April 13: Fun, Fun, Fun in the Spring Sun

What a treat! Today’s ride through the Clatsop State Forest to the coast and back was full of one curve after another along miles of tree covered backroads. With my bike back in running order, the sun peeking through the clouds, and good friend Leo Guzman Fernandez leading the way, all was well with the world.

 Leo and I headed north on highway 30 through Ranier following the Columbia River before turning off at Clatskanie to hit the curves on our way to Mist. Although the ride had been full of pretty river and mountain views up to that point, the real fun started when we got off the main road.

With almost no traffic on the smaller country lanes, we swooped through heavily forested areas with fresh mountain air, beautiful green trees, broad sweeping valleys, and little cottages dotting the landscape. It felt like Spring had finally arrived with the roads completely clear of snow and gravel, the sun shining through the clouds, and birds flying above.  

After passing through Jewell, we worked our way north to Astoria, riding under one glorious canopy of trees after another. Grey tree branches with little green buds reached out like fingers into the sky above us and thicker evergreen trees filled the spaces between them.

After some delicious clam chowder and great conversation in Astoria, Leo and I headed south on highway 101 along the coast. The Pacific Ocean reached far out in front of us, offering up many delightful views of frothy waves crashing on the rocky shores, beaches covered with round pebbles, and trees bent over sand dunes.

At Hebo we turned west and followed 22 back home, following this scenic byway past numerous rivers as we wound our way east. The curves here were simply delightful, tight enough to give my core a good workout as I shifted back and forth around the bends, but not so curvy that we had to drastically reduce our speed.

After several weeks of vibrations on the bike at higher speeds it was wonderful to let the throttle out today and be able to glide down the road. What an awesome day!