Denver to the USA Northwest
Mountain Biking and Hiking
The last couple of days have been in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area (and Wilderness) and it's a delightful area. North of the glitz of Sun Valley and a completely different place. The very headwaters of the Salmon River, just a little trickle up at the top of the valley, and quite an impressive river as you approach Stanley, just 30-40 miles later.
I had a wonderful mountain bike episode at Fisher Creek/Williams Creek - A big climb up a dirt road followed by miles and miles of beautiful singletrack winding around mountains and down canyons. And it was without the trailer, which was quite an experience.
Yesterday I went for a hike to Sawtooth Lake and Alpine Lake, just inside the Sawtooth Wilderness area. They're beautiful alpine lakes set up in the incredibly rugged Sawtooths. But the views on the way up there! I'll look forward to posting them for you when I get to a computer where I can do that.
Route Change: I'm Missoula-bound
I was planning to work my way up the western side of the state to Sandpoint, but a guy in a visitor info center convinced me that following the Salmon River down and then going to Missoula and approaching Sandpoint that way is better. And the 150 miles of downhill was kind of attractive :-) So I'll be in Missoula in about 3 days.
Amazingly Nice People!
I hope you're following along on the Thanks page, because there are some awesome people on there!
On just one day, July 15, I met these people:
- 30 young Yale students riding their bikes 4000 miles across the country to benefit Habitat for Humanity.
- John and Shiree, Forest Service Pine Beetle Researchers, chatted and shared their lunch with me on Galena Summit.
- And Wade and Twila Ficklin and their kids thought about me on their return trip from Stanley and stopped to buy a gatorade and popsicle for me, and then stopped on the road when they found me and gave them to me and we chatted! How's that for thoughtful!
Jeff Palmer says: If you're ever feeling depressed, go for a bike tour. It will cheer you up. He's right!
190 Miles of Downhill! The Salmon River
Well, I got on the Salmon River at its headwaters near Galena Summit, and liked it so much that when the guy in Stanley tried to talk me into continuing down it and going to Sandpoint via Missoula, I fell for it. What a beautiful valley! Especially the Sawtooths.
But can you believe that the salmon (fish) are still making it back here from the sea in small numbers? There aren't many left, but there are a few hatchery fish now that make the *900* mile journey up the Columbia and to this valley. It's astonishing. I didn't see them, but they're coming.
Hiking and Mountain Biking
I've been pretending that Nancy was here and doing some things besides just riding all day. On Friday I rode out to the trailhead and hiked up to Sawtooth Lake, a glorious alpine lake not far from Stanley. I can't wait to show you the pictures.
On Thursday I rode an incredible mountain bike loop north of Galena Summit - the Williams Creek/Fisher Creek loop. You climb up a steep uphill on a (poor) road and then have miles and miles and miles of downhill on very-single singletrack. An awesome ride. Highly recommended.
And yesterday I hiked up to an amazing hot spring called Goldbug Hot Spring. It was a steep climb, but when I got there I found steaming streams of water going into many pools and just rushing out of the mountain. You would have liked it! And a great temperature, too.
The High Cost of Gasoline
Well, I did it again yesterday. I pulled into a gas station in Salmon and pulled out my credit card and filled up the tank. Thirty Cents charged to my credit card. I'm sure it didn't used to be that much!
(What do you suppose they think about those 30 cent charges? Do they know they're bicycle tourists filling up their stove cannisters? Sure must look odd.)
River baths are just as good...
Well, having sampled the Salmon and the Flathead Rivers, I've decided that river baths are as good as showers, when you can get one. So you *don't* have to find a pay shower, if there's a river (minus a mosquito buildup) handy.
Sleeping by a railroad track
I have slept near a railroad for several of the last few nights. The first night I was very near the tracks. So here are some tips:
- Never pitch your tent on the tracks.
- Even if you obey #1, you still need a vibration-activated flashing light in your tent that says "YOU ARE NOT ON THE TRACKS". That way when the train starts rumbling your way you don't have to jump out of the tent.
Preparedness vs Travelling Light
Over by Missoula I met a bike tourist going east who was only 6 days out of Seattle! He was going 110 miles per day, if you can believe it. He had a road bike, just rear panniers, no stove ("I eat cold food") and looked really light and fast. (It looked like he had tent and sleeping bag and nothing else!)
It got me to thinking about the tradeoffs we make. I'm carrying 60-70 pounds of gear and food and can stop wherever I want. I have a much heavier rig. I can go on dirt roads. I can go cold places. He can't do all those things. But he can sure travel fast. It made me a little envious. I'll have to try it his way sometime.
Tired! Time for a day off!
Well, I've been moving down the rivers (Flathead, Clark Fork, Pend O'Reille) for days at a pretty fast pace - 80 miles some days. But today I climbed up and over a divide and felt fine on the climb, but lousy on the descent. I just wanted to go sleep somewhere. It was hot (really hot up here!) and a hard day. I think it's time for a real day off. So tonight I'm at a motel in Colville, Washington, and tomorrow I think I'll just ride the 8 miles or so to Kettle Falls and find a place to camp there. Then comes the big climb.
