June 3, 2008 from Republic, WA

Thanks, Dad, for posting for us!

We finally have a brief moment to blog from a library in Republic, Washington, but we don't want to linger for long because we still have to climb Sherman Pass this afternoon, about 3,000 feet over 18 miles, so not too bad except that we have to carry extra water because our campsite tonight will not have potable water.

Last night we camped in a high meadow in the "town" of Wauconda (one gas pump, a tiny store/cafe and a mailbox). It was stunning up there. Fortunately we go to bed with the sun at about 9:30 because last night it got very cold--- we woke up this morning with everything covered in frost!!! We warmed up quickly on our climb up to Wauconda pass and then the beautiful descent into Republic.

We have been working on naming our bikes. Liz's is called "Wayne." Sarah's is "Joaquim." Cate is undecided between "Willis," "Bartholomew," "Mercedes," and "Maria." Our team definitely has a name, "Baby Pandas," although none of us quite know how we started calling ourselves that. Weird.

Other than that we are just cycling, eating, and packing/repacking, dressing/undressing. It takes a lot of time.

We will try to get photos up tomorrow on our rest afternoon.

Miss you all!

Update by Dad

May 28, 2008, Anacortes
Day 1. Fly to Seattle, airport shuttle to Anacortes. Liz called in the evening to say they arrived safely, trip went smoothly. They set up outside a bike shop to reassemble their bikes. Bike mechanic provided advice while they reassembled. Then they rode to the campground near the ferry terminal, set up camp, and rested after a very long day. They sound great, and very happy.

May 29, Concrete
Anacortes to Concrete. Cate called. Good day. Longer than expected. Some loose screws on her rear rack - hope she figures that out. They are in an RV camping park overnight, and she thinks it looks good. I'll bet they are tired.

They bought a fry pan for pancakes! Stayed at Colonial Creek campground, on Diablo Lake.

May 31, Mazama
Liz called. Cell coverage has been nonexistent in the mountains. She called from a payphone. Said they were having a great time, but that Cate and Sarah had been too tired to ride into town from the campground to use the payphone. Camping is working out great. They are at Early Winters campground, in Mazama, WA. They climbed Washington pass today, 5,477 feet.

June 1.
They all called on a cell phone from Winthrop, WA where they had stopped for lunch. It had rained overnight but the weather had cleared up and they had a great morning ride mostly downhill. Sounds like a shorter day planned than usual which will give them some recovery time. Camping is working out well. They have met lots of people on the road. They are eating lots, including a half gallon of ice cream this morning! They are climbing through a pass a day. They still sound great!

The girls hope to access the internet from town libraries. So far, they haven’t had the opportunity. When they finally do, they can speak for themselves and post some pictures.

I Love My Bike

Drivers

Everyone is invited...
not only bikers, but especially anyone who wants to drive a sag car for us.
-ed

Packing List

Above
-ed

Tent

Santa brought us a 3 person Big Agnes Emerald 3 person tent! It is very special and lightweight.

The Route and Approximate Timing

Flight Newark -> Seattle (arriving Wednesday, May 28, 11:22 a.m.)
Departing Anacortes, Washington (Friday, May 30)
North Cascades National Park, WA (1st week of June)
Glacier National Park, Montana (2nd week of June)
Yellowstone/Grand Teton, Wyoming (approx. June 18)
South Dakota/ The Badlands/ Mount Rushmore (last week of June)
Minneapolis (2nd week of July)
Chicago (3rd week of July)
Along Lake Erie to Niagara Falls (last week of July)
Adirondack Park (first week of August)
Meredith, New Hampshire (Arriving Friday, August 8, 2008)
Victory ride to the Atlantic Ocean with friends + family (August 9-10, 2008)

-ed