Day 9
Over the river and through the woods, to grandmother's house we go! Lucky us, I have a wonderful grandma in the quaint seaside village of Florence, OR. Though it was a good deal more than a usual day's mileage, we decided to hoof it all the way from Lincoln City for the prospect of a real bed, a warm meal, and familiar company. 77 miles, and we could sure feel it by the end. Our longest day so far, but probably not the longest we'll do.
Knowing the day ahead of us, we awoke early in the gray Lincoln City dawn to a heavy rainshower. We gave eachother the 'welp...' look. We collected our things that were hanging in the garage and were ready to ride soon after 8. Pleasant goodbyes to Romy and Naomi, who snapped a before and after photo of us at the door.
Just like new!
In Lincoln City, we passed over the "D River," the 'world's shortest river.' A fact check online brings it in at 3rd, at 131 meters long. Then in Depoe bay, we rode right over the 'world's smallest harbor.' This, in fact, is true. World's smallest navigable harbor. Riding over the bridge in town, we could see a small slit in the rocks, perhaps only 30 feet wide leading out into the ocean, and to the left, the majority of the harbor was obscured by the bridge itself. Must be pretty small...
Somewhere in the morning we passed a turn off to the town of Silentz, which I belive is pronounced: "SILENTZ!!!"
A highlight of the day was certainly Boiler Bay, where we stopped by some rugged rocks with frothing waves. Lluc was the one with eagle eyes: "Look," he says, "spouts!" I almost lost it. Grey whales spouting in the distance, lots of them. First a spout, then the curvature of thier backs, and finally a glance of the tail. Incredible. What magnificent creatures. Where stood and oggled for a long while. These big fellas are heading down to thier calving grounds in the bays of Baja California, so we felt a little kinship.
We met some nice folks there who informed us that red is the first color that the human eye stops seeing at dusk (the longest wavelength, and thus the least intensity). Seeing as all of our panniers were red, this was thier way of telling us to be careful and stay visible. "You have some new grandparents," they said. Nice to know they're looking out for us too.
There was a gorgeous road up by Cape Foulweather (named by Captain Cook on an expedition there in 1778) where we experienced a taste of its namesake. Lots of headwinds, and spitting rain. Worth the view at the top though.
It continued raining clear through Newport, where it miraculously cleared as we got in sight of the bridge. Pretty stunning, even if Lluc is on his phone (he's our publicist, a very important job).
We cruised the 101 through Waldport, Wakonda Beach, all the way to Yachats (pronounced "Ya-Haats" they say). We rode through seal rock too, but didn't see any seals until Strawberry Hill. Just look at those guys!
Knowing the day ahead of us, we awoke early in the gray Lincoln City dawn to a heavy rainshower. We gave eachother the 'welp...' look. We collected our things that were hanging in the garage and were ready to ride soon after 8. Pleasant goodbyes to Romy and Naomi, who snapped a before and after photo of us at the door.
Just like new!
In Lincoln City, we passed over the "D River," the 'world's shortest river.' A fact check online brings it in at 3rd, at 131 meters long. Then in Depoe bay, we rode right over the 'world's smallest harbor.' This, in fact, is true. World's smallest navigable harbor. Riding over the bridge in town, we could see a small slit in the rocks, perhaps only 30 feet wide leading out into the ocean, and to the left, the majority of the harbor was obscured by the bridge itself. Must be pretty small...
Somewhere in the morning we passed a turn off to the town of Silentz, which I belive is pronounced: "SILENTZ!!!"
A highlight of the day was certainly Boiler Bay, where we stopped by some rugged rocks with frothing waves. Lluc was the one with eagle eyes: "Look," he says, "spouts!" I almost lost it. Grey whales spouting in the distance, lots of them. First a spout, then the curvature of thier backs, and finally a glance of the tail. Incredible. What magnificent creatures. Where stood and oggled for a long while. These big fellas are heading down to thier calving grounds in the bays of Baja California, so we felt a little kinship.
There was a gorgeous road up by Cape Foulweather (named by Captain Cook on an expedition there in 1778) where we experienced a taste of its namesake. Lots of headwinds, and spitting rain. Worth the view at the top though.
It continued raining clear through Newport, where it miraculously cleared as we got in sight of the bridge. Pretty stunning, even if Lluc is on his phone (he's our publicist, a very important job).
We cruised the 101 through Waldport, Wakonda Beach, all the way to Yachats (pronounced "Ya-Haats" they say). We rode through seal rock too, but didn't see any seals until Strawberry Hill. Just look at those guys!
Sea lions to be correct. Looks pretty nice right about now... How so much wildlife? This would be the Cape Perpetua Marine Reserve, an excellent example of why marine protected areas as so darn important! Besides that, the preserve is right next to the Siuslaw National forest, meaning there are hardly any settlements between Yachats and Haceta Junction. Miles of little coves, rocky points with nesting birds, wind-blown trees arching inland from the sea, and a road soaring gracefully at the edge of it all. A veritable paridise. Perhaps the prettiest stretch of road we've ridden yet.
It wasn't until Haceta Head that I started to recognize the area. Lluc looked back at our progress. What a day.
I love riding at the golden hour, even if it means we've been on the bikes for 10+ hours.
Finally, we rode off the cliffs and down towards Florence, where I could see the dunes start to creep up off of the beach. Couldn't help but give a yelp of joy on the way down.
The home stretch down 101 and we made it to grandma's. And who should be here but Daddio! Everybody wants in on this adventure... Can't help but join in on the fun I 'spose. Happy to see him.
My legs were so wobbly, I nearly tumbled in the shower, but at day's end, we were smiling. Tomorrow, we rest.
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