2008- Reflections on the Year

2008 has been quite a different year!I have calculated that through my various trips this year, I have spent more than 90 days in a tent-a surprising amount since almost 95% of these days have occurred in the last 6 months (including my wedding night!). Can anyone beat that? Allison? Tom? So, my tent has been my semi-permanent home for my vagabond lifestyle--which has been great for most of it, although I am tiring of it. Even more alarming is the number of meals I've eaten off a one-burner stove--I don't want to count but am sure it exceeds 100! Oh, how I long for an oven...

However, it has been a year of amazing adventures & outdoor activity--a canoe expedition with girls & many cycle training days started off the year. Then 3 weeks of cycling in PEI with 12 girls & 3 other BC leaders was amazing. Then 6 weeks cycling down the coast with Chris (making cycling weeks total = 9) & then our 7 week adventure in South Africa. On top of that I also trained & practiced and am now a certified kayak guide for day trips. Yikes. So much has gone one that I am finding myself reflecting a lot these days on all these adventures & feeling very fortunate for such great friends, family & organizations which have allowed all this to happen.

All this, of course in the year when I also got married--an adventure in itself that I believe worked out wounderfully in the end. I must admit, it was a great year for me.

So what is in store for the next year? I cannot even begin to imagine. A very different one in which in a few short weeks I will find myself a Junior SS teacher of English, Geography & Math. Yikes! And although I have many plans in my head, who knows which ones will work out and which are need for our little village.

Predictions are that it will be a more difficult year for us, and for all of you (both the priest at mass & the running mag believe this!) But as I sit in a country of desert and am amazed by how everyone lives here on so little water it isn't hard to imagine that we can't all live well with just a little less...and still have happy lives with love, family, friends & meaningful work--paid or unpaid.

So I look to the year ahead as a year of new opportunity-- a chance to re-evaluate & "look wider" :) May it bee the same for you.

XO Happy New Year.

Driving In South Africa--Arrive Alive!

I've begun to be a driver in South Africa as it is one of our main occupations and we've already travelled 10 000km to get here to Windhoek. This I think is no simple feat & I would have happily left it to Chris who has driven on the left in several other countries already. But alas...

Yes, driving on the left is a fair challenge--particularly when reversing or parking. But I adjusted fairly quickly. What is more difficult is driving with a stick shift...doing all the shifting with the left hand. The VW shift we have is also more precise than the ones at home, making it fairly normal to miss. That and reverse is forward & to the left, next to 1st gear--the first time I tried to go into first & reversed instead!! Luckily there was no one behind me. & I've improved since then!

However, its not our driving that is really the problem--coming from a country with some of the lowest speed limits in the world with strict laws, we drive fairly well. South Africa, with optional insurance, safety belt & optional adherence to most rules of the road-- has admitably, some fairly bad drivers. Take the speed for the best example.

The speed limit on most highways (even 2 laners) is 120km/hr max--pretty fast, esp. if there are some potholes. I generally drive at 100-130km/hr max. I've frequently been passed while going 120km/hr--very quickly, probably people going 150-160km/hr!!! When you pass a slower vehicle you need to get back on to the far left lane quickly because otherwise someone will be on your tail...and South Africans LOVE to tailgate. The worst is the minibus/combi drivers--which is funny because there max speed is supposedly 100km/hr.

Speed traps do occur--however, many just don't pay. Currently there is a campaign out that if you pay off your overdo fine then you only need to pay 1/2...this is because the courts are way over booked with speeding violations. Rewards for speeding & paying! Come again?

There is some good news--
1. Chris is one of the best drivers I've ever met, so its good he's doing 75% of the driving
2. Driving here is much better than most developing countries--esp. India & Peru---& the roads are fantastic.

3. and best of all..South Africans have found a way to regularly use the hazard lighting button...to Thank you when you pull over to the shoulder to let them pass!! :) :P

South African Political Correctness

Kruger National Park

We've just finished a week in Kruger National Park, one of the world's premiere African game regions. A typical day for us began at 4:15 AM when we'd exit our tent and quickly get into the car for our morning game drive. You are locked in your campsite (for your protection) until 4:30 and the best animal viewing occurs at dawn when it's still cool and the predators are still finishing their hunt. Our drive would end around 9, and then we'd have a long slow breakfast usually involving a game of Scrabble while overlooking a water hole. Chloe would win the game (she's currently on a four game winning streak) and then we'd head off to our next campsite. By noon, the heat was overwhelming and most animals (with the exception of the antelope, zebras, giraffes, and elephants) were seeking shelter under some sort of tree cover. We would head to the human watering hole (fortunately, most campsites here have a swimming pool), where we would lounge about for a few hours before heading out on a sunset drive around 5 PM. It was dark by 7PM, and we'd head to the tent. Any time we were up beyond 8PM, it was considered a "late night". Sleeping bags & the tent fly were unnecessary (even the meshing of the tent seemed to trap too much heat!) and it was very hot most of the night.






