So I've made it up to Eureka after an eventful 4 days.
Saturday went by without a hitch. I started feeling like shit around 4 and wasn't sure of what time the sun set so I camped out at a closed of section on a state park. It rained on and off but nothing too bad. Once I packed camp the next morning it cleared up quite nicely.
On Sunday a black cat crossed my path early in the morning. I'm not superstitious, but started thinking about how it might only effect people in cars. Digging more into it I realized that the saying/ superstition must have been around for quite some time, a time when cars weren't around, and therefore if anything it excludes people in cars. ( I've been doing a lot of rational thinking about irrational things on this trip). Didn't give much thought to it after that.
The day went great until I was getting into Fort Bragg. My shifting was acting up but decided my shifters just needed some oil. I went through town and about 5 miles north my rear derailleur cable snapped. I couldn't shift, was stuck in my lowest gear but was thinking I could make it up to Eureka nevertheless. I threw out that plan when I was walking up the next hill and went into a field to look for a camp spot by the beach. I figured I'd ride back into town in the morning.
Before I realized it my legs were all cut up from thorns and weeds and I was knee deep in Poison Oak. I decided to make some soup for dinner, so I put in a whole bag of mix into my pot and added some water. I didn't realize the mix was meant for half a gallon of soup and ended up with two water bottles full of potato soup. That's when I remembered the black cat.
It rained most of the night (washed away the bad luck I guess) & in the morning I went back to town, fixed my derailleur, did three very tiring hills to go from Hwy 1 to 101, and camped in a Redwood grove overlooking the Eel River.
The winds raged all night and rain kept falling. I could feel the trees swaying and was incredibly at peace with everything.
Going through The Avenue of the Giants was a lot like going to the city for the first time, for you keep straining your neck to see the tops of those that surround you and are filled with awe and inspiration. It felt as those trees had so many stories to tell; I could wonder off into the forest and get lost in there forever. To think that back in the 20's it was all going to be logged is unfathomable.
It doesn't seem like I'm allergic to Poison Oak as my legs look fine, no nasty rash moving in. Tonight will be my last night camping in California, and although I am a bit bummed out as this state has been nothing shy of complete awesomeness I know I will be back here soon.
Away North we go!
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