August 21, 2017
Day 49 Standish Hickey: Hunkered down for the eclipse
We slept in, knowing that all we needed to do was walk up and cross the road to watch the eclipse. Coffee and breakfast burritos in hand, we sat outside to read the San Francisco paper and wait for the big event. We know so many people have gone up to see this, but were happy to be sitting where we were, given all the miles we had managed to put in and all the fun we have been having along the way – maybe we’ll catch the one in Texas in 7 years at Annie and Matt’s!
While we sat, enjoying our coffee, a couple drove in and were debating whether to watch from where we were or drive on further. They stopped to ask us about our opinion, and Jim immediately noted the Michigan gear that Jerold was wearing. That, of course, became a conversation (sports, always sports with my Jim – even during an eclipse!). They decided to stay and watch, which turned out well for us as we didn’t have any special glasses and were counting on watching on our phones (did not work well at all). They had glasses and very kindly shared them with us so we got to see what there was to see – pretty cool, although I am sure not nearly the experience that totality would have been (7 years, Annie!). What we did notice was how immediately the temperature dropped and dogs started barking – kind of spooky! When all was said and done, Jarold and his wife (I’m sorry I’ve forgotten your name!) invited us to join them for breakfast whenever we make it to Ann Arbor for a game as they don’t live far from the stadium. Of course, that’s on the bucket list, so we will hopefully take them up on their offer in the near future!
Eclipse done, we returned to find that the hiker/biker site was completely empty, as was most of the entire park – wow! We’ve never had a whole park to ourselves before! I used the rest of the morning to wash some clothes and hang them out to dry in the sun while Jim did some maintenance on the bikes – cleaning the chains and checking that all was working well. It wouldn’t do to come down a giant hill like Leggett and find we had no brakes!
It was going to be a really quiet night, but late in the day, another biker showed up, followed by another and then several more. These guys are all riding separately, but end up in the same place every evening, so are quite a chummy group. They were quite friendly and we really enjoyed chatting with Scott, who has been cycling around the world for 3 years! I asked him how he managed financially and he said he works using a website called Workaway, where you can work for a wage or just room and board. He has met some wonderful people this way and has made friends all over the world. He’s a super friendly person, and we really enjoyed our conversation. Later, we spent time talking to Paul, who has cycled all the way from Anchorage! What makes this even more amazing is this is his first ever tour – wow! Paul has taken time away from his business in Japan, where he runs a guesthouse and English school, to make this venture. He had some incredible insights that he has gained during this time and we found him to be such a warm and engaging person. We’d love to catch up with him sometime and he invited us to come and stay at his guesthouse if we ever make it to Japan – hopefully!
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As we were getting our dished cleaned up from dinner, we stopped to talk to a young couple who had come in a little later. It turns out that Corbin and Silan are from Victoria, BC! Actually, they, just like us, had just moved there and left for their trip. They were originally from Prince Rupert, up on the northern coast of BC. They moved to Victoria so he could pursue his law degree but wanted to do this trip down the coast before he started school. We really enjoyed chatting with them and were so so surprised and pleased when they talked about staying at a Warmshowers in Lolita. Lolita? It couldn’t be! What were your hosts’ names, we asked. Jamie and Angela, they replied. How amazing was that?? The very same couple we had met while camping in the Redwoods and this young couple from our home province were their first ever Warmshowers guests!!! What a crazy world this is indeed!
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We finally got ourselves off to bed. We are getting up early as we want to tackle the 1200 foot climb that is Leggett Hill early to avoid the heat. Funnily enough, I am not as concerned about Leggett as I was about the hill coming out of Crescent City – hope that’s a good thing!
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