Village Clinic Ride Days 10 & 11: Lost and Found
Riding Highway 101 along the coast north of Astoria, OR
Day 10: Astoria is a cool town and it deserves to be enjoyed, so that’s what we did. We hiked a deep forest trail called “The Cathedral” and then we marched to the top of a tower known as “the Column,” a lighthouse-like spire filled with historical motifs. Then we visited a couple of local bakeries to get our calories for the day.
Once we did start riding, things looked great. The weather was a bit chilly but nice as we wound down the Lewis and Clark road, a winding back-route that got us off the traffic of highway 101. We re-entered the highway at the town of Seaside, and there we coasted through the weekend tourist traffic on a beach promenade. It was a sunny day, and the crowds were out in force. As we left town, we met some other bike tourers! They were from China, and Larry surprised them by speaking to them in Chinese. We chatted for a while, and then moved on down the road to the Arch Cape Tunnel. It has a raised shoulder to walk on, so it’s not exactly dangerous for those who choose to walk it, but it was extremely loud nonetheless. We were relieved to be through it and on our way down the coast.
Day 11: After morning church services, we got an afternoon start on the journey. We climbed and then climbed some more, and while the roads weren’t always comfortable, the journey was worth it. We were greeted with some amazing views of the Oregon coastline. We also read a lot about Oswald West, the governor of Oregon during the early 20th century. His admirable legacy was to set aside the Oregon coast for public use, and thanks to him, endless miles of Oregon coastline are still preserved and open to public use.
After some moderate cycling, we made it to the town of Tillamook, yes, that Tillamook, makers of fine ice creams, cheeses, and all things dairy. While we got some groceries and debated the merits of a cheese-tasting tour, Zac made the epic mistake of leaving a full pannier sitting on the sidewalk. The pannier had rain gear, jackets, a camera, and the mechanical kit. This was a disaster. It took around 30 minutes to realize the mistake, and we rushed back to the neighborhood to find the bag. When it wasn’t immediately recovered and people in the area hadn’t seen it, all seemed lost.
Fortunately, Larry did not give up. He saw some people lounging by their car in a park a few blocks away. He asked them about the pannier, and they had it! They had picked it up and were unsure what to do with it. We thanked them profusely and gave them some cash to show our appreciation. After these wild swings in emotions, we made our way to the home we were staying in and fell asleep, exhausted but satisfied.