Dane Eastlick, the
Deep Sea Angler, in front of the Tetons on our first day as a trio.
Dane and Max riding up a hill at the start of Yellowstone National Park.
Old Faithful! Proving her loyalty. There were hundreds of people sitting eagerly nearby, awaiting the show. And, what a show it was.
They had the right of way.
Video interview with our newest member at the Yellowstone mud pots. Dane, never ceasing to amaze, invented and spoke a fresh language for the podcast (which has yet to be podcasted...)
Silhouettes in West Yellowstone.
While my guitar gently...rests beside a river in Twin Bridges, MT.
Biker gang collision... We ran into this Swiss duo, one of whom has been riding a bike carrying a load of 230 lbs for 14 months! And, he's not stopping until he reaches Cape Horn in May 2010... He showed us up big time.
The work of our friend
Derek who put us up in Jackson while our buddy Dane made his way from Denver. We enjoyed several active days of yoga, rock climbing, photo shoots, touch football and drinking with our hosts Derek, Erin, Nicole and Leif. They were very generous having the bearded ladies occupy their living room for several days before Dane arrived.
Introducing the newest member of Cycle Vikings, a man hardened by building log homes in the Alaskan frontier throughout driving rain, trained in Materials Engineering in the shiny walls of California Polytechnic Institute, the Valedictorian of Etna, CA, the one, the only, the legend in human form...Dane Eastlick, appearing as we would have imagined, in jeans and a flannel.
On the road after our stay in Jackson. Dane purchased a violin at a pawn shop to complete the band's unique sound.
Dane making some minor modifications to his rig using prehistoric contruction methods and certified organic materials. It's science...
A view of the Snake River as we climbed into the heart of Yellowstone National Park.
Mud pot in mid explosion along a cooler stream coming off the adjacent caldera. The area was formed by the underground supervolcano hundreds of thousands of years ago.
A steamy mud pot in Yellowstone. All along the boardwalk water gurgled out of the ground at temperatures well over 100 degrees fahrenheit.
With three people now, the option of more intricate poses became available.
The bike camp in Twin Bridges, MT with a shower, sink and grill! Located right next to the river, we had a tremendous sunset and fell asleep to fish feeding on mayflies. The next day we had a steep climb out of town and descended into former boom town Virginia City for the local delicacy, Huckleberry milkshakes with a hefty dollop of whipped cream and a cherry on top.
Dane strikes a pose near beaverhead rock, an important landmark for the Lewis and Clark expedition. Dane had been working on his helmet tan throughout the day.
At last...the Adventure Cycling headquarters in Missoula, MT. After stopping there, we had the rare opportunity to see our friend Peter's new pad under construction. It had it's very own moat, fruit trees and shiny new tiles in the kitchen and shower. We were all very impressed at Peter's ability to design and construct a home while attending graduate school. His lovely partner Melissa treated us to Missoula's finest pizza operation where we regained our auxilary calories for the road ahead.
We were also treated with great hospitality by Kansas City native Emily and her roommates in a beautiful spot near a local park. They had a lush garden and fresh eggs for us in the morning. The men of the house, Dan and Charlie, headed out into the wilderness the next day in search of bear for a research project.
The inner workings of the Adventure Cycling headquarters, many of the bikes lining the walls had been ridden on extended tours.
After a tour of Adventure Cycling we sat down for some ice cream and soda. The organization had been founded by four riders after their Hemistour from Alaska to the tip of Argentina on ten speed bicycles. The front hall was lined with portraits of cyclists since the 70s, we recognized a few of the 2009 riders. Apparently each succesive summer brings record numbers of cyclists. This year the number is close to 700. We also purchased some more maps...
Making the ceremonial front wheel dip in the Colombia river! The rear wheel was dipped in the York river 3 months prior. Minutes before, we met Home Free, a hippie traveling by sailboat up the coast. When we told him "Good luck", as we left he replied "Don't do luck, do destiny".
Sea lions crowded the Astoria docks. They were lying about barking and hooting. Others would hop onto the dock from the water, soaking a sunbather and creating an uproar heard across town.
The Astoria tower painted with a spiral mural depicted the history of settlement in the area. You can walk up to the top for an awesome view. It was one of the steepest uphill rides of the trip to reach the tower. We clenched the brakes the whole way back down.
The Columbia river as it exits into the Pacific ocean with the Astoria neighborhoods below. Our favorite spot was the Fort George brewery, Kevin picked up a growler to be packed on the bike.
South facing view from the Astoria tower.
Are we still riding? Crossing from Oregon in Washington by ferry.
The Thinker.
The train station in Longview, WA. After two days of riding north to Seattle we decided it would be a better use of time to take the train up. We disassembled our bikes on a street corner, stuffed them in boxes along with our panniers, sent them home and caught the last northbound train out of town.
