September 25, 2011
Day 41: Willow Creek to Pearch Creek campground
Route from Willow Creek to Happy Camp, days 41 and 42. Terrain view looks best.
| Heart | 0 | Comment | 0 | Link |
Light rain from 3 AM until 6 AM. Everything was still dripping when I got up at 8:15. I packed up right away and went down the hill to have breakfast at the cafe in Willow Creek. Service was slow. I didn't get away from Willow Creek until 10:30, as the clouds started to break up.
The Trinity river valley north of Willow Creek had some nice farms for a few miles. Downstream with a south tailwind, it was easy at first.
Soon the valley ends and the road climbs a big hill, then drops into the Hoopa valley. This area is the sovereign homeland of the Hoopa tribe, the first of 3 Indigenous Peoples' homelands I will pass through today.
The tribe's main town of Hoopa is kind of typical, with obvious poverty and unemployment. They have a tiny casino next to the supermarket. When I parked my bike in front of the supermarket, an employee came out and insisted that I park the bike inside the store for security. I'm nonchalant about bike security because I assume that most thieves don't know how to ride or sell a recumbent bike.
Highway 96 is a long road to nowhere. The road has very little traffic, so I imagine the casino has few visitors.
After a few miles in the Hoopa valley the road climbs another big hill, then drops to the village of Weichtpec where the Trinity river flows into the Klamath river.
From here, the Klamath river downstream all the way to the ocean is the sovereign homeland of the Kurok (downriver) tribe. The highway goes up the Klamath river through the homeland of the Karuk (upriver) tribe. I was told that the Karuk tribe is the largest in California to not have a sovereign reservation.
| Heart | 1 | Comment | 0 | Link |
I can't see them because I'm in a deep canyon, but to my east are the Salmon mountains which tower above 6000 feet elevation. Way higher than any coast range mountains in Oregon or Washington. In this area the Klamath river slices through very rugged terrain.
The highway is a roller coaster. Climb several hundred feet, descend, repeat. It does have many good views of the Klamath river.
The road has almost no traffic. The area is mostly unpopulated from what I can see. The little village of Orleans seemed to be mostly a Karuk town.
Just upstream from town the highway crosses the Klamath river on an impressive bridge.
A mile past the bridge I turned into the Pearch Creek USFS campground. $10 with piped water and vault toilets. I chose a site in a steep canyon with a noisy creek nearby. Very scenic, but the creek and lush vegetation create a cool and moist micro-climate.
Today's route has stores at 3 towns. Tomorrow's route will have fewer services.
The afternoon was mostly sunny but the morning and evening were cloudy. 2 days ago this area had a high of 90F, but today the high was 70F. It's no longer summer.
Distance: 44.1 mi. (70.6 km)
Climbing: 2378 ft. (721 m)
Average Speed: 9.5 mph (15.2 km/h)
Today's ride: 44 miles (71 km)
Total: 2,027 miles (3,262 km)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 1 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 0 |