We went on three separate guided walks (walking without a guide and gun is forbidden) to learn more about the environment we were watching. One turned into a white rhinoceros hunt, as we followed tracks and other field signs through the forest. In another, we encountered an aggressive elephant and were forced to retreat to the vehicle. One of our guides had to fire his rifle to discourage it.


We were quite successful in our viewing though. Several viewing of lions, hyenas circling our campsite at night, hippos wallowing in the pools, crocodiles waiting for opportunities, rhinoceros grazing in the grass. We even had a rare leopard sighting when the small antelope we were trying to identify was suddenly chased into the bush. All in all, VERY COOL!

Bunny Chow

Bunny Chow exemplifies Durban to me. Technically perhaps, it is classified as an Indian curry dish--but really it is much much more--it's a cultural melange~Africa meets Europe meets India. And really, that's what Durban is all about. With the largest India population outside of India it's not difficult to fathom that Indian curries, bazaars & fashions are common here--and are much enjoyed as part of the Bunny Chow. However, mixed within the curry is not your typical Indian vege's...like lentils, chickpeas, peas or cauliflower. Instead some more European foods, probably which grow better in this diverse Zulu land--brown beans, & cabbage for instance.

Lastly, Bunny Chow's essence is in the fact that all of it is placed in a bread bowl--a quartered white loaf which is hollowed out in the middle--a very European (whether Dutch or British) item as baked bread is almost unheard of in India (they eat flatbreads). And Voila! Bunny Chow. Who'd of thought such a mix would be so delicious--but it is. If only human melanges could blend as well as food. Durban in a nutshell.

PS-Check out the spices! Also another good example of an interesting cultural combination!

Livin' it up in Durban

This week we've been living the high life on South Africa's east coast. Thanks to Dad, we've had a week at a timeshare resort in Umhlanga Rocks where we've enjoyed such luxuries as:
A refrigerator - cheese lasts more than a day
A freezer - Ice cream, nuff said
Oven - used four out of the past five nights!
High speed internet - fast enough to use our computer to call home
King-sized bed - an entire family could live here
Tennis courts - including free racquet rental
Air Conditioning - to fight the humidity

All in all, luxury compared to the tent we normally sleep in. We took a boat tour with the Natal Sharks Board this morning and watched them check all the shark nets surrounding Durban's beaches. Saw lots of dolphins, too. We also watched them dissect a great white shark that died in the nets recently. Very interesting. Chloe won a poster and some shark's teeth for paying attention to details and being more energetic than the school kids in answering questions.

It's actually been quite rainy this week (but still 24 degrees) which is nice since it's given my sun burn a chance to recover (Check out our Flickr pictures for the embarrassing photo). I'm still very suspicious of the small burned area that looks like the girl guide trefoil. I'm suspicious that Chloe may have some creative ways of spreading sunscreen on my back.

More photos

We're in Durban now & we've uploaded some pics to flikr.

The address is http://www.flickr.com/photos/31870881@N06/ We will continue to periodically post photos there--so this is your last warning to bookmark the site!

Lesotho

We spent the past three days in Lesotho (pronounced Le-soo-too), a tiny mountainous country which has only one border (it is surrounded by South Africa on all sides). The country is a combination of 20th century technology and 10th century traditions. I believe that we were the only car going across the border at the time. Everyone else walked across and someone lifted the gate boom to let our little Volkswagen through. We arrived in a thunderstorm and were right in the middle of the lightning. I watched a bolt strike the ground about 25 metres in front of me. Another bolt was so close that we were debating whether or not we'd been hit. What does it feel like to be in a vehicle struck by lightning? I don't know but since the electrical system seemed to be working fine, we decided that it must have been just "close".

