Day 2: Rockaway Beach, OR to
Grand Ronde, OR
Distance: 84 miles
Climbing: 4,110 ft
Max speed: 40.62 mph
I rode off into a
misty morning in Rockaway, with the wind in my wheels, and a slightly light
feeling from having ditched the sad sandals. It was perhaps the only feeling of
lightness of the day…
As I made my way down
the beautiful Oregon coast, with its dark stacks of rock and its deep blue
ocean, past the famous cheese-making town of Tillamook and its damp, fetid
aroma of cow dung, it wasn’t long before the climbing started. And I suddenly remembered
how different it is going uphill with fully packed panniers on board, to regret
a number of the luxury and duplicative items in my bags (though not the
straighteners of course).
And while I allowed my
brain to plot and plan the pannier weight reduction scheme, and the Gamine
remained sullen and silent, I started to question even her presence on this
trip. Which was presumably enough to ensure that she at least stayed awake
today to deliver the stats.
It was around 60 miles
in, with my knees and hips in some considerable pain, and my feet swelling in
their shoes, that I started seriously to question whether I would complete the
day. Things looked pretty dire until I rolled into a gas station a few miles
later. Having sat in the shade for 30 minutes with a bottle of Melon Gatorade
and a mildly down-hearted disposition, I took a deep breath and stepped back
inside to buy some more Band-Aids for my fingers, when my beady little eyes
happened upon a small pack Advil on the same shelf, and the deal was done.
So, I’m not going to
make a “Tour de France” habit of it, but I have to say that those little
blighters saw me through the last 16 miles to my hotel, and some well-needed
rest…
Photos of the
beautifully painful ride uploaded – setting up link to make them available to
the right of this blog but wifi slow. For now, here is an example…
Me x
Hi Kat - John & I were thrilled to learn that you are cycling across the U.S. (again)! We will be keeping close watch on your journey. We have actually cycled much of the same route that you covered over the last two days - Manzanita, OR is one of our favorite places on this planet. Keep the coverage coming. Thinking of you and Big Hugs from NYC, Lisa
ReplyDeleteNothing wrong with better living through chemistry. In my world we call it Vitamin-I. Hope today is better and know you have a warm welcome at the end of it. --Val
ReplyDeleteHi Lisa, great to hear from you and John! I remember Manzanita. Last time we stayed at the Coast Cabins on your recommendation and it was probably the best place we stayed on the whole trip... Hope all is well, and would love to catch up with you in New York in October if you're around Lots of love, Kat xx
ReplyDeleteVitamin-I, I like it Val!!! xx
ReplyDelete