Gold Bar to Leavenworth via the Stevens Pass. Since we floated the idea of re-routing south to cross the Cascade Mountains, this day had been playing on my mind. It would be the first serious examination of our ability to cross the USA coast to coast. The Stevens Pass is a 15 mile climb that rises to 4,061 feet above sea level & we would be attempting it with fully loaded panniers on heavy touring bikes – while we’d done many training rides, none of them could compare to today’s route.
Enough of the hype – We would be on State Route 2 all day, heading in an easterly direction. As we expected a long day in the saddle, we’d finished breakfast & were on our way by 9am. We started under lead grey skies, with clouds hiding most of the snow covered higher peaks.
We could make out light dustings of overnight snow on the pine trees which dominated the lower slopes. Our hotel rooms were booked in Leavenworth & were non-refundable, so one way or another we had to crack on! We followed the Skykomish river & railroad as they criss-crossed their way across the valley, always creeping ever higher. In the blink of an eye, the grey skies were replaced with sunshine for the first time in a week & we saw the immensity of the landscape around us. What struck us was how close we were already to the snowline, yet we were at barely 750 feet above sea level!
Our first animal surprise was spotting an active eagle nesting site on the top of a telegraph pole by the side of the railroad & one of the eagles was guarding the nest – you may be able to make out the other eagle flying just above the trees on the right of the photo. This was quickly followed by a completely unexpected sighting of a Bigfoot just outside of Index – this is where Harry & The Hendersons was filmed back in the late 1980’s & early 90’s. Needless to say we stopped for a selfie with the big man himself!
We pulled in at LouSkis in Skykomish after 19 miles, so we could enjoy a huge chocolate brownie & americano before setting off for the main course. The climb began in earnest at mile 22 as we passed Deception Falls – up to this point we’d gained about 1,000 feet of elevation. Over the next 15 miles we’d be gaining another 3,000 feet at a fairly steady 4% – 6% gradient.
As we hit 1,500 feet above sea level we reached the snow line – small little hummocks & mounds to begin with. Soon the ground was covered in snow everywhere except on the road, which remained mainly dry & completely ice-free. Sean gradually began to pull away from me at the 3 to 4 mile point in the climb, so I took the time to record my thoughts on the lower slopes of Stevens Pass.
At the 6 mile point the road turned back on itself as a hairpin (or lacet) & I realised that we’d had a tailwind up the climb so far & would now be into a headwind!! Crikey, that would add another level of difficulty to proceedings. As would the snow that was now starting to fall as the temperature plummeted to below zero degrees centigrade. I was generating enough heat that I was still comfortable in a short sleeved jersey, arm warmers, gilet & cycling shorts.
I stopped for a moment to take a photo of my bike next to the large snowbanks by the side of the road & then recorded another snippet of video to remind myself how the climb felt. A few cars hooted their horns & waved at the 2 mad Brits cycling up Stevens Pass in the snow!
A mere 1 hour 50 minutes after we started the climb, we were congratulating each other on the summit, taking a couple of photos for posterity, then I was putting on long fingered gloves & my Castelli Gabba for a lightning descent towards Leavenworth, some 34 miles down the mountain.
We were still in the cloud cover as we commenced the downhill, but it only took about 10 minutes for us to return to the sun again. I hit 42 mph as we plummeted to the valley below.
All the while, we had huge views across to the mountains on either side of us. There were a couple of short, leg stinging uphill sections, but we were generally enjoying a 34 mile descent towards Leavenworth. SR2 was tracing the course of the Nason Creek until Coles Corner. Then a few miles later we joined the Wenatchee river for the final 10 miles into Leavenworth. It’s a fast flowing river with many sections of white water – we were lucky enough to see a deer by the edge of the river & an eagle soaring on the thermals on this stretch.
Just before 4pm we entered Leavenworth at the end of a truly epic day in the saddle. As if the day couldn’t get any better, we spotted 3 deer on the pitch & putt golf course as we walked into town for food & a few celebratory beers! Tomorrow is a rest day after all!!
Stage Stats – 71 miles, 5,702 feet of climbing. Rolling to begin with, Hors Category climb, then exhilarating descent. Worthy of its billing as the Queen Stage so far.
Today was the day we committed to crossing the Cascades Mountains by a more southerly route, as the SR20 remains closed. While there was a degree of disappointment for the road left behind, it was offset by the excitement of finding out what lay ahead on our chosen path.
We had breakfast in the Lone Star with the locals & were on our way by about 10.45am – we picked up the SR20 for the first 9 miles as we tracked the course of the Skagit river & it’s neighbour, the railroad, up the valley to Rockport. Along the way there were a couple of short, sharp climbs to test the legs, but they were quickly over & done with.
We took a right onto the SR530, which followed the Sauk river valley – this road would be taking us all the way to this evening’s motel in Arlington. We continued to make good progress as the road gently climbed through pine forest which protected us from the cross-wind from our left which was bringing big rain clouds our way. Sections of the road were arrow-straight which created the illusion that it may stretch out into infinity!
Every now & again our views changed when the road crossed the Sauk river, but the big snow-peaked mountains with names like Horse Head Mountain that surrounded us were largely hidden. The motel owner in Concrete had said this was a beautiful area, so it was a shame we didn’t get to see it in all its glory. Having said that, what we did see was still spectacular but in a more foreboding type way. Rain was on the way!
As we neared the town of Darrington, the peace & tranquillity was occasionally interrupted by large logging lorries, as they carried upwards of 20 huge tree trunks to Hampton Lumber Mills, where they would be processed. Darrington also provided us with brief respite from the rain which had now started in earnest, as we decided to stop in Moe’s for lunch. A tasty toasted turkey & pesto panini & coffee revived the spirits at what was about the halfway point of today’s ride.
The SR530 took a 90 degree right turn as we left Darrington with rain continuing to fall – “why mention the change of direction” I hear you ask. Because we’d just picked up a 10mph tailwind which, for the next 30 miles, would be blowing us all the way into Arlington!! We may have been cold & wet, but we had big smiles on our faces!
