We have been blessed to have travelled to many parts of the globe. The allure of the American Experience has, however, remained within us. Now in retirement with plenty of time, we decided to see more of America at the leisurely pace of one spoke at a time.
In 2018 we travelled from Seattle to Savannah. In 2021 we rode/drove the East Coast from Canada to Key West. We are now crossing the U.S. to make our way from Vancouver, Canada to Tijuana, Mexico.
Jay and New Found Friends (Johnny and Jim not shown)
On June 12, Jay’s 67th birthday, we woke at our lakeside campsite near Kettle Falls, WA. Before Jay left we took some photos of Jay’s newest friends Dan, John and Mike. They are senior riders (59-70) who met each other on the road. They are travelling various distances, but last night, along with two other companions, Johnny Walker and Jim Beam, Jay and the boys just hooted and chatted the night away.
Jay’s 97-mile birthday ride put us in US Forest Service Pioneer Campground in Newport, WA, a few miles from the Idaho state line. Earlier we had selected a KOA campground, but Helen’s advance scouting deemed that campground rather poor and too far off the course. She switched sites based on a recommendation from a ranger at a US Forest Office. Jay has mentioned several times how great it
Welcome to Idaho Sign
is to have Helen provide support (SAG) on this ride. She does a lot from campsite selection, food shopping and setting up the campsite long before Jay finishes his ride. He’s a lucking boy. She even bought him cheesecake for his birthday!
Helen at Breakfast Table
The next morning when Jay was on his bike ready to ride, Helen shouted from the Prius, “See ya in Idaho!” After nearly two weeks we are finally leaving Washington. We started on the coast where Jay followed the Olympic Discovery Trail, then picked up the Adventure Cycling route in Anacortes, WA. That route traces WA-20 across the state and over four major mountain passes. Tough riding!
We opted to spend two nights at the Sam Owen USFS campground about 20 miles east of Sandpoint to give Jay some recovery time. His bottom is bit sore from his long birthday ride and he has an upset stomach. He consumes a great deal of local water and that may have brought on ill effects. He’s okay but a little rest and some “butt medication” should get him back on the road.
“See ya in Montana.” Our goal is to be in the Glacier National Park on Monday or Tuesday.
More Photos
View from our Campsite in Kettle Falls, WA
View of Road as Jay Rides
Jay's Bike and view of Road and Mountain
Sherman Pass to the East of Republic, WA
6% Downhill Grade Next Ten Miles The Uphill was just as tough
Our first response when we read about Mike Carmichael’s 5,000-pound ball of paint was the same reaction you just had when you read this sentence. “Get outta here!” The ball of paint, on which we applied coat 26,020, started in 1977 with Mike encouraging his small son to paint a baseball blue. Well if one is going to paint a baseball, one coat just will not do.
Mike is a professional painter, so extra paint was always at the ready. Family members including his wife Glenda soon shot past 5,000 coats of paint then 10,000 and so on. The paint company Sherwin-Williams provided him with sufficient sponsorship for one year so the ever-increasing ball of paint could be housed in a stand-alone building suspended from steel I-beams. The sheer weight of the suspended “ball” has deformed it to an oblong shape.
Mike and Helen painting the ball
A photo of a core sample taken by the folks from the Guinness Book of World Records was used to validate the ball’s authenticity so it could be entered into the record book.
To call Mike’s ball of paint a “roadside attraction” is to torture the term “roadside.” We travelled quite a distance from our interstate route, down two miles of dirt road until we hit another paved highway and then Mike’s house.
Ball of Paint in Building on the Left
The standalone paint ball building is next to the Carmichael’s home. As we drove up Mike and Glenda came out and unlocked building. Mike shared some small talk. He pointed to the long list of countries from which earlier painters hail and statistics on the number of times a particular color had been used. There was every expectation that we “came to paint.” He asked, “What color do you want to use?” The ball, now orange, was still tacky from the last painters. We were the third that day.
Helen Pointing to our Name on the Wall
We gleefully applied our green paint with small rollers on long handles. It took about 15 minutes with Mike adding some assistance.
When we finished we signed the guest book and were dutifully given personalized certificates attesting to our application of layer 26,020. Helen then added our names near the ceiling of an interior wall of the building.
When we left we had to clean some green paint off of Nando’s tail. It appears he wanted a piece of the painting action as well.
We noticed that the video we embedded in our blog of the Prospectors' Day parade in Republic, WA did not show up in the email feed. We are going to try again to share this video via a hyperlink. Hope this works.
Here's a snippet from the original blog that introduces the video.
Keeping the spirit of Prospectors’ Weekend, we stayed dry at the Klondike Motel as the rains fell.
