Part 14: Cycling Volcanoes of Washington – Day 6

Day 6 has just one photo associated with it – the intrepid bunch who rode all day in the wet, rain and cold. Here they are:



From L to R: Nick, Judy, Diane, Kathy, Richard, Randy, Lynn and Charis.

I am not in the photo – I am content to stay dry and warm in the van! I am tired of rain! I am a woosie, weak and worthless (I am dry and warm). I am pathetic and a loser (I am dry and warm). I am an object of derision (I am dry and warm and HAPPY).

Memories of the day:

• Guide Derek chuckling at my description of rain as 'rain' as we first stepped outside the Inn that morning - he considered it mere mist. Me chuckling at Derek as he climbed done from the van after hauling all the bikes up there - him sodden and frozen;


• All those riding that day fully waterproofed and ready to go having to climb into the van, to go down from Paradise - deemed too wet, cold and dangerous by Head Guide Diane;


• Taking the pic at Longmire National Park carpark;


• Me dry and warm and HAPPY;


• Stopping for a coffee at a little place somewhere and boosting the trade substantially - also leaving the floor looking like a pipe had burst;


• Randy, having placed a plastic bag around his foot and inside his shoe to keep said foot dry, displaying the bag, still in situ: now looking like he had a large fishbowl (complete with water) on his foot;


• Me dry and warm and HAPPY;


• Travelling through forest with tree branches bowing under the weight of water spilling over the road, and Derek having to drive in and out of them to avoid hitting the bikes on top the van;


• More rain;


• Me dry and warm and HAPPY;


• The van stopping at the lunch spot and Derek laying out the tiniest orange road cone as a sign post on the road;


• Wandering off onto the trails at the 'Watchable Wildlife Picnic Area' and having a nice little tootle around the forest whilst it wasn't raining;


• Arriving back at the lunch spot to find Derek and Randy trying to find the (non-existent) gas hose to connect the gas bottle to the portable barbecue (for the boiling of water for the pasta lunch). This involved pulling apart the portable barbecue, the trailer and anything else that may contain the hose, or something with which to jury-rig a hose. We did not eat pasta...;


• Everyone gathered under the sheltered pergola whilst it rained, wondering where Richard had gone -he'd missed the minute orange cone. His wife Lynn assured us he'd turn up - he did;


• Piling back into the van for a 2 hour drive to Skamania Lodge;


• Discovering the mass conspiracy that is the Mt St Helens eruption - coz it was neither seen, heard about, nor discussed. I'm assuming it was stolen by aliens back on that day of May 18th, 1980 and a huge cover-up concocted to camouflage this seering truth: WE ARE NOT ALONE!;


• Arriving at Skamania to relative warmth and sunniness, a nice meal and an even better sleep;


• Me dry and warm and HAPPY - ALL DAY!

The End