Our learning from a 2nd day of riding in the rain is that we need to invest in some waterproof gloves (I have 2 pairs at home, but I didn’t pack them as I hadn’t considered them essential for summer riding – a schoolboy mistake as it still feels like late winter / early spring at the moment!). The scenery this afternoon was very similar to this morning & as we were cold & wet I didn’t stop very often to take photos. We were now following the North Fork Stillaguamish river in what was a wide valley – there was an alternative off-road track available to us, but as it was on soft gravel we decided to give it a miss this time.
The rain eventually stopped after about an hour of this afternoon’s 2 hour leg. We gradually started drying out, although we were still a bit chilly! We chatted about how a cold, wet afternoon on a cycling adventure was way more fun than a warm afternoon in the office – it was good to remind ourselves how very fortunate we are to be on this trip. We entered Arlington & picked up a cyclist friendly route across town to our base for this evening, the Arlington Motor Inn.
It would be a stretch to call the motel anything but basic, but it was functional & we had room each to store our bikes. It was a typical Freeway Motel, just off the Interstate (I-5 in this instance), with a Denny’s (that sorted out our dinner & breakfast eating requirements!) & 2 gas stations for company. It was similar in many ways to The Tulip Inn where we stayed for 3 nights at the start of the week.
Stage Stats – 61 miles, 2,221 feet of climbing. Flat terrain all day. Weather was overcast with long spells of rain.
I’ve included a map below which shows where we’ve travelled in our first week of riding (Stages 1 to 6 in other words).
320 Miles cycled & 14,183 feet climbed in Week One
Saturday 7th May – Arlington to Gold Bar (Stage 7)
A short day of riding was planned for today, as rain was forecast almost all day. We met at 9am for breakfast at Denny’s & were on the road by 10am, under blue skies with large clouds in almost every direction. We passed the ‘international’ airport as we crossed Arlington on quiet & wide sub-urban roads.
After 5 miles we joined the Centennial Trail, a shared route for walkers, joggers, cyclists, horses & roller-skaters. It stretches 30 miles along the old Burlington – Northern Railroad. The early miles were fun as we enjoyed the quiet off-road riding, although we could see the heavy clouds closing in on us. The cycle path cut through woodland, as it followed the natural contours, slowly gaining height as we headed south-east.
Less than 30 minutes into today’s ride, the cold, heavy rain started. Other than a 10 minute spell when it snowed, it rained for the remainder of our ride! It was difficult to justify stopping to take many photos, although I tried to take some as we were riding along or vary occasionally stopping to capture anything that stood out to me (like the snow).
Sometimes it’s difficult to remember after the event quite how cold you were at the time – luckily I took some video describing how cold it was & some of the challenges I faced shooting the footage! At this point in the ride we had another 20 miles to go, so I also knew we were going to get colder yet!
It was a shame about the weather, as both Snohomish & Monroe looked like really pleasant & interesting towns that would have been fun to explore on a different day. We were so cold, we even discounted the idea of stopping for coffee as we were worried we wouldn’t be able to get started again if we sat down in the warm…..
I also remember being unable to change from the middle ring to the big ring with my left hand because I’d lost all feeling in my fingers & wrist – I had to push the lever in with my right hand to change gear! As we were passing through Monroe, we saw the railroad crossing lights ahead of us start to flash – a long freight train was coming through, however my hands were now so cold I couldn’t get my phone out of my back pocket in the 5 minutes it took for the train to pass!!!
After passing through Monroe, there was a long drag that took us up to Sultan & deposited us on the SR2. The final 5 miles were never dangerous, but they weren’t much fun, as the shoulder was narrow & virtually non-existent on bridge crossings. Please don’t read this & think I’m moaning about the day, as I’m not. I’ve tried to genuinely capture how I felt & what happened, when it happened.
Which leads me nicely on to our check-in experience at the Stevens Pass Inn Motel in Gold Bar – I couldn’t get my wallet out my back pocket, I couldn’t sign my name or use the card reader machine & it took 15 minutes for us to check-in, all the while we shivered uncontrollably in reception!!! Who would have thought that a 3 hour 20 minute cycle ride could so completely break a person.
I wouldn’t swap a moment of today’s ride for a day in work – I wanted to embark on an adventure that would stay with me for a long time & that is exactly what I’m getting. As soon as we checked-into our shared room, we cranked the heating up to 90 degrees fahrenheit & started to try to dry out our kit, as we needed some of it for Sunday’s ride.
We recovered enough over the next 3 hours to venture downstairs to the Prospectors Steak & Spirits Inn for a dinner of Special Rib & baked potato washed down with a couple of Autonomous IPA’s from the local 20 Corners brewery. There was a karaoke going on & I’m sure Garth from Wayne’s World was the DJ – party on dude!!!
We need better weather on Sunday otherwise we’ll be in a very tricky spot – fingers crossed I have a happy tail to tell!!
Stage Stats – 46 miles, 1,175 feet of climbing. Flat terrain all day. Weather was rain, snow & more rain.
Sunday 1st May – Port Townsend to Mount Vernon (Stage 2).
The plan was to get up relatively early, get our kit loaded & catch the 9.30am ferry to Whidbey Island, however, that changed when we arrived at the terminal to find the first ferry was actually at 11.00am. No problem, we decided to have breakfast in Port Townsend rather than our planned stop in Coupeville.
While we waited, we met Ed & Sarah who are also keen cyclists, but today were heading to the mainland by car to celebrate Ed’s birthday. We talked all things bikes & they shared their experiences of cycling in Italy. Lovely people who also gave us a couple of useful tips for local detours in Whidbey Island – they also pointed out a couple of bald eagles who were perched on our ferry’s mast, suggesting we may be their next snack!!
Just before we were due to board, another adventure cyclist pulled up beside us – Ingrid from Norway was cycling solo & was near the end of her first leg, cycling from Los Angeles to Anacortes. From there she’s taking a 3 day ferry ride up to Alaska, before cycling back to the Canada! We chatted about our hopes & expectations for our adventures, while admiring the stunning backdrop.
