The Yin - Yang of Long-distance Riding (June 6, 2010)

The days on the road are all separate, all days unto themselves. Some days have no distinguishing moments and some days are embedded in my memory for ever (or at least as long as my memory lasts).

For me the last two days represent the Yin and Yang of memorable rides.

Yesterday was a day of great beauty ... blue skys and sunlit shafts penetrating the dark roadside forests. A day of meeting other riders. A day started with a joyful conversation with the wife of a south bound rider (she is providing SAG support for her husband ... check out his journal at www.crazyguyonabike.com/billstone). The conversation with this lady was a great way to start the day.

Included in this magnificent day were some very challenging climbs that provided spectacular vistas. The only negative to the day was the headwind that blew for the second half of the 47 miles from Tillamook, OR to Seaside, OR. My legs were cooked, and these tired muscles overruled my thoughts of camping when I encountered the roadside hotels in Seaside.

So much for the Yin. Yang (today) presented grayness and not much in the way of joy. Today's 51 mile ride from Seaside to Cathlamet, WA was, quite truthfully, the pits. Rain all day long, highlighted by the spray of thousands of vehicles returning from the beach-towns to Portland. Throw in several nasty climbs and you end up with a day impossible to forget. Again ... nasty, nasty day.

There was one event today that was enjoyable; to get across the Columbia river at Cathlamet, you have to take a ferry. The ferry ride lasted about 10 minutes, but was fun none-the-less ... and I did not get sea-sick.

By-the-way, Cathlamet rhymes with Willamette, which rhymes with well-dam-it.

While crossing the Columbia River on the ferry, I realized once again, that even though there are these days of grayness, life is still pretty good.