On June 4th, 2008 four friends will set out on, what will no doubt be, an unforgettable journey, traveling from Portland, Maine to Portland, Oregon... by bicycle. What follows are what we refer to as "mile markers", thoughts, stories, pictures and whatever else comes along with a trip like this to mark out our trail as we go. The map below will show the route we will have traveled once we get on the bikes, for now it shows a general overview on what we expect our trip to look like. If anyone knows of any "must-sees" near our route or know of any places we can stay leave us a comment. No promises on a daily update, but hopefully we can update a couple times a week so that those back home can experience the journey along with us. You can also view our updated photo album online. Hope you enjoy the ride!

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

The Past Few Days From my Saddle







Well as you can tell from the picture, the last couple of days have been quite a bit of climbing. What you're looking at there is the elevation of one our hardest days. We went from Conway (which is just off the right side of the map) up and over Kancamagus Pass and stopped for the night just on the other side of that second climb. The second climb turned out to be even more of a doosy, probably a 10% grade just not quite as long. Kancamagus Pass was just 4-5 hours of steady climbing. But we had a great ride down, and a great view from the top

We were all glad to see our campground that night. Unfortunately there were no showers, but we found a creek nearby that worked as an extremely cold bath. The next 2 days were still alot of climbing, but nothing so drastic. Last night we roughed it and spent the night in a makeshift campsite alongside a river in Texas Falls National Park. We all took baths in the stream and washed our clothes in it. And it was pretty relaxing to fall asleep with the sound of rushing water right outside our tent - though it definitely made you have to use the bathroom first thing in the morning.

Right now we're sitting in a library in Middlebury, VT waiting out a tornado that is supposedly coming our way. We actually had a lady offer to let us sleep on her back porch tonight, which we'll probably do once the storm clears up. Hopefully this tornado will cool things down because its been extremely hot out. I've been suprised because I figured the new england states would stay fairly cool in June, but that has definitely not been the case.

So far the trip has proved to be quite a challenge, at least for me. I find myself mentally and physically exhausted at the end of every day. Though I find that my legs are getting used to the daily grind and usually feel fine by the time we get up in the morning. The camping out has been great. Karla's cooking skills have proven to be an extremely valuable asset, it hardly feels like we're roughing it with some of the meals she's been preparing. And all on a little MSR stove. Tomorrow (or later today) we should hit New York. Entering a new state is always exciting and from the looks of the map it looks like we should be riding in some really nice areas in New York. Thanks for all your encouragement and comments. Keep leaving them they're always nice to read.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

keep on!

--sheldon

Anonymous said...

Shawn, we were thinking it would be great if you guys could give us a total miles to date update when you update your map each time. Just a thought. That way we'll know if Les has ridden as far as you since you've left. OK-we know the answer to that, but it would still be nice to see.

Mama K said...

Several years ago Art and I drove that route in NH that you were talking about. Fantastic views, but I sure can't imagine biking it! All the best in your travels!

Anonymous said...

Hey Y'all! This site was printed in the bulletin at church, so we've been following your journey! Looks awesome,we're jealous! :-)
Lynnelle and Dale Mellinger

Anonymous said...

Evie
This is Rita Millers dad. I'm enjoying reading about your trip. Kathy and I bike and have talked about doing a long trip. Riding thru mountains sounds daunting, esp for someone in their 50s !!!
Maybe someday we will do what youre doing . Stay positive !!
Ed & Kathy Miller

Anonymous said...

Shawn, after seeing some of the scenery,makes me wish that I could have ridden with you a couple of days! Doubt if I could have made it much further than that! Sure miss you, and will be looking forward to seeing you in a week! Dad