The (Mis)adventures of Willow & B

Day 15: Neskowin to Lincoln City

Today's Distance: 22 miles

Total Distance: 636 miles

100% chance of rain.  48 mph winds coming from the south.  Hurricane warnings. These were all good reasons to just chill today.  But I need to keep moving south and Willow was on a schedule as well, so we decided to get after it.  One thing I learned this morning was that the town of Neskowin are not very good at pep talks.  When setting up our bikes everyone seemed to share their opinion on how bad of a day it was to ride a bike. That's pretty obvious at this point, but it's happening.  In order to get to Lincoln City we had to go up and over Cascade Head, the 2nd of the 3 Capes.  It was a long, steep, gusty, and wet climb to start off the day and to make it worse the road was really busy.  Almost immediately everything I was wearing was soaked. I laughed when Willow put plastic bags on like socks, but I was regretting not doing the same now.  It was hard but we got to the top safely. The downhill was scary but also exhilarating.  A long, fast descent in the rain, riding over flooded areas, with the wind threatening to blow you off the bike.  That was crazy.  This is also the first time I learned how important fenders can be.  So much water was being flicked back in my face, it was super difficult to see.  Luckily I got these Asian eyes because I was able to keep them mostly closed and still see haha. I also felt terrible because I knew that I had to be flinging water back on Willow as well. It was raining so bad that I doubt it made a difference but I think I'll get a courtesy back fender at the very least.  

I felt pretty good at that point and was ready to keep moving even though this was one of the hardest days yet.  If I didn't have a friend with me I doubt I would've even tried this by myself.  We rode by a creek and I saw a seal pop it's head out...I swear. We stood there for 5 minutes so I could prove there was a seal in the creek, but it never showed its face again.  Coward. When we got into Lincoln City it seemed like the wind and rain calmed down a little bit but then Willow got a flat tire.  The bike shop gave her the wrong size replacement tube, so she had to patch it. Luckily there was a car care shop right where she got the flat, so we went inside and they let us fix the flat in the lobby.  While waiting I got cold and stiff and the weather outside was getting worse and worse. We got back on our bikes and it took so much effort to even go a mile.  We decided to take a break at a coffee shop and warm up a little.  That's when the wet and the cold and the wind got to me. I was done, Oregon got the best of me today.  Willow, being from Toronto, thinks this weather is summer weather so she wasn't done yet. She was determined to go 25 more miles south to Newport.  I felt bad letting her go alone but it just didn't make sense for me. I'd rather just add the 25 miles onto my ride tomorrow when it's nice and sunny.  So we said our goodbyes and I called it a day.

What Did I Learn Today?

•Don't ride your bike on the Oregon Coast when there are hurricane warnings