TL;DR – the Oregon Coast Highway, aka US 101, is no place to ride a motorcycle, at night, in the rain.
Here are details from today, though not necessarily in the order that they happened.
I left my Vrbo in Seattle (Bothell, actually) at 8:36 a.m. and arrived at my hotel in Newport, Oregon almost exactly 12 hours later. I read somewhere that if you’re riding a motorcycle, and you are a somewhat normal person, add 50% to whatever time Google Maps estimates for your trip. Google Maps said this would take 8 hours 20 minutes, so that actual-time theory seems to be fairly accurate.
It rained nearly the entire day, and my Italian-made Forma Terra EVO Dry X-Series waterproof ADV motorcycle boots are apparently not waterproof enough for 12 hours of rain, though the rest of my gear did fine. Except for the times that my helmet visor was so fogged up due to the rain and humidity that I couldn’t see where I was going or what I was doing.
I also encountered some of the strongest crosswinds along the Oregon coast that I’ve ridden in yet. At one point I was hanging my body off the windward side of the bike just to keep it upright. Probably looked like a Grand Prix rider. (Yeah, right!)
The first hour or so of riding was on Interstate 405 in Seattle during rush hour. I’m glad that’s not my daily commute. In fact, I’m glad I don’t have a daily commute!
Despite the weather I still wanted to visit Mount Rainier National Park, even though I might not be able to see Mount Rainier itself. And that proved to be the case. I’m guessing I looked in its general direction a few times, but if I did it was covered in clouds and I did not see it. Still, the road around and through the park was a beautiful ride and worth seeing. A few of my favorite photos from the day are of that park.
I had also wanted to visit Mt. St. Helens, but due to the weather I ruled that out also. So I headed for the Pacific coast.
Except I was on I-5 for a while and missed my exit for the coast, so I had to backtrack. That happened a few times today.
The coast! I haven’t seen the Pacific Ocean since I visited my friend Shawn Zenor in California back in 1991(?). It was good to see the ocean again, although Shawn wasn’t there, as he’s in Hawaii. The Oregon coast is a really cool place, and I think I’ll have to come back sometime and bring Amy with me. Though probably in a car since she has no interest in motorcycles.
I stopped in Seaside, OR (cool name for a town) for some food and a break from the weather and the riding as my hands were starting to cramp up. An old-man meal at McD’s seemed appropriate – quarter pounder, fries, and a large coffee.
While I was eating I was listening in on a theological-philosophical conversation between two guys, one sounded like a Christian and the other an agnostic. When I was getting ready to leave the skies really opened up like a massive waterfall so I sat back down and eventually was brought into their conversation.
Turns out that Craig, the older gentleman, had been a Satanist for 24 years before God transformed him into a Christ-follower through his wife’s efforts. After his wife died he sold everything he had, gave the money to the poor, and is now living out of a backpack.
Brandon, the younger gentleman who I thought was an agnostic, has lots of questions and is searching for the truth. He also said he was born a Christian because his parents are Christians. This is where the conversation became evangelistic when I told him it doesn’t work that way. He said he had tried reading the Bible once by starting at the beginning but didn’t make it very far, and I encouraged him to start with the New Testament instead, preferably one of the Gospels, and even more preferably the Gospel of John (but not because that’s my name too!) so he can learn who Jesus is. Craig agreed with that starting point.
The rain finally let up and I had to get going, but I would have liked to stay and keep talking. Perhaps someday we’ll see what God does with that conversation.
The ride down the coast was good and the oceanic vistas inspiring, but I ran out of daylight before reaching my destination, and the last hour or so of riding was intense. The road is narrow, rough, winding, undulating, poorly marked, and unlit. The dark was, well, dark! And the rain was very heavy at times. I’m kind of surprised I made it to the hotel alive, actually, but I did. A woman checking in before me said she had a rough time driving in her car, and thought it would be worse on a motorcycle. It was.
More rain and wind is in the forecast for Tuesday as I continue down the coast for a ways. Then I’m heading inland to visit Crater Lake, where it’s apparently been snowing along with the rain. Fun times! Then I should be at Quentin’s in Medford this evening.
Until next time!
Photo gallery of day 11
