3. Day 1

Jul 19, 2009 Uncategorized

I got my endorsement on Saturday. I took the test on a whim as a last minute effort, but I actually scored a 100. When was the last time you got a perfect score on a test? After securing that I had no reason to stay in Tacoma any longer. So Sunday I left Matt’s house and hit the road. Rather than spend the day getting every last piece of gear I decided to quickly pack up and hit the road. I figured whatever I didn’t have I could buy in Portland.

I threw everything on the bike and hit the road. The ride went well for my first prolonged freeway experience. I hit a top speed of 100. It feels pretty good to go fast on a bike. I felt pretty content going that fast and wouldn’t mind maintaining those speeds for the entire trip (or at least the parts on freeways).

I made great time to Portland. I met up with Garrett. He wanted to go canoing, but I had to make a stop at REI first. He reluctantly agreed. I bought a fancy fabric based pair of socks, boxers, and 2 shirts. These will be used as my skin based layers of clothing. (Update: This was an excellent purchase. I’ve since bought a few more for the rest of the trip).

After shopping ($250) we went canoing. We paddled for a few miles and called it a day. The goal for tomorrow is Chico, California to crash at Peter’s brother’s place.

Some pics from canoing: