Author Archives: Daisy

Perfect riding to San Francisco, and days as tourists

We are in San Francisco, nearing the end of a 5 day layover that we’ve used to rest, plan, and spend time with family. Since we last updated we had three days of wonderful riding along the coast with Jason’s family friend Mark before crossing the iconic Golden Gate Bridge into downtown San Francisco. We had a blast with Mark, and enjoyed the sunny weather and tailwinds that accompanied us on this last stretch.

Look where we made it to!

Lunch with a view.

I know that we have complained in the past about this coastal route, but it has finally started to deliver. In the last few weeks it was so busy, and surprisingly cold, and we missed the views of the mountains. Lately, however, the road has gone up and down over the high coastal headlands for miles, and we relish the hills. There have also been some very charming small coastal towns and friendly cyclists in camp.

A few views of the headlands, cliffs, towns, and sights.

The road is in the upper left.

The view after the climb.

Perfect conditions along Tomales Bay. Many oysters around here!

One day, conditions were so perfect that I went a little nuts. The tailwind was so strong I felt like I wasn’t carrying any bags at all! I flew down the road, completely delighted with things, until I realized I was so far ahead of Jason and Mark that i couldn’t even see them anymore! Oops.

Cyclist party at the hiker / biker site.

Our last night before San Francisco was spent in Samuel P. Taylor State Park, in the company of about 15 other cyclists. There was a french couple near the end of a 17-month trip across Eurasia and then down the Pacific Coast. There was also a Penn State graduate currently living in Bellingham, WA. What a crazy chance meeting! We had a very fun night chatting, and the camp was silent by 10pm. Oh, the glories of the hiker / biker site.

Negotiating the outskirts of a big city like San Francisco was daunting, but it was actually surprisingly easy and scenic. The bike paths and routes were packed with cyclists – both spando-clad speedsters on featherlite bikes and wide-eyed tourists on rentals. Eventually we made it to the base of the big red bridge and started across. The wind was so strong! It was a little anti-climatic, since the bike path was narrow and congested. The views were good though, and we certainly felt accomplished when we finally rolled into the city.

So many cyclists! Note to self: don’t ride across the golden gate bridge on a Sunday.

The view from the big red bridge.

Jason’s parents were waiting for us in the heart of downtown in their timeshare building’s lobby. It was so great to see them again! Hugs all around, and bicycles in the elevator. The timeshare is incredible: perfect views, all the amenities imaginable, and even showers without quarter-timers!

We’ll do a post in a day or two summarizing our time here as tourists, after all, we still have another day to enjoy it. One more bit of news first though: I have gotten the green light to schedule my defense at Penn State, and we have bought tickets to fly back east from Sept. 20 to 27. Yippee! We will fly from San Diego, and then at the beginning of October we will finally start our next leg: Mexico!

We found a big globe, and Jason had long enough arms to span our entire trip!

California’s northern coast: Both lost and otherwise

One of many stunning views along the California coast.

One of many stunning (and very very foggy) views along the California coast.

We have been on the California coastal route for a few days now, and we have definitely had a lot of experiences and formed some opinions about the area! Our favorite part of the coast was the section known as the ‘Lost Coast’ because of its steep hills and isolation. We spent two days on an alternate route through this area. We have also enjoyed more redwoods, the rugged coastal cliffs, our interactions with other cyclists, and the hiker / biker areas in the state parks. The traffic has been frustrating, as has been riding on a major 4-lane highway for portions. Also, we have had some funny, and harmless, interactions with the local free-spirits. More on that later. To the left is a little map of our route for these few days.

Enjoying the KOA’s blackberries

We spent most of a day resting in the Arcata / Eureka area, which was very much needed. We actually didn’t do much besides eat, read, and sleep at the local KOA (Kampgrounds of America – obviously the founders weren’t winning any spelling bees). These are the Hiltons of campgrounds. They usually have pools, playgrounds, billiards, and pancake breakfasts. We were just happy for a quiet spot out of the way to read all afternoon.

Immediately after our rest day we started on the Lost Coast. The turn-off was tucked away behind the quaint Victorian town of Ferndale, which we really enjoyed. The Lost Coast is cut off from most of California by some very steep, very forbidding mountains. We were amazed at just how steep the road in was – definitely over 10% for at least four miles. The pavement was pocked, patched, and neglected but the views at the top were stunning. We could see for miles! Surprisingly, most of what we saw was cattle. Yes, you read that right. Ranchers use the tops of these forbidding mountains to graze cows. Wow.

