So, I do realize this has been a long time coming, but as it goes in the life of a traveling cyclist there tends to be a myriad of ups and downs. I am not one for excuses, so in all honesty I have had plenty of opportunities to write, yet the passion behind the writing was somewhat lacking, so I would start posts and then never finish them. It is was frustrating for me, especially because I felt like I had/have so much to write about all the time.
I know I write this every time I start a new post, but I really can't help it, because when you're on the road, so much can happen to you in such a tiny space of time that it truly feels like a lifetime ago I left Victoria, B.C. I have since traveled the great back roads of western Washington, met an incredibly inspiring outdoor education teacher from Portland, and have spent quite a few nights camping, and staying with absolutely sensational human beings!
My trek from Port Angeles to Bainbridge Island and then over to Seattle was surprisingly quick and painless, considering I had not done much cycling for a good week and a bit while in Victoria. I arrived in the bustling metropolis of Seattle and was a little overwhelmed at first. You see, being on the road, I had completely forgotten that Christmas was right around the corner, and I had walked right into the worst of the Christmas rush. I was staying with a really fantastic, close friend of mine in Queen Ann's, a quieter section of Seattle, up several huge, monstrous hills. I stayed in Seattle for almost ten days. I think perhaps that was one of the toughest stays. It was wonderful to see my friend, it really had nothing to do with her, but rather my own head space. I started to find myself getting into a bit of funk as I went out every day to serenade the streets. I was greeted by the somewhat harsher reality of city folks and there overstressed, extremely busy lives. Who was I in the huge rat race? Who wanted to listen to some girl play a few folk songs on the sidewalk? The feeling of powerlessness and feeling lost was ever so slowly consuming me. For a couple of days I moped, and then I said, forget it, I'm going to play with all the heart and soul I've got. I went downtown to a local hub, Pikes marketplace and met a few other street musicians. Unfortunately I needed a permit to play there, but a fellow busker was so kind and told me of another epic busking spot a few blocks up the street where no permit was required and where the acoustics and foot traffic were great. Excited and feeling hopeful again, I headed over. Needless to say I was very well received and people went out of their way to donate whatever they had to my cause. It was so refreshing to see, that even in a sea of overstressed, overwhelmed, rushed chaos, people still went out of their way to support me in whatever way they could.
This was yet another confirmation that whatever attitude I have, or feeling(s) I project everyone is susceptible to it and can ultimately feel whether it is something positive or negative. Our world is convoluted at this time, but I believe that although there are a lot of us out there that function very robotically in our day to day lives we still crave that feeling of wanting to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. For myself, this is certainly one of the driving forces behind my "singing in the streets." I'm constantly searching for something, anything that will draw people together. In this way I can experience the kind and generous human side of a stranger, and in that moment there is a mutual understanding of giving and receiving and a human connection has been achieved, if only for a brief moment.
My last few days in Seattle were enjoyed to their fullest potential. My thoughts and approach had changed and as a result so had the rest of the people I interacted with. Feeling enlightened and more optimistic than ever, I set off to continue my journey down south. The first night I only made it only 30 or so miles southwest of Bremerton, right outside Belfair, WA. It was already starting to get dark by 4:00pm so I set up camp just outside of Twanoh State Park and spent a very cold night sleeping under a huge, old douglas fir. I woke up to a damp sleeping bag and a wet tent and decided I'd try my hand at finding a warmer place to rest my head for that night. Day 2 was far more successful regarding distance and I ended up making it all the way to this tiny town, southwest of Seattle, called Brady. There, I had the amazing fortune of meeting Tom and his family and he did not hesitate to fire up the sauna for me and my wet gear and then proceeded to invite me in to eat dinner with his family, indulge in a really good, hot shower, fresh Christmas cookies and fudge! What a glorious night! It was all because I asked. Sometimes it is so important to let oneself be vulnerable and ask for a helping hand. At times I worry and wonder if I give enough, because so much has been given to me, but then I realize that you can't quantify giving in terms of giving of yourself. The act of giving is essentially immeasurable when you truly give from the heart.
This last week was probably one of the longest, yet most rewarding weeks I've had on the road. Looking back, it's hard to believe that so much can happen in such a small amount of time. There were exceptional moments, where I was moved to tears by the sheer beauty of my surroundings and the kindness of strangers along the way. There were also moments, where I was scared, unsure of my purpose and physically exhausted to the point where I could barely keep my legs moving. When I crossed the Columbia River to reach Astoria I have never felt more ecstatic and happier to be alive. Surely, that was one of the most difficult crossings I've had to do, and it took all my mental energy, physical strength and determination to make it over that huge bridge without wavering my focus from the other side. That was probably the scariest ride I've ever had to do, and if I had known better I probably would've opted for a ride across, because there was simply no shoulder and not much space for both the cars and myself. However, as a result I can now appreciate shoulders and better roads all the more!
