Well, actually it was only 78 miles. Day 1 of my epic solo ride down the coast is complete! I left home at 7:25am. Stopped at Mary Beth's to say goodbye and was on the road at 8:10. Stella sure was heavy! All that food weighing her down. It was slow going at first as there are a number of long hills on Hwy 8 at the beginning. By the time I got to the Gray's Harbor County line the wind was at my back and the hills had flattened out. With the tailwind I was sailing along at 16-17 mph. So much for taking all day to get to Grayland! I pulled into Aberdeen just after noon. I stopped at Starbucks (thanks for the gift card Chris) and had a hot chocolate. I pulled out a bagel and my jar of peanut butter. I just dipped the bagel in the jar (great thing about solo travel--all the food is mine so if I don't want to use a knife I don't have to!)
after lunch, I negotiated the lane changes and bridges of Aberdeen to get to Hwy 105 toward Westport and Grayland. I rode on the sidewalk of one bridge to avoid the grated bridge deck. I had an occasional headwind on 105, but mostly a crosswind. I got to the "T" (left to Grayland--right to Westport) at 2:30. I'd told the Andersons I would be in around 4 or 5. So I went to Twin Harbors State Park and checked out the beach (see photo on FB), ate a snack and called my dad (I'm glad I called because I ended up not having service at the Andersons 3 miles down the road). At about 3:30 I headed on to the Anderson's.
At their house I got Stella all unloaded and locked up in the shed. Had a great dinner and visit with John and Joan. John showed me his Frontierman outfits (most of which he made himself!) and accessories. They are quite the work of craftsmen. I learned alot about what the do at the Rendezvous (frontier time re-inactment).
Today's ride was not nearly as challenging as I thought (tailwinds do help). Tomorrow I'm off to Bay Center.
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