Hello fellow cyclists

After 3 years in Vancouver it's time for me to depart for good and on the way out, I am planning a ride to the south, hopefully all the way to LA, via the coast. A few years ago I did an equally long ride from Uk to Greece (The relevant blog journal) so I kind of know the basics. I just have a few questions related to cycling in the US, so I am looking for your input.

1. What's the longest distance I should expect to ride without going through a town or village for restock? I'm wondering if I will have to carry water and food supplies for more than a day. Which sections are the more deserted along the coast?

2. Are there camp sites all along, or is camping in the wilds unavoidable? I never had to, so I am wondering if there are any particular dangers/worries if I need to do it.

3. I am planning to leave Vancouver at the end of August, when the weather is still mild and avoid the heat at the south when I get there (Give my self 2 months to get there). Is that reasonable? A friend suggested to check for predictions on El Nina. Have you experienced any of it's effects in rain? Would it be a deal breaker?

4. Has anyone used the cycling association maps? Are they worth it?


That's it for now... I am sure many more questions will follow.
Thanks for your time
georgios

You are riding the pacific coast, right?

1. on the pacific coast, you won't have to go more than 40 miles between towns, from my memory. Usually it's more like 30. Maybe 50 once or twice. You don't have to carry more than one full day of meals, ever, although occasionally you do need to buy tomorrow's breakfast at today's lunch. I was fine with 3 bike water bottles. If you have the book/map you will know in advance.

2. There are camp sites all the way, you don't have to wild camp at all. Or at least, that used to be the case. There are state park campsites, many of which have coin-operated showers. Some of the CA state parks have been impacted by budget cuts, so you might need to do some research on closures. Most state parks have a hiker/biker camp site, which is cheaper and available to people like you who come in w/o a car. Sometimes you need to use an RV Park if the state parks are far apart, but not too often.

The biggest danger both in and outside of developed camp sites, is raccoons, which want your food and are very clever and aggressive about getting it, and poison oak, which you should just learn to identify so you don't walk thru it. The official camp sites have food storage boxes, where you can put your food so the raccoons don't get it.

Camping right on the beach is usually not allowed.

3. Good time of year for it, stable weather, days start getting short. 2 months is a very long time for that trip, I did Bellingham, WA to Redwood City (a few miles south of San Francisco) in 21 days, and it takes another 8-ish riding days to get to LA. So add a few rest days, a few shorter days, and you might be able to stretch it out to 2 months.

Even if there is a La Nina or El Nino, that time of year is usually stable and dry. End of October, might start seeing a storm or two, but I wouldn't sweat it.

4. There is a book - Bicycling the Pacific Coast, by Kirkendall & Spring - and a map (the one you linked from www.adventurecycling.org )- if you want to know where the camping and towns are in advance. Makes it very easy. Either of those is fine, the biggest difference is whether you want to be able to see the info while riding, get the map and put it in a map pocket on top of your handlebar bag. I used the book for the pacific coast and the maps for other routes, both are good, I think it's worth it, others may not.

There is also a free bike touring map of Oregon that you can pick up probably at a visitor center or bike shop.

Have a great trip!

Valygirl, as usual, is right on! No need to wild camp EVER and no need to carry lots of food. The book is good, particularly in steering you through a couple of funny road issues around the border and in larger cities.

there are hundreds of people to meet from around the world, riding the Pacific Coast route..

mid july to september the drier barometric high settles over the Northern Pacific Ocean..



... as someone living for a few years, in Vancouver, will have observed..

Valygrl did a good job of summarizing the important points. She is right about the California raccoons; they are pretty bold. One managed to unzip my wife's bento bag, a small bag attached to the top tube, and steal her M&M's! Another one managed to grab my front pannier containing the food, which was under the rainfly only a couple of inches from my leg. That was just the start of an all night war. Hint-- HALT, a pepper spray designed to repel dogs, works well on raccoons.

The book that folks are referring to is : "Bicycling the Pacific Coast" by Spring and Kirkendall. It is pretty comprehensive.

If you have the time, you might consider taking the route north from Vancouver to Powell River and then Across to Vancouver Island before heading south. I thought it was the best part of the north coast.