Two hours later we crossed through a mountain pass on a dirt road seemingly in the middle of nowhere and arrived at our destination, the Malealea Lodge. This tourist lodge supports the local community by employing them as tour guides and helps build schools in the community & things like wells & HIV/AIDS Projects. Lesotho has one of the highest incident rates of HIV/AIDS in the world (like Namibia) & this is evident only in the copious graveyards & the nice funeral signs & buildings (some of the nicest buildings in the country, although the HIV centres also seemed nice too). It's also the only place I've visited so far that encouraged visitors to offset the carbon they used to reach the village by helping to plant trees in the community. Most of the locals are already carbon-neutral since donkeys/horses produce no GHG and the lodge is the only place in town with electricity (from 5PM to 10PM only). We watched the local choir perform and saw the homemade instruments used by the local band (oil cans, string, and scrap wood). A five-hour horseback ride through the countryside gave us a pretty good impression of how the locals live: farming and shepherding.

We helped a girl who'd broken her ankle and I was not envious of the trip she was going to be taking to the nearest hospital: four hours back to Bloomfontein in South Africa would not be pleasant. We were pretty careful with our footing after that.
In general, a beautiful place to visit but I was happy to be back in the "safety" of South Africa last night.

The Driekoppe Trail

As mentioned in the last posting we were immediately off hiking in Camdboo National Park to an overnight hut in the mountains. Well, it turned out to be quite the adventure and a definite lesson in African backpacking. First of all, we were given very little information by the park--a map, a set of keys for the hut & the gates & when I pressed them, details about freshwater & the actual distance. Everything started out just fine...we packed our backpacks, loaded up about 5 litres of water & everything we needed for a night & left our car hidden behind some trees in the park (it was very open grassland).

For about 1-2km everything looked good--we followed a road & little zebra signs which pointed us along the trail. Suddenly however, they stopped & there was no indication of where to go. Our map did have the route marked & showed topography so we guessed at the mountains & started heading up, hoping to reintercept with the trail. There were lots of animal paths so walking was reasonable for bush-whacking, although in dry areas there are some mighty thorny plants...ouch! We saw the rare Black Wildebeast & many other "bok" on our way. Up we began to climb, and following a river bed, started to ascend quickly up the dry peak. Suddently a voice, "Jump" or perhaps "Help"! Were there other people? No, it turned out to be the alarm call of the baboons--a very awesome but alarming sound as you climb as it sounds almost human. Up & Up we climbed, fooling ourselves somehow that the trail interception was nearby--we were just taking the "steep" route. Eventually we reached a plateau & could see for miles--but no trail or hut was visible. We wandered around for awhile, looking at the map & through binoculars. Eventually, we decided, we were never going to find the trail & we needed to head back before it got dark & before our water supply was depleted. But...we couldn't get down! It was so steep where we climbed that it was very dangerous to go back down again...so instead we hiked one valley, then two trying to find a way down. Just as we had decided it was too far to go back & we were going to have to go thirsty & sleep out in the open we popped our heads over a valley & starring at us was...the trail--an old road! We were one valley over the whole time! We decided, that although it would soon be dark, our best bet would still be to climb down the valley (about 1/2hr of bushwacking) & follow the trail to the hut so we could obtain water & a good night's rest.
We made it down to the road as the light faded & then had an apple, a sip of water & continued on for 3km or so in the dark & finally as we were just about wiped (having been quite dehydrated and only having eaten an apple for all of the 6hrs of hiking we had done) when we found the rondavlea (round hut). And inside this hut were bunks 6, fresh water and even electricity!

We arrived at 8:30pm, had a guzzle of water then slept for 11hrs before we awoke, had a small meal of porridge (we still weren't hungry) & trekked back to our car--an uneventful hike which was much quicker (although we never did find a connecting trail). In the end, all ended well & although we found our car covered with baboon poo & hand-prints, everything intact.
It was both a good lesson on the "African way" of information, park maintenance & our own preparedness & a test of our endurance & our bodies to endure physical strife. Next time, hopefully we'll have a better trail, & I"ll remember to bring my compass! (It was left in the car...)

Baby "kangaroos" & lions making whoopie

We've just come from Addo Elephant Park, one of the big parks near the South Coast of S. Africa--one which they've slowly been reintroducing animals too & now successfully have hundreds of elephants, and lions, etc.

We had a great time there-finally escapin the rain & the booming drinking & partying of the coastal hostels I feel a bit more like we're in Africa--more outdoors & less tourists. And yes, the lions we saw were making whoopie. And the little kangaroos? They are something called Springhares (Springhaas in Afrikaans) and are rodents, unrelated to kangaroos or hares apparently.