We would spend the entire day on backroads, except for a small section of busy road when we crossed back onto the mainland. Passing through Coupeville we could see commercial mussel rafts where the locals farm & sell the shellfish all around the world. The scenery was stunning, with big views across the many bays & inlets to the big, snow-covered mountains in the distance.
As we followed the coastal roads we saw Canadian geese out for a walk with with their chicks, herons & more eagles overhead near Joseph Whidbey State Park, as well as the occasional man-made landmarks like a Darth Vadar mask in the middle of someone’s lawn & a jet fighter close to the nearby navy base.
We joined the busier State Route 20 (SR20) to cross Deception Pass bridge – a narrow channel below separates Whidbey Island from mainland USA. In addition to the stunning views in both directions, the tidal currents flow at upwards of 10 mph. Leaving Deception Pass behind us, we cycled through Bowman Bay State Park as we descended into Anacortes, gateway to the many small islands just off the coast.
We headed in an easterly direction as we briefly picked up the 4 lane SR20 – it felt very busy after 2 days of having the roads to ourselves, but it was only for about 5 miles or so. At Fredonia we exited SR20 & picked up a tailwind on quiet 2 lane roads through fertile farming country – every spring Mount Vernon holds a tulip festival. Sadly we’d missed it for this year, but we are staying in The Tulip Inn while we’re here!
Stage Stats – 59 miles, 3,344 feet of climbing. Rolling terrain. Weather was dry all day.
Monday 2nd May – Rest Day & Planning
While we were riding on Saturday & Sunday, a few people expressed concerns that the SR20 may still be closed between mileposts 134 & 171. Having checked the Washington Dept of Transport website, they were correct. I spoke to Lauren at the DoT & she said that it won’t be open before the weekend, but to call again on Friday when she’ll have a better idea of when it may open – historically it usually opens the first week in May, however I now know it’s opened as early as mid-March & as late as early June in the last 10 years!
I spent the morning getting a couple of small jobs done on my bike, extended our booking in the Tulip Inn for a couple of extra nights & planning a loop for us to ride tomorrow. We’ve made the short-term decision to keep heading towards the mountains, but ensure we have a bale-out option to head over some of the smaller passes which we know are already open. Once we had the bones of a plan we could enjoy a quiet ‘almost’ pint (16 ounces to a pint) of locally brewed ale – all is good with the world!
Stage Stats – Rest Day. Rain all morning, overcast all afternoon.
Tuesday 3rd May – Catchanut Loop (Stage 3)
Today’s ride was taken from the Skagit Bicycle Club, titled as a ‘Spring Classic’ – it lived up to all our expectations, so on the off-chance that someone in Mount Vernon sees this, please thank them for me. behind. As we will be staying in the Tulip Inn again tonight, we left our panniers back in the Motel. The first 15 miles were pan flat as we crossed farmland planted with potatoes & assorted vegetables, then skirted the coastal estuary of Padilla Bay. We saw a group of cyclists on a variety of bikes (tandem, road, e-bikes & mountain bike) who all looked to be enjoying their ride. We fairly flew along as we picked up a friendly tailwind!
As we continued in a northerly direction we climbed through Larrabee State Park on almost deserted tarmac, then gave the feet back through Chuckanut. We then turned right onto a small sideroad where we started climbing again, following the course of Chuckanut Creek on one side of us & I-5 freeway on the other. As we reached the top of the climb, our lunch stop screamed out to us…..a Shell station, where we went crazy with a coffee & Twix!
After our feast, we dropped down to Lake Samish (sadly it was hidden from view by a line of deciduous trees), then shadowed Friday Creek, descending all the while. Along the way, we passed a small food co-op called the Deli Llama, but it took me too long to register the pun & I missed the photo op!
We continued along a single lane road where we passed a house that had a garden full of wooden animal carvings (including a T-Rex & even a spider on the roof!). From here we were back among the farmsteads that we’d seen earlier – all that remained was for us to navigate our way across town & back to our motel.
We headed to the Skagit River Brewery for dinner, where we made up for our frugal lunch offering. I shared a cobb salad with Sean, then followed it up with a pulled pork sandwich & sweet potato fries, washed down with a couple of Dutch Girl Blondes! While we were eating we watched two enormous freight trains go by – they were doing about 25 mph & they both took upwards of 6 minutes to pass us!
Stage Stats – 66 miles, 2.417 feet of climbing. Rolling terrain. Weather was overcast.
Wednesday 4th May- Mount Vernon to Concrete (Stage 4)
After spending 3 nights in the Tulip Inn at Mount Vernon, we were well & truly ready to get our adventure moving forward again. It was raining first thing, so we delayed our departure until 11am by which time it was only mizzling (does anyone else use this when the weather is between misty & drizzling?). We headed out of town & quickly picked up Cycle Route 10. I joined the Adventure Cycling Association of the USA prior to planning our adventure & used their brilliant cycling specific maps to plan our route & keep us off the busy roads wherever possible.
We would be following the Skagit river for the entire ride & along the way we passed through Sedro Woolley (Gateway to the North Cascades), where a wooden cowboy protected the local bar. As we approached Minkler, we had our first obstacle of the trip (& I forgot to take a photo) when the recent bad weather & flooding had taken out a bridge. We had to portage the bikes (with fully laden panniers) across a sand bank.
Continuing past fields of cattle & horses, plus a herd of alpaca (assuming 5 are sufficient to be a collective noun), we passed within a stone’s throw of the Skagit, looking moody against the dark clouds in the background. Arriving in Hamilton, we pulled into Boots Bar & Grill for a coffee & snack (which became a burger & fries). As I chatted to one of the bar staff, I asked what the yellow line was by Sean’s head. She said that in 2003 the river had burst its banks & flooded the entire town with up to 3 feet 6 inches of water. It appears the river bursts its banks regularly, as the bar was flooded again last autumn with over 1 foot of water.
