Day 5: Bandon to Gold Beach

Today’s Highlights:

We started our day with breakfast at the Minute Cafe in Bandon.  Our ride start time was a half hour later because of the shorter distance today and because it would be a little less foggy.  The fog was thick this morning, almost to the point of a light rain.  The first five miles were on local roads along the shore, and we made a quick stop at Face Rock Park to see a big rock in the ocean with a profile of a face looking up at the sky.  We could barely see it through the fog.

At 5 miles, we got on RT 101, a mile or more away from the shoreline. Traffic was light, but very fast.  The road was nice, lined with tall pines and had a very wide shoulder to ride on.  Basically, the first half of the ride was a simple mission of cycling to get to the next town, with not many attractions close at hand.  We made one stop at a Myrtle Wood factory where they had an actual woodworking shop in addition to a gift shop.  We took a brief tour of the shop and saw a large live Myrtle tree in addition to slabs ready for milling. Myrtle trees only grow on the Oregon coast, so locals as well as tourist appreciate products make from these trees.  There were a few other Myrtle gift shops along our route today and we were glad we stopped at the first one because it was the only one with a workshop.  From there, we simply cruised along on rolling terrain to the SAG stop at 28 miles.

After our first stop, we started some climbing along the shore for a while.  Then the route went inland around Humbug Mountain.  This was a very pretty section.  We saw many Myrtle trees at the start of the climb, and continued through forest on the hilly, winding road.  The most notable part was when the sun shown on us!  I took a picture of that.  Then six minutes later I took a picture of Chris in the fog again.  That was it – six minutes of sunshine in 5-1/2 hours.  On the south side of Humbug Mountain the road returned to the shoreline and we had many nice views of beaches again, some fading quickly into the fog, but others extending for a mile or more under very overcast skies.  Either way, they were pretty sights.

We got off RT 101 for only 4 miles, traveling on Old Coast Rd.  Although brief, it was a very pleasant break from the highway.  It rolled and turned through pastures and ocean side, and we stopped for a few pictures. We then returned to 101, crossed over a very interesting bridge, rode through the town of Gold Beach and reached our hotel at the far end of town around 2pm.

Our hotel today is ocean side, about 100 yard walk to the beach.  Chris and I picked up sandwiches for lunch and took them down to the beach.  Although it was still overcast, the wind was calm and temperature was comfortable (60’s).  It was our first opportunity to have some relaxing time on the beach.  Chris eventually took a quick swim in the ocean, then we got back to business attending rap and out to dinner and preparing for the next day.

Taking It Easy

And I thought this was going to be hard. It just keeps getting easier. I barely broke a sweat. My average heart rate was 138 and my max was 171, which is usually my average. Where’s the challenge??

Just kidding. Dad summed it up nicely. It was a shorter ride and we were just taking it easy, enjoying the sites – when the weather allowed. While the rocky coast is still impressive (when you can see it), the two highlights of the ride were the Myrtle trees through the winding Humbug Mountain pass (pic 14-15) and the Old Coast Rd. (pics 32-35); both were peaceful, pretty, and unique.

We took our time but we still got to the hotel early. It was great to have some time to relax. Dad and I found a great spot on the beach to eat some lunch. Then Herb, Leo and I had some wine and jumped in the ocean. Awesome! It was chilly, but not as cold as I thought it would be. I’m guessing 55 degrees, which reminds me of every summer we spent in Hampton Beach, NH. Of course, to do it up right, we then soaked in the hot tub for a bit. I tell ya, this bike riding thing is hard. I wonder what challenges await me tomorrow. Maybe I’ll have to endure eating some ice cream and getting a massage.

Chris

Pictures Of The Day:

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Statistics:
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Chris: