Day 10: Time to escape the convention
(Florence to Bandon)
date: Wednesday August 14, 2002
daily miles: 95 miles (153 km)
total miles: 786 miles (1,265 km)
rather dramatic colors!
It’s time to get out of Florence!! The hiker/biker campground was fun -- but there were just too many people hanging out there for a couple of days for me...
It took awhile to get going on the bike this morning. I think I pedaled "squares" vs "circles" for the first two hours – a cyclist thing about how his legs feel while pedaling. Finally got back into the groove though.
 roadside break |
Quiet day throughout most of the day. I just ride and enjoyed and checked out the sites -- like all the lighthouses and fishing villages along the route. If you’re here, you have to stop and check them all out! |
| Caught Tina and her husband Earl on the road (this was that great couple on the tandem recumbent that I had met the other night and whom I really like because of their sense of adventure). They were just heading out of the estuary center after a tour and a movie there. They travel fewer miles each day and catch more sights to visit on their route schedule versus someone like myself – but man are they having fun! (Their ultimate destination will be Crescent City) |
 a lighthouse near the campground |
 another great place for lunch |
I met a good old boy from Georgia tonight -- named Steve. Retired and off riding his dream. Pueblo, CO through Wyoming, etc to the coast -- San Francisco -- back through Nevada to Pueblo where his truck is parked. The routed is being called the “Great Western” and Steve is one of the first to do it. Very quiet person who has learned a lot about himself on this trip. Tonight was his "halfway party" -- at the 2000-mile point of his 4000-mile trek. I do wish him the best of luck on the rest of his journey. |
Currently trying to find out more about this big forest fire that is going on in Southern Oregon / Northern California -- hopefully it gets contained here shortly as it could affect my detour to Crater Lake. I will need to make the go / no go decision probably tomorrow night.
Still having fun!
Mark
ps: I made twenty dollars today. A supported cycling group is on tour and I ended up catching and passing them a few times today (typically after rest breaks or eating). The manager of the outfit got mad at me eventually -- a touring cyclist with a loaded BOB catching and passing his people. He videotapes them too and has quite a bit of me on tape also -- he had a slight problem telling everyone apart. I don't think it was my obligation to take the day off from cycling so it would be easier for him to film his patrons. Eventually he stopped me and gave me twenty dollars and told me to take a long -- and he meant REALLLLLYYYYYY LONGGGGGG -- lunch break somewhere so they could get an hour ahead of me. Didn't see them the rest of the day after that. Plus I had a GREAT lunch!!
