Climbing day!

C2C4K CA.6.275

Westport to Leggett to Benbow

Over the past few days Ice and Ibuprofen have been my best friends.  This morning we had breakfast premade the night before in order to get an early start on the day.  So we said good bye to Kyle, our companion for the last two days and headed out at 7:45 am to tackle the climb to Legget which consist of about 3,500 feet of climbing and a stretch where you climb 1,600 feet without any reprieve. 

Yes those are Elk!

Resting the previous day most certainly paid its dividends though as my knees and legs held up throughout the climb.  In a way it was a fun day to take on the challenge.  The climb is as much physical as it is mental and will be one of the more challenging ones on our way to Portland.  It left us exhausted, but uplifted at the same time and was a reminder of how much it means to have my two friends with me on this journey.

See a cropped close up to prove it!

There is virtually nothing in Leggett except for the Chandelier tree.  The Chandelier tree stands 315ft tall and has a diameter of 21ft.  Its age is calculated at a maximum of 2,400 years and you can drive a car through its hollowed out trunk!  Needless to say the three of us road our bikes through it.  Picked up some post cards at the souvenir shop and a little food, stretched and the continued another 25 miles, relatively downhill, but often on the congested 101, to Benbow, where we camped for the night.

Yes cars do fit through here!

When you see the above image, it means its a riding video, from Mr. SockMonekys view.  I'll get better at editing these later, but here is one for now!

At camp we met a man named Andrew who is touring from Oregon to San Diego.  Ryan saw Andrew riding into camp and introduced us, letting him join in on our campsite for the night, saving him some money and providing us with extra company.  We also got to pick his brain about what he has learned from his own touring trips. Needless to say, we’ve run into a few groups or individuals’ bike touring and have passed many more on the road.

We’ve also encountered many people who have asked about what we are doing and why there is a monkey on my bike.  The generosity of strangers and their willingness to help out has been remarkable thus far.  At the same camp we met Jamie and Chuck, who were great to chat with and gave us some pizza and twizzlers.  We also met our camp neighbors who donated some salt and allowed us to borrow their can opener.  Which reminds me of the couple we met at MacKerricher State Park who gave us $20.00 dollars to the community fund and said a prayer for us.  We also met a group of women the day we took off from San Francisco at breakfast.  They donated $40.00 dollars to the community fund also and one of the woman lost her daughter to HER2+ breast cancer.  I told her I would ride for her daughter and tomorrow, when we travel the avenue of the giants, I will do so.

Above is Judy, post master in Westport with her own touring setup, that she takes her friend around in.  She is also a proud Warm Showers member!  Thanks so much for helping me get some stuff shipped home!

Miss you Muppet

Matteo