Arcata, CA: June 12 - June 19th

Tomorrow, exactly 1 week since my arrival in Arcata, marks my departure for Eugene, OR!

But what did I do in Arcata?
Shea & his "Freelove Circus" accepted me with open arms. I stayed at their legendary "circus house" for the whole week. Here I could relax, shower, cook, scare the locals from the front porch, play board games, etc, etc.

While in town I caught a Freelove Circus show (complete with Samba dance party!), went to the annual Arcata Oyster Festival, met many many wonderful people, earned 46 gypsie points (wow!), went to the beach twice, fell ill for three days to a sickness described by locals as "the humboldt crud," recovered (thankfully), and practiced practiced practiced my circus arts. Thanks to everyone involved in my wonderful stay in beautiful Arcata!

You're up next Eugene!
I leave tomorrow morning. The journey is 350 miles give or take.
ETA Thursday, June 26? I'll update my blog after I arrive and settle in a bit.

Oh, and, don't forget to check out this video I filmed by strapping my camera to my bike on Hwy 1:

Day 6, Thursday, June 12th

I traveled 55 miles to Arcata, CA. My knee was tender today, so I took it slow. The redwoods and the “avenue of the giants” were great.

Hwy 101 between the redwoods and Arcata was not so fun. There was always a shoulder, but the cars were going 70 mph and on & off ramps were not so fun.

Boy was I happy to arrive in Arcata!

I stopped by campus and the CCAT (Campus Center for Appropriate Technology) house. They had a pedal power t.v., a pedal power blender, home made (non-toxic, no voc) paint, a composting toilet, a mobile solar grid (for festivals), thermal curtain window insulation, and many many more sweet innovations. Next, I went to the “circus house,” home of my buddy Shea Freelove & his Freelove Circus.

Stay tuned for updates on my fun times in town!

Here is a bio-dome greenhouse on campus at HSU. I felt dome-sick and this did not help!

Relaxing on my bed at the circus house.

See more of my photos here! Wow!

Leg 1, Day 5, Wednesday, June 11th

Today I biked 35 miles to Humboldt Redwood State Park. My knees felt great! The hike and bike campsite is in the middle of a redwood grove.

Redwood trees are SO AWESOME. Especially: giant ones, ones with fatty “burls,” and twisty ones. Everyone should camp in the Humboldt Redwood State Park whenever and however possible.

Here I met John and Mary. They were older with a trailer RV thing. They invited me over for shmores. John had an awesome handlebar mustache. The secret: a blend of two different kinds of wax. It turns out that they used to do magic and clowning to teach kids about God. We talked about the circus a bunch. Before I left they prayed for my safety on the road. John asked for a wall or protection to surround me. Awkward. Amen.

See the twist? Those chunks sticking out the sides are "burls" which sprout a new tree if the big one is dangered.

. . . Hard to tell from this angle, but this is one of the largest trees in Humboldt County.

"Oh, hello there, I didn't here you walk in."
This is a very serious pose in my campsite.

Click here for more photos!

Leg 1, Day 4, Tuesday, June 10th

As soon as I hopped on my bike I realized I was in no condition to ride. My left knee still ached. Rather than endure the planned 50 mile ride to Humboldt Redwoods State Park, I opted for a mere 15 mile ride (mostly downhill) to Richardson Grove State Park.

I arrived before noon and figured I would just have a really really slow day. At the campsite I met two wonderful souls: Ben & Eric. Ben was a fast talking East Coast hippy going into his Junior year in college. Eric was his quieter, good hearted, traveling buddy. They were pro’s at backpacking, hitchhiking, and public transportation. They were super excited about life and nature and made excellent companions for my slow day.

We walked around Richardson Grove. I swam in the river. We had a fire at night.

Relaxing. Hurray for off days.

For more photos, click here.

Leg 1, Day 3, Monday, June 9th

The wind was pretty calm today. I trekked through 40 miles of beautiful coastline before taking some time to relax at the last beach I would see before Arcata. I went for a swim in the ocean. How nice!

Next came a MASSIVE hill as hwy 1 cuts east towards hwy 101 and the town of Legget. After a downhill there was a MASSIVER hill. This was the hardest 15 miles I have bicycleded. Already a little worn out from 2.5 days of traveling, the hill was the final straw for my left knee. I had to make frequent stops not because I was tired, but because my knee hurt.

