Sep
21
2009
by Mr Cubes
Beachside to Jessie M Honeyman State Park (35.8 miles)
Total Miles: 2,985.6
Since leaving Lake Quinault, my daily average has dropped considerably. Part of this was due to losing some leg strength, but the major factor was realising there wasn’t any rush in getting to the finish. Now there were more places to stop I could start later, ride slower and relax in the evening. And this is how I found myself crawling out of my tent at 10am.
A few miles down the road was the small town of Yachats which looked a nice place to have lunch, but it was a bit early for that. Instead I took a Dr Pepper in the shade of a shop front as the morning was already incredibly warm.
Luckily most of the morning was fairly flat and tall trees alongside the road offered a small amount of shade. Barry had left Beachside campsite long before I had even started to think about showering and so it surprised me when I saw him as I approached the first big hill of the day. The recumbent really does seem to have problems with even the slightest gradient which must be a concern to anyone thinking of using one to tackle this very hilly stretch of coastline. No matter how fast you are going though, someone is always going a little faster and I was then overtaken myself by two guys from Canada who were also doing this very popular Seattle to San Diego route. This is when I realise how competitive I am as I look for reasons why they go faster than me. It’s nearly always the same reason whenever anybody does; they are 
travelling light. Even when their bike looks every bit as covered in bags as mine, I know that inside they have all the superlight equipment compared to my standard ‘lightweight’ stuff. Yeah, I can be a sore loser. So I was especially happy when the gradient of the hill increased and I reeled them both back in. I may not be lightning on the flat, but I can keep up with most on the hills. At the top of the hill was Heceta Head tunnel, before another climb to a viewpoint back to Heceta Head Lighthouse. This area was packed with tourists due to several spectacular viewpoints and the Sea Lion Caves. All of their barking (the sea lions, not the tourists) was quite comical and took my mind off of the climbing.
At the top of the hill, the road turned inland to uncover miles and miles of sandy beaches. A fast descent into Florence followed and time for a late lunch. This place was fast-food heaven with every franchise I’d ever heard of on offer, but I prefer to eat in a diner. After refuelling I found a bike shop to get myself a new seatpost bolt, inner tubes and the worst customer service I’ve ever received. And that includes shopping in Paris. Still, it had to be done (but who charges $1 for a singular second hand bolt?).
The final stretch for the day to the campsite was short and even though I got there quite early it was already full up. As was the hiker/biker section except for a nice pitch next to an elderly gentlemen dressed in full denim. He was also smoking a cigar and seemed to be suffering with his own version of tailwind. He spent the evening switching between offering everyone tins of food that he somehow had managed to acquire hundreds of and telling stories of the long distance cycle life (it was hard to believe he could cycle anywhere in so much denim). A good hearted guy, but he can’t have been too surprised that everyone magically disappeared into their tents as soon as he looked their way. I would have loved to have spent the evening listening to him but realised I hadn’t waterproofed my flip flops in months so was otherwise engaged. Shame.