Hot Tubs

A herd of elk greeted us as we climbed out of our tents yesterday morning. They were grazing in the campground and slowly moved off as we ate breakfast. It was misty and grey and was to stay that way all day. This stretch of coast is home to the redwoods, giant trees that can live for thousands of years and grow to be hundreds of feet tall. We took our first break at the Beach Comber cafe in Trinidad after we saw two cyclists pull in there. If cyclists are frequenting an eatery it must be good. The cyclists gave us some tips on local bike shops and a secret bike path around the bay in Eureka, a city about 16 miles down the road. Mike Sr ordered coffee and a sandwich, Mike Jr had a bagel with tarrupin sauce (not made from terrapins, apparently), and I enjoyed a cup of tea and a ginormous apple muffin. Suitably fueled we continued along the coast to Arcata. We had intended to reach Arcata a little earlier in the week but a public holiday interfered and made us wait for our tent in Crescent City. Still, better late than never and we rolled over to the Revolution bicycle shop. I bought a new tire then we completed our daily visit to a grocery store.

Thursday was a short day due to a lack of campgrounds at reasonable distances from our starting point. We finished around mile 35 at a private campground that offered a discount for cyclists and had a hot tub. That's right, a hot tub. What a way to end the day! Two-thirds of the group enjoyed a long soak, one-third of the group needs to purchase a bathing suit. A pair of touring cyclists from the Netherlands arrived a short while after us. We think this is the pair that we saw zooming over hills back in Oregon. I think they must have taken a day or two off for us to have caught up with them again.

We awoke to sunny skies this morning and soon warmed up as we set out for the town of Eureka. In order to find the secret bike path along Humboldt Bay in Eureka first you must ride behind Target, then pass over a very small ramp, then turn around clockwise three times while chanting. Only then will the secret path appear. It was a great change to highway 101 and we saw a variety of birds out this morning. We began to head inland in order to avoid cycling the Lost Coast - a very hilly stretch of coastline that we had no interest in tackling. Around noon we stopped for lunch in Fernbridge. The food was excellent and the owner even brought Mike Sr. a small plate of various dried meats. When she heard that Mike and I are vegetarians she disappeared back into the kitchen and reappeared bearing a plate of beans and beets than she had grown and canned herself.

The afternoon brought small but steep hills. Mike Sr. was not impressed. The gentlemen from the Netherlands passed us as we stood debating a turn later in the day, we cheered them on. The final leg of today was along the Avenue of the Giants, a quiet road that passes between some truly impressive redwood trees. It was a stunning end to the day and we all enjoyed the riding immensely. Today was a little longer at 51 miles and we ended the day again at private campground that has a hot tub. Two hot tubs in two days, whodathunk?

Stay tuned to see if we can find a hot tub for a third day running.

Yesterday's miles: 35
Today's: 51

Elk herd!

Tinkerbell

Pumpkin patch

Barrel o' flowers, creative re-use

The "unnecessary" hills

Avenue of the Giants

Woah that's tall

Mike in the tree stump

We will probably live in here next