I completed 50 miles and camped at Standish Hickey State Park. Here I met Jack and Jim, two bicycle tourers from Ohio who were biking the coast from Crescent City to San Francisco. It turns out Jack and Jim were biking for the lord. Before we left in the morning they invited me to pray over the fire. I said “sure, why not.” Jack and Jim prayed for our safety on the road and so that we may see and steer clear of any road debris so as to avoid mechanical failure. I thought about adding in a Pasture Ted bicycle church style shout out to bearings, true wheels, and holy oil. The whole thing was sort of awkward. Erm, amen.

The last beach until Arcata

click here for more photos!

Leg 1, Day 2, Sunday, June 8th

Slow riding, but beautiful Hwy 1

With all the fun last night I got off to a late and slow start. The coastal North wind pounded at my face all day. I felt like a cement truck with a giant sail. I had to pedal to go downhill!

Feeling sorry for myself, I bought an AWESOMELY GIANT sandwich in Elk. Also in Elk I met some hippy sea-weed collectors drying their harvest in the sun. They harvest enough sea-weed in one day to last all year! (It looks like they also eat much more sea weed than the average person).

My body is getting used to this touring thing.
I have developed what feels like huge balls of muscle which want to burst out of my back / shoulder blades. Overall, my upper back feels like a big knot.

I picked up some humus, tortillas & veggies at the Mendocino store “Harvest” for the next few meals. Hurray for real food!

Today I traveled ~50 miles and camped at Russian Gulch State Park (just North of Mendocino). At the $3 hike and bike campsite I met a couple with an 8 year old daughter who were walking from San Francisco to Oregon. They planned for 45 days of walking and tried to walk to the coast whenever possible. Due to cliffs & private property, only about 50% of the coast is hikable.

I got a long real well with these three. The father owns his own theater company and the 8 year old (named “smooj”) is training to be a circus aerialist at the SF Circus Center.

The live-in ranger is next to the hike and bike site. His name is Paul and he is quite the character. He loves hike and bikers. He provided us with a roaring fire. He enjoyed my hoop manipulations so much that he gave me 10 gypsie points (er, $10)--thanks Paul!

BABY LLAMAS!!!!!!!!!!

This was a 2 minute walk from my campsite

Much needed relaxation at the end of day 2

Click HERE for more travel photos

Leg 1, Day 1, Saturday, June 7th

The bike kinda looks like a space ship. In back, I have my Chrome bag strapped down on top with my fire clubs on either side (also like space ship rockets!). My red shiny hoop kind of floats above the mess, like some sort of space-age bumper or safety system.

I covered about 60 miles during the day, starting in Sebastopol, biking through Forestville, out 116 to Jenner, and up the coast to a state campground right outside of Gualala. Camping was only $5 for the night! The campground was a mile walk to the beach, how nice! At the beach and back at camp I met my neighbors: a group of 15 UC Davis graduates reuniting to party in the woods. They took one look at my hovering-hoop at the beach and invited me over to their campground. They liked my hoop shenanigans so much that they fed me a gourmet meal from their giant cast iron wok—wow!

Hwy 1 is really pretty.

Beach!

For more photos, click here.

I'm off!!!!!!!

Farewell friends and family!
I leave tomorrow real early. Yes, really this time.
I will miss you all!!!! Goodbye Sebastopol! Goodbye Davis
Hello Hwy 1 & Arcata, CA!

I had a few delays and learned a lot before even leaving . . .

I sprained my wrist (still a little bit touchy), got three fillings, and learned how much stuff really weighs.

Last night I stuffed my bicycle with everything I was planning on taking. It all barely fit on! I could hardly lift my bicycle! Just by wiggling the front handlebars I could see the frame and racks flexing under load. And then I knew: I have way too much stuff!

This morning I unloaded everything and re-assess my needs vrs wants, nitpicking over every ounce..

I sacrificed my:
juggling balls :(
juggling clubs :(
backpacking stove / fuel :(
a lot of snack foods :(
my ground tarp :(
a few maps :(
my ultra bright "light & motion" light + battery + charger :(
and... i replaced my bulky red rain jacket with a sleaker red jacket I bought at REI today :)

Let's hope I didnt need that junk anyway.. . grr.. I want an xtracycle...

Still aboard the circus starship is...
clothes, food, water, camera, fire poi and fire clubs, harmonica, one hypnotic hovering hoop, a few bicycle tools, and my hat. Woohoo!!

The trip to Arcata is a windy, hilly, beautiful 260 mile journey. How many days will this take me? I'll post when I find out ;-)

I'll leave you with a bunch of pictures my buddy Misha took. We tried to simulate what the tour might be like. Let's hope it is really this glorious. P.S. my bike is actually a lot more packed than that. I'll take a picture tomorrow and upload them later :)

Ta ta!

update

I'm still here!
ETD: Thursday?