16-06-22 Day 87 Astoria – Mark Trail Bikes

22 Wednesday Jun 2016

Posted by MarkTrail in Biking Adventure Cycling TransAmerica Bicycle Route

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16-06-22 Day 87 Astoria – Mark Trail Bikes

Biking the Trans America 2 Wheels, 6 Months, 1 Adventure

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There is a pulling at me to stay, go slow, take it all in…….. Breath……. It is the first day of summer, completing one segment, commencing the next….

Fully repacked with my Northern Tier maps from Bill and Iva, my Bike Angels back in Virginia. I was on my way to Astoria. It is crazy, So excited to be completing the #TransAmerica and contimplating starting the #NorthernTier. Within fifteen minutes of pedaling out of Seaside, I am off the beaten path. in the country.. No cars racing by…. No worries watching my mirrors…..

So Nice..

Fort Clatsop, The camp where Lewis and Clark waited out the harsh Pacific Northwest winter was right on the bike route so it was time to become a tourist. I criss crossed their epic journey once I passed the Mississippi River. Same as hiking the CDT in 2015. So cool…

The ride into Astoria was surreal. Present and in my head… Excited, dreaming of the future and reflecting on the past.. Mentally I am in a great place.. So different than last year…

I rode to the Maritime Museum, the terminus and a place to dip my tire.. Another mile and it was complete. Katherine took my picture and it was back to the Bouy Beer House to celebrate. Bikers Dennis from Germany and Steffan from the UK were waiting for their bus to Portland.. Beers and Cheers.. In the moment.

A Perfect Day!!! A Perfect Completion!!!! So Happy and Blessed Thank You!!!

Norblad Hotel/Hostel

Seaside. OR to Astoria. OR 24 miles

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16-06-21 Day 86 Zero – Mark Trail Bikes

21 Tuesday Jun 2016

Posted by MarkTrail in Biking Adventure Cycling TransAmerica Bicycle Route

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#76route, #AdventuringCycling, #bikeoregon#brooksspecialflyer, #biketouring, #JonesBikes, #marktrail, #marktrailbikes, #marktrailrocks, #oregonbiking, #seaside, #surly, #transam, #transamerica, #TransAmericaBlog

16-06-21 Day 86 Zero – Mark Trail Bikes

Biking the Trans America 2 Wheels, 6 Months, 1 Adventure

I made my favorite breakfast.. Crispy Bacon, Greasy Fried Eggs, and Crunchy Toast…

Neil returned from his morning swim. He retired from the local school as a counselor and track coach.. He knows the community well and the community knows him…

I studied the maps, wrote, and went back to bed for some much needed rest…

A zero milage day is always filled with chores, I cleaned the chain and popped my tube adding air. Always a risk…

Back to the store for some salmon and veggies for a big biker dinner.. No one was there to share so I ate it ALL myself… Bummer..

I walked to see the sunset but the horizon was cloud filled. No worries….. Maybe on the next spin… Love it and in no hurry to bike north..

Seaside, OR 0 miles

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16-06-20 Day 85 Neil – Mark Trail Bikes

20 Monday Jun 2016

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16-06-20 Day 85 Neil – Mark Trail Bikes

Biking the Trans America 2 Wheels, 6 Months, 1 Adventure

Again my goal was an early start. Coming out of the shower Carl asked if I wanted a cup of coffee.. Carl and Candy are from Albany OR and are on vacation… What can we do for you?? Gosh Really? ?? So nice.. Great sharing….

Tha ride was along the coast. Up to a bluff…… Down to the ocean… Up to a bluff….. Down to the ocean.. Emily and I solved all the life issues of the day in Manzanita’s city sidewalk… Since we will never meet again it is so easy to share what’s up.. Only if life was so easy… Or is it and we make it hard.. With all our search for more….

In Seaside, OR, Neil is a warm shower host.. A special one.. Come share my home. I might be there…. I might not… You are welcome.. I am thankful…

Thanks Neil for being my post office and holding my maps and passport for part 2 of my adventure….

