It's always beer a' clock at the westcoast :)

Howdy folks!

Riding west coasts seems to be a never ending story of good times. I've been biking along the Oregon Coast for a few days now and the weather have been excellent and the scenery stunning. That combined with meeting a lot of other travelers and having good times with food and beers on the afternoons while camping doesn't make it worse.

Started out in Olympia last Friday, for the second time, and so far I managed to keep my wallet in my bags:). The Washington part was kind of uninteresting and for a good reason, brought up bad memories along the road down to Astoria. When I came down to Astoria I found out that they had the 200 year "birthday" of the town that weekend and , apparently, it's the oldest town west of Minneapolis. They were really happy about it while I was thinking that there are few buildings in Europe that are younger than that:).

However, after Astoria the scenery adds up and The way to travel on the westcoast is defenitely to stay on the "Hike and Biker" sites along the road. We are pretty much gangs that are touring down south in different kind of speeds but decides before heading out were to stay for next night. Biking on the day is kind of hard work and  so far, harder work than mostly of the days along the Alcan. Really good scenery and after 5pm it's beer a ' clock and time for a swim in the freaking cold pacific ocean:).

A lot of people are warning about you have to be careful when camping because there are apparently plenty of cougars around. I don't know about that thou, the only cougars I've seen are the ones in the bars along the road, but, they can be pretty aggressive also :) .

Okey, time to head out to find a good camping for the night. Take care and hera are some nice pics just a couple of hours old :)

Market in Seattle

 Fish market in Seattle

 along HW 101

 Nice and small town along the coastroad

 On the night this gigantic crab showed up:)

 Nice farm a little bit inland form the coast.

I don't know:)

 Looks pretty warm to go for a swim but it's freaking cold

 Me and my Mexican friend, who's name I could possible not spell going in to grab a beer at the Irish pub.

 Supper's on the stove :)

Highway 101 Oregon coast!

At the harbor in Florence

On one of the lookout's along the road.

haha, noo, stuff like that does not happen to me.........yeah right!

It have not been to many negative stories on this blog during it's existens. In fact, I think the last one was from meeting gaylord Chris in Pennsylvania last year. That was something neither me or Emil could do to much about except for, what we also did, leave the place. This one is based on pure stupidity and you better enjoy reading it, it's my most expensive one! It costed me 400 bucks in cash, 2 creditcards, 1 drivinglicens and a very nice photo I got from a girl in southern Yukon Territorys.

On Friday morning I said goodby to Katrin, Dave, Wyatt and Fiona and started to make my way out from the capital of the state they call the evergreen one. HW 8 takes me out from Olympia and the countryside of Washington and closer to the coast I been looking forward to for so long. I made a stop in Elma for lunch that Katrin packed for me and an hour or so later, another stop in Montesano just before the intersection to hw 107. The stop in Montesano turned out to be a big mistake when I pulled up in front of an ATM and did a withdrawal on 400 bucks.I carried on and arrived to hw 101 that goes south along the coast. The weather was kind of boring and just outside South Bend I stopped at a boatlaunch area to camp and eat my dinner consisting of a sandwich and a can of budweiser. A lot of people came buy during the night to pick up and put down there boats.

I woke up the next morning totally unaware it was gonna be a bad, really bad day for me. In gray and a little bit cold weather I set of with Astoria and the state of Oregon as goal for the day. The road wasn't that scenic yet and I passed through endless land of sloughs, forest and private property signs. Finally I arrived to the real coast and the town with the appropriate name, Seaview. I bought lunch and ate it outside the infocenter in town and also went in to pick up some maps there. After that I figured that I was gonna try to call the girls from Spokane that I met the day before Olympia and see how they were holding up. With a cup of coffee I got from the visitor centre in my left hand I was trying to get some quarters from my wallet with the other one. Instead of putting my coffe down I placed my wallet on top of the payphone outside Shell gasstation while I was searching for these god damn quarters in the djungel of coins. Several tunes went by before the answeringmachine kicked in. I hanged up and just when I did I heard a voice behind me

- Where are you going?

I started a conversation with this girl from northern california  that went on for about 10 minutes before a through my cup in the rubbish, sorted my bags out and headed south towards Astoria totally unaware of that my second most important item after my passport is lying flashed up on top of the payphone.

Well in Astoria I thought it would be nice spending the night at a hostel and go out to night with all the other people you always met on hostels. Paying time and I just could not find my wallet and I could feel my heart pumping faster and faster. I realized it's not in my gear and running down to the infocenter to get over a phone to call the infocenter at seaview where I thought I forgot it. They haven't seen it thou so I figured I most have dropped it on the road. I starting to make my way back with bad words flying around me looking desperately on the other side the driveway. After a couple of miles I relized I made that phonecall and remember that it must be on the payphone. I started to bike as fast I possible could to arrive to seaview and found out it was gone probably a long time ago. I went into the gasstaion and asked but the haven't seen it. Neither the police have had someona handed it in or the infocenter. I got to borrow a computer at the infocenter to send mail to close the account asnd after that I started my 2 day trip back to olympia with 2 quarters in my pocket.