Astoria was a beautiful place and of course I wanted to take full advantage of staying around the corner from where the amazing and awesome childhood movie "The Goonies" was filmed. You can bet I took a decent number of pictures of the "Goondocks."
From Astoria to Cannon Beach was absolutely beautiful and I saw some of the most gorgeous vistas overlooking the ocean in that section. As the pictures below illustrate, I couldn't get enough shots of the infamous Haystack rock. In Cannon Beach I met a glorious older musician who was so incredibly kind and invited me to sleep on his couch. We played lots of music and I went to bed that night feeling like I was the most blessed woman in the entire world....a warm place to sleep, good music, excellent food and wonderful people around me.
I am now in Portland visiting a good friend who I met a number of years ago through couchsurfing.org. I am thrilled to be here even though it was a bit of a struggle getting here, especially from having to fix a broken rack in Cannon beach, biking in the dark to catch the bus in Tillamook, missing the bus twice from Tillamook, having to hitch a ride from Tillamook to Portland, it was all worth it. There is no denying that everything worked out for the best and I continue to meet the most generous and kind people along the way who make it possible for my journey to continue, feeding and nurturing a sense of belief in myself. Without their support, I'm not sure if I would've been able to push through those really challenging moments, like the bridge, or overcoming my loneliness, while camping on the side of the road in the cold and rain.
I have also reached the conclusion that it is extremely difficult to coordinate presentations in schools on the road, as I am not in a position to make definitive plans because life is simply too unpredictable at the moment. As a result, I have decided that the next best thing for me to do, is when I return to my home in Toronto, I will put together a beautiful presentation and collage of all my experiences on the road and contact schools from there. In this way, I'll be able to focus and give my full attention to presenting and sharing my story. I am actually very excited about it and I believe that I will have plenty of opportunities to tell my story.
For now, it is my intention to leave Portland on Dec. 23rd and take up an incredible offer I had in Tillamook to spend Christmas with a fantastic family just outside the town. I am happy to have some down time but also stoked about my next leg.
Happy Holidays to you all and thanks again for believing in my journey!
I know I write this every time I start a new post, but I really can't help it, because when you're on the road, so much can happen to you in such a tiny space of time that it truly feels like a lifetime ago I left Victoria, B.C. I have since traveled the great back roads of western Washington, met an incredibly inspiring outdoor education teacher from Portland, and have spent quite a few nights camping, and staying with absolutely sensational human beings!
My trek from Port Angeles to Bainbridge Island and then over to Seattle was surprisingly quick and painless, considering I had not done much cycling for a good week and a bit while in Victoria. I arrived in the bustling metropolis of Seattle and was a little overwhelmed at first. You see, being on the road, I had completely forgotten that Christmas was right around the corner, and I had walked right into the worst of the Christmas rush. I was staying with a really fantastic, close friend of mine in Queen Ann's, a quieter section of Seattle, up several huge, monstrous hills. I stayed in Seattle for almost ten days. I think perhaps that was one of the toughest stays. It was wonderful to see my friend, it really had nothing to do with her, but rather my own head space. I started to find myself getting into a bit of funk as I went out every day to serenade the streets. I was greeted by the somewhat harsher reality of city folks and there overstressed, extremely busy lives. Who was I in the huge rat race? Who wanted to listen to some girl play a few folk songs on the sidewalk? The feeling of powerlessness and feeling lost was ever so slowly consuming me. For a couple of days I moped, and then I said, forget it, I'm going to play with all the heart and soul I've got. I went downtown to a local hub, Pikes marketplace and met a few other street musicians. Unfortunately I needed a permit to play there, but a fellow busker was so kind and told me of another epic busking spot a few blocks up the street where no permit was required and where the acoustics and foot traffic were great. Excited and feeling hopeful again, I headed over. Needless to say I was very well received and people went out of their way to donate whatever they had to my cause. It was so refreshing to see, that even in a sea of overstressed, overwhelmed, rushed chaos, people still went out of their way to support me in whatever way they could.
