72.2km out of 1436km so far
It has been 3 weeks into this trip now. Images and experiences have been so vivid, that Vancouver and my life there already feel like a distant memory. Despite any doubts I may have had in the beggining, the hills I am climbing every day and the storm I have encountered over the past week, a long and slow trip such as this is the best way for me to transit from one chapter of my life to another.
All this time I had forgotten about the earplugs I was carrying and last night I thought I would try them out. It rained really hard again overnight, but earplugs and the double tent accomondation provided me with a solid sleep up until 9am. The owners of this KOA treated us extremely well and we were happy to stop by for the night. The sun was out when we got up, together with a nice blue sky. Of course the weather changed again as me and Garry were leaving the campground. That was the last act of rain though, as by noon the sky together with the horison to the west had cleared for good from any dark clouds. Yesterday we were worried about crossing the long bridge of North Bend in bad weather, but this morning was so nice that we decided to walk it and enjoy the view of the bay.
In the town we stopped for some picnic supplies and continued further south. The suggested bike path took us away from highway 101, to some quieter and more scenic routes over a big forestry hill. By that time the weather reached the perfect conditions, with the temperature around 16-18c degrees, cool enough for a pleasant ride, but with a bright sun to dry and warm clothes, body and mind. I was in such a good mood seeing the blue sky after a grey week, that was feeling I could ride for ever.
At the summit of the hill we stopped for lunch at a spot where part of the forest was cut down, allowing a clearing with a view to the east. Another cyclist stopped by for a bit. He was part of a small group of three and they were all carrying their surfboards, heading to Sant Diego, surfing at every beach on their way.
The descent was very pleasant as the wind finally changed direction to our favor, allowing me to cycle at a great speed effortlessly. We crossed another small bridge as we entered Bandon. We were planning to camp further south, but the town was so nice that we decided to call it a day and stay there. Bandon is a fishermen village and it has an old picturesque part by the water with interesting buildings.
After a stroll we headed to an Irish pub for food and a couple of drinks. A bit risky to drink before setting tents, but we knew there was a campground just a couple of miles up north. On the way to the campground, the highway was almost empty and very dark, allowing the sky to shine above us. It’s probably the first time in the trip I get to see such a clear and bright night sky. If it wasn’t that late at night and cold, I would have loved to spend some time outdoors to enjoy the sky. But we need to have an early start tomorrow and by the time we got to the campground, we set tents and went right in.