We continued along uninhabited two lane roads & every so often we caught sight of the Skagit river with the snowy mountain peaks getting ever closer. We then had the opportunity to get off-road onto the Cascade Trail, a gravel cycle track which follows the path of the now extinct iron horse (railway!) – with the extra weight of our luggage, it felt like we were being rattled to pieces, so apologies for the poor quality photo! Before we knew it, we’d arrived in Concrete, our home for the next 2 nights.
We splashed out $90per night & have a room each for a few nights – I snore & Sean needs to catch up on his sleep!! The rooms are the best of the trip so far & it will likely take a while before we see better. We met a missionary who had lived in Leeds for a few years in the late 1980’s & we talked briefly about the differences between our 2 countries as the 3 of us walked to The Lone Star, the only place to get food in Concrete. After our huge lunch, we had a small dinner with a couple of Mac & Jack African Ambers to rehydrate.
We were very humbled when it came to paying our bill – the gentleman we’d met earlier had picked up the tab for our meals & hadn’t mentioned anything to us about it when he left & we wished him good luck for the future. I wish I’d got his name, but we’ve talked about doing something similar for someone in the near future.
Stage Stats – 37 miles, 688 feet of climbing. Pan-flat sprinter terrain. Weather was mizzly & overcast.
Thursday 5th May – Baker Lake Out & Back (Stage 5)
The reality of our adventure is beginning to become clear. We awoke to another damp morning, so after a breakfast of scrambled eggs & bacon, we delayed the start of today’s ride until 10am. We left under bruised, grey skies with yesterday’s mountains hidden by low cloud. We headed back towards Hamilton (yesterday’s lunch stop), then took a right turn. Once again, we were riding without panniers, so made good progress as we started climbing the road that over the next 15 miles would take us up to Baker Lake.
I was looking forward to today’s ride, as although we’d be climbing for the first half of the ride, the gradient was between 2% & 5% on a road that was devoid of traffic. Throughout the climb, we’d be following the path of Grandy Creek.
Every now & then we were teased with views of the snowy peaks, as they showed themselves between the blankets of low cloud. As we continued to climb, the gentle drizzle turned into proper rain, however this wasn’t too much of an issue while we were climbing. About 5 miles short of Baker Lake we entered Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest & all of a sudden we felt hemmed in, as we were surrounded by all variety of trees. Every now & then we passed a section that had been cleared under licence – douglas fir, cedar, alder & maple are all actively managed & regularly harvested.
The original plan for today was to ride to the start of the trailhead at the far end of Baker Lake, however, it was far colder & wetter than we had hoped for. As a result, we chose to visit the dam at the near end of the lake instead & then return via a shortcut to Concrete. I carry a bit more timber than Sean so didn’t feel the cold quite as much as he did, but it was definitely on the cold side of chilly!
As we finished early, we took the chance to visit the laundromat for the first time on our adventure. We’re not quite sure what the coming days will bring, so it made sense to clean our kit when we had the chance. We had company while we were doing our washing, as a dormouse came in to say hello!
We’ve just polished off a delicious steak (apologies to my vegetarian & vegan friends!) & bakes potato, rounded off with 2 Elysians – I’m now 10 days into the trip & have enjoyed a different craft beer each night! Don’t forget to be impressed by the clean tops!!!
Stage Stats – 37 miles, 2,945 feet of climbing. Hilly terrain. Weather was rainy all day, but spirits were high.
Ross Dam Trailhead (milepost 134) to Silver Star (milepost 171) – road closed.
The following is taken from the Department of Transport (Washington) website;
“SR 20 North Cascades Highway is closed for the season. The road is closed on the west side of the Cascade Mountains at milepost 134, the Ross Dam Trailhead, and on the east side at Silver Star at milepost 171, approximately 20 miles west of Winthrop.
Spring clearing activities began March 28 and typically takes 4 to 6 weeks depending on conditions.
Contact: NCR Communications 509-860-0000″
In other words, State Route 20 over the mountains from Newhalem to Okanogan is still closed due to unseasonably late snow storms – this was, & remains, our preferred route as it takes us through the stunning scenery of the North Cascades National Park. I phoned the helpline number & Lauren (who was very helpful & friendly) says there’s a possibility that SR20 ‘may’ open this weekend & to call her on Friday for an update.
Looking towards Mount Olympus in 2008
As a result, we’ve extended our stay in Mount Vernon by a couple of days & after a morning of investigating our options, we have an updated plan. Our previous European adventures have involved snow, so we’ll cope.
Col de la Croix de Fer – 2013Col de la Petit St Bernard – Italian border in 2013Col de la Madeleine 2013
We’ll go on a local 60 mile loop tomorrow (Tuesday) & then continue to cycle up to Concrete on Wednesday (a shorter day than originally planned). Thursday (weather permitting), we’ll ride & hike near Lake Shannon & Baker Lake.
We’ll revisit the plan again on Friday after I’ve spoken to Lauren & see what our options are then – we’re now committed to the SR20 over the North Cascades, it’s simply the timetable that is unknown. Truth be told, this is what an adventure is all about!
After 5 days of travel, acclimatisation, sightseeing & final preparation, today marked our first day of cycling on our big adventure. The plan was to get to breakfast for 8am, so we had plenty of time to load the bikes & ride the 2 miles to the Washington State Ferry Terminal for the 9.35am departure. However, we hadn’t factored in that the short order cook would choose today to have a lie-in!!! The outcome was breakfast took more than an hour & it quickly became clear we wouldn’t be catching our planned ferry.
By the time we were fully loaded (the panniers, plus tent, sleeping bag, air mattress & rucksack weigh a touch over 20 kg -about 44 lbs in old money) & ready to leave the Holiday Inn (our base for the last 4 nights) it was almost 9.45am & light rain had started to fall. Not the start we planned, but in the grand scheme of things, this wasn’t going to define the trip, the day or the morning. We made our way across town & joined the queue (or a line as was pointed out to me) for the 10.40am ferry crossing to Bainbridge Island.
The 35 minute crossing offered up great views of the Seattle skyline & as I was lining up my photo the Bainbridge Island to Seattle ferry chose that moment to cross behind us.
