A hint of detail

Adventure cycling (adventurecycling.org) is a non profit that organizes bicycle routes designed for touring.  We bought one of their maps on our last tour that we used from Missoula Montana, to Yellowstone and we loved the route and information that the maps provided.  When we decided to bike the Pacific coast we instantly bought the set of 5 maps from Adventure Cycling and have been drooling over the waterproof pages. We have been mostly following their route and steering off occasionally and feeling totally lost which led us to finally  break down and get a smart phone.  Now with the combined powers of paper and electronics we not only know where we are and our options, but we can finally play Fruit Ninja when the scenery is getting old.

We are doing a self supported tour which means we are carrying all of our luggage on the bikes with us.  This is a slower way, harder way to ride a bike, but easier and cheaper logistically.  We love the simplicity of having everything we need with us and being able to change our minds about routes, breaks, and where we camp. There are those who we see touring with unloaded lightweight bikes and just a few credit cards in their pocket, but we can't afford that. So we justify this by saying the pictures look better with gear hanging all over your bike. 

 Our average day starts when Leo wakes us up about 8 am.  We then pack up camp and make a quick breakfast.  This is done with one person holding or watching Leo making sure he isn't eating to much grass and dirt, while the other one of us is running around packing everything up before the morning mist soaks it all. We eventually hit the road just as Leo is ready for his nap, which he does so easily in his comfortable trailer.  After a few miles we are easily exhausted and ready to hit a gas station for a chocolate milk.  We get Leo out every chance we can, who draws a crowd. Which results in the following conversation.

Random person- "oh there really is a baby in there"

Burtons-"yeah, he didn't want to stay home by himself"

Random person-"how far are you going?"

Burtons-"hopefully to the Mexican boarder"

Random person-"OH MY, you're brave"

Burtons-"Brave? No just stupid"

- laughs-

Random person-"Well good for you. Do it while your young. Good luck"

Burtons-"Thanks, please don't run us over"

Then we bike some more pulling over at various view points pretending to take in the sights but really we all just need a break and don't want to be the weak link of the group and admit it.  For lunch we make peanut butter and honey sandwiches or if we are near a town the various smells of Mexican food trucks and hot dog stands pulls us in.  We will stop in and get some ice cream at some point during the day purely for the nutritional value it offers us.  If there is a picturesque beach, we automatically find it hard to pedal and have to stop for a quick rest.  That quick rest easily turns into Mary putting on her swim suit, claiming that she is melting and needs a swim, but then cools off once her ankles hit the frigid water.  Around dinner time we start looking for a spot to call home for the night.  This can take the form of a RV park, State park, city park, patch of woods, or warmshowers.org host. That's when we realize how many calories we really have burned throughout the day and we become ravenous wolves, waiting for our dinner to re-hydrate. After a hearty stretch session we crawl into our sleeping bags and call it a night, dreaming of downhills and tailwinds. 

Our route plan, we are currently near Salem OR visiting some friends, which you will notice is not on our route.  That's the way we roll.

Winlock WA, I feel like this is a record that could be easily beat, but who would want to take that away from them.

Crossing the Columbia River

We ran into a boy scout troop from Maryland, on the last day of their cross country ride, as cool as that is they thought we were the crazy ones, with a baby and a dog.

I can't wait to show this to Leo's prom date.

There was visible amounts of sand in his diaper the next day.