• Day 3 of the Anacortes to Port Angeles, WA bike touring trip
• Distance biked: 56.7 kilometres
• Location: Whidbey Island and Olympic Peninsula, WA
• Route: Coupeville to Fort Casey State Park; ferry to Port Townsend; Port Townsend to Sequim Bay State Park

This morning we woke up in Rhododendron County Park, outside of Coupeville. Beauty day. Cold to start, but it warmed up. Porridge & tea for brekky and packed up. Biked towards Coupeville, got a coffee to go from Prairie Perks, a little drive thru place. Then a little ways up to Red Apple Market for some road snacks/groceries. We went in one at a time, the other person watching the bikes. Watched middle school kids stream from a gym to their school, and talked to Chris on the phone. Then we biked to the ferry through Fort Casey State Park; lots of old barracks houses.

The ferry pulled away, and we could see the bluffs on Whidbey Island. It felt like a short trip. Biked in to Port Townsend, and stayed until 2 pm. We found a bike shop first & got awesome maps for there to Port Angeles, where we’re going tomorrow. We parked our bikes & wandered around.

Went into an art gallery, and we both really enjoyed that. The work in the back room was varied and interesting. We ate lunch at a great Mexican restaurant, on the water, realizing after we sat down that it was Cinco de Mayo that day. I had a chile relleno plate and it was just perfect — Mexican rice & refried beans & shredded lettuce topped with guacamole. Then we left, and biked up and around one street of historic district houses. I need a whole day just to wander around and look at them. We saw a fire bell tower, that would ring codes telling the volunteer firefighters where the fire was and how severe.

It got started getting hot; middle of the day. I took off my polypro and rode in tights and a t-shirt. We started on the Larry Scott Trail for 13 kilometres or so, taking us out of town. It really wore us out or made us feel slow because it was gravel & dirt, not paved. [Sibylla’s in the tent using her bird app to try to figure out what type of owl we’re hearing. I’m at the campground picnic table with my headlamp on]. Pretty, but not much to see on that trail. All trees and bushes, and then past some people’s ranches.

Then we got onto highway. It was crazy — very little shoulder. We climbed & climbed a hill forever. Seriously, it was an uphill climb for at least half an hour, probably 40 minutes. Semis & trucks burning past us. Then a little ways later, we had a 3.2 kilometre downhill. The bike shop guy had warned us about the downhill & the traffic. He said we should take over the lane instead of try to use the shoulder. So we tried to just give’er and take the lane. We went super fast, but cars wanted to go faster, so we mostly went to the shoulder, which wasn’t big at all. We went fast as we could to get out of that section. It was actually fun for me. Then onto chill highway, and road along oceanside bluffy private property side roads that felt like cottage country in the Shuswap. We’d been going over 2 hours so we stopped for food and rest. We weren’t hungry or all that tired, but I wanted to avoid burnout later in the day. Sibs lay on a bank in the sun.

Then more rolling hills and highway, getting kind of endless, and on to theOlympic Discovery Trail, and through Klallam territory. Stopped at a gas station & I got wine and deli food for dinner for later. Then 3.5 or 4 kilometres more on the Discovery Trail, making it 57 kilometres altogether, and we turned in at Sequim Bay State Park. We got one of three bike/hike-in sites, that are only $12 and have bike racks. Set up the tent, comfy clothes, took our stuff down to a dock and had dinner. End of another good day.