We were planning to take the main routes across Bainbridge Island on our way to Port Townsend, but in a strange twist of fate, the delay to our departure resulted in us meeting a fellow cycling aficionado by the name of Bob at our coffee stop. He’s a local & he shared his advice on how to avoid the busy roads for the next 15 miles – he’s a keen long distance rider who spent 6 weeks or so earlier this year cycling part of the Southern Tier route across the USA. He also kindly shared his phone number & offered to help us if we get stuck.
Bob’s route was an absolute gem as it started off taking us through the Norwegian settler town of Poulsbo – as we left town, we had the road almost to ourselves & we also kept being rewarded with huge views of the coastline. Partway along Bob’s detour an approaching cyclist waved to us & the next thing we knew he spun around & started riding with us. We had a very pleasant chat for about 20 minutes or so before he needed to go his own way – before he left us, he shared another detour to the beautifully named Paradise Bay Road.
These encounters are events we’d hoped to have at some point along our adventure – to experience 2 such meetings on the first day was amazing! As we carried on along Paradise Bay Road, we were teased with views of the Puget Sound, as well as passing fields of horses, cattle & llamas!!! We passed through the idyllic town of Port Ludlow where once again we could see across to mainland USA – by now the light rain & slate grey skies of this morning were a long distant memory.
As we reached Port Hadlock, we returned to the busy main road that we’d been fortunate to avoid for the last 30 miles. However, after a long drag up to the airfield we picked up a nice tailwind & descended into Glen Cove. From here we picked up a delightful gravel bike trail that hugged the coast, then cut across what looked like a boat graveyard – further research shows that the Aleutian Express is undergoing repairs. Before we knew it, we’d been delivered us to our hotel for the evening – the Aladdin Inn is situated right on the shoreline & the third photo below is from our hotel room!
In the excitement of the late start & our detours, we didn’t stop for lunch, however The Bayview Restaurant ensured that we received a feast fit for kings! The salad, 12 ounce rib & coconut cream pie didn’t stand a chance!!! I washed it down with a Port Townsend IPA while Sean chose a red ale as we relaxed from our sea view! Should you ever visit, I would absolutely recommend the Bayview Restaurant – top quality food & a really friendly welcome.
I made a last minute decision to write up today’s adventure, as it was the first day of us riding & because it ended up being so different (in a very good way) to what we had expected! While tomorrow looks set fair for a glorious day in the saddle (with another ferry crossing), it looks like our planned route across the Cascades may not yet be open. However, that’s a problem to sort out another day – tomorrow actually!!!
I’m hoping to do another update next weekend. but will try & post a few photos on Inst & Facebook.
Travel, final preparation & sightseeing ahead of the Grand Depart.
The adventure began when Barry The Taxi picked us up from Fishponds at 9am on Monday 25th April. First stop was the Heathrow Hilton Garden Inn at T2 / T3, prior to taking our PCR tests in the afternoon. We received our negative results at 6pm & then completed the final paperwork & checked in online prior to relaxing with dinner & a couple of drinks.
After a light breakfast, we popped our boxed bikes & suitcases onto a trolley & walked them across to check-in at T3, where we were looked after by the Virgin Atlantic team – our bikes were too big to fit through the normal queueing system, so we were taken to the express team where we were fast-tracked through check-in process. Within 30 minutes of arriving at the airport, we’d completed check-in, dropped off our oversized bikes & were clearing security & chilling out as we waited for our gate to be called.
We were flying Premium Economy, so were greeted with champagne as we took our seats for the flight. We took off on time at 11.50am & this felt like the real start point of our adventure.
A mere 10 hours later (after 3 films & a lot of feeding & watering by our cabin crew) we were wheels-down at Seattle-Tacoma. It took about an hour to get through immigration, baggage collection & customs. After a 40 minute taxi ride, we were registered in the Holiday Inn Downtown, our hotel for the next 4 nights. Seattle is 8 hours behind the UK, so our body-clock believed it was 1am on Wednesday morning, but our watches told us it was 3pm on Tuesday, so we quickly unpacked & got out for some sightseeing & a couple of celebratory beers (by the time we returned to the hotel at 9.30pm, we’d had 6 pints, but we slept well & avoided any jetlag!).
We enjoyed a big breakfast on Wednesday morning, before heading up to the Space Needle to get the sightseeing underway. Sean & I both struggle with heights, but sometimes you just have to face your fear & go outside your comfort zone. I’ve a feeling we’ll be doing a lot of this over the coming months!
We had our first experience of the vast number of sculptures in the city as we walked through Olympic Park, a stand-alone part of the Seattle Art Museum. Although the temperatures are very much like spring in Bristol, we’ve been really fortunate that the weather has stayed dry while we’ve been out & it’s been sunny most of the time.
The Seattle Art Museum itself has a great piece of live action installation art – a huge man swinging a hammer! I’ve probably not done it justice with the video below, but you’ll get the idea of what I mean.
Some of my longer standing bank colleagues may remember taking a course titled ‘Fish!’ – it featured a company based in Pike Place Market who sold fish to the general public. I’m delighted to report they’re still up to their fish throwing antics – this is a PLAICE well worth a visit!!
The whole waterfront area from the State Ferry Terminal (where our adventure will start with a boat crossing to Bainbridge Island) to Pike Place has some big views across the bay. I stopped briefly to get a couple of photos of all the people queueing outside the very first Starbucks, as well as looking at some of the colourful fruit & veg stalls.
At various moments over the last few days, the Space Needle has popped into view – if ever you visit Seattle, it’s well worth making time to visit the park around the Space Needle & take the lift to the top. As you queue for the lift, take time to learn all about how & why the Space Needle & adjacent monorail was built.
In addition to sightseeing, we’ve also run around town picking up a few last minute items ahead of the adventure starting. This took us to some places that we wouldn’t have thought to visit normally, We passed the Public Library, walked down to Lumen Field (home of the Seattle Seahawks football team & Seattle Sounders soccer team) & spotted a dining cart that had been converted into a banana stand!
We’ve walked in the region of 7 or 8 miles a day, so food & drink has been an important part of our planning! I’ve enjoyed trying a few craft IPA’s like Space Needle & Pine Place, while Sean’s been testing out some of the red ales.
