expected in Oregon. Thankfully, Shayne bought a new bike jacket in Astoria, so I was able to borrow the other rain jacket that he had. It was a little big for me, but I would have been in big trouble without it.
The route today followed Highway 101 down the beautiful Oregon coast. Despite the rain, the scenery was amazing. Riding in the rain was surprisingly fun (once you were soaked, you couldn't get any wetter!) We rode almost 49 miles to Nel MacDonald's home where Sunday morning meeting was. They were kind enough to let us spend the night with them. When we arrived, they weren't home yet, so we spread out our gear to begin drying and then Shayne and I rode a couple more miles into Bay City. It felt so free to be able to ride without any extra weight.

Day 3: Friday, April 7

Today was a rather leisurely day. This morning we woke up to a delicious breakfast that Dan had prepared. After we said our good-byes, we spent several hours exploring the Maritime Museum (the official start of the TransAmerica Trail.) We also took advantage of the several bike stores in Astoria to pick up some last minute supplies. Then, of course, it was time for lunch. In the afternoon, we rode the 20-plus miles down to Seaside, where we spent the rest of the day enjoying the ocean.

Tonight, we are at a campground just south of Seaside. Despite the light day today, the gel pad has really made a difference. Tomorrow it will be in for a real test as we expect to do close to 70 miles.

Day 2: Thursday, April 6

After a good night's sleep on the soft and mossy ground, we woke up to more typical Oregon weather. No rain, but the sky was overcast and everything was covered in dew. Although the road from Rainier to Astoria followed the Columbia River, it definitely wasn't flat. I knew that even though these hills were nothing compared to the mountains that we would be crossing, they were still kicking my butt. Speaking of which, I bought a gel seat pad to aid in that department. It wasn't a permanent solution, but after almost 110 miles over two days in my bike seat, I was sore. We made it up to Astoria in the afternoon where we met Greg near the Columbia River Maritime Museum. Greg had been in Astoria for a couple of days and had met a gentleman who lived there named Dan. Dan was an avid biker and was excited to learn about our trip. He invited us to his place for dinner and the night and took us on a tour of Astoria. One of the first places we visited was the Astoria Column. After climbing the 164-step spiral staircase, we were met with an impressive panoramic view:



























This evening, we met the rest of Dan's family and enjoyed a meal with them. I am grateful to be able to collapse in a real bed again tonight. Tomorrow will be the first "official" day of our trip...

Day 1: Wednesday, April 5

We woke up early this morning to get started as soon as possible. After eating as much as we could from the continental breakfast at the hotel we started on our journey. The plan is to take two days to ride the 100 or so miles up to Astoria, Oregon where the official TransAmerica Trail starts. Astoria is also where we will meet up with the third member of our party: Greg. Less than half an hour into the trip, as we were passing the end of the runways at the Portland Airport, four fighter jets took off overhead. It was a perfect start to the day (almost like being at a ball game at the conclusion of the national anthem.)

Unfortunately, I also forgot the maps that I had printed out of how to get from Portland to Astoria. We got turned around a little in the city, but it didn't take us very long to figure it out. Crossing the historic St. John's Bridge was really cool, however, the eight inch curbs and narrow lanes of traffic made it an interesting experience.

The weather was beautiful the whole day. However, after almost 60 miles, I was exhausted. We set up camp behind a construction site in Rainier within view of the Columbia River.