Downtown Ferndale. They had a great grocery store too.

The Victorian Hotel in Ferndale. Snazzy place!

The eternal flame.

We even slept in a field with a bunch of cows! A rancher invited us to camp in his field, and came by to check on us and tell us about his ‘eternal flame’. There is a spot on his land where natural gas constantly seeps out of cracks in the dirt. Someone lit it with a match long ago and it has burned ever since. We were certainly in awe when we found it, and we wished we had some hotdogs to roast over the flames.

Our camping spot – look closely to see our tent!

The rest of the lost coast was much the same: very few people, uninterrupted coast and hills, and cows. The hills were very steep, and so were the descents. At the end of it, when we rejoined the main route further inland, we rode through magnificent redwood forests. Many many cyclists ride the coastal route, but we guess that less than 10% do the lost coast. It adds 8,000′ of extra climbing and about 50 miles, but we think it was worth it!

Surf and turf – prime oceanfront grazing.

Climbing up and up on the Lost Coast.

A view from the top of the climb.

Jason, climbing a distant ridge.

Bike-Thru tree.

Back on the main route, we started to see cyclists. One night we camped in a state park with at least 15 of them! It was neat to see so many cyclists, and also a little bit overwhelming. We particularly enjoyed chatting with a father and sons group traveling from Portland to San Francisco. The very next night we stayed in a campground that was about six miles shy of the park where most cyclists stay. It turned out we were the only cyclists there! What a change. Those other cyclists probably knew something we didn’t though, since in the middle of the night a bunch of really drunk campers came by and made a ton of noise in and around the bathrooms next to our site. We finally gave up trying to sleep and just read our books for about an hour!

We some some bachelor elk wrassling next to the road.

So about those free spirits in California. I don’t really know how to describe them, but they are everywhere. They aren’t necessarily vagrants, and they also are almost always friendly, but they say the most hilarious things. We see them hiking on the side of the road with their dogs, lounging at the picnic table in front of gas stations, and most particularly outside of grocery stores. We usually interact with them outside of grocery stores, since one person always stays with the bikes while the other shops. Yesterday’s interactions were the best. Jason stayed with the bikes while I shopped, and he learned all sorts of tidbits. He learned about the old guy who only wears one shoe because he gets more money that way, and about some other guy’s buddy who stepped in a hole in the graveyard, heard a crunch, and broke a rib (of a dead guy). Don’t worry – he went back with some dirt later and filled in the hole. Oh my oh my! When I finally got out of the grocery store a lady outside looked me up and down before saying ‘Very nice – blue is a power color’. I was wearing a blue dress. Ha!

Finally, a good shot of the coast with the winding road ahead. It’s all up and down around here.

We only have about three more days before we hit San Francisco. Can you believe that? Three more days! Once there we will spend a week as tourists with Jason’s family in a timeshare. We cannot wait for the luxury of sleeping in the same bed for many nights, and having a kitchen to cook in. Cookies!

Chef Jason makes lunch at a massive redwood table.

Volcanoes! Up, down, and around Crater Lake.

We made it! We are about 1/5 of the way through the journey…

Riding by lava flows.

Oregon continues to amaze me. Truly, it’s not just Portland hipsters and the sunny coast – it is long miles of uninterrupted forest roads, volcanic peaks, lava tubes, and the spectacular Crater Lake. Since we last updated, near Bend, we have climbed up three mountain passes, spent a night in a hotel (wow!), circumnavigated Crater Lake, reached 4000 miles, saw a river disappear underground into a lava tube, and descended into the heat of southern Oregon. We also saw another of my math friends from college, and said goodbye to Jason’s cousin Ray. Next up: a ride through the coastal mountains to the ocean, and then more miles south. Before then, some stories and lots of pictures!

Oregonian Chipmunk.

Bend, OR is one of my all-time favorite towns. As I said in a previous post, it is jam packed with friendly folks. Also, delicious pizza. We left early to climb out of Bend and into the Cascade Lakes region: a high-altitude series of lakes jam-packed with campgrounds. Originally we had hoped to do a long day through this region, but we decided to stop early and enjoy the afternoon at Little Lava Lake.