We’ve been fortunate to have a small, greenspace just across the road from us – we’ve seen squirrels galore in there, as well as a couple of rabbits. In addition to the wildlife, the park has been planted with striking flowers, as well as being a quiet space with a large chess set, Jenga & Connect 4 are available too.
This morning we packed our panniers with all the kit we plan to use over the next 6 months – a few of my observant friends may have noticed that all our photos show us in the same shirts. That’s because we’ve been wearing the same set of clothes since we started our travelling on Monday morning – we’re both now looking forward to throwing them away tomorrow morning!!
Our bikes were dismantled by 73 Degrees in Keynsham 10 days ago & MBR Bikes of Seattle have done a great job rebuilding the bikes for us – we put the bikes through their paces yesterday on a short shakedown ride to South Lake Union. The big adventure begins in earnest tomorrow, as we head towards Port Townsend – by the end of the day we’ll be even further West than we are at the moment!
Once In A Lifetime (remastered) – revisiting some of our favourite places, but finding new routes to explore. Part Three also includes trips in the UK as we prepared for our USA adventure. The following lines summarise some of the questions I’ve asked myself at various times on my cycling adventures to date;
You may ask yourself “Where does that highway go to?”
And you may ask yourself “Am I right? Am I wrong?”
And you may say to yourself “My God! What have I done?”
The final chapter of my journey from clueless cyclist to American Adventurer focuses on my later trips to Europe, as well as my self-supported UK trips during Covid times.
As well as our annual Spring trip to Mallorca in 2016, we returned to Switzerland in the summer. This time we based ourselves in Martigny & explored the quiet roads up to the numerous hydro-electric dams in the Swiss Alps.
Remote road on the way to Barrage du SanetschMont Blanc in the backgroundLac du Mauvoisin
Mallorca again kicked off my 2017 adventures, followed by a first summer foray into the Italian Dolomites. The mountains are unlike anywhere else I’ve visited, with enormous grey crags & alpine lakes in every direction – I really struggled to limit myself to just a few photos from our week in Cortina d’Ampezzo!
Descending Passo Giau towards Selva di CadoreLago di CadoreDescending Passo PordoiLago di Dobbiaco Toblacher See
We also managed to fit in a week of late summer riding in the French Pyrenees – we were based in Lourdes for our first visit. The mountains were steeper, more remote & wilder than their Alpine cousins! This is somewhere we want to explore further in the future.
A rapid descent of Col du Soulor on perfect tarmacThe Two Amigos at the summit of Col de PeyresourdeLac d’Aubert on La Route des LacsCirque de TroumouseBarrage des GloriettesLac d’Estaing
Our 2018 adventures kicked off again with a Spring break to Mallorca, however, I had a low speed crash on the first day which resulted in me spending the remainder of the trip sun bathing (which rather ruined my sharp tan lines!), instead of cycling.
My Mallorcan injury kept me off the bike throughout May & early June, so I had a few concerns about my cycling fitness ahead of our 11 day summer trip to Lake Annecy & St Jean de Maurienne. Our luxurious base in Talloires was the perfect launchpad for 5 days exploring quiet mountain passes as I built up some fitness for the huge climbs to come. Hopefully the photos below will show why I love visiting the big mountains – they also show my left elbow being held together with kinesiotape from my crash in April.
A field of sunflowers on the way to Col du FreneAnother visit to Cormet de RoselendLooking towards Cormet & Lac de RoselendLac d’Annecy from Col de la Forclaz ,MontminCol de Leschaux with Lac d’Annecy in the background
The transfer to St Jean de Maurienne took less than 2 hours so we were able to fit in an extra ride on our transfer day up to the ski station of Karellis. This was one of a few lesser known climbs we explored, others included Les Lacets de Montvernier / Col du Pre & Col de la Beaune. We also returned to Col de la Madeleine & Col de la Croix de Fer, regular guests on the Tour de France & favourites of ours.
The iconic climb of the Col de la Croix de FerThe replacement croix de fer on the Col de la Croix de Fer – on of my favourite viewsHay Bale surfing after 11 days of cycling – stiff as a board!Partners in crime on Col de la MadeleineCol du Chaussy – one of a number of lesser known climbs we explored on this trip
I went to Ibiza in September for Stevie W’s birthday & managed to hire a bike & sneak in a day of riding – this is another place well worth returning to for further exploration. I also won a competition to spend a day in the Neutral Service Car at the OVO Energy Tour of Britain, which helped me appreciate the difference between cycling athletes & novices like myself!
Shady forest roads on IbizaRiding with Leighton was a fun day outGlorious views out to seaTour de France winners Chris Froome & Geraint ThomasSticky bottle time!Marco & Matteo, my hosts in the Vittoria Neutral Service Car
We returned to Mallorca in 2019. I managed to stay in my bike for the whole trip & we enjoyed visiting a few well known climbs, as well as getting off the beaten track – sadly I haven’t been back since this trip, but I’m looking forward to getting back in 2023.
Sa Calobra in all its gloryDescending Coll de Sa Gramola near AndratxView from Coll de Femenia towards AlcudiaSean giving it full gas up Coll de SollerLooking across Alcudia Bay to Port de PollencaToasting another epic Mallorcan adventure
Our summer adventure took us to Austria for the first time, with 5 days of riding the remote mountains around Innsbruck. Each day offered a different experience, as we mixed routes that looped over the mountains with valley riding along the way, with high mountain roads up to glaciers. While the climbs were challenging, pretty much every day we had the roads pretty much to ourselves.
Looking towards BrixleggEnjoying the valley on the way to climb KuhtaiSnow near the summit of the TimmelsjochA big day out climbing up to the Kaunertal Glacier
We then crossed the border into Italy as we returned to Bormio for a further 5 days of adventures in the huge mountains . In addition to the legendary climbs made famous by the Giro d’Italia, we also found a few unknown climbs well off the beaten track.
