September 22
66mi/106km
2800ft/865m elevation gain
It was a chilly but clear morning this morning, and the riding was easy as we headed mostly west toward the coast. After 20mi/32km, we finally reached the Pacific Ocean and the road turned south to hug the coast for another 20mi/32km.
At first, we could hear the roar of the waves and smell the salty water, but we could only catch glimpses of the water and the waves through the thick cedar and spruce forest. This is the first time we’ve looked at the Pacific Ocean proper on the trip – not the Inside Passage, or the Puget Sound, or the Strait of Georgia or Juan de Fuca, where the water is gentle and there are always landforms in the distance. It’s different to look upon a horizon of ocean and rows upon rows of whitewater waves.
We stopped for lunch at the Talaloch Lodge after a short stop on a sandy beach. In the afternoon, the route again turned away from the coast, heading east. We were in and out of the boundaries of Olympic National Park.
We were planning on camping at Willaby Creek campground, but we arrived to find it totally full, along with the next campground nearby. We hadn’t anticipated the extra traffic from the national park. Fortunately, the motel back in the town of Amanda Park had availability, so we backtracked 4mi/6km. While we weren’t thrilled to spend the money, we weren’t planning on having a shower, but now our daily shower streak will continue a few more days. Tomorrow, camping options are limited to RV parks, so we’ll be staying at a motel instead. And the next day looks like rain.
Tonight, in addition to a shower, we get to fully charge up our electronics, update the routes on my bike computer, and even watch a little television. And tomorrow night we’ll get to do laundry.
