Mountains and Tempers: Bike Guiding Pacific Northwest

Ebey’s Landing, Coupeville, Washington

Hill after hill after hill... how many mountains can you climb in 55 miles? The sun beaming down, skin feeling like rough leather, no amount of sunscreen combats the endless hours baking in the oven above us.

Tempers rising.. a little snappy comment here, one over there.. the road was getting to us. The worst part of it all, it’s only the second day.

It was 9 pm when we finally sat down for dinner. Luckily in the northwest the sun doesn’t fully set until around 10 pm in the summertime. Everyone’s personal preferences were irritating one another and the tension had no room to expand further without bursting.

And that’s what happened... it burst.. right into laughter. A few silly jokes, some simple games, several sarcastic comments and we shifted into a new place.

The elevation was rough for everyone, with frequent stops for vitamin c packs and bananas to console. But strangely, when we listed our highlights at the end of the night, the majority responses were either the feeling at the top of a steep climb, or the experience of descending a giant hill.

Funny, this day had a bucket full of worries and struggles, but I can’t stop thinking about the views. The peaceful Puget Sound, the jagged snow-capped Olympic National Park in the distance, the farm fields and grazing sheep and cows, the eagle swooping through our campsite this morning, the mile long descent ending in a beautiful beach and lunch stop, Deception Pass State Park, our campsite for the night surrounding us in the beauty and protection of a vibrant, cascading forest.

We passed through a 220-mile relay race for many miles of our route. Runners, pushing though some agonizing mile of their race energized us in the midst of our journey. We yelled “Great job,” “Keep going,” “You’re awesome” high-fiving them as they passed. We thought we were encouraging them.. but the smiles on their face and the grit of their tired feet inspired us as they high-fived back. For nearly an hour, we traded encouragement with these racers. I’ll remember that.

As I end this day with a restless spirit, I know I’ll remember the bumps. But maybe I will not remember them in the way l remember the beautiful grit it takes to push through complications. That’s in my mind’s eye, and I think it just might stick with me longer than a pair of tired legs.