24.04.2010

Eight degrees didn't seem like a sensible temperature to be out of bed, but we were, and on the road by 7:30 . When we get to Alaska, I expect it will be minus something degrees while we’re riding. We’ve got the clothing for it, so we’re prepared. Wind chill can be a problem, but today there was little or no wind, so the ride was awesome. When the trees in the forest and at the sides of the road are so tall that the sun can’t shine on the road, we ride in shade all the while, which doesn’t allow us to thaw out. When we break out into a sunny spot, it makes a huge difference to the body temperature.

At coffee break we were high on a cliff overlooking three horses with riders and 2 dogs frolicking with them on the beach and in the sea. The dogs were oblivious to the temperature of the water and were having a wonderful time bounding over the surf. The horses would sometimes shy away from the waves rolling in, and the riders waved to us.

The Harley Davidson shop in Coos Bay had just presented a course to motorbike riders, so there were many of them gathered around the Harley shop when we stopped to check out their merchandise . Des and I took lots of pictures of the impressive bikes, and several of the riders came over to speak with us. We felt a bit out of place on our BM’s but the Harley people said they’d talk to anybody on a bike! (Nice of them…) The bikes in the showroom were pretty impressive too, but I wouldn’t swap my bike for any of them. One lady who was speaking with Des at the Harley centre, said her brother and his buddy were travelling on a motor bike from Chile back to the USA, when, unfortunately, her brother’s buddy passed away from a heart attack in La Paz, Bolivia. Naturally, it was a big shock to her brother. The altitude in La Paz is 4200 meters above sea level, and one becomes breathless very quickly when one is not used to the altitude. When we were in La Paz, the altitude made us quite sick and we couldn’t wait to get down closer to sea level again.

Anyway, we didn’t end up buying the heated jackets we looked at in the apparel section of the Harley shop, even though we were tempted. We just hopped on our BM’s and cooly rode away.

Villa West Hotel was beckoning us with a special rate of $34.00 per night, including tax. Too good an offer to pass by, considering we were making good time and week-end rates are usually much higher in motels. We booked in for two nights.