Summer 1997 - Yukon to California
Journals - 27 July 1997
Day 17
27 July 1997 (sunny; mileage = 35.8; Birch Bay, WA) -- A - What a chore
figuring out how to pack all this stuff on the bikes! We got back to it
this morning, with the interruptions of having breakfast, talking to
Andreas, me taking a shower and starting to lk., getting information on
the bike shuttle through the non-rideable bike tunnel south of Richmond,
trying to find some place we could ship our stuff from, and probably a
bunch more things. We finally got it all crammed on and tied down and
headed for the shuttle. We got there just in time, but there were only 2
spots left on the trailer and it was a logistical nightmare to get ours on
in the middle of the rest of them. Then a five-minute ride to the unloading
zone where we had to reassemble and then figure out where to go. The driver
helped and we got on our way about an hour after we got on the shuttle. I
got a flat due to a nail being jammed into my tire. We (Chris) changed it
in the shade of a barn and the farm owner drove over to make sure we
weren't smoking or something and told us a roofing truck had hit a culvert
and flipped upside down (due to drunkenness) and had spilled a bunch of
nails. There were 4 holes and the patch didn't hold right away, so he put
in a new tube. We stopped at a fruit stand and Chris bought a pint of
raspberries for $1. He says they were the best he's ever had. Then we had
lunch at a restaurant to use the rest of our Canadian $ up and had a yummy
meal. It wasn't much further to the border. They were assholes. Not to us
intentionally, but just by nature. He checked our IDs and rifled through
the handlebar bag and came out to look at the bikes. He asked if we had any
narcotics or fruit. We had fruit but it was OK eventually. We stopped at
an info center where we got some maps and directions to campgrounds. This
area is filled with vacationers, but this campground isn't too bad. It was
amazing how perceptible it was that we were back in the U.S. Pity that (we
did see some really nice Washington mountains on the way here, though).
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