And now, with the midday heat upon us we're in the town of Graaft-Reinet heading for a one day backpack trip into the hills before heading to Zebra National Park & into undeveloped Lesotho. We'll try & keep in touch but services are getting more & more sparse.

Omungwleume

Don't even try to say it, let alone find it on a map. But this is the village we're going to live in for the year. We will be living in the Ovambo region (not the region we were told we'd be in), but the region of the "5 O's". Actually, it's more like the 100 O's as about 98% of the towns start with O, including our village.

Omungwleume is about 40km North of Oshakati, which is the capital of that region...and has all the amenities there as our village. Our best guess is that we're right butt up against the Angola border somewhere as Oshakati is only about 50km away itself.

Chris will be working at Eengedjo SS teaching Grade 11& 12 English, Grade 11 & 12 Geography & maybe some math & computers. I, work in the middle school across the street (Grades 8-10) & will be teaching primarily 8-10 English & Geography & Math as well as apparently a training course on computers for teachers! A bit daunting but apparently the levels are lower than home. I'm feverently reading all the "how to teach math" texts WorldTeach sent us...

We're living on the grounds of Chris' school in a 2 bedroom flat (so come & visit as we have a spare bed & two thermarests!). Apparently it even includes a stove & oven & running water, although no hot water. Food doesn't seem to be too much of a problem & we're promised things like German bread & Black Forest Cake in even small towns.

Anyway, that's the story, but we've got more than a month's worth of parks to visit first if it will ever stop raining! Brr!

Shouldn't sunshine be less .... liquidy?

The sign on the tap says "This is a dry region. Please conserve water." That seems strange to me since when I look outside, there are buckets of rain coming down. One of the roads into town is closed due to extreme flooding and the rivers that we've been crossing have been at levels dangerously closed to the bridge. The windshield wipers on the car don't have a setting high enough for the amount of water that they need to remove. Our first night out of Cape Town was exciting due to extreme wind. Lawn furniture bounced by our tent and the roof of the hostel threatened to come off. Quite entertaining to watch from the kitchen... a little more intimidating from the confines of the tent.

The area we're in right now is known for ostrich farms. Apparently, 97% of the world's ostriches live within 20km of Oudtshoorn and based on what I've seen today, I believe it. They also make lovely omelettes and a single egg can feed more than a dozen people.

Now we're off to the Garden Route and, if the rain lets up, some camping in the parks.

4 days, 5 plane rides & 4 countries & we made it!

Well, it was quite the adventure with a few more unexpected travel hitches. We flew to Amsterdam the next day no problem, with a new flight itinerary for the following day. Had a great day in the heart of Amsterdam wandering through the cold cold mist wandering canals & visiting Annefrankhuis and the red light district & getting some sleep.

Next morning--the airport & we find out that the airline had re-booked us again without telling us the day before & we had missed our flight! Luckily we could prove to the airline that they had given us incorrect info, so the booked us on the next available flight to Cape Town--via another country--in which we spent several hours wandering around (UPDATE: The picture is up....name that city!)

Finally, a 1st class ticket & 13hrs more of flight time & we got to Cape Town! And its been warm (but not very, being the coolest part of SA), and we've had fun visiting & now hiking & driving around--we own a 2004 VW Citigolf (1980's style rabbit like VW )....today we went to the Cape of Good Hope and saw Baboons, Wild Ostrich, Afrikan Penguins & little marmot like creatures called "Dassies" which are apparenty related to elephants?! I'm overwhelmed by the flora & birdlife & am afraid I will fill up my camera with interesting Aloes & other succulents.

Cape town is very western & modern so its been ok adjusting & Chris is doing well driving on the left after 1 frightening morning. Tomorrow we're going up Table Mountain & then getting our camping gear all in order as we'll head to the wild on Tues.

Africa looks a lot like .... Portland?

We're in Portland, Oregon. After two short flights, we boarded a 747 that intended to head to Amsterdam but due to a mechanical problem, we never left the ground. We just sat on the tarmac for a couple hours while the plane tried to build up the courage to fly (kind of like in Disney's Dumbo!) Instead, we're spending the night at the Holiday Inn - Portland Airport until the plane tries again tomorrow afternoon. An unexpected start to the trip but we're not in any rush, c'est la vie!

Flying Out

So we fly out today--in 9 hours. To Seattle, Portland, then to Amsterdam to live it up for 26hours then off to Cape Town.

