The travels of the Rambling Roses: Forks to the Pacific Ocean (somewhere in Olympic National Park) Sept 22

35.3 miles in 3:09.......After 9,183 miles and nearly one year, I finally dipped the tire of my Specialized Tricross bike into the Pacific Ocean. The milestones have been many, and no matter what happens from this time forward, no one can take from me the satisfaction that comes with completing a once dreamlike goal. From the Atlantic, down from Rodanthe NC to Key West, across the Gulf Coast, through Texas, north through the National Park chain in Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, and Montana, to the Canadian border, then west to the Pacific Northwest, and finally to the little trail that Pam and I walked from US 101, down a steep, muddy embankment, to the sand of the Pacific Ocean shore. Not one mile of this trek would have been possible without my loving wife by my side. Hopefully she enjoyed it as much as I have.

That being said, this is not the end of this adventure, just another milestone. I will get on my bike and continue to ride every single mile, as we head south through Oregon and California, to wherever the road and our whims take us. The road goes on forever, and the party never ends.

As for today's ride, the rain fell by the bucketful over night and through noon, to about one o'clock. After taking yesterday off and watching college football all day ( it remained dry all day), I was edgy to get in a few miles, because of all the rain that is forecast over the next few days. After closely analyzing radar, I felt that I could make it to the ocean with only a few spot showers. I left in a downpour, ( being hardheaded as I am), and within ten minutes the rain stopped and the sun came out. One thing I could depend upon was that no matter how hot or cold I was, it would change in the next ten minutes. And that was the story of today' s ride. I was riding in the rain with a shadow from the shining sun, and I was heated up by the sun as rain fell all around me. It was humid, it was chilling, it was hot, it was wet, it was sometimes windy, it was ever changing to the point where I stopped trying to be comfortable, and just rode through the rain forest. The huge cedar trees, moss covered branches and guardrail, six foot tall ferns, dark, thick forests, ran right out of the Olympic Mountains and up to the cliffs of the Pacific Ocean. The streams, creeks, and rivers were running high and heavy as last nights runoff was racing towards the ocean. The road was covered in spots by leaves and branches that fell during last nights' storm. When I went around a certain bend and heard the roar off the angry Pacific, it didn't take long to start spotting the waves between the trees, but I was still about 100-200 feet above sea level. This area is nothing like I've seen on the Atlantic coast. The rugged rocks, the 'sea stacks', or tall rocks out in the surf, the huge logs that have washed out of the rain forest and onto the beaches, all make it very unique here. Hopefully, we will have some Indian Summer weather to get us through Oregon and to Yosemite before snow shuts us down and forces us along the coast for the autumn and winter, until we find that warm air again.