Category Archives: camping

Posts about where we stayed the night.

Ushuaia to Tolhuín

In this entry we travel from our start point, Ushuaia, to the next town, Tolhuin. We enjoyed spectacular scenery and spent two nights wild camping. Everywhere we go the locals and other travelers are fascinated with and excited by our set-up. They take pictures of us as we pass by, they stop their cars to check if we need anything, and once we even got interviewed on video for a local business owner!

Day 1: Ushuaia to camping near Cerro Castor (34 km)

Our first day of riding had finally arrived! The weather looked to be good for the next three days, so we left our AirBnB a day early. Our hosts were absolutely lovely and came to see us off.

The road wove along the hillside above town for about five miles before we reached the famous “gates” of Ushuaia. There was a very nice bike path all through town, which was a little more up and down than the highway, but a lot less busy! When the bike path ended we were at the very edge of town. We stopped for a snack and to take photos of the welcome towers. While there we met a trio of Australians also starting out on bicycle tour. They told us we were traveling light and that felt good!

After leaving the city we were truly in the Martial Mountains, which are steep and jagged and rocky. The tree line seemed outrageously low for us Coloradans, but the conditions here are harsh. The trees are scraggly and covered in lichen. The rocks are covered in thick moss. Honestly, it feels like a cold Lopez Island!

We climbed for the next five miles or so until we were in a huge glacial valley with peaks on either side. When we saw a fancy lodge on the side of the road… we decided to stop and drink hot chocolates and eat French fries! They had a raging fire inside and were serving extremely fancy lamb meals to tourists and locals alike. We were a bit shocked to see the menu price – over $40/person (US dollars)! Our hot chocolates were much more affordable.

We stopped for the day around 3pm, since there was a lovely campsite next to a small river. Also, it was threatening rain. It rained for several hours starting at 5pm and continuing into the night. We cooked up a dinner of pasta with red sauce and scrambled eggs, played hearts (A is winning), and fell asleep cozy in the tent.

Day 2: Camping near Cerro Castor to Camping at Rio Tuerto (49 km)

This day was magic. We awoke to sun on the tent and a forest practically glowing with morning light and leftover rain. For breakfast we had watery oatmeal that no one liked, and then we were riding.

We climbed up and up to the famous pass of this island: Paso Garibaldi. We had gorgeous mountain views behind us and then a view of the lakes to come ahead of us. You know we can never resist a good pass sign.

On the other side it was fast zip down to a small settlement at the end of Lago Escondido (Hidden Lake). We decided to splurge on a big lunch at a restaurant called La Casona 2, which had a big yard for playing and a big fire they used to roast lambs. Lunch took a very long time to prepare (over an hour!) but we were happy to be warm. We laughed because the kids’ hamburger meal was once again just a huge burger patty with a pile of fries. H promptly grabbed a few pieces of the table bread and made it an American-style hamburger sandwich. A cut hers up and dipped the pieces in ketchup (of course). We were stuffed by the time we were done, but we had 23 kilometers left to ride.

Luckily it was downhill with a tailwind! We zoomed along until we were near a spot another cyclist had marked as ‘trees with space for tents.’ It was near the river Tuerto, which actually was a much more appealing spot. We set up camp off the road behind a pile of gravel, next to a picturesque valley.

H found a giant stick and was delighted for a long time waving it around; miraculously no one was injured. Both girls spent a stretch of time collecting flowers and grasses to ‘clean’ our shoes. It was a delightful evening and it didn’t even rain!

Day 3: Rio Tuerto to Tolhuin (27 km)

We thought today would be easy, but we woke up and had noodle legs. Maybe it was just me though, since I had run out of coffee! GASP!

The riding was mostly up and down along the massive Lago Fagnano. Each little stream that joined the lake required a descent and then a climb. As we approached town we detoured down to the lake’s edge to see a small wildlife preserve (ducks and other birds) and take a picture with the Tolhuin sign. Many of the towns here have these big signs and it’s so fun to take pictures with them.

After the sign the road was dirt/gravel and straight up. In a fit I demanded we stop and eat a snack. After nearly emptying the remainder of our snack bag (potato chips, marshmallows, cookies, and gummy bears) we continued on.

Our destination was a very famous bakery, La Union. It welcomes touring cyclists from all over the world as they pass through, offering them bunks to sleep on in the basement past towers of flour. We are not staying there, since it’s better for our family to find private accommodations. However, we did stop for nearly two hours to eat! We had empanadas, huge sandwiches, donuts, chocolate, and finally coffee. It was incredible and we will be back tomorrow.

For tonight we are resting out of the wind and rain that is blowing through this town. We rented a little one room cabin that is warm, cozy, and just a short walk from a grocery store. Honestly, it feels heavenly. Our next stretch to Rio Grande is less scenic and more windy, so we need tomorrow to strategize.

These two furry friends were interested in everyone but refused to eat my chicken, and then peed on Jason’s rear wheel

Gear test: a three-day ride up Cuchara Pass

For our fall break we started in Walsenburg and rode three days up to Cuchara Pass and another day back down. Besides testing our gear, there were three things we wanted to go up against for practice: a strong headwind, a mountain pass, and gravel roads. All three of these will meet us in Tierra del Fuego. Luckily for us we got to try all three – at once! After the first day we weren’t sure we could do it, but by the end of the third day we were much more confident.

