Ride 2019 Day 7

I had been up late the previous evening. The mechanical problems of the previous day forced me to shift where I was going to stay for the rest of the trip. It was a domino effect that shifted my stopping points by at least 25 miles. I had to cancel existing reservations and make new ones. Though I didn’t get any rain, the last 20 miles from the bike shop were on wet roads. Hidalgo needed a lot of TLC.

I got to sleep much later then Marco and was up well before him. Although I hurried to get out the door and on my way, today I started riding later than anytime during this trip. Once I was on the road, the day resembled the routine I had on my last cross-country trip. The hotel breakfast was better than average, but I would still need a second breakfast farther down the road.

There were meadows and green trees on the mountain sides early in the day. Farther down the road I made my way toward the coast and saw some spectacular views. Even today, I couldn’t help but laugh at all the things that happened yesterday. I broke out in song.

I hope Jan and Dean forgive me

When I got to Pacific City, I was ready for second breakfast. When I was getting ready to leave several people in the diner asked me about my bicycle trip, where I was going, and why I was doing it. I always try to be honest and tell them that I am doing it mostly because I just want to do it. But since they asked, I also talked about my interest in youth mentoring. One of the ladies I spoke with wanted to give me a donation and opened up her billfold. I gave her one of my business cards and asked her to please go to the website and make a donation to one of the places listed there. I stressed that people should do things in their own backyard and not for me. They would make a bigger impact if they got involved in their own community.

It was another 23 miles to Lincoln City. Looking at the map I knew I was going to have a huge climb about halfway there. I gained at least another 1000 feet of climbing. Although I did not walk any of it, I did stop more than once just to rest and recover. The downhill ride into Lincoln City was a huge relief and I rewarded myself with my first real ice cream break of this ride.

Hidalgo stayed outside, so he wouldn’t steal any of mine.

The final leg was 24 miles to my hotel in Newport. It also had a big climb, but it was gorgeous. I broke off from Highway 101 to the Otter Crest Loop. It had a dedicated Lane for bicycles and the views were the best of the whole trip so far.

Starting along the Otter Crest trail
After the ocean views I was in a canopy of trees.

Today may have been my shortest amount of time on the bicycle. However, because of the latest start of to the day for the trip so far, I still did not get into the hotel until 6 pm. Then I went into my usual routine of finding something to eat, cleaning my clothes, cleaning the bike, and doing any other maintenance Hidalgo might need. I still needed to patch the tube from yesterday’s flat. Hidalgo’s front derailleur needed adjustment from all the rain, weather, and road dirt. I’m still working through all the changes to my schedule and stopping points. I seem to be making lodging arrangements one day at a time. I’m hoping I can get an early start tomorrow and get to bed a little bit earlier. Although it’s been tiring, it has been a great adventure so far.

Trying to get my “Welcome to” sign pictures

Today’s ride summary is here.

The Lone Rider

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