[trip-list] Fog

[drewish@katherinehouse.com]

[Here's one, the next two are written but await re-reading and revision.]

ORICK, CA 07/29/02 - I woke up and everything had been covered by ash, then the dew had settled on it, creating a muddy cement. I just ignored it and packed up.

I'd been telling myself since Eugene  that I'm going to wash clothes at the next laundromat I found. This morning I was finally out of everthing, and by out I mean smells like-a-corpse-foul and  so sticky from dried sweat that they have to be peeled off. Luckly US-101 passed right by the "101 Laundry" in Crescent City. The washing took a while and ate up a ton of quarters but smelling like Surf is much nicer than smelling like-a-corpse-foul.

South of town, I started following California's Costal Bike Route signs. The day before they'd served me well, keeping me off the 101 and on calm scenic farm roads. Today I didn't fare so well with them. Following some of the state's green signs lead me to some of either the National Park's brown signs, which led me up a 3 road to a dead end lookout. It had a great view but I really wasn't in the mood. Back to the 101 and up the same hill, different side. 

I know the BikeE isn't the fastest bike but it was really creeping up the hills this morning. They were some big, long ones too so it was frustrating. As I'd ascend and descent, sweating and freezing, I'd pass back and forth into the fog. It wasn't very thick but just enough to leave me glued to my mirror waiting to see the next logging truck come barreling out of a dense patch. One cool thing about fog, you feel awful tough when you can watch the steam rising off your forrhead, You might even find yourself trying to strike a tough looking pose so that the striking image of a cyclist pumping up the grade, steam poring from their helmet becomes one they'll never forget, speaking hypothetically though.

Giving the bike route signs one final try I ended up on the Redwoods Scenic Bypass. It was amaizing. I rode between groves of redwoods and sequoiaw hundreds of years old. Craining my neck looking up to the top of them and I talking to myself as I rode "Damn that's a big tree. Hot damn, that ones even bigger." Pretty inspiring to think that given the chance any logging company would have all those old trees out of there faster than you can say "Timber" or possibly "Dollar".

I tried to pick up as many miles as I could in the afternoon but between either a slow leak or dragging fender (not sure which) and the  early darkness caused by the fog I probably only made 40 miles for the day. That puts me in a tough spot considering I'm supposed to be in Sacramento in 3.5 days and it's over 300 miles. I'm sure it'll work itself out.

A useless bit of trivia my friend Molly sent me the day before: sequoia is the only 7 letter word that uses all 5 vowels.

andrew

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