I got 2 weeks in August - perhaps I'll ride the west coast
#51
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: Maine, USA
Posts: 1,612
Bikes: Corvid Sojourner, Surly Ice Cream Truck, Co-Motion Divide, Co-Motion Java Tandem, Salsa Warbird, Salsa Beargrease, Carver Tandem
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 534 Post(s)
Liked 435 Times
in
227 Posts
The height of forest fire season worries me a little bit...mostly due to the amount of pollution in the air when biking. I will have to observe how whether this season will be the first dip down from previous trend setters or whether it will continue in the upward pattern.
#52
Senior Member
The height of forest fire season worries me a little bit...mostly due to the amount of pollution in the air when biking. I will have to observe how whether this season will be the first dip down from previous trend setters or whether it will continue in the upward pattern.
I would hope that being on the coast would be a big help air quality wise, but to be honest, I sort of noticed the news last year but didn't totally keep track. I do however remember the " orange sky " thing from San Francisco, someone I knew from Montreal who moved to sf put a photo up she took.
So I guess as you say, that we hope this year isn't as bad vs the worsening trend.
#53
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: Maine, USA
Posts: 1,612
Bikes: Corvid Sojourner, Surly Ice Cream Truck, Co-Motion Divide, Co-Motion Java Tandem, Salsa Warbird, Salsa Beargrease, Carver Tandem
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 534 Post(s)
Liked 435 Times
in
227 Posts
Yeah. My son lives in Mountain View and they fled SF area last year due to the air quality and spent 2 weeks with us here in Maine
#54
Junior Member
Join Date: Sep 2011
Posts: 15
Bikes: Surly Disc Trucker, Surly Troll, Motobecane Century Ti Pro, Lynskey Urbano, Bike Friday Diamond Llama
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 10 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
A useful book
Cycling the Pacific Coast: The Complete Guide from Canada to Mexico
I found the book useful.
#55
Senior Member
If that is the Vicky Spring book I enjoyed it for getting psyched up for the trip, but found the AC and ODOT maps more useful. If it is the Tom Thorness book I have never actually seen it. In general I find books less useful for trip planning nd awkward to use when on the trip. They can be nice to read before the trip though..
#56
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: Maine, USA
Posts: 1,612
Bikes: Corvid Sojourner, Surly Ice Cream Truck, Co-Motion Divide, Co-Motion Java Tandem, Salsa Warbird, Salsa Beargrease, Carver Tandem
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 534 Post(s)
Liked 435 Times
in
227 Posts
I find books fun when in the tent or while eating dinner in the campground. Otherwise I like to leave everything else to chance. After all it is a straight one way trajectory that we're doing so where we end up and when is up to normal daily circumstances. :-) that is the beauty of touring for me: Roam Free
#57
Senior Member
I find books fun when in the tent or while eating dinner in the campground. Otherwise I like to leave everything else to chance. After all it is a straight one way trajectory that we're doing so where we end up and when is up to normal daily circumstances. :-) that is the beauty of touring for me: Roam Free
Not knocking it if someone else finds books useful or entertaining along the way though. I personally just don't tend to.
#58
Hooked on Touring
If anything, I suspect services may be further curtailed.
California State Parks have been in a multiyear cycle of budget cuts only exacerbated by the Covid shutdown.
#59
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: Maine, USA
Posts: 1,612
Bikes: Corvid Sojourner, Surly Ice Cream Truck, Co-Motion Divide, Co-Motion Java Tandem, Salsa Warbird, Salsa Beargrease, Carver Tandem
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 534 Post(s)
Liked 435 Times
in
227 Posts
we may have to do a dust bath like the pigeons do ;-)
Last edited by PedalingWalrus; 06-14-21 at 05:22 PM.
#60
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Madison, WI
Posts: 11,201
Bikes: 1961 Ideor, 1966 Perfekt 3 Speed AB Hub, 1994 Bridgestone MB-6, 2006 Airnimal Joey, 2009 Thorn Sherpa, 2013 Thorn Nomad MkII, 2015 VO Pass Hunter, 2017 Lynskey Backroad, 2017 Raleigh Gran Prix, 1980s Bianchi Mixte on a trainer. Others are now gone.