Day 1, Lathrop State Park to La Veta (15 miles, 900′ climbing, dirt): We camped overnight at Lathrop State Park and left our car there at the visitor’s center. We got on the bikes and headed out after a breakfast of chocolate chip pancakes. The first day’s ride took us across gravel roads to La Veta. We enjoyed the low-traffic road as it wound past deer, prairie dogs, pronghorn, cattle, and even a herd of horses that galloped across the road in front of us.

However, we had to work hard the whole time to fight the headwind. It was 20-30 mph! Tierra del Fuego is also known for very strong headwinds. How fitting!

As we came into town we checked the weather. The overnight forecast was 30-40 mph winds with 75(+) mph gusts. We abandoned our plans to camp (at the for sale Sammie’s Campground) and got a room in the La Veta Inn instead.

Day 2, La Veta to Cuchara (12 miles, 1400′ climbing, pavement): Whoa was it windy! We waited until after 10 AM to get on the road so the winds would die down. Today we travelled on pavement, but the headwinds continued. It was up, up, up the whole way. We passed several different rock formations. There are hundreds of rock walls that radiate away from the Spanish Peaks. The yellow aspens added some unexpected color to our late October ride.

Cuchara is a cute “town” that is simply a block-long collection of stores for tourists. We stayed in a B&B and the kids had a blast playing in the attic-like second bedroom. There was a playground in town, but very few kids.

Day 3, Chuchara to the pass and back to La Veta (6 miles and 1500′ up, 18 miles back down): The B&B’s breakfast was great – we all ate a lot. I (Jason) had an extra (third) muffin on the way out the door and that really powered me up the pass. It was 6 more miles to the top of the paved road. The headwind was not so strong, and the road got steeper. At the top we took our obligatory photo with the pass sign, then continued up a little further (above 10,000′!) on a dirt road to a wildflower overlook.

We decided to head back down to prepare our lunch in the park in Cuchara while A and H played on the playground. Needless to say, it was a lot faster to go down than up! After a family conference we decided to go back to the La Veta Inn to spend the night in our “favorite room.” We realized that we were carrying our full set of gear on the bikes – including tent and pads and bags – but didn’t camp at all.

Day 4, La Veta to Lathrop State Park (15 miles mostly down on dirt): We took the same gravel road back down to the park. Somehow the wind shifted so we could have a little bit more headwind before our trip was complete. Our car was waiting for us and we ate lunch at the picnic tables in the park. We packed up and drove west to enjoy our first visit to the Great Sand Dunes National Park. Gear check = Success!

Summary: Salish Sea Cycling Loop, 15 days (293 miles)

What a fun trip! We made a complete loop around the Salish Sea along the northwest coast of Washington and dipping into Canada. We started/ended in Bellingham, but of course you could start anywhere along the loop.

Here’s a list of where we stayed. You’ll notice we stayed in a lot of WA State Parks because they have hiker/biker sites for $12 total and you don’t need reservations in advance — they have a ‘no cyclist turned away policy’!
– Larrabee State Park
– Bay View State Park
– Washington Park
– Deception Pass State Park
– Fort Worden State Park
– Compass Rose Farm
– Sequim Bay State Park
– Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge
– Warmshowers host in Port Angeles
– Island View Beach Regional Park (Canada)
– Gulf Island National Park and Reserve, Smonećten Campground (Canada)
– Peace Arch RV Park (Canada)
– Birch Bay State Park
– Friend’s house in Bellingham

We were fairly heavily loaded. Daisy and A were on a tandem, but since H broke her arm at the start of summer she was on a trailer bike (Wee Hoo) with Jason. Between bike, gear, and kid, the setup was about 150 lbs each, plus the weight of the adult. Yes, somehow we managed to have about equal loads without weighing them until the end!

Birch Bay to Bellingham (27 mi)

This was the last day of our summer 2023 bike tour! After breakfast, the kids and Daisy went back to the beach to play while I packed up camp and the bikes. The Adventure Cycling Route in this area (Pacific Coast #1) takes you on several no-car roads by the oil refinery. This was a quiet, pleasant stretch of the ride. We did have a little trouble at one of the gates getting our loaded touring bikes past, though. This was easily solved by taking the bags off, pushing through the small gully, and reloading them again.

There were then some minor hills, but the more important characteristic was that it started to get hot and sunny. And due to that I started to wilt. (One of the things Daisy loves most about me, you can be sure, hahaha.) We stopped at a convenience store and dumped ice cold water on my shirt to cool off. That helped a lot! When we finally rolled into town we stopped at Wood’s coffee at Boulevard Park. This is a great spot to relax, and get some snacks and coffee. We finished the day by riding to a friends’ house, where we camped in their back yard. We got some much needed showers/baths (H excepted, who continued to be a dirty little monster, I guess!) and enjoyed poke bowls for dinner.