Seaside, OR was so cool I decided to take a zero… There is a walkway along the ocean front filled with vacationing smiles… Lots of shops and hangouts…. Another day in the life…

Nehalem Bay State Park to Seaside, OR

24 miles

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16-06-19 Day 84 Cheese – Mark Trail Bikes

19 Sunday Jun 2016

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16-06-19 Day 84 Cheese – Mark Trail Bikes

Biking the Trans America 2 Wheels, 6 Months, 1 Adventure

Michelle is an amazing Mom… Balancing a career and managing a family.. She loaded me up with breakfast and then the bike with food… Fresh Fruit and Coffee…..

The ride to Tillamook was over one mountain and quickly to the Cheese Factory for lunch… It was cheese this and cheese that.. Cheese is a big part of our diet.. I am lactose intolerant and have lactase pills to aid in digestion… My body craves dairy and I appreciate the ability to partake..

Riding along the coast eye candy around every turn. I stopped here to look. Here to hike down to the beach. Missed hiking that trail.. Oh how I must return to explore…… Maybe the Oregon Coast Trail….. Passed a couple who were bolting due to lots of road walking… Humm…

Rode to Rockaway Beach, Manhattan Beach, Wheeler, Nehalem and finally Nehalem Bay State Park…. Camped with the Bikers… Everyone biking south….

Shared the sunset with a couple from Holland, Steffan and Annika.. Biking with road maps only… So intetesting…..

Cape Lookout State Park to. Nehalem Bay State Park

47.5 miles

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16-06-18 Day 83 The Pacific – Mark Trail Bikes

18 Saturday Jun 2016

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16-06-18 Day 83 The Pacific – Mark Trail Bikes

Biking the Trans America. 2 Wheels, 6 Months, 1 Adventure

I woke up early ready to get an early start but Don had a different plan. “Could you answer some questions I have for you? ” Sure.. Don and Ellen downsized and are traveling the country in a RV… I hope to transition to some sort of home on wheels this fall.. We talked about life on the road… So cool…. Ellen made me breakfast and I was pedaling West.. I was looking forward to second breakfast in Rose Lodge when I was directed to The Otis Cafe.. I had no idea that the cafe was famous and by luck I missed a turn and was off route. I had German potatoes with spinich, mushrooms, sausage and tons of cheese piled high…. Yummy… Back on route I could get glimpses of the Pacific after I passed Neskowin. The route turned north. There was a bluff on my left as i was biking to Oretown where the view of the Pacific Ocean opened up.. I was in tears of joy… Wow, Eighty Three days… All the memories of all the Awesome new friends that helped me along the journey….. and our time shared….. I wished we could all be together now to celebrate our Day…..

Thank You!!!!

After a few pictures it was time to continue north. Stopped in Pacific City to buy food for dinner and biked to Cape Lookout State Park. The Biker campsite was nice but I wanted to sleep with a view of the Ocean.. I scouted it out and met Bill, Michelle and family who had a Group campsite on the beach bluff…. You guessed it… “We have plenty of room” … Family time. I was invited to dinner and was able to set my tent up overlooking the Pacific. I am so blessed… We all watched the golden sun set into the expensive ocean. Thank you so much!!!

Grand Ronde to. Cape Lookout State Park

54 miles

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16-03-29 Day 2 Battlefields and Plantations

29 Tuesday Mar 2016

Posted by MarkTrail in Biking Adventure Cycling TransAmerica Bicycle Route

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16-03-29 Day 2 Battlefields and Plantations

2 Wheels, 6 Months, 1 Adventure!!!
TransAmerica 2016 Blog

The stars were winking at me as the cool breeze brushed against my whiskers. AHHH. Cowboy Camping!!!… The birds started singing at 5:30 am…. Back on the east coast where the birds are louder…. And plentiful… It was cold so I started fully clothed. Might need to adjust for colder mornings..

7:00 am I pulled out back on the Capital Bike Trail. It rolls all the way to Richmond but I will leave it for less busy Mechinicsville.

The morning I visited Sherwood Forrest Plantation. John Tyler, The 10th PrePresident the US. I can only remember the first… After doing the President thing he decided to get married…… Have 7 children, and remodel the home, making it a 300 ft home, the longest frame house in the US…. It would make a nice Bowling Alley… Or hideaway… It was early and no one was at the plantation so I biked on..

