We slept quite well at the Riverwood Inn and woke the next morning to drizzle and gray skies. We suited up in our rain gear, packed up our belongings and headed out to Garberville for breakfast. As we rolled along it began to really rain and we could hear rolling thunder in the forest.
When we got to Garberville we stopped at the Best Western, just to check availibilty, and to get some more shower caps, which are good for protecting cameras, gps equipment, and heads from the rain. We went down the street to the Eel River Cafe for breakfast and talked about what we wanted to do.
We decided to check in to the hotel and cut the ride short. The room was spacious, very clean and comfortable. We were happy with our decision to stop.
In the afternoon the hotel hosted a wine and cheese social and we went and sat in the sunroom, overlooking the grounds, pool and hot tub. We enjoyed some nice merlot and cheese and began to chat with some of the other guests. We met Arnold and Debra who live in Seattle and were also cycling the coast. They are younger than we are and skinnier too, and they do longer distances than we do, usually. Unfortunately Arn suffered a broken spoke and couldn't get the bike shop in Garberville to give him any help or service. The guy who did repairs didn't come in until Monday (this is Friday) and the clerk on duty didn't know his name and wouldn't let Arnold use the tool he needed to pull off the cassette. Arn somehow had to get from Garberville to Mendocino for bike repairs.
As we chatted we learned that Arn and Debra travel extensively and have been kayaking in South America, cruising in Antarctica, and touring in Croatia. They are avid mountain bikers.
It turns out they planned to stay at the Dehaven Valley Inn the next night and had made arrangements to have David, the host, to pick them up in Garberville and take them over the coast range to the B&B. Well, we had made reservations there too, so we asked Arn to carry our gear along with his bike. But Arn balked, rightly, pointing out that we would be up a creek if David wasn't dependable and didn't show up.
So, for the day we only cycled 9.5 miles, but we still felt that we had a productive day. We had a light dinner of Ceasar salad with smoked salmon
and tomatoes and then got a good night's sleep.
When we got to Garberville we stopped at the Best Western, just to check availibilty, and to get some more shower caps, which are good for protecting cameras, gps equipment, and heads from the rain. We went down the street to the Eel River Cafe for breakfast and talked about what we wanted to do.
We decided to check in to the hotel and cut the ride short. The room was spacious, very clean and comfortable. We were happy with our decision to stop.
In the afternoon the hotel hosted a wine and cheese social and we went and sat in the sunroom, overlooking the grounds, pool and hot tub. We enjoyed some nice merlot and cheese and began to chat with some of the other guests. We met Arnold and Debra who live in Seattle and were also cycling the coast. They are younger than we are and skinnier too, and they do longer distances than we do, usually. Unfortunately Arn suffered a broken spoke and couldn't get the bike shop in Garberville to give him any help or service. The guy who did repairs didn't come in until Monday (this is Friday) and the clerk on duty didn't know his name and wouldn't let Arnold use the tool he needed to pull off the cassette. Arn somehow had to get from Garberville to Mendocino for bike repairs.
As we chatted we learned that Arn and Debra travel extensively and have been kayaking in South America, cruising in Antarctica, and touring in Croatia. They are avid mountain bikers.
It turns out they planned to stay at the Dehaven Valley Inn the next night and had made arrangements to have David, the host, to pick them up in Garberville and take them over the coast range to the B&B. Well, we had made reservations there too, so we asked Arn to carry our gear along with his bike. But Arn balked, rightly, pointing out that we would be up a creek if David wasn't dependable and didn't show up.
So, for the day we only cycled 9.5 miles, but we still felt that we had a productive day. We had a light dinner of Ceasar salad with smoked salmon
and tomatoes and then got a good night's sleep.
2 comments:
Hey Don!
Glad to see your still on the bike, good luck & safe travels to you both on the rest of your trip.
Steve TOC06
Wow, love your blogspot! Good luck on your travels, have fun and be safe - we'll be thinking of you. Think of me if you ride through the very small,(don't blink) town of Elk, south of Mendocino and Albion. I spent a summer with my mom there many years ago. There used to be a restaurant our friends owned, called Molfinos, but I'm sure its gone by now.....have fun!!! Can't wait to read more! Julie
Post a Comment