20hrs of flight time and we'll arrive there at around 10pm Cape Town time which we THINK is 9 hours ahead...but it could be 10 with this daylight savings thing. We're excited although we've much enjoyed home for the last week. It will bring good memories & entice us back...eventually.

While you wait in anticipation for exciting African stories, check out my new flikr account to view photos of our cycling trip (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31870881@N06/). It's basic right now, but there!

Have a good year everyone & stay tuned!

Back in Victoria!

Well, 2050 km completed and now we're home again. This adventure was surprisingly easy for the untrained cyclists to complete (I made up for lack of biking experience with excessive stubbornness). We rode the train back to Victoria, ensuring that this was a low-carbon honeymoon. I've been hit my a mysterious ailment this past week which has left me with almost no energy. Luckily, I've been able to lounge on lawns, trains, ferries, and finally on a couch back at Chloe's parents.

Now it's time to change gears and equipment and get ready to move to Africa. We leave in 5 days and don't yet have a place to stay when we arrive...but that's one of our tasks for this week and it should work out.

In the mean time, I get to look forward to another Hepatitis shot and a Yellow Fever vaccination on Saturday plus the first week of 14 months worth of malaria medication! Bring on the lucid dreaming and strange mood swings!

Do Raccoons Eat Tofu? and other night animals

The short answer is yes. They definitely do. Whether they actually like it is another question but those pesky little creatures plague the hiker biker camps of the Pacific Northwest & make a racket. Luckily we early on opted to hang our food (Oregon didn't have any food lockers unlike most of Washington & California) & trust me, those raccoons are macho. They ate through someone's super heavy duty drybag in the night & have even eaten hotsauce.

A few nights ago there was quite a night where 3 raccoons got inside a foodlocker (a poorly maintained one), munched someone's food & then got stuck inside & started banging around in there. Our tent was one of the closest so I got the duty of opening the thing & letting the terrified creatures out. Such fun! And a night ago, a new beast decided to poke holes in my platapus & our water bag...luckily our last camping night so not a huge lost.

Our last camping night we spent on Marin headlands (named after my bike..hahaha...its a Marin), for free overlooking San Fran & the bridge. Listening to Barn Owls & coyotes (?) scream (I think it was bobcat still..) Beautiful. Now we're in the city proper doing the sites. Yay we made it. Logging over 2000kms & pretty much doing in Chris' rear wheel (a spoke ripped it up eventually). I changed only my second flat of the trip, right above the golden gate bridge. Picturesque if not frustrating with all those tourists at all.

Trip summary & conclusions coming soon, but hope you all enjoyed our "first" honeymoon. Stay tuned for the African one!

Over the hills & back to the coast

Odometer: 1705km Location: Fort Bragg, Cal.

After a long traverse through the cold & damp Redwoods, we hit the interior of Northern California for a few days which was hot hot hot! Chris has been burned several times & we find ourselves chilling in the shade wearing shorts & t-shirts. Its quite nice although the route has been hilly and at times a little too hot. Had a run-in with a skunk trying to eat Chris' pannier, but otherwise the bikes continue to survive as does our gear.

We summitted the 2000ft Leggett Hill yesterday--piece of cake in the end, with almost no traffic. Then down 2000ft past the ghost town of Rockport, then up another 800ft. Then out to the coast again for fantastic views and many many ups & downs around little bays & inlets. We entered Fort Bragg this morning for a tasty breakfast and some time at the library--towns with libraries & stores we haven't seen in a few days.

Today, more of the same--vista points & inlets. San Fransisco is within arms reach & we expect to be there early next week!
Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving.

"What a difference a day makes..."

"...24 little hours, brought the sun & the flowers, ooh where there used to be rain!" Dinah Washington


I've been singing this song the last few days as we've travelled along, as it really happened this way..we had an incredible storm overnight in Humbug Beach State Park, which ended around dawn & we haven't seen a raindrop since! We had one more glorious day in in Oregon, one of the most scenic areas in Oregon, cliffs & seastacks and hills into the sea...we covered 82km and had our first real tailwind! It was glorious! Worried it wouldn't last we zoomed on, entering California mid-morning of the next day (after picking up some more spokes) and flew along fields outside Crescent City bathed in sunshine, glorious sunshine (yes, Chris burnt again...).


