TA Post Mortem

I've been home three weeks (July 8th).  My bike made it back home on July 19th.  I have been searching for things to do with all the unscheduled time I have now.  I realize that prior to my departure I wasn't really retired.  I was involved a few hours at my work right up until a few days before we left.  Now aside from cross country practice, and a week of cross country camp, I have very little scheduled.  This might sound like a happy problem to have but I'm not happy about it.

I've run about 75 miles in the past three weeks after not having run for three months.  I've biked about 370 miles since I got back home; some of it on my mountain bike.  I've gone to two exercise classes.  If you know me at all you'll know that physical activity is a big part of my daily life.  I suppose it's part of the reason I could accomplish this long ride.  When I returned home I had this notion that I could maintain the fitness level I enjoyed on my trip.  I wanted to maintain this level of fitness.  I know this isn't realistic.

I still think a lot about my bike trip.  I'd talk a lot about it as well, but aside from Steve, I'm convinced I'd bore anyone else to death long before I ran out of things to say.  Everything relates back to those three months for me at the moment.  I go back and add details to my blog entries where I can and relive those days.

People have asked if I would do this again, ride across the country.  The answer is a definite yes!  I've also been asked "What's next?"  I take some pleasure in knowing that I'm seen as someone who might take up another challenge because when I began I wasn't confident I could accomplish this one.  Also I found out that there are people, lots of people, challenging themselves with these self-chosen undertakings.  I've got no deep wisdom or insights to share.  I don't know what's next but I know it will be something!

Looking forward to a fall filled with family and high school cross country!

Trans Am Numbers

I'll add stuff here as I crunch the numbers:

Days: 81
Miles: 4336.74 (updated 7/12/18)
Daily Average: 53.54 (updated 7/12/18))
Longest mileage day- 81 miles on 4/17/18; 80.8 miles on 6/22/18
Shortest mileage day-9.83 on 4/30/18
Longest cycling day-8:53:10 on 6/12/18
Shortest cycling day-55:29 on 4/30/18

Total Ascent in Feet=171,145
Daily Average Ascent in Feet=2194
Most Ascent-4530.8 on 4/22/18
Least Ascent-78.7 on 6/28/18

Days camping=43 (updated 7/13/18))
Days motel=20 (updated 7/13/18))
Days hostel=18

Days Off: 3

Bits and Pieces, Part #2

I'm home!  Steve and I left for the east coast on April 14th so it's been 85 days since I slept in my bed!  It was fun hanging out with my nephew and daughter and son-in-law in Seattle for a couple days being a tourist.  I ran about 2 1/2 torturous miles along the Puget Sound.


Here are the links to some of the players in our adventure saga.  Each of these blogs or Facebook pages is impressive in it's own way.  They put my meager efforts to shame for sure!

Jules' Blog

Finley's Blog

Phil's Blog

Richardo's Facebook Page

Alan Baker's Facebook Page

Susan's Facebook page

Anna's Blog

We rode many miles in the company of Rich; Nick; and Mike but none of the three of them was keeping a record of their trip.  They were relying heavily on the narrative provided by Donna Lynn Ikenberry's 1993 book Bicycling Coast to Coast to plan and followed most of her suggestions for mileage; places to stay; and other details.

As I mentioned in my last post I will be "enhancing" many of the pages about the trip.  This post in particular will get expanded as I come back to it and add things.  Stay tuned!  Thanks!  Tom

Bits and Pieces, Part #1

1. It’s tradition to save turtles that wander on the road during a TransAm trip.  Steve and I saved about a dozen, at least temporarily.  Several more at the side of the road, we yelled at.  Several in the road we left to succeed or not. There’s a philosophical issue here somewhere!
2. We went "off the route" three times.  First after Jules found a bridge closed, we took a direct route to Springfield, KY.  We cut some distance off.  Second we took an alternate route out of Pueblo to the Royal Gorge area based upon information that the official route had no shoulder to ride on.  I think it was slightly shorter than the official route.  Third, we took an alternate route into Astoria.  We’d  added distance by camping 4+ miles off route.  The Adventure Cycling Association allows that as long as we rode 90% of the mapped route, we’ve completed it.  We met that condition.  
3. We heard from Richard and Mike, you may remember them as two of the three cyclists we met after they started the second half of their Transamerica ride in Newton, Kansas.  We camped several nights at the same locations, especially in Kansas.  They just finished in Florence, Oregon.  Florence is the endpoint of an alternate route.  They’re headed back to Texas tomorrow.
4. I’ll be adding information to the daily entries after I get home.  In particular I’ll try to put links to information where I can.  I’ve never quite figured out how to do this with the phone app!  This may not be of interest to those of you who followed along.  This is more for anyone planning to do this themselves.