Mentioned: 48 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3459 Post(s)
Liked 1,465 Times
in
1,143 Posts
I had the guidebook for Pacific Coast, we found it useful. I also sent an e-mail to OR and asked for info, they mailed their cycle map to me before I left home. I found that map very useful.
I never found a really useful California map, but the map of state park locations was the only paper California map I bothered to carry.
I did Pacific Coast seven years ago, that is the last time that I did a bike tour where there was a route, either by book or by ACA mapped route. My tours in the past seven years were routes that I cooked up by looking at some maps. Thus, no guidebooks or ACA maps available.
The exception to that would be that I rode the length of Florida Keys as part of a much bigger route, the Keys part of that tour were along an ACA mapped route, but we did not get the map. Instead I looked up the locations for Publix and Winn Dixie stores in the Keys while still at home to put in my GPS so we knew where the grocery stores would be once we got to the Keys. And the state park campgrounds were in the Open Streets basemap in my GPS.
I never found a really useful California map, but the map of state park locations was the only paper California map I bothered to carry.
I did Pacific Coast seven years ago, that is the last time that I did a bike tour where there was a route, either by book or by ACA mapped route. My tours in the past seven years were routes that I cooked up by looking at some maps. Thus, no guidebooks or ACA maps available.
The exception to that would be that I rode the length of Florida Keys as part of a much bigger route, the Keys part of that tour were along an ACA mapped route, but we did not get the map. Instead I looked up the locations for Publix and Winn Dixie stores in the Keys while still at home to put in my GPS so we knew where the grocery stores would be once we got to the Keys. And the state park campgrounds were in the Open Streets basemap in my GPS.
#61
Junior Member
Join Date: Sep 2011
Posts: 15
Bikes: Surly Disc Trucker, Surly Troll, Motobecane Century Ti Pro, Lynskey Urbano, Bike Friday Diamond Llama
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 10 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
If that is the Vicky Spring book I enjoyed it for getting psyched up for the trip, but found the AC and ODOT maps more useful. If it is the Tom Thorness book I have never actually seen it. In general I find books less useful for trip planning nd awkward to use when on the trip. They can be nice to read before the trip though..
#62
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Madison, WI
Posts: 11,201
Bikes: 1961 Ideor, 1966 Perfekt 3 Speed AB Hub, 1994 Bridgestone MB-6, 2006 Airnimal Joey, 2009 Thorn Sherpa, 2013 Thorn Nomad MkII, 2015 VO Pass Hunter, 2017 Lynskey Backroad, 2017 Raleigh Gran Prix, 1980s Bianchi Mixte on a trainer. Others are now gone.
Mentioned: 48 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3459 Post(s)
Liked 1,465 Times
in
1,143 Posts
Using a 3 into 1 adapter, charging up four AA NiMH batteries, a Li Ion camera battery, and the USB cable off the bottom of the photo when to my tablet.
#63
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Madison, WI
Posts: 11,201
Bikes: 1961 Ideor, 1966 Perfekt 3 Speed AB Hub, 1994 Bridgestone MB-6, 2006 Airnimal Joey, 2009 Thorn Sherpa, 2013 Thorn Nomad MkII, 2015 VO Pass Hunter, 2017 Lynskey Backroad, 2017 Raleigh Gran Prix, 1980s Bianchi Mixte on a trainer. Others are now gone.
Mentioned: 48 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3459 Post(s)
Liked 1,465 Times
in
1,143 Posts
The height of forest fire season worries me a little bit...mostly due to the amount of pollution in the air when biking. I will have to observe how whether this season will be the first dip down from previous trend setters or whether it will continue in the upward pattern.
When I did my trip starting in late May and Jun, we picked that to avoid the crowds, avoid the RVs on the narrow California roads, etc. We rolled the dice in that we had a much higher probability of precipitation that early. Thus, my experience on that route is not applicable to your concern.