Iconic view from Passo Dello StelvioLago di PoschiavoThe secret climb of Passo San MarcoThe old road on Passo del GaviaLago di CancanoCelebrating another successful adventure!
It appears I must have used all my 2019 holiday allowance on cycling trips, as we also returned to Barcelonnette in September for a week of cycling! Again, we had the roads to ourselves as we combined some Tour de France favourites like the Col de Vars & Col de la Bonette, unknown climbs like Col des Fillys & Col St Jean & an away day to tackle the wickedly steep Col de la Lombarde from both the Italian & French sides.
Descent of Col du Vars towards GuillestreClimbing the Col d’AllosLac de Serre-Poncon in the rainA farm track up to Col des FillysRapid descent of Col de la LombardeEpic views as we climbed the Col de la Bonette
The world changed in 2020 & foreign travel was off the agenda & the early months of the year involved lots of solo rides to comply with Government Lockdowns & Guidance. Luckily by July we were able to meet up again & although we couldn’t get away to Europe as planned we still managed to do plenty of day trips in July.
Week one saw us exploring the North Wessex Downs, the Cotswolds, the Mendips, the Malverns, Cranborne Area of Natural Beauty & the South Downs. This was a great reminder that there are plenty of places within an hour’s drive that are well worth exploring!
Quiet country lanes of the North Wessex DownsExploring Cheddar on a coffee rideViews from Upper Wyche – The MalvernsCaen Hill Locks near DevizesOne of the many woods of the South Downs
Week Two involved more trips to explore new tarmac. We began with a Tour of the Cotswolds around Bourton-on-the-Water, followed it up with Tour of The Tumble in South Wales, headed out to horse country on a Lambourn Loop, returned to the Cotswolds to explore all around Chipping Norton & then finished with a trip out to Symonds Yat. A glorious couple of weeks that showed there is plenty of scenery to see in the UK.
Exploring the back roads of Bourton-on-the-WaterSelfie opportunity at the top of The TumbleThe beautiful Vale of LambournThe river Wye from Symonds Yat
By the end of 2020 I’d had an application for redundancy agreed at work & had decided that I was going to use it as an opportunity to take on a challenge I’d been thinking of for a few years – riding coast to coast across the USA. Fortunately, this adventure also appealed to Sean, so we started making plans to turn it into reality.
I bought a new touring bike in January 2021 & started training on it in May. I started loading up the panniers to prepare me for what a trip on a touring bike might be like. However, the only way to truly know is go on a tour & find out! In July 2021 Sean & myself embarked on a 5 day Tour de South Wales, taking in Brecon, the Elan Valley, Aberystwyth & Carmarthen via National Cycle Routes 8 & 42. We then returned to Bristol via NCR’s 82, 47 & 4. The scenery was stunning & we were fortunate with the weather – we enjoyed ourselves so much!
Monmouth & Brecon Canal – off-roadingDeserted lanes near Builth WellsThe Elan Valley – breathtaking!Looking back to LampeterAberavon BeachLooking Westwards from Wanastow
We gambled on having an Indian Summer in September & planned a 2nd Tour de South Wales – this time we’d be going in a clockwise direction, following NCR 4 via Pontypridd & Carmarthen, then returning via NCR’s 47 & 43. We were loaded with 20kg of kit which gave us a really good taste of what touring in the USA might feel like. Once again, the scenery was amazing!
Gravel riding on the NCRSwansea SeafrontLlandovery to CarmarthenCarmarthen – Cheers!Brecon Beacons near SennybridgeFollowing the Brecon & Monmouth Canal
As I write this, we’re waiting for our “Fit To Fly” results, sat in the Hilton Garden Inn -we’ve completed 4,500 training miles on our touring bikes & thoroughly enjoyed 2 separate tours to South Wales. The waiting is finally over & technically, the adventure has begun – we fly to Seattle tomorrow (26th April) to start our Tour de USA!!!
Road To Nowhere – sticking with the Talking Heads theme as we broadened our European horizons! Many of our trips from 2011 to 2016 really did take us on roads less travelled – taking that ride to nowhere, we’ll take that ride.
In May 2011 we stayed in Geneva for 4 days, cycling the big mountains either side of the Arve valley, including the brutal climb of Col de Joux Plane on the way up to Morzine. We also visited Goeschenen that September for another 4 day trip – the Susten, Grimsel & Furka Pass (made famous by Goldfinger) remains one of my 5 favourite days in the saddle!
Two Amigos atop the brutal climb up to Joux PlaneLooking towards the summit of Susten PassOn the summit of Grimsel Pass, looking across to the Furka Pass
2012 started with a week-long stay in Barcelonnette, including a day trip to Mont Ventoux for the first time – more about this mythical mountain later! The highlight of our 2012 stay in Annecy was going to see Stage 9 of Le Tour de France & seeing Wiggo riding to victory on the stage while wearing yellow – this was the year he won Le Tour! The lowlight was undoubtedly crashing on the descent of the Cormet de Roselend 3 days later, breaking my collarbone, ending my riding early & writing-off my Trek.
Standing to attention having survived my first visit to Mont VentouxWiggo in le maillot jeune – allez, allez!Posing on the summit of the Cormet de RoselendOuch – bruised black & blue. A broken collarbone left me with a permanent reminder of my crash on the descent of Cormet de Roselend
2013 started off (& finished) with surgery on my collarbone – it was unsuccessful both times & I’m left with a mushy collarbone that never really healed properly. By now, we’d been gripped by the European Alps & we embarked on a monster 2 week trip at the end of May – snow everywhere!! The first 7 days were spent riding the truly epic climbs of the Maurienne Valley – we stayed in the Hotel St Georges & made friends with the hostess Martine (we’ve visited twice more since).
Martine welcomed us as if we were members of her familyThe iconic cross of iron at the summit of Croix de FerPlenty of snow on the Col de la Madeleine
For the 2nd week we moved to Le Belvedere on the Petit St Bernard Pass, overlooking Bourg St Maurice. We had the Cormet de Roselend, the Col d’Iseran, Petit St Bernard & Les Arcs on our doorstep. By the end of our 2 week adventure, we’d completed just over 100,000 feet of vertical climbing (about a 1/5th of that year’s total)!!
