Why are we doing this again?

Distance: 44km

The sofa bed was so comfortable... we slept longer than planned. We said bye to another great set of hosts (and a terrific dog!) and headed to the bike shop to buy Sam a new tyre and get a puncture repair kit that actually worked!

A long, late lunch was enjoyed... and then it was time to head out of Portland. Despite a wrong turn early on, we were soon on the 99W road towards the coast.

But it wasn't the glorious return to biking I'd expected. The bike seemed so much heavier, my legs so much weaker and the hills so much harder... two and half weeks without touring was a long time! It felt like riding through mud, it was so hard to get any rhythm.

As the time to camp came upon us, I felt like crying. I wanted a shower, but there wouldn't be one tonight. I needed a bathroom, but a group of shrubs under the cover of darkness would be my bathroom. 

Luckily Sam was better able to readjust to the nomadic lifestyle, and he found us a perfect camping spot amongst some trees next to a hospital. It was our first night camping in America and, unsure of what to expect, we reassured ourselves that we couldn't have picked a better place in case of attack from bears or people with guns.