The intent of this trip was to see America. Listening to a local high school student start the weekend parade by singing the national anthem as Boy Scouts held the American and Republic town flags could not be more Americana. Of course, there were fire trucks in the parade, and given this was a frontier mining town, one float included four pretty gals properly dressed for their can-can number. Prospectors' Day Parade and Shoot Out Video
After Jay completed the third of the four climbs over the eastern Washington State mountain passes (Washington, Loup Loup, Wauconda and Sherman), he rested. We have taken a weekend respite in Republic, WA (population 1,073). Our planning in this section of the cross-country bicycle journey is three-dimensional: distance, elevation and weather. Rain this time was the big factor in getting off the road.
It was also a perfect time to be in Republic. This weekend was the Prospectors’ Weekend, celebrating the early 1900’s when the town was the center of local mining operations. The celebrations included a parade, a gunfight shoot out on Main Street, and Saturday night dancing in the street with live music.
Not to be outdone by Republic’s town fathers, we had our own adventure on our way to this mountainside town.
ATV Jamboree Attendees
On the day Jay climbed over Loup Loup Pass, we planned to camp in Tonasket. The next day was a 27-mile climb to Wauconda Pass and Jay wanted to camp in Tonasket to be as close as possible to the start of the climb. Helen drove to Tonasket and discovered that camping was in an RV gravel parking lot with an overflowing chemical toilet. We switched our campsite destination to the wonderfully lush Conconully State Park. Upon arrival we learned that this park was ground zero for an ATV (all terrain vehicle) jamboree. We enjoyed our chats with participants and wished them well as we drove out the next morning to drop Jay off at Tonasket.
Our 16 mile drive to Tonasket, per our car’s GPS, took us on a dirt road along the edge of the Conconully Reservoir. After 8+ miles of driving on a rough dirt road, an ATVer we encountered pointed us in the direction of an asphalt road. Yeay! But 200 feet from the asphalt road, we ran out of road, period.
A stream had flooded a section of the road and erosion had carved another section of the dirt road into
Driving into Flooded Road
oblivion. We admit our next decision was a bit foolhardy, but we were not about to drive back on that dirt road. We navigated the flooded road section and used rocks to build a ramp over the washed out section. ATVer…humph! We are Prius tough!
Jay was grateful to rest after three straight days of mountain climbing. Keeping the spirit of Prospectors’ Weekend, we stayed dry at the Klondike Motel as the rains fell.
The intent of this trip was to see America. Listening to a local high school student start the weekend parade by singing the national anthem as Boy Scouts held the American and Republic town flags could not be more Americana. Of course, there were fire trucks in the parade, and given this was a frontier mining town, one float included four pretty gals properly dressed for their can-can number.
On Monday Jay rides over Sherman pass and on to Idaho. After one day there we head to Montana.
We woke at our campsite at a US National Park near Lake Diablo, high in the Northern Cascade Mountains. We have become accepting of this season’s unusually cold temperatures ranging in the mid 50s to low 40’s. The previous evening we made dinner then sat around our campfire for warmth.
The big event today was Jay riding 65 miles over Rainy Pass and Washington Pass. The first 33 miles consisted of continuous climbing. The cumulative uphill climb was 5,700 feet (a mile is 5,280 feet) and 5,157 feet of descent.
Given the mountainous climbs, Jay left camp early and Helen spent another hour cleaning breakfast dishes and packing up the Prius.
We are now writing this blog at day’s end at a KOA Campground in Winthrop. Jay confessed it was his toughest day of cycling. North Georgia mountains are challenging, but climbs are only in the 8 – 12 mile range. Thirty-three miles of climbing presented him with a new challenge.
Crater Peak From Jay Bike Route
His strategy of slow and steady was put to the test today. After 15 miles of climbing, he switched his bike’s computer from mileage to time. Ride for 15 minutes then rest. Repeat. With this timed strategy he finally arrived at snow-covered Rainy Pass. The final ascent to Washington Pass was much steeper. Fifteen minutes became 10 minutes, but eventually the mountain’s peak was reached.
Snow On Road Side Near Rainy Pass
Despite the stress of such a strenuous climb, there was time to “smell the roses,” or more appropriately, gaze at the snow- covered Northern Cascade Mountains. We are east coast Appalachian Mountain people; west coast Rocky Mountains have a soaring majesty that doesn't compare. Jay’s frequent rest stops gave him an opportunity to absorb and incorporate these mountains into his life experience.
Helen had the more mundane duties today of packing up, finding food and acquiring new campsite for this evening.
During dinner of turkey tacos, Jay remarked that the idea of doing this ride solo and self-supported in retrospect looks pretty crazy. However, our hats are extended to our church members and friends Keith and Marcia who did such a trip on their tandem bicycle. What an adventure they had!