I was camping at south Bend where I left the same morning after a total 130 miles hard biking that day.Next coming day I creamed out the rest of the 70 miles to Olympia and arrived there on the Sunday afternoon. I went to the infocenter to ask where in town I could get hold of a computer but the library was closed and apparently no internetcafes in town. didn't matter to much anyway thou I didn't got a cent. I biked to Katrins and Daves house to hang out there to they was gonna get back on the evening the next day. I saw the neighbors on the the house a street over and went over there to tell them the story and if the see a guy around it's nothing strange.

when the night came I went to sleep in my tent on there backlawn and later on I woke up when a strong flashlight hit my face and a deep voice said

- Hello, can I have a word with you?

First I thought it was a neighbor but when I got closer to the guy on the other side of the fence I saw it was a policeman. I guess most of you seen the television show "Cops" and if there would have been a cameraman behind that police, I would have end up on TV thats fore sure:). I get out from the tent in just my shorts still a little bit confused over the guy with the flashlight. He ask me if I know the people and I told him It's my cousins place. I laughed and said

- so, some one called the police, haha

The policeman said

- hehe, not someone. several neighbors called in wondering over the guy who was tenting, hanging up clothes and took a shower in the hose in the garden

when I got closer to the fence and was standing and talked to him I, without thinking about it, put both my hands in my pockets. His hands made a quick move down towars his belt by the same time he said

-Take your hand out of your pockets!

 I thought he was gonna take me with him to the policestation but he ended up very friendly and after showing him my bike and the gear and told him my story he was laughing about it and said, welcome to amerika:). Before he left he actually, which surprised me, asked if I needen something. I said I was sorted out till they would come back tomorrow. He took of while talking to the radio

- It was only a cousin, over :)

The next day I was just hanging out in the backyard except for a visit to the library. Katrin and her family came back around 5 pm. New cards are on the way to USA and I hopefully get them in  a week or so.

Olympia - The Capital of Washington State

Arriving to Port Townsend after a short ferryride from Whidbey Island

Port Townsend

At the Potlatch State Park I met Britta and Annika. They are from Spokane, Washington and started there trip in Seattle to ride down to San Fransisco. We biked togheter half a day before we splitted up when they were heading out for the coast and I down to Olympia to visit Katrin and her family. Hopefully I get the chance to met up with the girls again along the HW 101

Smoko at the Intersection to HW 108:)

Entering Olympia which is the capital of Washington State. In the back you can see the highest peak in the state , Mt Rainer.

The highest building on the picture is the state Capitol

Katrin and her daughter Fiona during our tour through the harbor on the evening. Katrin and I are relatives and I guess it will end up in like second cousin or something like that.












Hey!

A couple of days before take of from Bellingham I was looking at the map over my planned route down south. I could barely see no more than a thick line of Interstate HW and big cities like Everett, Seattle and Tacoma covering the area on the east side of the pacific ocean. For a biker it just looked nasty and some miles west you got the Whidbey Island with beutiful countryside and the really nice couple Rev and Carol to stay with in the town of Oak Harbor.

 The choice was kind of easy and after leaving The Drew family in Bellingham I headed out through town and entered the chuckanut drive that would take me along the scenic coast towards whidbey island. Beutiful weather made my day pleasent and the lunch Janet packed down in my bags filled me up more than well, thanks, the cake tasted even better a little bit melted:). Just when my Ipod started to play Zac Brown Band and the song "Highway 20 ride" I entered just hw 20 that goes all the way from eastern Washington and out to my destination, Oak Harbor. After arriving to Oak Harbor for like the 4th time in my life Rev and Carol takes me to dinner in town at one of the chinese restaurants.

In the morning they take me down to the ferry in Coupeville that took me over to Port Townsend and the Olympic Peninsula. I was expecting a 45 minutes ferryride but I barely had the time to eat one of the sandwiches Carol made me before it was time to step of again. with 100 miles to go to Olympia I decided to do half the distance that day and the rest the days after. It was a beutiful ride along the Hood Canal and after just an hour or so I came out on the HW 101 which is the road I'm gonna follow down the coast in a couple of days. Beutiful countryside, excellent weather and nice view over the mountains made the day very good and the t-shirt went of fairly quick to get some sunlight on my white nordic skin:).

By suppertime I stopped at a gasstation along the raod to buy a bottle opf wine I was gonna have to dinner later on and an hour later I pulled of at Potlatch State Park and decided to call it a day. Dinner was consumed with the company of Britta and Annika from Spokane, Washington. These two pretty girls started in Seattle the day before and were heading down to San Fransisco along the coast. We biked togheter for half next day before the took of west on hw 108 and I carried on south towards Olympia to visit Katrin and her family.

After a sunny day I arrived to Olympia which is a really nice town just on the south tip of the hood Canal and as far as the water from the pacific reach. Only staying here one night because they are going out camping in the morning and I gonna make my way out towards the coast.

Over and out

Edvin

Leaving Bellingham!

Howdy folks!

After about 10 days in Bellingham it's now time to move on and carry on south. Here are some picters from the stay at the Drew family.

I'll keep in touch from HW 101!



Nice evening along the coast outside Bellingham






Working with the concrete at Rogers house (Meshak's and Janets neighbor).

During the airshow out on Oak Harbor. If your'e a pilot, you better show it on your motorbike:)

F18:s on line!

Gabriel and Meshak!

Cool:)!