HEADWIND

Our welcome occurred on I-5 with a stiff headwind.
Not quite how we envisioned entering our home state!

DATE:  Sat, Oct. 1, 2011
HOME: Yreka, CA  Best Western
DISTANCE:  37
ALTITUDE:  1750 ft
WEATHER:  warm, partly cloudy, with a strong head wind
NARRATIVE:
We got a late start this morning: Breakfast was slow and we met a guy who was hiking the PCT going North that we had breakfast with.  Fun to talk to him about his experiences.  Then, just after starting, we talked to another guy who was heading North on his bike, having begun in Sacramento.

It was a very “unwelcome” to California:  first it was on the freeway (we had 5 miles on I-5), and we had Lewis and Clark Trail headwinds (very strong).  On several other occasions on this ride I have remarked that we had moderate winds.  I guess I had forgotten what a strong wind was – I now downgrade them to “light” winds compared to today.

Mt. Shasta 

The scenery was spectacular with Mt. Shasta dominating.  We got to Montegue, a decision point at mile 30.  The wind was strong, and the weather looked bad up ahead.  We iphoned the weather and received a high wind warning with wind gusts up to 35-50 mph.  Easy decision – we rode 6 miles into Yreka and had a very pleasant afternoon and evening.  Yreka is a struggling town that is trying to capitalize on its “gold rush” past – it’s main street has been renovated with lots of little crafts shops.  We had a nice dinner at Strings.

Our time seems to be consumed by how we inch forward with these winds and the impending storm.  Looks like we can get to Shasta tomorrow, and then we’re stuck.  It’s big distances to anything with only the possibility of camping in between – not what we like to hear when we need a possible bail-out location.  I hope we like Mt. Shasta since it looks like we’ll be there awhile.