Day #81-Astoria

It was a rainy 4th of July.  We pack our wet tents and make the short ride to Astoria over a perilous bridge across Young’s Bay.  Astoria is a seaport on the Columbia River.  A huge cargo ship moved up the river as we rode along side it.  We later found out that many ships here are loaded with Midwest grain bound for China!

After a stop at a downtown coffee shop we fortunately got into our motel, the Columbia Inn, early. Then we took our bikes to be shipped at Bikes and Beyond, a local bike shop.  Steve’s shipping his belongings as well.  I’m checking my belongings.  It’s amazing how few belongings I have.  It’s true. Not to wax too philosophical but we, most of us, have much more than we really need.

Day #80-Fort Stevens State Park

We decided to go to the wreck of the Peter Iredale for our photo shoot because it was close to where we were camped and actually is on the Pacific Ocean! Yea I know we’re not actually touching the water in the photo.  There was a Bald Eagle overseeing the entire production!

It was weird not packing up to ride somewhere.  We did ride to Starbucks to take advantage of their WiFi! We may ride to the Lewis and Clark National Historic Park which is close.

Happy 4th everyone.  I expected wonderful experiences. Biking the country put me in touch with it all in a way I don’t think I could get any other way.  The vulnerability of biking made it all the more intense.  If you find the thought of cycling across the country hard to comprehend, I’m with you.

Day #79-Cannon Beach to Fort Stevens State Park, OR 36 miles

We had a quiet night in a forest of Douglas Firs with the sound of the Pacific for white noise. My tape job slowed the leak in my mattress but didn’t stop it.  We planned breakfast at Pig 'N Pancake and had a great start.  Cannon Beach looks to be a popular destination,  as does the next town we went through, Seaside.  We saw groups of cyclists coming towards us in Seaside.  It’s a good sign if the locals are riding the route you’re on. From Seaside, we cycled on the Lewis and Clark Highway.  As might be imagined these guys are a big deal here.  Their trip culminated at the mouth of the Columbia River, although it wasn’t called that until later. We left the route to head west to Fort Stevens State Park, outside of Warrenton, OR.  The weather continues to be cool and dry.

Thursday we’ll have about a 10 mile trip to the monument in front Columbia River Maritime Museum, that is the official terminus of the Transamerica Trail.

Day #78-Bay City to Cannon Beach, OR 36 miles

The entirety of our ride today was on US 101, the Oregon Coast Highway.  Lots of traffic, not much shoulder to ride; and more dramatic views of the coastline.  We ended in Cannon Beach, pictured above.  The weather continues to be be cool but dry. We had two climbs and one tunnel!  We saw several cyclists out for day rides.  The route we’re riding is a designated scenic bike route.
I think we’ve settled on spending the next two days at Fort Stevens State Park about 10 miles from Astoria.  We’ll ride into Astoria Thursday morning and take our bikes to the bike shop.  They’ll box the bikes and ship them to our local shop in Valparaiso.

Finley made it to Astoria today.  He says there’s no way to dip our tires in the Pacific at the end.  We may have to stage it!

We’re in a private campground tonight, Wright's for Camping.  I bought some duck tape today and I’m going to attack my leaky air mattress with it.

Day #77-Neskowin to Bay City, OR 52 miles

What a day!  It rained overnight and everything seemed damp in the morning, including my spirits.  Another night blowing my air mattress up every two hours has me frustrated and exhausted.  Then we meet Nancy, our host.  We are already in our tents when she arrived home so this was our only chance to talk.  It’s apparent she loves where she lives and the many people she’s met through providing space for cyclists and Airbnb.  Her grandfather was governor of Oregon and served in Eisenhower’s cabinet as Secretary of the Interior! He had a home in Neskowin,  so Nancy has been coming there since she was little.  She bought the home she lives and moved to Neskowin full time only seven years ago.  She has seven people, including the two of us, staying in her home!

We say our goodbyes and ride nine miles to Pacific City.  I’ve found a breakfast place I want to try.  It’s called Grateful Bread Bakery!  It’s packed!  It’s not lost on me that recreational marijuana is legal in Oregon as there’s a store right next to the bakery!  Anyway after a wait-we’re told people line up prior to the 8:00AM opening-we’re seated.  I order the Box of Rain.  It’s kinda like an omelette in a bowl. Steve gets pancakes that rivel the pancakes he got in Darby several weeks ago.  I will survive!
It’s brightened up considerably but still cool in the shade when we get done with breakfast.  We ride up a hill to find at the top the road is closed and have to double back.  We’re on busy roads with NO shoulder!  We get several magnificent views of the coastline.  All in all a eventful day.

We’re camped at the Tillamook Bay City RV Park just beyond the Tillamook Creamery.  Their stuff is golden here abouts!

About 65 miles until Astoria!