We are now planning how to cross the final set of Washington State mountains. We think it will take about five days to reach the Washington – Idaho border.
Day 4 of the great bike ride across America was halted by a rain delay.
Earlier during our car travel we regularly checked weather reports due to the ever-present grey skies in Washington. We would check the Weather Channel website and sure enough, no rain was predicted. True to predications sunshine joined us.
Interesting face on a quilt Click to enlarge all photos
So when we woke this morning at Deception Pass State Park with dark skies, we said, “Hey, sunshine will join our travels today.”
Jay started his 50-mile ride, first heading north up the west side of Fidalgo Island. Once in Anacortes he would turn east towards our day’s destination in Concrete, WA. Helen, in the Prius with Nando, stopping to visit the Textile and Quilt Museum in La Conner.
A bit more than an hour later, phone calls were exchanged, discussing the constant falling rain. Jay paused his riding in Anacortes, WA and took refuge in a donut shop. Helen backtracked and joined Jay. We booked a pet-friendly room in the San Juan Motel.
In the center of town, near the water
The advantage of this motel was that it was close and relatively inexpensive. The room was spacious but bizarrely configured with two bedrooms with a small galley kitchenette between the rooms (no dishes or silverware). Jay spent a goodly amount of time getting the internet and TV to work. At least we were dry and comfortable.
Walking on the beach in Anacortes, WA
We are in the early phase of our bike ride adventure. From our car camping experience coming out to the west coast we developed a good routine of setting up our tent. With Jay riding and Helen driving, we now have to plan each day differently. Jay checks his maps from Adventure Cycling to determine a day’s riding distance. We then explore potential campsites at end of his day’s ride.
We are doing okay, but have room for improvement. Camping at Deception Pass State Park was recommended to Helen as she did laundry before catching the ferry to Fidalgo Island. She called Jay to divert him from Fort Ebey State Park and to continue further north to Deception Pass. “Roger Dodger.” When Jay arrived at the popular state park there was only one tent site open (with over 220 sites). That open site was due only to a recent cancellation. Yikes!
Jay’s ride is taking on a different dimension as well. At first he rode the traffic-free Olympic Discovery Trail; now he is on busy highways some with limited shoulder space. The sense that this a “long" bike ride has not yet penetrated his thinking. Rather, he sees each day’s ride as just a day’s ride surrounded by wonderful landscape and sometimes lots of traffic.
The great cross-country bike ride began on May 31, 2018 at 10:00 am Pacific Coast Time. We have no set time schedule, but suspect we will be in Savannah, GA in late July or early August.
Jay At Start of Ride Click to Enlarge
The start of the ride began at Rialto Beach, WA. After a hug and kiss from Helen, Jay pushed off. This ride will be a scenic tour of America one spoke at a time. As we did on our drive to the west coast, visiting roadside Americana and chatting with people along the way will be our top priorities.
Jay’s Day 1 ride was 45 miles. Most of today’s ride was on the Olympic Discovery Trail (ODT). The ODT runs from our start location eastward to Port Townsend, our jumping off place, before joining up with the Northern Tier Bike Route from Adventure Cycling. The trail sometimes is a low traffic road and sometimes a dedicated no motorized vehicle use pathway.
Part of the Olympic Discovery Trail
Jay concedes he had no great epiphany or insight. Rather, under overcast skies, he pushed along, following and crossing rivers, riding the canopy of overhanging trees or along desolate stretches of road that only occasionally were punctuated with a fully load logging truck. The take away from Day 1 is that America is indeed a beautiful country endowed with a cornucopia of natural wonder!
The start of Day 2 from the moss-covered trees in the Fairholme Campground in Olympic National Park could best be described as “you can’t there from here.” Jay’s Google route noted that he would be on the Olympic Discovery Trail; the view of the local environment gave him pause. The day before his Day 2 ride he drove the car on his intended northern bike route. The road, initially paved, turned to packed gravel (still okay). The road then turned into an unimproved dirt road (bad). The signage indicating “Road Closed” was the deal breaker.
Road Construction on 101
The southern route on the 101 was undergoing extensive road construction, so Helen drove Jay and his bike to another access point on the Olympic Discovery Trail. Perfect riding followed.
When entering the western suburbs of Port Angeles, the ODT transverses a neighborhood of upscale home with manicured
Xeriscape Lawns Port Angeles
“lawns.” The lawns were mostly xeriscape (rocks and low bushes). Jay also noticed that at the trailhead parking lots he saw Priuses, Subaru Outbacks and other mileage-friendly cars. The same observation held true for vehicles in Sequim (pronounced squim), WA.
In our northern Atlanta suburban home, SUVs and trucks are the norm. It appears that social norms here are more aligned with our desire to be earth friendly.