We packed a load of food and headed to the Redwoods for some hiking, etc. which Chris will tell you all about. We had to summit 2 large hills..one over 1000ft (took 1.5hrs to climb, but we were surrounded by large Redwoods). The ride coming down was amazing and we are encouraged by our fitness as we have a 2000ft one to do in a couple of days. There are rumours about cyclist graves at the sides of this one from those who died trying!

Well, we're in good spirits as the weather continues to be glorious, with no end in sight, and we've seen a few Palm Trees here in Arcata so we hope the weather stays this way!

Odometer: 1400km Location: Arcata, California!

California has Elk?

Apparently, it does. The Redwood forests of Northern California are home to more than 2000 Roosevelt Elk. The only other place that has these elk is some remote Canadian place called "Vancouver Island". I remember seeing elk signs near Campbell River but I had to come more than 1400km to see them.

We spent two nights at Elk Prairie State Park in California. This meant that we got to have a day without riding. Of course, Chloe does not believe in true "rest days", so the day was spent hiking about 20km down to a Fern Canyon and eating our lunch next to giant elk that were doing the same things. The elk seemed uninterested in my cream cheese and we were equally uninterested in their grass shoots, so the meal was pleasant for all. The hike was great, actually, with towering Redwood trees all around us and numerous types of ferns and berries for Chloe to quiz me about (I think I'll need a re-test)

The nights in the forest were cold though and the water that I'd left out for quick hot chocolate making in the morning was starting to ice over (As a side note, I'm a little concerned about the amount of hot chocolate powder that I've been consuming in the past few weeks, I really hope it's not carcinogenic!)

Windy, Wet & Wild

Odometer: 1180km. Location: Langois, Ore.

I'm not sure what the weather has been like back on the island, but we've had 5 days of rain & wind here in Southern Oregon. That hasn't stopped us though & the day with the worst weather was actually our longest--as there just was no reason to stop (it was also a less scenic day although we did pass miles & miles of sandunes!).

There was also one spectacular day out of Newport that although the wind howled we saw some absolutely spectactular scenary...we hugged the coastline, passing over scenic bridges, observing lighthouses (like Hecata Head), Sealions and all kinds of "Devil" landmarks--Devil's horn, Devils punchbowl, for example. Beautiful in any weather, although we couldn't stay long. At one point I clocked my odometer at 10km/hr while going downhill. Yikes--it was a strong headwind. Actually, the wind, contrary to what we were told, has been mostly of the head variety. Apparently, the winter storms are a bit earlier this year. But aside from a few grumblings (from me), and copious stops at coffeeshops & Fred Meyers for tea & bean & cheese burritos, we pushed one.

Then there was the day of 2 broken spokes...yes, 2 more. One on the back and one on the front. It had been more than 500km since the last one, so we were due apparently. Luckily, the weather was much better that day, only the occasional storm. The guy in Astoria told us that the spokes were just old (2years!) and weren't used to bearing weight so we could expect more. Now we're out of spokes and praying we make it to the next town that has one (tomorrow).

But we hear it will clear up soon...hopefully. Today is much better, and really we're still having a great time.

Published in the Peninsula News Review

It seems that our request for textbook money has been posted in the Peninsula News Review. Check it out here or go to http://www.bclocalnews.com/vancouver_island_south/peninsulanewsreview/news/29773664.html

Capes and Coastlines

Odometer as of Newport: 893km
The Oregon coast is beautiful! Although it seems to be filled with large hills every 25km or so, the views from the top make them well worth the climb.

On Saturday, we hiked 8km up to the top of Mt. Neahannie, which is the same hike that I did with Jessie, Jenn, and Jessi during our Spring Break adventure last year. The view from the top is absolutely incredible (and is the 3rd most photographed place in Oregon according to the local propaganda).

On Sunday, we completed our first 80+ km day which included a visit to the Tillamook Cheese Factory. Since it was a beautiful Sunday afternoon, the parking lot was crammed full of RV's, campers, and even school buses (I'd estimate that 15 school buses unloaded dairy-deprived teenagers in the hour that we were there). The ice cream at the end was top-notch and the enormous bag of "poorly-shaped" discount garlic cheese will keep our neighbours angry with us for a week. It was so warm and sunny, that I actually got a sunburn (not that it takes a lot to burn me). Despite a minor lecture from Chloe about the importance of sunscreen, I'm considering this training for Africa.

