Friday 3rd September 2004

Still at Fort Stevens, but a day when we finally visited Astoria and so completed the official transAm route. We originally intended to go by bus, but the first bus we missed by seconds, arriving at the road slightly too late, the second bus we misidentified as an RV (Recreational Vehicle) - but it was the bus, so it flew by at speed. At this point we decided to cycle - inspite of a pedal starting to grind on Steve's bike. Well, we headed in, haggled with a bike shop to get some lithium grease and ball bearings for a pedal, and then went round the book shops. Steve now has an excess of cat mysteries and is carrying a small library. Perhaps I could become a mobile library for the Oregon coast? Surfing while the customers browsed?

Astoria is quite an alternative place - in one bookshop a man, Dave, was doing psychic readings in amidst the bookshelves. He chatted to us and revealed that he had just had a reading that said he should go and live in Wales. he asked us where might be suitable. Immediately we both thought of Machynlleth and said he'd fit in nicely amidst the wind turbines and incense sticks. He wrote it down and said he'd try the area. Just after that, a Welshman walked into the shop, a surprising event in the middle of Oregon, and we left Dave and a new found friend discussing the merits of various locations in Wales. (at this point in the original version of this page, my computer timed me out in Aberdeen, Washington, library - "I need to find a friendly library"). The narrative was then completed in the library at Montesano... Guy found a dentist in Astoria that examined his teeth for free! This was a true miracle, and ended with a prescription that brought colour into Guy's cheeks and joy back into his heart (he's been like a sick dog when his tooth hurt). Finally we climhed the Astoria column, set high on a hill overlooking the town, and felt dizzy at the height. The column marks the end of the transAm official route. In the photo you may be able to make out Guy, waving (and feeling dizzy) at the very top of the tower. We cycled back to Fort Stevens and watched the sun go down over the churning sea at the end of the Columbia River, looking out towards the distance Cape Disappointment, where we hoped to go tomorrow.