Southern California State Parks have closed some of their hiker/biker campsites due to problems with vagrants. If you talk to the ranger in these parks they will sometimes give you the hiker/biker rate for a standard camp spot.

I'm biased, but you'll find the best hiker/biker campsites anywhere in the state parks along the Oregon Coast.

I had the book and the AC maps. I left the book home since I decided I like the AC maps better. I picked up a bike map of the Oregon coast distributed for free by the Oregon Department of Transportation and liked it the best of all for the state of Oregon. Look for it in local bike shops of find it on line ahead of time.

I will say that I didn't care for the route that Adventure Cycling used between the Seattle area and Astoria. If I were to do it again I'd probably either try a more coastal route there or just start in Astoria.

Most places where the raccoons were bad there were critter proof boxes provided. At least there were in the portion that I rode (Seattle to San Luis Obispo).

Here is the excellent coastal cycling map put out by the Oregon Highway Department.

https://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/HWY/BIKEP..._route_map.pdf

Here is where you can find similar maps and cycling guides for Northern California

https://www.dot.ca.gov/dist1/d1transp...uide/index.htm

I was advised to take an alternative route, as well, and instead rode along the Washington coast. I kept track of route (link here) and wrote a journal of the ride I did from Bellingham, WA to Newburg, OR (journal here). On the route I did, there was a long stretch from Raymond down to Cathlamet with fewer services, though enough to do without any real worry.

Your timing should be good as the Fall offers some of the best weather on the California coast. There are a couple spots where planning will be required to insure that stores or restaurants are open for food. Specifically, the stretch from Carmel, CA down to Cambria, CA along the Big Sur coastline. While it is beautiful, some of the campgrounds may be closed or without potable water. Also, some of the villages along the coast offer a single place to eat that might be open only a few hours in the off-season.

It is a wonderful ride. Have a great time.

I've ridden the Oregon Coast three times, and I certainly agree with Doug64 about the campsites in Oregon. It's been awhile, but when I rode the hot showers were free in Oregon. Perhaps that has changed. The great part was not having to make reservations ahead of time, and the parks were about 40 to 50 miles apart, a pleasant day's ride.

I am so happy to hear all these positive responses.
Varygrl > Yes it will be the pacific coast. I know 2 months is probable way too long, but I want to stop by in the big cities to visit friends. I am not in a hurry anyway, so I'd rather enjoy it than rush it. I also need to work out the logistics with the US tourist visa and the flight to Europe, as I won't be able to go back to Canada.

raybo> Someone from California had mentioned about that stretch between Carmel and Cambria. I am glad you confirm so I am just prepared for it. I know the feeling of arriving in a tiny village at the end of the night to camp, just to find that all the shops are closed. Stale cookie for dinner!


I really appreciate all the links and information all of you just gave me. I'll have to spend some time and go through the various links and maps, further research and probable come back with more specific questions. One of the reasons I made this thread, is to make my self excited about this trip and it has definitely helped!
=]

Doug > I don't think I will start the ride from that North, but maybe I'll find some time this summer before I leave Vancouver to cycle in the Island as a smaller trip. Which section would you recommend and how many days would you spend there? I've been to Tofino once.

We've done several tours that included Vancouver Island, and there are several loops that have a lot of flexabilty as far as time and distance. One that is fun and flexible is to go from Tsawwassen to the Gulf Islands. You can spend several days jumping from island to island, but end up at Salt Springs Island when finished island hopping. From there you can take another ferry to Swartz Bay on Vancouver Island. From Swartz Bay it is a short ride to Victoria. a great city. There is a RV Park, Fort Vancouver, that is close to the city and allows tent camping. Do a loop from there, checking out Butchart Gardens ( or check it out heading toward Victoria from on the way from Swartz Bay) to catch the ferry back to Tsawwassen. Then a short hop back to Vancouver.


Have fun!

Thanks Doug, I'll definitely look into that.

So I've been on the road for almost 2 weeks now and things are going great!
I am in Portland at some friends right now taking a couple of days off to rest.
You can check my daily blog if you are interested to find out more.
thank you for all the information!