Bike tourists going my way!
Hey, for the first time in 1900 miles, I ran into two bike tourists going my direction! I was just getting to the top of Sherman Pass, a 4000+ foot climb (big!) and here they come by me, sprinting. I thought, of course, that they came up the whole pass at that rate. But it turned out they were sprinting to the top :-)
Chris Kval (from Connecticut) and Patrick Stevens (from England) are just getting to the end of their cross-country routel. They both rode from Virginia to here on Adventure Cycling's Trans-Am route. Patrick had already ridden down the east coast of the US from Montreal. Chris is nearing the end of his adventure, but Patrick still intends to ride down the west coast to at least San Francisco.
Anyway, we camped together last night and it's awfully nice to have some good conversation!
Incredible Northern Cascades!
I'm still riding with Patrick and Chris, up into the North Cascades National Park and scenic highway. It's a 3500-foot climb up Washington Pass, yet another of the big humps we've crossed in Washington. But glorious.
On the way up it looked like forest fires and their smoke were going to make our passage less than picturesque. It was just plain smoke as we left Winthrop; the sun was a red ball in the sky at midday. But it cleared with the afternoon, and we climbed into incredible sharp glacier-cut valleys.
The valleys are like none I've ever seen: There was no obvious pass out of the huge, jagged, glacier-cut cliffs all around us. But at the last moment the road cut up the side of one of the cliffs and over a knoll into a higher valley. The knoll was Washington Pass. It's incredible, though - the mountains were still steep on every side. It's not like the passes I've crossed before!
On Friday we spent most of the day hiking some glorious trails that gave us huge (and mostly smoke-free) views of the Cascades, incredible endless mountains. One set of peaks was completely enclosed with a glacier.
Finally we started down the mountain at about 4:45pm. We'd eaten all our food, so had to make it to the next town, 37 miles down. When we got there we found the store closed so Patrick led and we drafted and really screamed for the 15 miles to the next town as darkness closed around us. A glorious day.
THE SEA! WE MADE IT!
After a wobbly-legged 75-mile ride yesterday we made it to Anacortes, Washington, and the SEA! The goal of the journey. Here we are.
Today, Chris, Patrick and I are going to take the ferry out to the San Juan Islands for some light cycling.
And Nancy arrives here on Wednesday!
Nancy Arrives!
Nancy got to Anacortes on Wednesday and was I ever glad to see her! We had a wonderful dinner out with Patrick and Nancy's old school friend Rainer. We stayed at the incredible Autumn Leaves B&B. What a change from camping! And when they heard Patrick was going to go camp in the park, they invited him to stay, gratis, in one of their rooms, complete with breakfast in the morning! (Thanks, Roger and Jean!)
Orcas Island (by Nancy)
Well, we got on the ferry and went to Orcas Island. The ferry was a huge double decker car carring type. As we left the dock we entered into the San Juan Islands, which are many small islands which jet out of the calm waters of the straits of Juan De Fuca.
We arrive at Orcas Islands, named after whales which frolic in the protected bays. As we leave the ferry we start climbing. Who said this island is flat? We climb some more. Actually we will climb all the way to Moran State Park which is about 13 miles. But it is my first day touring and I am strong. We ride up the hills, past the blackberry briar bushes (which I keep on having to stop and eat)and down the scenic road. Incredible beautiful wooded forest with a few open pastures growing the organic fruits and vegtables. So many variations of green vegiatation and trees bath my artistic eyes with pleasure.
We stop and in town and buy groceries and a six pack of beer. And since this my first day and I am stong, I load it on my bike which adds 10 pounds or so to my already loaded bike. I sure like a cold beer after a good solid ride. We continue our upward journey to Washington Moran State Park.
We set up camp in the primitive camp area at a dilapidated Adirondak shelter. We where not suppose to set our tent up inside but since it is rainy we take a chance on staying out of the rain. It leaks though the roof as moss on the roof is not approved roofing material. The rain final stops and we go for a hike with our newest friends,David and Rob, two brothers who are also biking and staying the campsite.
What a wonderful stroll through rain forested paridise!
Moss hungs and clings to any and all things. Even the stone walls on the side of the road are not reconginizable because they have been plastered with this wonderful green growth of rich color and texture. I can not keep my hands off the trees, the rocks, the ferns. I manage to wander off taking photos and lose my way. When I become aware I wonder back to my last known location and wait for Randy and our two new friends, David and Rob. I am so glad to be here experiencing the great Northwest.
Today: On to Friday Harbor on San Juan Island, hopefully to see the beautiful sunset looking west toward Vancouver Island, just 4-5 miles away.
-Nancy
Ferries in the Islands
The ferry system in both the San Juan Islands (in the US - Washington State Ferries) and in the Gulf Islands (Canada - BC Ferries) is so easy I just wanted to write a note about it.
They're both all set up for bicycles. You just show up 10 minutes or more before the scheduled departure and roll your bike on and put it where they tell you.
Schedules are published on the web and in brochures that are widely available. Once you understand where the islands are it's really easy to figure out what gives.
