The group of 250 was up early with poles clicky clacking as tents were broken down and shoved into stuff sacks. First day eagerness had riders out on the road quickly, finding their place in the bell curve of abilities. Lacking much training I was hoping to stay with Bob for at least the first day. The ride was kind of blur as I tried to stay on or at least in sight of his wheel. There was a 700 foot climb at miles 8 that took a bit out of me, but somehow stayed with Bob. After a 600 foot drop it was gradual up rollers into camp. The high school where we camped had a pirate theme going. Three times was a charm when they finally were able to pass a bond issue to refurbish the outside of the school. After a passerby commented during the process that it looked like a prison the contractor put his creative mind to work and came up with a ship for the roof, a treasure chest of educational gold; books on math, science and literature; a big compass in the patio area and a “wooden” cement plank walkway.
80 miles – 2,600 feet climbing
Glendale to Cave Junction
Day two had us doing a 350 foot climb at mile 3, then it was generally downhill for the next 30 miles, but it involved up and down curly spaghetti like roads with thick trees on both sides – it was a blast to ride. Later we also had many views of the Rogue River, beautiful always and wild at times makes it a popular river for white water rafting and very pretty from the seat of a bicycle. We can’t have a flat ride, so the route had to head back uphill over the next 26 miles and then a final 350 foot pop. The climb wouldn’t have been so bad, but it was getting increasingly hot. I was able to refill one of my water bottles at the top, but it tasted horrible. Thankfully I still had one bottle of good water to drink and I could periodically pour the bad water on my head to keep cool. I finally arrived at camp (Bob already had the tent up) and we immediately rode the mile back into town and sat in an air conditioned mexican restaurant and drank margaritas – it was 100 degrees.
75 miles – 3,200 feet climbing
Cave Junction to Oregon Cave
Although it was hot during the day, as soon as the sun went down it cooled down immensely and a good night’s sleep was possible. The third day was an optional riding day. You could get on your bicycle and pedal 20 miles and climb 2,500 feet, or you could take the bus up. With the heat and lack of training made my decision a no-brainer – take the bus! The tour of the Oregon Caves was fantastic (and cool.) Our guide lead us through as we admired the bulbous, drippy forms. The weird forms calcite could take was amazing. After the hour and a half tour, it was back on the bus for the hot ride back. The rest of the afternoon was spent following the shade around to stay out of the blazing sun and reading detective paperbacks.
Cave Junction to Ashland
Back on the bikes for day four. We backtracked over most of the last climb into Cave Junction. It didn’t seem so bad climbing during the cool part of the day. After descending, for the rest of the day we just biked along enjoying being outside on small roads with farms and trees to look at. We generally increased elevation for the rest of the day and I was getting more tired. The last 7 miles were on a bike path and I could hardly wait to make it that far thinking it would be flat and easy, but I was wrong. It turned out to be your typical bike path, fine for your basic Sunday bike rider, but woefully lacking for real travel. Curvy paths, with no signs to guide you, makes it almost impossible to know where you are, especially if you’re a total stranger to the area following a cue sheet. Bob celebrated finishing the day by having explosive flat on his rear tire in the final yards before reaching Southern Oregon University in Ashland, home of the Ashland Shakespeare Festival.
77 miles – 2,700 feet of climbing
Ashland to Fort Klamath
Leaving Ashland my legs felt used and abused, every little grade took more effort than it should, I’m thinking this is going to be a really hideous day. After about 10 miles we started our longest continuous climb of the trip – 2,000 feet. Nothing else to do except put it in a low gear and keep pedaling - forward progress, no matter how slow, is better than none at all. Switchback after switchback I climbed, my slow progress gave me ample time to enjoy the scenery. Grinding along, I don’t even want to think of how long it took me, I just know I made it to the top where the rest stop with snacks was waiting. The rest was short lived because there was more climbing to do on a series of smaller rollers that gradually gained elevation over the next 30 miles where our second rest stop was at a serene lake. After fueling up, thelast 35 miles went quickly with a decrease in elevation and the pace line I got in to speed up the flat parts. I was very happy to collapse in camp with the tent again put up again by Bob before I got there.
82 miles – 6,100 feet of climbing
Fort Klamath to Diamond Lake
This was the day I was waiting for, we would finally get to Crater Lake. First there was the finest breakfast of the trip to devour. The women of the community grange cooked for us, anything you wanted to eat they seemed to have plus an assortment of home baked goods not to be outdone anywhere (course we’re on a bike trip, we eat anything and everything). With the stupendous breakfast being processed we headed toward the national park boundary. Again it was a fairly good climb, but it was spread out over more miles so it wasn’t as steep and the scenery was superb. I stopped several times to look at the valley below with waterfalls and the fossil fumaroles – wonderful shapes and interesting forms that had me thinking of how varied our landscape is. Upon reaching the Lake there was the usual picture taking, the wind bent bent trees made for interesting photos against the picturesque lake. I stayed a long time wandering around checking the informational signs and displays. Our route went around the north side of the lake requiring extra stops at the overlooks to take it all in. The effort of the climb long forgotten, we now had a fantastic downhill run into camp. Today I got into camp first because Bob decided to go completely around the lake, so I claimed all the baggage off the truck and set up the tent.
44 miles – 3,800 feet of climbing
Diamond Lake to Roseburg
It’s the last day and the longest mileage, but we dropped 4,000 feet over 30 miles! Woo Eee! What a rush! We flew downhill! I tuck in behind Bob (because he descends faster - bigger, more weight) and sit in his draft inches off his back wheel at 35 – 45 miles per hour. I feel like a bird, crouching down when I start to loose him to have less wind resistance and sit up a bit or swing out to catch some air if I need to slow down a touch. When I can take my eyes off the wheel in front of me to look around, its spectacular, the river rushing downhill with us, crashing into boulders or cascading over falls. Arriving at the second rest stop after 65 miles has everyone boasting about personal average speed records. Reality sets in afterward for the last 25 miles, its regular riding with rollers which feel like climbs. My legs are trashed and I’m in my granny gear for what would normally be an easy climb. Finally, the roads become the familiar ones we rode out on seven days ago and we are “home”
91 miles – 2,200 feet of climbing, elevation gain = minus 4,800 feet
