My Eureka Moment

Some days just don’t go as planned. This was not one of those days. The main reason for that is that there was absolutely no plan for the day. In hindsight, perhaps there should’ve been at least something that vaguely resembled a plan.

I was ready to go somewhat early this morning and as a result (and as anticipated) I was forced to leave without getting a photo with my Warm Showers host, Katie. It’s the thought that counts, right? Either way, special thanks to Katie for a great stay and visit in Crescent City.

Contrary to what was mentioned early, there was a VERY vague plan for the day. Step 1: Stop at Subway on the way out of town. Step 2: Head south. As I said, it was a very vague plan. From a pure distance perspective, the most likely destination options were McKinleyville, Arcata, and Eureka. From an accommodation perspective, it made little difference as I had nowhere to stay in any of those places.

However, first things first. The first step in today’s plan was pretty easily accomplished. I went to the second of two Subways in Crescent City where I once again took advantage of the local bread option – sourdough. I so love sourdough. And, believe it or not, there were still more cookies courtesy of Jeremy in Raymond, WA.

From there it was a simple matter of following route 101 south. And, as rides go, it was pretty nice. It was a hilly (but not crazy hilly) winding ride through Redwood National and State Parks. There were plenty of very beautiful and very large trees on either side of me. It was beautiful. Plus, it was a foggy this morning – sometimes it was more than a BIT foggy – which only added to the scenic atmosphere of the ride. And it wasn’t so foggy as to be a concern as to whether or not driver’s could see me. At least, I assume that since no one hit me – or even came close.

My first stop of the day was at the “Trees of Mystery” in Klamath. I didn’t actually go for a hike amongst said trees, nor did I take the gondola ride up and over those same trees. According to Katie, they’re pretty much the same trees as I saw two days ago at Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. I did, however, stop in to say hello to Paul Bunyan and take a photo or two. Much like the redwoods, he was pretty big. I resisted the temptation to go into the gift shop where I knew they had fresh fudge for sale. I don’t need that kind of temptation.

Also in Klamath, and not far down the road from the “Trees of Mystery” was the “Tour Thru Tree” which is exactly what you would expect it to be. I pedalled to the gate, paid my dollar, pedalled up a short but VERY steep hill, and pedalled through a living redwood tree. Sometimes travelling alone can present a problem for some photo opportunities. This was one of those times. However, I managed to get a reasonably acceptable photo so I can officially check “Tour Thru Tree” off my still non-existent “To Do” list … but if I had such a list I’m sure driving through a living redwood would be on there somewhere.

My next stop was at the Elk Prairie Campground Visitor Center where I had lunch – including a couple of cookies. I’d say I wish I could live off of cookies but I sort of have been lately. And quite enjoying it.

As I was riding away from the Elk Prairie Campground Visitor Center, it became clear why it was named as such. Not far from the entrance gate there were numerous elk gathered about 200 metres from the highway. Normally, I would stop and take a picture of such a sight however, the sighting was actually more humorous than anything. “How are elk humourous?”, you may ask. Well, the elk weren’t but the humans watching them were. In between the road and the elk were a large number of tourists gathered (much like the elk) to take pictures. I opted to take a photo of the humans instead.

From there I said goodbye to Route 101 for a while as I followed the bike route along the coast. One of the benefits of the alternate route is being able to avoid a sizeable climb that would’ve been waiting for me on Route 101. Another benefit was the beautiful coast views. The only downside was that the condition of the road wasn’t always great. In fact, sometimes it was quite bad. That said, it was manageable and, as I said, the views were worth it.

When the alternate route finished, I found myself back on Route 101 and starting to get a sense that I should probably formulate some sort of plan for tonight’s accommodation. I stopped briefly in Trinidad for lunch and was more than a little surprised to get a WiFi connection. It was very faint and I’m not really sure what its source was, but I took advantage of the situation.

Whenever possible, I try to avoid sending out extremely last minute Warm Showers requests. However, given my current situation that’s what I had to do. I also try to avoid sending out more than one request at a time in order to avoid getting multiple offers. Again, given my situation that’s what I had to do. Both potential hosts were in Arcata which is about an hour from Trinidad. My hope was that by the time I arrived in Arcata I might have a response or two. Spoiler Alert: That didn’t work out so well.

I arrived in Arcata about an hour later and was happy to discover a Subway. I was less than happy (although, not surprised) that there were no Warm Showers replies. With my phone battery down to its final 4%, I concluded that my battery would be dead before I could potentially retrieve an responses. And so, I needed a new plan.

The next town was Eureka and, based on the name alone, I had been looking forward to getting there. It would seem today would be that day. I’m not going to lie, I had somewhat grand plans for a great photo with the “Welcome to Eureka” sign. Sadly, that didn’t happen – partially, because I never found such a sign (possibly because I was a little preoccupied with tonight’s accommodations, or lack thereof).

Before I knew it, I had pedalled through town and was on the brink of leaving Eureka – although, not before watching the sunset. With the sun gone, darkness arrived shortly thereafter. Time was no longer on my side.

As I stood near the top of the on-ramp to Route 101, a decision needed to be made. I could head back into Eureka or I could get back on Route 101 and ride (in the dark) to the next town. Or …

Not liking either of those options, I guided my bike down a crazy steep slope to a slightly treed area between the highway and the on-ramp. Not exactly what I had in mind for my Eureka moment, but it would have to do. Given my proximity to the highway, I expect it will be a noisy night but I am reasonably confident I won’t be disturbed – either by local riffraff or by a more formal authority figure.

With that my day is officially over. A much longer day than expected but a good day – even considering my less than officially sleeping arrangements.

I have no idea when I’ll get to post this update as WiFi has been remarkably hard to find. I can only assume this update will be more than a little late in being posted – or posted with several updates at once. Or both. Yup. First world problems.

Today’s totals:
Distance travelled: 151.92 km
Ride time: 7:49:34
Average speed: 19.41 km/h
Maximum speed: 55.41 km/h