an emotional end

After taking a very brief ride on Dave's bike I hit the road, headed south again, toward a point in the city of Waldport where highway 34 heads inland to cross over the Siuslaw National Forest. The highway will be my path to Eugene where I will catch the McKenzie highway back to Sisters, Or. 

But all of that will be anti-climactic when compared to what happened today

At 1:56 p.m. (My "clock" is still set to Mountain Day Light Time) I pulled up to this intersection

My Tripometer read thusly

At 16,754.0 miles my trip was completed when I returned to the intersection that was the beginning of P48!

I flagged down a passing-by man on the street who gladly took this picture

I sure look exuberant don't I? Despite the outward appearances, it was emotional for me. It doesn't seem possible that, in the last 115 days or so I have visited the southern-most, eastern-most, western-most and very nearly the northern-most point of those lower 48. Incredible panoramas, scenery that would take your breath away, rain and hale storms of historic proportions, mountains and deserts, forests and urban sprawl, high end neighborhoods and depressing poverty, unique artwork, patriotic displays, lakes, oceans, quagmires and bogs, and, of course, the different forms of transportation, perhaps best illustrated by this one I saw today

Each car is propelled by all occupants pedaling like a bicyclist

I talked to three cyclist today after finishing my quest. Two of them rode down from Alberta, beginning a loop that will go into California, Nevada, into Colorado and the Rocky Mountains, then home again. The other, Rudolpho, had just arrived from Mexico City and was headed to Vancouver. They all share the joy of the open road and an amazement of the scale of this country, not to mention a spirit of adventure. 

I look forward to having the opportunity to organize pictures, gather thoughts and re-write some blog posts. Maybe a book is in the future or maybe I'll make a movie. Who do you think should play the lead? Pee-Wee Herman or Matt Damon?