by Liz

Day’s mileage : 52

Running total : 913

I have loved our first day in California. We set off earlier than usual. Not really liking our accommodation last night made us super efficient at getting ready and on our way. It’s the only place we’ve felt uncomfortable in three weeks so that’s good going.

The day’s riding brought three very different landscapes. The first 10 miles were on a sleepy road through rural farmland around Smith River, totally unspoilt, cockerels crowing, fields of cows, sheep and horses and a herd of wild elk. In Oregon there were hundreds of Winnebagos each towing a smaller (but not that small) vehicle. The only things being towed around Smith River were livestock. The inhabitants were friendly, raising a hand in greeting as we passed by.

After crossing the 101 we entered redwood country. We spent four wonderful hours among the quiet, towering giants. Many people travel to see these wonders of the world but I felt satisfied to have ridden 900 miles to get here, like we’d really earned the pleasure of experiencing them.

We’d altered the day’s route to ride through Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park but the route didn’t go to plan. It wanted to take us across the Smith River on a ‘summer bridge’, which may possibly be a ford in summer but today was a wide stretch of beautiful green river. There was no bridge in sight – see picture. A four mile workaround through Hiouchi paid off as we ended up following a long stretch of peaceful, unmade road through redwood paradise. A tiny chipmunk was busily foraging for his lunch while we had ours.

Leaving the forest, it was a jolt to get back to civilisation, road signs, mail boxes and the like. After a detour to Crescent City to buy food we finally joined the 101 heading south along the Redwood Highway. More giants to enjoy but here we had to pay attention to other road users. After an hour of climbing through dense forest we were suddenly out in the open, looking down at the ocean and along the coast to Klamath, our destination for the night, about eight miles south.

We are staying in a cabin tonight, guests of the Yurock tribe. We were a bit done in but it seemed churlish not to sample the hot tub in the garden. Philip lit the wood burner which is crackling companionably as we enjoy supper. Tomorrow is the last day’s cycling for week three then we’re looking forward to a rest day, when Cathy joins us in McKinleyville on Saturday evening.

Additional notes

Smith River to Klamath, Del Norte county, CA.

Left at 9.10am. Arrived at 7.20pm.

Weather: Misty hills early on. Then sunshine.

Landscape: Rural, unspoilt farmland with cows, sheep and horses. Roads through redwoods, amazing, silent giants. The Smith River, sky blue in the sunshine. Redwood paradise along the North Fork Road, through the Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. Busy roads in and out of Crescent City. The 101 through the Redwood National and State Park, high up with the ocean way below and views along the coast. Inland past homes and redwood tourist attractions.

Towns: Hiouchi. Crescent City. Klamath, home of the Yurok tribe.

Trails: The North Fork Road – what a treat! Six miles of unmade road through redwood forest, a few cars but no homes. Very peaceful. No obvious birdlife – it’s so still in there.

State roads: The 101 for a few yards only before the redwoods. The 101 after the redwood road and into Crescent City. 18 miles along the 101 out of Crescent City along the ‘Redwood Highway’, busy with a variable shoulder.

Breakfast: No record – we were in a hurry to leave. But porridge and toast I think.

Lunch spot: In a forest nook, sitting on a fallen redwood.

Dinner, made by Philip: Stuffed pasta bake (made very successfully in a frying pan) with vegetables.

Wildlife: A little chipmunk foraging for his meal at our lunch spot.

Plants: Redwoods. Ferns everywhere. Wood sorrel. Other wildflowers I didn’t recognise.

Things we saw: Miles of matter-of-fact farming community. No RVs for the first few miles. All barking dogs were on a leash 🙂 A tractor sign with the farmer in a jaunty hat and a cow sign. Smith River Methodist Church which we sent a photo of to Claire. A retro stick-on-letter sign in Hiouchi that read ‘Biscuits and gravy. Fresh chicken tenders’. The Smith River looked deep and clear from the North Fork Road, a beautiful green. A road sign that read ‘Dismount horse before bridge’. A billboard on the way to Crescent City that read ‘No more missing and murdered indigenous people. Stop human trafficking’. The Yurok tribe administration offices and court of justice.

People we spoke to or saw: A mower and a runner waved to us in Smith River. A friendly couple among the redwoods with a super cool old-fashioned camera on a tripod. We sent a photo of us at the Crescent City sign to Warren and Julia, as that’s their ultimate destination on this trip.

Incidents: Every so often there was a redwood in the cycle lane and we had to ride into the road to get around it – that seemed fitting, that we should give way to these ancient giants. Komoot led us to the river’s edge where there was no path and no ‘summer bridge’ to cross, which meant a four-mile workaround through Hiouchi.

Shopping: Crescent City (we only went there to shop – it was quite a detour).

Accommodation: A nice little cabin in a quiet part of Klamath.

Today’s sound: A bird or insect in the stillness among the redwoods that made a regular, intermittent long note, a different note each time.

Today’s smell: A cow shed in Smith River.

Special moments: The farming area. Suggesting to Philip we go to the front of the queue at the roadworks and being flagged straight through. The redwood forest. Feeling proud to have ridden over 900 miles to be here in the redwoods. Finding the road was passable, and more than that, stunning. Bringing Philip’s water bottle in every day for him.

Positive experience from my journal: Philip just said he doesn’t want the next few weeks to rush by – the past three weeks have gone quicker than he’d have liked and he’d like to do this all the time and not work :).

Appreciation from my journal: Managing a packed day (like every day actually) and doing as much as I can fit in.

Social media reply from Susan Toomey: ‘What an incredible journey, so good to do these things together. Enjoy, and thank you for the lovely posts’.

Video: Philip riding through redwoods (12s and 4s). Chipmunk (15s).

Mementos: two Safeway receipts, Brookings.