Over the pass and to the (drift) woods

Check out my 194.5 mi Ride on Strava: if at first you don't succeed, try this

Day 2 - Sisters to Yachats, Or.

195 miles in 5.5 hours

The window of opportunity that I thought I saw that would get me over Santiam Pass stayed open just long enough for me to crawl through it (I think Betty was holding it open).

When I awoke this morning the weather channel said it was 32 degrees (and that ain't Celsius folks) and it had snowed over night. However the on-line cameras showed only low hanging fog. So which is better - slippin' and aslidin' down the mountain or not being able to see the turns? They further predicted the temperature was rising all morning until rain swept through at 12:15 p.m. so I had the 3 hour window to travel two hours up and over the pass. No problem.

After grabbing a quick banana and bagel I headed west from Sisters. The road climbs almost immediately so it was only about 25 minutes later that I was freezing my arse off at 4817 feet. It was a good thing the speed limit was only 40 miles an hour because it only felt like 5 degrees! No snow on the road but the view was restricted greatly by the low bank of fog.

As I glided slowly down the west slope of the Cascade Mountains the temperature increased ever so slightly to the mid-forties. The road was dry but the mist of fog collected on, then flew off over, the windshield. I stayed low enough behind it to avoid getting my visor dirty so I could pop up like the Groundhog to read highway signs. Only almost killed myself once, which wasn't bad considering the conditions.

The big challenge so far continues to be the technology I am trying to employ. I have somewhere upwards of 150 points of interest marked on my navigation map, but a lot of them don't have an actual address (like covered bridges and waterfalls) so the GPS sends me right pass them without pointing them out. We'll see what happens with the Statue of Liberty.

The other challenge so far (and I believe it is behind me now) is ODOT (Oregon Dept. Of Transportation). In what is assuredly an economical decision, they took a short cut to repair a lot of Highway 20, my primary course thus far. The heavy traffic had caused damage to the lanes, but only on the two sides where the rubber meets the road. So rather than replace the entire highway they laid asphalt only in the tire bearing part of each lane. This leaves two swatches of nice new blacktop on either side of the lane and an older section down the middle of the lane that sits about 1/4" to 1/2" lower than the rest of the road bed. This low spot is anywhere from 2 inches to 2 feet wide and can be most unsettling for the tires of a motorcycle, especially one banked in a turn on a steep mountain road with on-coming truck traffic pushing invisible walls of wind at you as they fly by.

Every time I started to get chilled Betty would have the Big Guy part the clouds and shine a little sunlight on me, but even that wasn't enough to stave off leg cramps after riding for over an hour in 30-40 degree weather. Leg cramps do not go away as quickly when one is unable to straighten one's legs and the thought of stopping to take a break is of little comfort when you don't know if you can straighten your legs to hold your conveyance vertical.

Took some pictures at the beach in Newport, then took pictures of the West Coast version of the famous Newport Bridge, all the while recalling that, when I was a sailor, my ship moored in sight of the East Coast version of the famous Newport Bridge! Then I drove south a bit to Deanes Oceanside Lodge and paid an extra $20.00 for a room with a view because I know Betty was going to order up a spectacular sunset, despite the mostly overcast day we had earlier.

She seldom disappoints!

I'm back now. I had to run outside to listen to the sun sizzle when it hit the ocean.

So I am 550 miles into my Grand Adventure and looking forward to a myriad of scenic overlooks tomorrow. I should be on the Pacific Coast Highway for the next week and a half. Having fun, despite my complaining.