A glorious return to the Cormet de RoselendHuge snow banks at the French / Italian border on the Petit St BernardA week later at the summit of Col de la Madeleine again – this time from La Lechere
Somehow we also found time for a trip to Andermatt where we spent 7 days exploring the huge mountains, including the legendary cobbles on the Gotthardpass.
The Oberalpsee at the summit of the OberalpAt the Furka Pass looking across to the Grimsel PassThe cobbles of the Gotthard Pass
In 2014 we climbed all 3 sides of Mont Ventoux in a single day (14,452 feet of climbing in 85 miles) on our summer trip to Bedoin & St Jean de Maurienne (again) – we’re in a fairly small club of people foolish enough to complete the Cingles Challenge! This remains my biggest challenge to date. We also found time to visit Col d’Izoard & Col du Galibier.
Paying our respects at Tom Simpson’s memorialAll 3 ascents of Mont Ventoux completed in a single day!La Casse Deserte on the climb of Col d’IzoardA big day out – Col du Telegraphe & Col du Galibier from both sides
We also visited Italy for the first time in 2014, with a week long adventure in Bormio. Our trip included an epic day climbing both sides of the Stelvio, with the Umbrail pass sandwiched in between. We also got off the beaten track with a bit of gravel riding around Lago di Cancano.
The iconic hairpins of the Stelvio PassAnother 10,000 foot climbing dayLago di Cancano in the background
We made our maiden trip to Mallorca in 2015 (Puerto Pollenca was our regular base until Covid arrived in 2020). This quickly felt like a 2nd home & we used it as a Spring Training Camp between 2015 & 2019 – it really is cycling nirvana!
Palma Cathedral & the two amigosHay Bale surfing in the sunFormentor lighthouse in the far background
For the summer of 2015 we embarked on another split base trip, returning to Annecy for 4 days, then heading to Aosta, for 7 days cycling in Italy. Colle del Nivolet (the final photo below) remains one of the most stunningly beautiful places I’ve visited on a bike – this photo (minus me) has pride of place in my living room.
Looking down to Lac d’AnnecySelfie at the DauphineAt the summit of Mont Cenis with the lake in the backgroundSean descending the Colle del Gran San Bernardo towards AostaColle del Nivolet – still my favourite day in the saddle!
You may recognise the Colle del Nivolet photo from the closing scene in The Italian Job – it was where the coach with the gold was hanging over the cliff. As far as roads to nowhere go, this is that road!
In Part Three I’ll bring the story up to date as our adventures from 2017 to 2021 prepare us for our expedition to The Big Country (yes, another Talking Heads song!).
Once In A Lifetime – To steal a line from the Talking Heads’ song, “Well, how did I get here?”
My USA cycling adventure has been almost 16 years in the making – Part One of my journey covers my introduction to cycling & a few of my first adventures.
Back in June 2006 I went on a group holiday to Sardinia with some great friends & on a whim hired a bike for a ½ day, 30 mile pootle out to Capo Caccia & back with Sean.
Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that I’d catch the cycling bug & that I’d now be preparing to embark on a 6,000 mile, 6 month, once in a lifetime adventure. So, how did I get here?
After returning from Sardinia, Sean & I came up with the stupid idea of going on a one week cycling trip around Hamburg in October 2006 – in those days I didn’t even take photos of my cycling adventures, as my mobile phone didn’t even have a camera. We arrived on the Friday night & spent the evening checking out the local brew – my hazy memory says it was “one (or perhaps two) too many” pints of Einstein, in the bar of the same name. It’s worth pointing out that at this point we didn’t have any bikes to complete our tour, so we had a panicked morning desperately searching for a hire shop – in the end we had to buy a bike each so we could complete our trip!!! We learned a huge amount on that trip, the main lesson being that we needed to each buy a bike!
By 2007 I’d bought a blue, aluminium framed Giant Defy & we headed to the USA, doing a self-supported trip to New York State (including a visit to Niagara Falls). By now I’d realised that I needed to be able to take photos, so we bought a couple of Kodak Single Use cameras – we then had to get the film developed in a camera shop to see what the photos actually looked like! Having found the photos this evening, they were truly rubbish!!!
In 2008 we visited Washington & Oregon cycling the Pacific Coast Highway, hiring bikes once again. We still had much to learn about how to plan a trip abroad! At least by now we’d realised the importance of training, although I weighed more in 2008 than I do in 2022.
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We became more adventurous in 2009, joining a guided tour in early May, organised by Cycling Escapes, that included Zion & Bryce Canyon – this was our first experience of cycling with proper cyclists.
I was totally unprepared (I’d broken my collar bone on Valentine’s Day & couldn’t get back on the bike until the end of March) & I met the most kind & generous group of people. They were so supportive of two total novices & shared many great pieces of advice, including to always look behind you & see where you’ve come from, as well as where you’re headed. For our 2nd week we did a self-supported trip to Moab & tried to practice what we’d been taught!
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2010 was a breakout year, as in addition to buying my first carbon bike (still the fastest bike I’ve ever owned), we started training & returned to the USA for a 5 days of cycling huge Colorado mountains – again with Cycling Escapes. Rich & Benny ran the trip even though there were only Sean, myself & Rich on the tour.
This was followed by 5 days of cycling in Montana & Idaho (including a couple of days in Yellowstone) – we were still with Cycling Escapes. What made it even more special was meeting up with some of our friends we’d made the previous year, as well as making new friends.
We also paid our first visit to the big mountains of Europe – driving from Bristol to Bourg d’Oisans for a 3 day adventure taking in Alp d’Huez, Col de la Croix de Fer & Col du Galibier on consecutive days. I can still remember the feeling of complete awe I felt when we drove up Alp d’Huez in the car & both of us realising that we were in completely uncharted territory!
This feels like a good place to draw Part One to a conclusion as it marks the transition from our long haul travels to short haul destinations. Part Two will focus on our early experiences of exploring the mountains of Europe!
Gav's Cycling Adventures 