This was yet another confirmation that whatever attitude I have, or feeling(s) I project everyone is susceptible to it and can ultimately feel whether it is something positive or negative. Our world is convoluted at this time, but I believe that although there are a lot of us out there that function very robotically in our day to day lives we still crave that feeling of wanting to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. For myself, this is certainly one of the driving forces behind my "singing in the streets." I'm constantly searching for something, anything that will draw people together. In this way I can experience the kind and generous human side of a stranger, and in that moment there is a mutual understanding of giving and receiving and a human connection has been achieved, if only for a brief moment.
My last few days in Seattle were enjoyed to their fullest potential. My thoughts and approach had changed and as a result so had the rest of the people I interacted with. Feeling enlightened and more optimistic than ever, I set off to continue my journey down south. The first night I only made it only 30 or so miles southwest of Bremerton, right outside Belfair, WA. It was already starting to get dark by 4:00pm so I set up camp just outside of Twanoh State Park and spent a very cold night sleeping under a huge, old douglas fir. I woke up to a damp sleeping bag and a wet tent and decided I'd try my hand at finding a warmer place to rest my head for that night. Day 2 was far more successful regarding distance and I ended up making it all the way to this tiny town, southwest of Seattle, called Brady. There, I had the amazing fortune of meeting Tom and his family and he did not hesitate to fire up the sauna for me and my wet gear and then proceeded to invite me in to eat dinner with his family, indulge in a really good, hot shower, fresh Christmas cookies and fudge! What a glorious night! It was all because I asked. Sometimes it is so important to let oneself be vulnerable and ask for a helping hand. At times I worry and wonder if I give enough, because so much has been given to me, but then I realize that you can't quantify giving in terms of giving of yourself. The act of giving is essentially immeasurable when you truly give from the heart.
This last week was probably one of the longest, yet most rewarding weeks I've had on the road. Looking back, it's hard to believe that so much can happen in such a small amount of time. There were exceptional moments, where I was moved to tears by the sheer beauty of my surroundings and the kindness of strangers along the way. There were also moments, where I was scared, unsure of my purpose and physically exhausted to the point where I could barely keep my legs moving. When I crossed the Columbia River to reach Astoria I have never felt more ecstatic and happier to be alive. Surely, that was one of the most difficult crossings I've had to do, and it took all my mental energy, physical strength and determination to make it over that huge bridge without wavering my focus from the other side. That was probably the scariest ride I've ever had to do, and if I had known better I probably would've opted for a ride across, because there was simply no shoulder and not much space for both the cars and myself. However, as a result I can now appreciate shoulders and better roads all the more!
Astoria was a beautiful place and of course I wanted to take full advantage of staying around the corner from where the amazing and awesome childhood movie "The Goonies" was filmed. You can bet I took a decent number of pictures of the "Goondocks."
From Astoria to Cannon Beach was absolutely beautiful and I saw some of the most gorgeous vistas overlooking the ocean in that section. As the pictures below illustrate, I couldn't get enough shots of the infamous Haystack rock. In Cannon Beach I met a glorious older musician who was so incredibly kind and invited me to sleep on his couch. We played lots of music and I went to bed that night feeling like I was the most blessed woman in the entire world....a warm place to sleep, good music, excellent food and wonderful people around me.
I am now in Portland visiting a good friend who I met a number of years ago through couchsurfing.org. I am thrilled to be here even though it was a bit of a struggle getting here, especially from having to fix a broken rack in Cannon beach, biking in the dark to catch the bus in Tillamook, missing the bus twice from Tillamook, having to hitch a ride from Tillamook to Portland, it was all worth it. There is no denying that everything worked out for the best and I continue to meet the most generous and kind people along the way who make it possible for my journey to continue, feeding and nurturing a sense of belief in myself. Without their support, I'm not sure if I would've been able to push through those really challenging moments, like the bridge, or overcoming my loneliness, while camping on the side of the road in the cold and rain.
I have also reached the conclusion that it is extremely difficult to coordinate presentations in schools on the road, as I am not in a position to make definitive plans because life is simply too unpredictable at the moment. As a result, I have decided that the next best thing for me to do, is when I return to my home in Toronto, I will put together a beautiful presentation and collage of all my experiences on the road and contact schools from there. In this way, I'll be able to focus and give my full attention to presenting and sharing my story. I am actually very excited about it and I believe that I will have plenty of opportunities to tell my story.
For now, it is my intention to leave Portland on Dec. 23rd and take up an incredible offer I had in Tillamook to spend Christmas with a fantastic family just outside the town. I am happy to have some down time but also stoked about my next leg.
Happy Holidays to you all and thanks again for believing in my journey!
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