Selkirk Mountain Loop

Me and my two boys, Nate and Ryan, started a ten day tour today in Sandpoint Idaho. Today, we biked to Bonners Ferry ID. covering about 35 miles. This area is beautiful with Large lakes, pines and winding rivers. Last night we camped in Couer d'alane,ID. Tomorrow we will bike about 55 miles to Sanca British Columbia, crossing the border sometime mid morning. The panhandle of Idaho is really worth seeing if you have not had the chance yet. We will spend the next 5-6 days biking in Canada in some of the most grand scenery anywhere, again following lakes, rivers, and waterfalls, sprinkled with some farmland and forested hills. I cannot blog in Canada with 3g, so hopefully we can find some wifi. If not, you'll have to tune in about Wed. Of next week and we will be crossing the border again, this time in Washington State, biking through Mataline Falls and New Port before looping back in to Idaho again. When we are in Washington, we will be just north of Spokane. It's great to be biking with two of my boys. They are great company. I respect them both very much and I trust that the memories we create will be priceless. We are camping in an RV campground tonight. The wind has picked up and some clouds are rolling in. It will be in the 60's tomorrow and then will get near 80 on Friday. I will sign out for now. Jerry

Hills and more hills

Made it to the mountains. After a long climb and 54 miles, I made it to the base of Leggett mountain on Wed. Had no Internet service there, therefore I am sending this message for Wed. and Thurs. The mountains are wonderful. The redwood forests are some of the best I've ever seen. In them I see God's regal handiwork. The traffic has increased and the shoulders on the roads have decreased. It has gotten pretty dicey the past two days. It is also much hotter. It was 96 degrees when I biked into Willits, Ca. today. Willits is famous for the racehorse, "seabiscuit". This is where he was purchased and trained. The climb this morning up over Legget mountain was truely a real test for any biker. I can say that I am glad that it is over and that I survived it. It's all pretty much level and down hill into the Bay area from here. Kim is on her way to pick me up, so this is my last day of my bike tour. I want to thank you all for following me, giving me encouragement, and praying for me. It has been a wonderful adventure and experience. The campgrounds I stayed in were remarkably clean and comfortable. The people I met were awesome. The scenery was beyond description, the challenges great, the exercise stupendous. All in all, it was a fantastic biking tour. I look forward to next years tour. Come join me for all or a portion of it. I will post some pictures of this tour after I get home, so tune in again in a week or so. Kim and I are going to enjoy the Oregon coast for the next week. Signing off for now. Jerry

tailwind

Had a 15-20 mph tailwind pishing me today. Love those tailwinds. Biked 68 miles. Am saying in a campground on the avenue of the giants. I pitched my tent right under 3 massive redwoods. Who knows how old they are? It is beautiful in here. Very quiet and quite dark. Having chili for dinner. Pretty flat today, I do not miss the hills. On Thursday though, I will bike up over legget hill, 2000 feet high, the highest on the California coast. I will then drop down as I draw closer to the Bay area, where I will meet Kim on Friday. Started off with fog today but it burned off after an hour. Getting much warmer as I move further South. It was in the 80's today. Meeting more bikers every day. Quite a few of them here in California. They have all been pretty nice, and it's fun sharing stories of the road. Well, that's it for now. See you later. Jerry

Thick Fog

When I left Orick, CA. this morning the fog had shrouded the wholle area. I thought I would bike out of it after a while. However, after 47 miles of biking, the fog never lifted. At points, I only had about 35 yards of visibility. All I could do was strap on my lights, hug the shoulder as far to the right as possible, and keep peddling. Well, I guess I could have stayed put, but fog is common to this area and who knows how long I would have to wait. Anyway, the biking was uneventful today. I could not see any viewpoints and therefore I did not take any side trips. I am now in Eureka, CA. staying at a KOA campground. I think I am fairly close to 1,300-1,400 total miles so far. I passed through the towns of Trinidad and Arcata today. Humboldt University is in Arcata. There are numerous Victorian homes in this area. Hopefully, I will be able to get some pictures tomorrow as I leave Eureka. Tomorrow ai will bike through the "avenue of the giants", a huge redwood forested area. I think there is a redwood tree you can drive a car through that is supposed to very, very old (they say, 400 BC. Oh, I forgot to tell you, 2 days ago I biked through the segolilly capital of the world. I guess 90 percent of all sego Lilly bulbs come from this California farmland. All else is well with me. I am enjoying the adventure. Jerry

