John’s Ramblings

Day 4 – Stevenson to Maryhill State Park – 63 miles
(or, a mighty wind)

They decided to keep us in camp an extra hour on Wednesday morning, not opening the up the start line until 8 a.m. Two factors led to this decision:

1. There was going to be a delay in when our traveling entourage would be able to set up kitchen, showers, etc. at our destination at Maryhill State Park, and
2. We were to have 15-20 mile-per-hour tailwinds for the entire route, thus shortening our riding-day considerably.

Now, I’ve done more than my share of headwinds, and once in a while I even get to ride with a tailwind. Never does it happen that I’ve been able to ride an entire day with a strong wind 100% at my back for the entire distance. That was, however, what was on tap for this day. By heading east through the Columbia River Gorge, we would be having an easy and fast day of it. We could of likely done twice the mileage in these conditions, but I suppose there was no real way to predict how the weather would actually turn out. So, a relatively easy day it would be.

The day was a bit overcast to begin with, but continued to clear as the day went on. We didn’t need any extra layers to start, and riding with the wind tends to make you feel warmer anyway (less convection heat loss or some such). As we progressed the trees got further apart, and the big mountains started to flatten out into smaller ones. The vista’s became a little more wide-screen as the day wore on. We also rode through 7 tunnels, using push-buttons to activate the “bicycle in tunnel” warning lights for approaching motorists. Traffic was a bit light on this stretch, but having the lights was a little more comforting, anyway.

Lunch was at Columbia Hills State Park, a.k.a Horse-thief Bluff. The turnoff for lunch came about 100 yards after the crest of a hill. Upon cresting said hill, a long winding descent opened up before me, and I immediately began shifting into my highest gear for a little high-speed downhill action. Just as I was getting up to speed, I heard a small voice yell at me “lunch stop!”. I had powered right past the park, so I had to stop my considerable forward momentum, then pedal back up the hill into that 20 mph wind.

Lunch was an Asian sesame noodle salad, a bit better than the usual peanut butter bagel routine I’ve had on many other rides. After lunch, I ground my way back up the hill, and once again headed down Hwy14. The views of the gorge were absolutely beautiful, and I stopped to take several photos along the route.

I also stopped at the Stonehenge replica, which sits perched on top of the cliff overlooking our destination for the day. I walked around this memorial for a bit, took a few pictures, then bought myself an ice cream novelty (drumstick) at the little gift shop adjacent to the memorial.

Even with all the stops, I made it into Maryhill State Park in the very early afternoon, staking out a prime camping spot shielded from the wind by trees, away from the usual noise sources, and blissfully close to a real running-water type bathroom. Ah, the comforting feel of real porcelain fixtures!

Our campsite was also close to the Bike Doctor and all-around class clown Pat. A teacher most of the year, Pat supplements his daughter’s college savings by working bike events such as this for tips. This picture of Pat was taken at Maryhill, and is only slightly posed (his beer was sitting on his workbench, I stuck it in his hand). He apparently likes to fill his idle minutes doing word puzzle books.

The fine RAW organizers arrange for an in-camp wine-tasting for the late afternoon, featuring Maryhill Winery. I picked up a couple of bottles of Sangiovese, but I never got to open them as others in camp were more than generous with their purchases. Before you knew it, it was lights-out time.

 Day 5

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