If you have any good friends that are in medical field or industrial, if they can get you a few N95 masks that might be a useful thing to have if it gets really smoky. But with the pandemic, those might still be in short supply.
Wearing a mask like that to keep out airborne contaminants, the mask is only as effective as the seal between your face skin and the mask. If you have a beard, you can't get a good seal between the mask and your skin. In that case you might be just as well off wearing a folded bandana mask with a few rubber bands holding it onto your face.
If it is really smoky, I hope your flashing taillights are really bright. I have ridden in fog but never in heavy smoke, knowing that I had flashers on made me less nervous.
#64
Senior Member
If there is smoke bad enough that I am worried about being seen I have long since stopped having fun due to inhaling smoke. Smoke levels that you barely notice visibly or maybe don't see at all can be pretty unpleasant. I have cut backpacking or bike trips short due to smoke a couple times. Once it was only the smoke and once it was HAPE that I suspect distant smoke (not thick enough to be visible) and the heat both contributed to. Both times were pretty miserable, both were bad for my health, and one was probably downright dangerous.
#65
Senior Member
I found Guatemala especially, and Honduras too, bad for really bad smoke spewing trucks and buses, and ended up getting sick from it. Had read of other riders too experiencing this, so I sure as hell wouldn't want to be riding through the "San Francisco orange sky" thing, and can relate to how unpleasant it would be.
But honestly would have to be there in person to judge what is too much.
But honestly would have to be there in person to judge what is too much.
#66
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Madison, WI
Posts: 11,201
Bikes: 1961 Ideor, 1966 Perfekt 3 Speed AB Hub, 1994 Bridgestone MB-6, 2006 Airnimal Joey, 2009 Thorn Sherpa, 2013 Thorn Nomad MkII, 2015 VO Pass Hunter, 2017 Lynskey Backroad, 2017 Raleigh Gran Prix, 1980s Bianchi Mixte on a trainer. Others are now gone.
Mentioned: 48 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3459 Post(s)
Liked 1,465 Times
in
1,143 Posts
If there is smoke bad enough that I am worried about being seen I have long since stopped having fun due to inhaling smoke. Smoke levels that you barely notice visibly or maybe don't see at all can be pretty unpleasant. I have cut backpacking or bike trips short due to smoke a couple times. Once it was only the smoke and once it was HAPE that I suspect distant smoke (not thick enough to be visible) and the heat both contributed to. Both times were pretty miserable, both were bad for my health, and one was probably downright dangerous.
#67
Newbie
Hi there. I got 2 weeks from August 5... initially I thought I would fly to Norway or Scotland or Italy but at this point I am not entirely sure if I should fly there as they still seem to require a covid test etc ... no big deal but alternatively I thought maybe I could bike to San Francisco from points North like Seattle or Eugene.
I mention Eugene because I wanted to stop at Co-Motion cycles to check on a frame order I put a deposit on but it is not entirely necessary.
Do You think Eugene to San Francisco fits the right timing for 2 weeks if I headed to the coast from Eugene and hugged it to San Fran? I suppose I can also keep going if I reached SF too soon or should I instead start from somewhere further North than Eugene?
addendum: it looks like eugene to SF is too short of a distance…maybe I should start in Seattle and see where I get
I mention Eugene because I wanted to stop at Co-Motion cycles to check on a frame order I put a deposit on but it is not entirely necessary.
Do You think Eugene to San Francisco fits the right timing for 2 weeks if I headed to the coast from Eugene and hugged it to San Fran? I suppose I can also keep going if I reached SF too soon or should I instead start from somewhere further North than Eugene?
addendum: it looks like eugene to SF is too short of a distance…maybe I should start in Seattle and see where I get
#68
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: Maine, USA
Posts: 1,612
Bikes: Corvid Sojourner, Surly Ice Cream Truck, Co-Motion Divide, Co-Motion Java Tandem, Salsa Warbird, Salsa Beargrease, Carver Tandem
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 534 Post(s)
Liked 435 Times
in
227 Posts
I ended up circumnavigating Denmark instead.
#69
Newbie
#70
Senior Member