I conquered the hills

Got up this morning, filled my belly full of pancakes and went to attack the mountains. They were definitely long and steep. The climbs were exhausting but the descents were exhilarating. I basically drew my strength from the giant redwoods lining the roads, got into a rhythm of peddling and just kept moving. My pace on the steepest part was 3.8 mph, which is just a little faster than a walking pace. I completed 40 miles today and I am in Orick CA., a very small town of about 480 people. On my way, I biked through Elk Prarie State Park. I spotted a group of elk and stopped and watched them for a long time. I have a pair of binoculars with me. Thre were 5 big bulls, 4 spikes, and 12-15 cows. It was fun to watch them play and eat. One big bull was trying to come on to the cows, but they would have nothing to do with him. He bugled a couple of times, but the ladies were not impressed. Met a couple today who have been bicycling for 6 years. They met in Montana 6 years ago and they have been on the road ever since. They looked like they were in their mid 50's. He takes odd jobs from time to time to help finance their lifestyle. They basically live in a tent. They bathe in the rivers, and they simply replace their gear when it wears out. What do you think Kim? Does that appeal to you? (lol). The redwoods are magnificent. They average about 300 feet tall. The real big ones are about 370 feet high. They are inspiring. I think of their centuries of spreading their roots deep in mother earth while branching upward into the heavens, inch by inch. If they could speak, I think their wisdom would astound us. It is Saturday and I will be taking a rest day tomorrow, so you will not hear from me until Monday evening, as long as I am in an area with Internet service. Until then, stay happy. Jerry

Sunny day

It was a beautiful, sunny day. I biked 42 miles today and stopped in Crescent City CA. I stopped just short of the set of steep mountain ranges. I am staying in a campground right at the base of the Crescent mountains. Tomorrow, I will attack them with fresh legs. Because the visibility was so good today, I really enjoyed biking along the coast. At one point, I saw hundreds of seals and sea lions sunning on the rocks. I also saw thousand of birds nesting on huge rocks just off the coast. I also saw 5 golden eagles today. That was awesome. Tomorrow I also enter the giant redwood tree areas of Northern California. For the next several days I will get to bike amongst the giants. I am really looking forward to the fabulous redwood forests. I have only seen them in books, and it will be a real treat for me to see them up close and personal. As I said earlier, "God's creations speak to me". To ponder their intelligences and to know that they work into God's plan of justice is just incredible to me. The forecast is for more good weather the next 5 days. Hope that holds true. That's it for now. Jerry

headwinds

Encountered some stiff headwinds today. Not only do they slow you down, but the fatigue factor is significant. That, along with several challenging hills, made for a hard day. Biked 62 miles to Brookings, the Southernmost city in Oregon. I will cross the California border fairly early tomorrow morning. And then, more hills. The Northern California hills are the highest and steepest on the West Coast. I am a little intimidated as I read about them. They say there are bicycle saddlebags on the side of the steepest roads. I think that is folklore, but it underscores the challenge ahead of me. After fighting the headwinds and hills today, I asked myself for the first time, "What the heck am I doing out here?" Kim is going to meet me around San Francisco a little over a week from now. We are then going up the Oregon Coast together by car, head over to Portland and then drop down into Boise to see our daughter Tawnie and her family before heading home. So, it looks like I am going to cut my tour a little short so that Kim and I can spend some time together out here. She has always wanted to see the Oregon Coast. No rain the last three days. It's been great and I have finally witnessed the beauty of this wonderful place. Well, wish me luck on the big hills tomorrow. Jerry