The Olympic Peninsula

For all 5 of you who follow my posts I’m sorry about the delay. I’m in the fourth day of the ride and I must admit it’s not what I expected. I knew it would be hilly and possibly wet but I’m disappointed that it’s not that scenic. That might be due to the fact that it has rained almost every day and the traffic on the roads is nerve wracking. The hills are challengingly long. The best part of the ride has been the other riders. It’s a diverse group of people that all seem to blend together well. The ages range from 78 years to 18 years. We have a family of three generations riding and they are always first to finish a day’s ride. They are an inspiration to us all. The route leaders are in tune with the riders and have provided excellent guidance. I truly believe we have become a caring bike family in a very short period of time. I love when the group dynamics are working so well.

On our first day we left the Lutheran Church in Magnolia, Washington, a suburb of Seattle. Pastor Kevin Bates was the most gracious host. I hopefully talked him into coming to Pittsburgh to do our MS ride, Pittsburgh to DC.

After taking the ferry from Seattle to Bremerton we began our hilly and sometimes damp ride to Fort Townson State Park. It was a beautiful park and we enjoyed sitting around a great campfire getting to know each other before heading to our tents.

The next day we had a difficult ride in a driving rain. It was cold and a few people seemed to have early signs of hypothermia. Luckily the last part of the ride into Port Angeles was dryer but a cold wind was still in our faces. Again we stayed at a Lutheran Church. I’ve not done research but of all of the denominations I’ve encountered on these trips the Lutherans seem to be the most open to all people. They are less judgmental and welcome all. They really practice the teachings of Jesus in my opinion.

I had a very good burger and a delicious Wellington Ice Cream Cone at the Port Angeles Pier.

Our third day was dry and I rode with Karen who I knew from my 2022 Northern Tier Ride. It was an enjoyable day riding with Karen as we chatted and rode at a comfortable pace. We did a fair amount of climbing (3,600 feet) over 68 miles and we were both happy to finish the ride and join the others for a nice evening in Forks, the location for the hit Twilight series. I didn’t see any vampires and I even slept in the school that all of these teenage vampires and werewolves attended.

We woke up to a light rain but knowing we had a short ride of 35 miles no one seemed in a hurry to leave. Most of us sat at a local breakfast dinner and had a leisurely breakfast. The food was awesome. I had biscuits and gravy and didn’t even worry my arteries might clog halfway through the ride.   A moderate rain began shortly after leaving the dinner and continued as we made our way to Olympia National Park. The logging trucks made the ride harrowing. I couldn’t really relax and it was a stressful 35 miles.

We arrived at our campsite cold and wet and I didn’t relish setting up my tent in the rain. I really dislike sleeping in a damp tent but what can you do. I huddled in my tent until warm and I actually feel asleep for an hour before making my way to the Olympic Park Lodge where I sat most of the evening eating and writing this post. When the restaurant closed at 9:00 I walked back to the campground and my soggy tent where I surprisingly had a very restful night’s sleep.

Tomorrow is another day.