Cooling off has never looked this good.

Narrowly averted disaster.

The next day we got up early because Ray wanted to try for a super long day of 85 miles. The morning riding was wonderful in the cool of morning on roads with almost no traffic. We nearly had a mechanical disaster when we realized Ray’s rear rack was falling off. Finally, we got to use our supply of spare parts and tools! It only took a few minutes and a spare screw before we were back on the road. After about 60 miles of riding we arrived in the small highway town of Chemult and decided to call it a day.

Absurd drink size prices.

The town was a riot, and because there was no campground we got a two-bedroom room in the local lodge. It was actually really nice, and the small-town grocery store had a decent selection of food along with some bizarre decoration. The travel center across the street had a horrifying pricing scheme for fountain soda drinks. See picture!

Chemult general store.

We climbed up and up and up into Crater Lake National Park. Crater Lake is found in the collapsed cone of the ancient Mount Mazama. About 7,700 years ago the mountains cone collapsed and formed the deepest lake in the US. It fills only from rain and snow, and thus has some of the clearest, purest water in the world. We stayed two nights in the hiker-biker sites, and spent a day riding around the lake. The circumnavigation was amazing for two reasons: first, the scenery was truly stunning, and second, one of my best friends from college was there to ride with us. Thanks for meeting us Greg! Also, thanks to our cyclist friend Brian who we met in British Columbia and again in Crater Lake. I hope we see you again soon on the coast.

Four cyclists riding around Crater Lake

Our bicycles at the very first overlook.

The pumice desert en route to Crater Lake.

Pacific Crest Hikers

The hiker-biker site was an absolute riot. It was jam-packed with Pacific Crest Trail hikers. This scenic trail traverses 2,600 miles from Mexico to Canada along the mountains. The thru-hikers form remarkable communities and are always super friendly. Ray had a blast talking with them both nights, and I think they really enjoyed hanging out with him. Jason and I both hit the sack early, exhausted from the 5,000 feet of climbing that riding around the lake required.

Ray and Aunt Cathy, getting ready to hit the road.

Ray’s mom came to get him from Crater Lake so that they could spend some time in the Redwoods. We certainly missed him on the loooong descent off the volcano. The descent lasted for nearly 30 miles! It was mostly up and down through small towns on tiny roads until today, when we rolled into Ashland. The most notable occurence was in a tiny town, where an old man told me (Daisy) that I am ‘starting to look like Justin Bieber.’ What?!

Ashland is this little town is known for its nearly year-round Shakespeare festival and a high concentration of dreamers, poets, and artists. In short, we are so happy to be here! We are being hosted by a wonderful couple on their farm. They gave us some great advice on our next few days of riding. Next, we will head a little north and straight west to reach the Oregon coast. Coming up: Coastal glory, more hiker-biker sites, and giant redwood trees.

From Central Washington to Central Oregon. It’s getting HOT!

In the Pacific Northwest!

Woohoo! We are in a new state, we are travelling with Jason’s super fun and goofy cousin, and the cold of the north is a very very distant memory. Since we last updated, we have ridden many more mountain passes through absolutely beautiful forests. We have passed by the volcanic peaks of Mt. Rainier, Mount St. Helens, Mt. Adams, Mt. Hood, Mt. Jefferson, and Mt. Washington. Can you believe that?! We have had some really fantastic camping experiences, and our first really terrible camping experience. What a stretch! Let’s go over some highlights.

From Mt. Rainier National Park we started to follow an established cycling route through the Cascade Mountains. It has taken us on very quiet, very lovely forest roads that climb up and down and up and down. We have gotten to know the quiet beauty of climbing a mountain pass in the morning, and the fun thrill of descending in the evening. On one pass in Washington we met another pair of touring cyclists near the summit. They were remarkable because one was 13, and had organized adult chaperones to accompany his trip from San Diego to Canada and back. What a cool kid!

Bug suits! The campground was full of old-growth trees.

Really neat cut-outs near the top of yet another pass.

Our view of Mount St. Helens.

Welcome to Oregon!

We finally hit the Columbia river which separates Washington from Oregon, and walked over the toll bridge connecting the two states. I was so sad to say goodbye to my most favorite state! Oregon has been good to us though. We stayed with a great fellow in Hood River who let us use his house as a base as we left for the day to pick up Ray, Jason’s cousin, who is joining us for ten days. We actually rented a minivan to pick him and his bike up. It was so so wild to drive on the highway we had just ridden, and to spend the day being car tourists.

Daisy in a minivan?! One time only, I promise.

Ray and Jason at Multnomah Falls

The next day we started our Oregon riding, with Ray riding along with us. He always has a great positive attitude, so it is really fun to ride with him. We didn’t exactly ease him into it either, since our very first day with him included a 4000′ mountain pass. Yikes! It was quite an accomplishment to get to the top. We rolled into camp pretty late, but still had time to cook dinner and set up camp before dark.

Ray riding with Mt. Hood in the distance.

At the top!

Sharing the teeny tiny forest road!

The next day also included a lot of climbing, and our best-yet descent on a tiny forest road that was traffic-free and barely a lane wide. Super smooth pavement though! We descended from a calm and lovely forest into the tourist-packed chaos of Detroit, Oregon. Never heard of it? Good! Never go there!!! For one thing, the local ambulance nearly hit me on the road. Read on for another reason. It has a population of about 300, but that must swell significantly on weekends in the summer. The ‘grocery store’ has a much better liquor selection than food. They didn’t even have marinara sauce!

At this point, Ray had a sore knee and so we bought a bag of ice and headed to the nearest campground to get him some rest. Of course, the campground was full. We couldn’t go any farther though, so we found an unused spot and parked our bikes to swim in a lake and relax. We talked to the campground host to tell him the situation, and while he didn’t approve, he also didn’t tell us to leave. Relieved, we decided to cook dinner in a day use area. Day use lasts until 10pm, this is important for the rest of the story.

At around 8:30, the campground host’s boss rolls around camp in his jeep and asks us what we are doing. We tell him the situation. Remarkably, he says ‘Well you can’t camp here. I don’t care where you go, you just need to not be here’. We say ‘We can’t go anywhere, we have a hurt kid and it’s getting dark’. I also pointed out that people were breaking rules about the number of tents per site all over the campground, and he didn’t like it that I would notice such a thing. He proceeded to tell us that he didn’t like our attitude, that we must leave, and we should go camp on the side of the road. He drove off in a huff after Jason got mad at him in return.

I decided to act, so walked around the campground and simply found a friendly man in an RV wiling to share his site. No problem. We were beginning to move the bikes when the sheriff rolled up. Yes – the crazy campground man had called the police on us! For legally using a day use area during day use hours! The sheriff was super nice, a cyclist himself, and we told him the trouble was over since we found a ‘legal’ spot. What a bizarre night. In the end it was all ok, except for the other crazy campers partying until nearly midnight and then starting up again at around 6. We were happy to get up and be on the road.

Forest fire evidence at the top of Santiam Pass.

The pass the next day was another big one: 4,817′. It was also HOT, and we are starting to enter forest fire areas. The entire summit area burned around ten years ago, and on the descent there were a few active fires in the distance creating a bizarre haze all around us. We had the exact opposite campground experience this night. The town of Sisters, Oregon has a beautiful little campground downtown alongside a creek. It is complete with a hiker / biker area and free showers. Across the way there was a wedding happening, so after an extravagant dinner of burritos we had a dance party in camp. What a blast!

Thirsty?

Today we had a nice short ride into the biggish town of Bend. I love this town. There are cyclists everywhere, great restaurants and stores, and best of all super friendly people. Need evidence? On our way into town we met a cyclist named Dave. He got to talking with us, and he learned that we were on our way to a bike shop to get some adjustments made to Rays bicycle. He said that his garage was full of bike parts, and offered to help us out. He led us to his house, gave us snacks and drinks, and really did some great work on the bicycle. He let us ride his electric-assist cargo bicycle (wow fun!). Also fantastic, one of his riding buddies offered us a place to stay right downtown. We love Bend!

Next we continue our ride south towards California. Hopefully we will avoid the various fires that are burning in Oregon. The heat is tough, but we are learning the joy of river-jumping.

Cooling down in the rivers.

The Philtrons

Cycling South America in 2026 with kids

Author Archives: Daisy

Perfect riding to San Francisco, and days as tourists

California’s northern coast: Both lost and otherwise

Volcanoes! Up, down, and around Crater Lake.

From Central Washington to Central Oregon. It’s getting HOT!