The Cape Meares Lighthouse provided a fantastic lookout for birds and we finished an 8km hike out to Cape Lookout yesterday. We got there just in time to admire the view before we watch ed the fog roll in from the ocean at a shocking speed. The next few hours were spent in a grey mist which seems to be continuing today. My thighs are warning me that no hills will be tolerated until they get a rest, so we are looking forward to a relaxing day in Newport tomorrow (which will likely include another exciting game of travel Scrabble!)

The Astoria Bridge

Odometer: 650km

Welcome to Oregon the sign said, but we were too busy rounding the bend and applying our brakes to pay much attention---we'd just made it across the Astoria bridge--4.1 miles of bridge spanning the Columbia River between Washington and Oregon! Hooray!

After riding an hour from Cape Disappointment we reached the bridge to find the traffic light and the winds ok--much MUCH better than the previous couple of days. So we went for it -all 22 minutes. First you climb a short bridge, then descend to a long flat section that is right at river level for a few miles--which was just fine. Only 1 logging truck passed us, which is a record for the 101. Then you start a long climb-about 1/2 mile or so to reach another high part of th bridge...the adrenaline pumped more just from the sheer height and small railings than anything else. Then down down we spiralled into Oregon, and at last came to rest at a chic coffee shop in Astoria while we waited for Chris' bike to be examined.

I must say, we quite enjoyed the bridge & I personally find it much more relaxing that the crazy tunnels! Those have the scariest accoustics imaginable and you feel like a huge freight train is bearing down on you--or perhaps the tunnel is collapsing. All is well, and we continue towards the happy land of $4 campsites and beautiful beaches.

Hurricane in the Northwest?

Yesterday, started out beautifully. Bits of rain intermersed with sunshine and a beautiful ride through the mud flats. Then, Hurricane Ike decided to arrive. Hours of pouring rain, gale-force headwinds (we were down to first gear going through a flat section), and my second broken spoke led to a rather glum final 30km. The Cafe in Ilwaco was like an oasis in the desert (actually, the desert would have been rather nice at that time). We checked into the motel across the street and began the process of drying out all our belongings, rotating their time over the heater. It took me ten minutes to figure out that the hot/cold knobs in the shower were reversed and that the motel did in fact have hot water....but it was glorious when it arrived.

Today, looks much better. The winds have died down and the rain has temporarily abated and he have several museums to visit. Tomorrow, we'll head into Oregon.

A Broken Spoke, Some Bag Busting & a Hungry Rim

Odometer Reading: 350km



So the repair-free days are over-although I must admit my "Old Faithful" is holding up fairly well. After leaving you off in Forks we continued another 50km more to Kalaloch-uneventfully except I noticed some wobbling in Chris' wheel in the last 5 or so. Next morning, yes indeed, a broken rear spoke requiring my old chain whip & cassette remover. Not a difficult job, but an impossible one if I had not brought the right tools. It delayed our start, but we had a shorter day (50km) so no problem. Unfortunately Chris had not packed away the "emergency repair foods" and the raccoons had sadly made off with such things as Denman Island chocolate (apparently as I never saw them).



Later that day Chris' front panniers launched themselves off of the bike while going downhill, almost taking us both out. ..apparently they never fit his racks...oops! A few bungies secured them and we were off again to explore the Quinault Rainforest & lake. Then all was well again & we finally left the Olympic peninsula behind and headed for a rest day at Ocean Shores--a well deserved & needed one as we were both sore). Sadly the ferry that used to run across the large Gray's Harbor is no longer as they would need a few million $$ to dredge it...so now we are moving around the ~50mile detour. Oh and the rim biting was partially my fault...I left one spoke hole exposed after the last repair--apparently too much so it blew while we were playing scrabble last night. But all is well today--the sun is shining and it has only rained at night! A few more nights and we'll be in another state!

Rialto Beach & Northern Washington

This morning we're having a quick stop in the trucker paradise of Forks, Washington. Day 3 and knock on wood, no troubles so far except 1 broken kickstand on day two. Apparently we're carrying a lot. Weather has been ok...Glorious on day 1 and the last 2 pretty typical West Coast minus rain so far!

We took a detour ~14 miles down to Rialto Beach yesterday and checked out the beach..beautiful with sea stacks & Brown Pelicans gliding by. Apparently my dad climbed one of the sea stacks in the 70's and got stuck, so we took a few photos in his honour :). On we go!

Packing Up

The apartment is almost packed up. There are still papers everywhere but all the big furniture is out. As long as we have power and our internet connection, the computer will be remain functional, even if it's on the floor.