August 3, 2019
8/3/19 - Cathlamet to Astoria, OR
OREGON
Last night I reconfirmed with Astoria host, Steve, for tonight. All set, and he says that other cyclists will be there too.
The ferry ride from Cathlamet to Astoria was nice. Ran about 15 minutes, similar to the St Johns River Ferry in Mayport, FL. Only about 11 cars rode this morning. Brian, the attendant, told me it can hold 24 if they pack them in, and that the previous one held 12. He also said I’ll have a pretty long climb starting a couple of miles after disembarking, but that the rest of the way to Astoria would be all downhill. That was mostly accurate, just a few rolling hills on the “all downhill” section.
Stopped at an estate sale and found the perfect upholstered rocker. Just the right fit, color, and comfort. Too bad I couldn’t take it. They had two free tables where I found some candles, a plastic cup for my morning tea, and a Case Logic neoprene sleeve that I will use for something I’m sure.
Stopped for a delicious lunch at Big Creek Coffeehouse in Knappa Junction.
On the route I met a cyclist named John. He is on an organ donation fundraiser ride all the way from Virginia Beach. Turns out he is going to the same WS host tonight.
The route showed taking the Astoria Riverwalk on into town. Stopped along there to look at some sea lions that were making a LOT of noise. A guy riding his bike stopped and asked about my ride. He said those sea lions are like this 24/7, 365 days a year. Arrived at the WS host a little later and, lo and behold, it was the cyclist from the Riverwalk.
This location was in an historic old home where the owner converted the basement into a cyclist room because Steve was hosting so many people in the house. It somewhat resembled a hostel. A coed hostel. He gets about 200 cyclists per year.
A little later a couple from Colorado, Dave and DeAnn, who were on their second night at this WS, returned from town. So now all four of us were there. Great conversations and positivity. They even do some single track. Check out their bikes on the next page!
I walked to get some dinner.... ended up eating my whole 12”pizza even though I didn’t think I was hungry.
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10 months ago
Remember those fire starters I made in Belfair? We didn’t drip enough wax in some of the egg cups and a lot of the wood shavings came loose. So I used up one of my estate sale candles to fix them up tonight after dinner. This was what I had in mind when I picked up the candles.
Today's ride: 30 miles (48 km)
Total: 345 miles (555 km)
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