Plantation after Plantation morphed into Battlefield after Battlefield… The Melvern Hill story was that the Confederate forces took it wave after wave at a price of 5000 lives. Union….3,000… Another time for reflection.

Stopped for lunch at the Willis Methodist Church. Pastor Mark greeted me as the 2nd Biker on the year.. The first March 7th… Maybe I can catch up….. or not.

On to Mechinicsville 5:00 o’clock traffic. Everyone was patient taking their turn passing old Silver. It was late but felt good so I pushed on to Ashland, VA. Old Town Bicycles.

A nice stop to Martin’s Grocery Store to charge up and a half gallon of Moose Tracks.. Blogging Done!

Ashland Va. 69.5 Miles

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15-04-16. Day 5 Lordsburg – Mark Trail CDT

16 Thursday Apr 2015

Posted by MarkTrail in Hiking The Continental Divide Trail

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15-04-16 Day 5. Lordsburg

Today is a town day so no worries waking up and getting at it. Hiking at 5:32 am, looking for a shower and a salad, Yes. We had 4 miles to water cache #5 and 6.9 to town. After an hour and a half of going to town hiking, ( 3 miles per hour ), we came to the road where the water cache was supposed to be. Where’s the cache? Where’s the “Trail” signs? Scrambling with the maps and gps we both come to the conclusion we were a mile off the trail in the wrong direction. One mile isn’t a big deal in the 60 mph car world, ( More like 70 today), but it’s 20 to 30 minutes in the 2 mph hiking world. We finally saw the cache south of the trail 6.9 miles from town. You need water? I have a liter. I have a liter too. The cache was south of the intersection and in reality not to far off the trail but at that point not worth the effort and not needed. We would make it to town on 1 liter. That would be 26 miles on 5 liters with an overnight… Great.

The Econo Lodge was bustling with activity. Since the Continental Divide Coalition set up shuttles to the border, 10 hikers will leave to the start hiking while 10 will arrive from the start, hiking back into town about 5 days later.

Juan, our driver, who has helped us without question..greeted us. “Well, how did it go?” It was as I expected and more than I expected. Thats how I could sum it up. We went next door for pizza and had a hiker feed with Dan, Giggles, Boston Bone and Grits who I met while he was hiking the AT last year.

Back to the room to pack for the next section and write.. Nice day.

Lordsburg NM Econo Lodge, 11.4 miles

15-04-15 Day 4 SourScout – Mark Trail CDT

15 Wednesday Apr 2015

Posted by MarkTrail in Hiking The Continental Divide Trail

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15-04-15 Day 4. SourScout

Up at 5:00am and on the trail at 6:00am. We hiked along with one headlamp. Somewhere many miles back is Sourdough’s headlamp laying in the trail. We left Coyote Hills headed to Pyramid Peak, a 6,008 ft cone. Between Sourdough’s Binoculars and GPS, we could see the peak all day as we weaved ourselves across the desert.

We picked up 5 liters of water at cache #4. The water cache was filled with 40 gallons of water as the CDT shuttle has started transporting 10 hikers a day to the start. In four days we have only seen Alex, Wagon Wheel, and two sobos. NICE!!! The wind picked up during the day and the clouds made the hike much better than it could have been.

We took an hour lunch at 12:30 knowing we were trying to hike 20 miles to the next water. 7:30 and we were warn out. Found a gully to block the wind..

Oh Sourdough almost got bit by a rattlesnake.

Rockhouse Seep. 22 miles

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15-04-14 Day 3. Lost, Found, and Lost – Mark Trail CDT

14 Tuesday Apr 2015

Posted by MarkTrail in Hiking The Continental Divide Trail

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Rise and Shine at 5:00. Fire up the stove for some Hot Chocolate / Coffee mix and oatmeal. Oh no..Where is my spoon? Tear my whole pack apart… No spoon. It’s hard to eat without a spoon. Sourdough lent me his but I was disheveled. Where did I put it?

