Day Seven (or Eight?)

We've arrived from accross the Colombia River in Astoria, Oregon. Halfway over the bridge I started whooping and pumping it hard because I just cycled through an entire state! Washington was beautiful but rough. It rained the first night and the next day, and for the days following, all of our clothes and gear were wet. Olympia National Park was hilly. We've passed through a dozen small towns, between diary farms, autoparts yards, coastal fisheries, mountains and forests. Small town USA is strange. I'm actually getting a good idea of what America is like from the side of the road...

Stuff That I Have Seen On America's Shoulders:

Beer Cans
Pom-Poms
Cigarette Packages
Dead Birds
Slugs
Bees
Redwood Bark
Cassette Tapes


It's amazing the songs that have been running through my head. It seems that I'm digging further back each day for tunes to hum as I push push glide along.

We've been encountering increasing numbers of fellow tourers (heading the opposite direction). They are all men, and mostly alone. I would be incredibly lonely and unwilling to press on at my daily 55k break-point if I were travelling by the onesy. Alex and I are getting on well. The only times we've gotten cantankerous have been grocery shopping while hungry, or if there's something wrong with the bikes. It helps to just laugh. Speaking of which, there is some universally applicable wisdom to be gained from a bike tour:

Hills always look steeper from far away.
If there are clouds out when you wake up, keep a raincoat handy.
Baked beans and graham crackers are the gods' gift to poor and hungry people.
Keep on living!


Now that we're in Oregon, we'll be heading down the coast for another ten days, and then we'll be in California! It's rainy right now but things are looking up; We're having a big meal at a restaurant tonight to celebrate our conquest of Washington, my legs don't ever get wobbly anymore, even after big hills and hiker-biker campsites are only $4 in this state! Hurrah!

I wouldn't relish doing a trip like this as a male... cor blimey my balls hurt!