Today we met the guides and the cyclists that I will be with for the next 47 days. It's a convivial group. We all have basically the same goal...get a seat level view of this great country whilst pedaling a bike. There's some anxiousness amongst the group regarding being able to finish, but I think all of us are over-thinking this a bit. This is a journey, broken down into segments of varying length, and in realizing that we have about 11 hours of daylight to cover anywhere from 70 to 126 miles, I'm quite certain all of us will be up to the challenge.
We rode about 30 miles to the Pacific today for the ceremonial wheel dip. It was an emotional event, particularly when realizing we'll be doing the same ceremony 3800 miles from now in the Atlantic Ocean. In between...oh, what adventures will be in store for us.
Tomorrow, June 2nd we have our first 'real' segment, a 100 mile journey from Astoria to Portland, Oregon. I'm looking forward to riding through some of the forest land Amy and I spent the previous 5 days hiking. It's truly magnificent.
Here are a few pictures of our wheel dipping and my cohort of fellow riders. I also included a shot of this evening's sunset. It's taken from my hotel room, looking west to the mouth of the Columbia into the Pacific Ocean. To the right, is Cape Disappointment.
One more thing...Amy flies home to Nashville tomorrow afternoon...I won't see her for 32 days, which will seem like an eternity. Talk about getting emotional about something...
More to come...
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