We were hiking by 5:50 am.. The sunrise entertained us while we left the Little Hatchett Mtns. It was our first day of full sun. By 10:30 my eyes were tearing. I had my glasses on and not my contacts, due to my dirty hands and conserving water for the 20 mile section between water caches. What was I going to do. I grabbed my sunglasses and put them on over my glasses with instant relief… At 2:30 we hiked 16 miles to the third water cache. We put up my tarp for shade and made lunch, an oasis in the middle of nowhere. As was getting my food bag, my spoon jumped out. Instant Joy!!!!. I could eat..

Alex and Wagon Wheel joined us for a much needed siesta. We watered and packed up as we had 13 miles to hike to the next water. We passed a nice water hole for the cows who were gracious enough to share. The water was cool and refreshing as it was our third day out. Say goodby to the Hatchetts Mtns and hello to the Coyote Hills. There was a nice place to sleep about half way to the next cache that we couldn’t resist. As we set for the night, Sourdough couldn’t find his headlamp. Big problem. He’s still searching as I fell asleep.

Halfway to Cache #4 24 miles

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15-04-12 Day 1 The CDT – Mark Trail CDT

12 Sunday Apr 2015

Posted by MarkTrail in Hiking The Continental Divide Trail

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Day 1. The CDT

Juan Reynon arrived ten minutes early,7:20 am, at the Econo Lodge while Sourdough and I finished our breakfast. We packed the four-wheel drive suburban with 17 gallons of water to place in 5 water caches on our way to the border. As we left town we looked for yellow heet for Sourdough with no luck. As Juan drove, we talked about the history of the starting point of the trail where a Crazy Cook was murdered. What a great place to start….We picked up Wagon Wheel and Alex in Hachita as we began dropping off our water. It was crazy thinking that we would be back in a few days to pick up the water at the boxes. The Suburban bounced along the dirt road as we made our way to the border arriving at 12 noon. The monument has been vandalized. Bummer… We took a bunch of pictures and off we went. We weaved our way toward Big Hatchet Mtn. Looking for the trail here and there. Oh there it is…. I was warned that this was going to be a different hike. It started to rain off and on then mostly on. At 5:30 Sourdough found a tree to cook dinner under. We fired up our alcohol stoves and had yummy freeze-dried dinners. .Turkey Tetrazzini is one of my favorites. At 7:30 we arrived at the Sheridan Canyon water box in a steady rain and called it a day.

Day 1 Sheridan Canyon 13.7 mi.

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15-04-11 It’s All Coming Together

11 Saturday Apr 2015

Posted by MarkTrail in Hiking The Continental Divide Trail

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Thanks Mark Trail
When will the planning part of the adventure come to a close and the fun begin?

After months of dreaming, I am on the final leg of my way across America to the start of the CDT. Greyhound rides again. I am looking into Mexico from the bus headed to Lordsburg, NM, the jumping off point. Humm… The mexican border. Where’s Canada? Six months away… 180 days…, 2,800 miles. Sourdough will arrive at 5:00 without his alcohol for his stove. He was trying to smuggle it on his bus traveling east from Arizonia… what was he thinking? My yellow bottles of heet are traveling below, safetly stashed in my Osprey backpack as I travel west from Texas, I don’t look like a drug trafficker like Sourdough….. Yet!

Maybe our ride will show up tomorrow morning on time. Maybe we will find a place to stay tonight. Maybe everything is packed. Maybe the planning is coming to an end. Yes!!!

Day 0, Miles 0

MarkTrail

~ Living The Dream…….

Tag Archives: #marktrailrocks

16-06-22 Day 87 Astoria – Mark Trail Bikes

Marktrailrocks.com/category/Biking-Adventure-Cycling-TransAmerica-Bicycle-Route/? order=asc

16-06-21 Day 86 Zero – Mark Trail Bikes

16-06-20 Day 85 Neil – Mark Trail Bikes

16-06-19 Day 84 Cheese – Mark Trail Bikes

16-06-18 Day 83 The Pacific – Mark Trail Bikes

16-03-29 Day 2 Battlefields and Plantations

15-04-16. Day 5 Lordsburg – Mark Trail CDT

15-04-15 Day 4 SourScout – Mark Trail CDT

15-04-14 Day 3. Lost, Found, and Lost – Mark Trail CDT

15-04-12 Day 1 The CDT – Mark Trail CDT

15-04-11 It’s All Coming Together