Schedules for the Washington Ferries are at http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries/schedules/current/index.cfm?route=ana-sj&direction=west. It's pretty easy to figure out what's going on using the map. We spent about $15/person with our bikes for all the travel in the islands we wanted. Then we spent about another $15 to get over to Vancouver Island (Sidney) to get to Canada.
The Canadian ferry terminal is less than 5 miles from the Sidney terminal (on Vancouver Island) of the ferry from the San Juans, so it would be easy to just continue from the San Juans over to the Gulf Islands in one day. However, you might not want to miss Victoria and all its beautiful attractions just an easy and beautiful 20 miles south of both terminals. The BC Ferries schedule is at http://www.bcferries.com/schedules/southern/. We spent about $6/person for each ride on the BC Ferries. What a deal!
The Islands: A Bike Touring Theme Park
Enjoying the San Juan Islands on a bike is so easy it's almost like going to a bike touring theme park or something. We enjoyed it so much we spent most of two weeks on the San Juans and the Gulf Islands (the Canadian edition).
Basically, you can just roll your bike onto one of the many ferries going to many different islands. You don't have to box them up or in any way justify the fact that you're a cyclist. You just pay a small fare ($15 or so in the San Juans takes you round trip to all the islands) and roll onto the ferry. And you usually get to get off before all the cars.
Then, when you arrive on the island of your choice, you do a moderate ride to a campsite that works, where you'll often find hiker-biker campsites, which require no reservation. So you set up camp, watch the sun set, and maybe the next day go for a ride without your load, and then maybe move on to the next island... or maybe stay for another sunset.
Chris Kral, Freethinking Journalist
I had the great pleasure of riding with 20-something Chris through much of Waashington and out to the San Juan islands. What a delight to see an idealistic young person seeing the world, discovering himself, and actively pursuing a helping role in the world.
Chris has already finished university and done a 2-year stint in East Africa for the Peace Corps. And he's probably in Haiti right now with an open mind about staying there and working more in international development.
And he just rode all the way across the United States this summer, mostly on Adventure Cycling's Trans-America route, starting in Virginia and crossing to Colorado, then riding up to Montana and finally crossing the far northern parts of Idaho and Washington.
When you meet Chris he might give you his business card, with "Freethinking Journalist" emblazoned as his title. There's a cellphone, too, but no address because he doesn't have one right now. He's been riding across the country. But he's perhaps preparing a career as a writer. And he is in fact writing a column called "Across America" for the Fairfield (Connecticut) Citizen-News. I encourage you to check it out. The published version is still in Breckenridge, Colorado, so you can follow him through the rest of the country, just a little bit out of time. Go to www.fairfield-citizen-news.com, click on the "Living" section, and then you'll find "Across America" right on top.
Patrick Stevens: Attracting more attention than a baby or a puppy
Patrick decided to do something more ambitious than all his English mates who just went to Australia for their "gap year" out of university. He bought an entire bike touring and camping rig, got a (paid, fancy) berth on a freighter for America, and started riding.
Becuase his freighter landed in Montreal in March he had an inconvenient (naive?) weather start working his way all the way down through New England while it was still basically winter there. But he charmed everybody he met and rode to Virginia, then headed west on the Trans-Am route and crossed the entire country.
But his real secret: He's riding a revolutionary and incredibly comfortable-looking recumbent tricycle (take a look in the pictures section for a picture of his rig). Everybody he met on the whole trip had to stop and talk to him about it. When the three of us were riding together the tourists just ignored Chris and me and went straight to Patrick to quiz him about his beautiful recumbent. I've got to get one of those!
Now he's ridden all the way across the US (and more) and hopes that prospective employers will look favorably on a young man who can take on a project like that... and complete it successfully.
Of course, with a personality like his, he'll have no trouble finding good work or with enjoying it.
Kayaking on Galiano Island
We've always wanted to try out sea kayaking, and finally got our chance on Galiano Island, one of the Canadian Gulf Islands between Vancouver Island and the mainland. It was a delight, but we wouldn't have been ready for a 7-day adventure!
Our Colorado experiences have been entirely with whitewater kayaking, which is a completely different thing. It is (for us) usually a gravity sport, and can be quite dangerous. You're basically guaranteed to flip if you go in water that's interesting at all, so you *have* to know a few things about kayaking, like how to roll back up. And you *have* to have a bunch of gear, including a non-negotiable helmet and spray skirt (so your boat doesn't fill with water when the smallest wave hits).
Imagine our surprise when we rented a double kayak and basically needed no experience at all to use it. It didn't want to tip over. And the water in the islands is so incredibly calm that they wouldn't have even given us spray skirts if we hadn't asked (we never did use them... they were just along for the ride).
We paddled out, along little islands between Galiano and Salt Spring Island and enjoyed ourselves, stopping to watch and be watched by the seals and sea otters. It was all low key - anybody could do it, with no training at all. What a pleasure. And the pace we took it at was as calm as the waters we were paddling. Highly recommended.
But we did stress our elbows after two days... So we learned that if we want to go on a longer sea-kayak tour, we'll have to have our arms in kayaking shape, not just biking shape, or we'll blow out with tendonitis that will just halt a trip like that!