Recumbent Retreat, San Juan Islands and Cycle Con

Cheers!

Lovely colors

Oh my goodness, I have been driving so much more than I'm used to. I spent a week driving from North Dakota to Oregon making overnight stops at Harvest Hosts or boondocking in non-description areas. Once in Portland, I dropped off my trailer where I bought it to have a major maintenance check done. All the seams were resealed on the roof, sides as well as around the windows, storage areas and appliance access points. The anode rod was replaced in the hot water heater, the bearings were repacked and 4 tires rotated. I also had a vent replaced that was broken in a hail storm in South Dakota. While my trailer was being worked on, I stayed with friends Diane and Annie. I did trike rides with the local recumbent group, went hiking and visited wineries. There's always lots to do in Portland.

Portland recumbent ride

From Portland, I got my trailer hitched up and headed to the Recumbent Retreat to camp for a week. I love this event and look forward to it every year. Like so many things, this event is slowly coming back together after Covid. Attendance was much lighter than years before Covid but, still, there were at least 75 recumbent riders. When I 1st started going to the Recumbent Retreat in 2005, everyone rode 2 wheeled bikes. Now almost everyone rides a trike with e-assist. The event is well organized with a heavy schedule of rides to choose from. It always takes place the weekend after Labor Day at Ft. Stevens State Park on the Oregon coast. This state park is located in the most northwestern corner of Oregon where the Pacific Ocean meets the Columbia River. The park is gorgeous with lots of wonderful paths to ride. I have clocked 18 miles of riding in a day just in the park. There is lots to do and the highlight of the weekend in the legendary lighted bikes parade. The name should probably be changed to the lighted trikes parade. Over the years, riders have decorated their bikes and trikes more and more elaborately. Lots of campers reserve sites for this weekend because they love seeing the parade. Once the daylight fades, we saddle up on our decorated bikes and ride through all the loops of the campground. The ride takes about an hour and we cover just over 5 miles. Lots of hootin' and hollerin'. It is so much fun and the Pacific Northwest Recumbent cycling group does a great job. 

Recumbent buddies

Fun video from the Recumbent Retreat

From the retreat, I drove to the Olympic Peninsula to drop off my trailer with friends Kim and Nicky (thanks ladies!!). I took my trike in the back of the truck to a ferry at Anacortes, Washington to join 26 other trikers for a 5 day all-inclusive tour package. Paula, Leslie and I left our trucks parked and rode our trikes on the ferry. Mel and Janet from RecumbentPDX put together this event every year to showcase Catrike brand trikes. They invited some cycling friends and friends they know from their Chicago days. This was my 1st time to go on this trip. The food, deserts, wine, accommodation and riding were all outstanding. We were very lucky with terrific weather too. We used Friday Harbor on San Juan Island as home base and took ferries to explore everyday with just the trikes. Aside from getting Covid on the 3rd day, the trip was wonderful. This area is incredibly beautiful especially with sunny weather.

Friday Harbor marina

Panorama from the top of Mt Constitution

Trikers on the ferry to Orcas Island

Waiting for the ferry

Video of the San Juan Island's tour

Trikes gathering

Triumph of trikes

Luckily, my bout with Covid didn't last long because I had a big drive ahead and only a week to get to Ohio for Cycle Con. This event has new owners, the guys from WhizWheels took over from long-time owner, Chuck Coyne. After a 2 year hiatus because of Covid, there was lots of trepidation about who would show up. The event didn't have as many vendors as usual but far more people from the public attended than the last show in 2019 in Nashville. I think everyone was very relieved to see the enthusiasm. I spent a good amount of time in the HP Velotechnik booth with representatives Thomas and Mathieu. This is the brand of trike I ride. One of their representatives became sick the day before leaving Germany and I was able to step in and help out. We had so much fun. I was a seminar presenter gaving 2 talks on touring and was also part of a panel discussion on women in cycling. Part of Cycle Con were very fun rides put on by the Impromptu Trike Riders of Ohio. I thought the event was all very successful and the WhizWheelz guys must feel very good about the future. 

With my HP buddies, Thomas and Mathieu, from Germany

Impromptu Trike Riders of Ohio at Xenia Station

Little Miami trail

Lunch stop on the Little Miami trail

From Ohio, I made a bee-line for Arizona. While driving though Scottsdale, I was in a small accident when a car driver decided to make a left turn directly in front of me on a busy highway. There wasn't enough room or time for him to make this turn. I slammed on my brakes but couldn't stop. No one was hurt but the other guy's car was badly damaged. He had temporary plates and I don't think he had owned the car for long. He admitted fault saying he was distracted by worry about his girlfriend who was sick. Luckily, my truck only had cosmetic damage and I was able to continue driving to Yuma the next day. 

Truck damage

The other guy

Every year, I stop in Yuma to take care of medical stuff in a border town called Los Algodones. This town is set up for Americans and Canadiens. Parking is in California and the walk across the border is short. The town is all medical offices. It has the nickname of 'Molar City' and there are probably 500 dental clinics. Teeth cleaning with full X-rays cost me $35. I also always do complete blood and urine labwork.

Campsite flowers

Yuma bike trail

While I was in Yuma, I stopped in to a body shop to see about getting the damage from the accident fixed. The body shop fixed everything without having to buy parts. They said I was very lucky the the lights weren't damaged. Each light costs over $500. C&C Autobody did a great job. I love it when companies tell me what they are going to do, how much it will cost and how long the work will take and everything is just as they said. Very refreshing and it felt good to get all of these things taken care.

Full moon rising over the desert

From Yuma, the drive is 2 hours to my friend Joni's church near Palm Springs where I'll be spending the winter. After so much driving it feels good to be settled for awhile. I've stayed here a few times and the set up is very comfortable. I live in the trailer with access to electric, water and wifi. It's nice to also have an address to order stuff and get my mail. My 1st task was getting my ballot from Washington filled out and mailed off. I'll have lots of time to get my blog up to date and finish outstanding videos. This area has great cycling too and I'm looking forward to hitting the trails instead of driving so much.

I've also got a huge announcement to make which I'll save for my next post. This is going to be a very busy winter