Katie MacDonald - Bike the US for MS
Day 62 - July 28 - Newport, WA to Coleville National Forest, WA - 65.1miI left at 7am with Frank, Sharon, and Jen this morning. It was pretty cool out in the morning, which was nice because it got really hot later on. Just before R1, we saw some bison in a field on the side of the road, and pulled over to take pictures. We stopped at the rest stop on the side of the road, and snacked before heading on. About 1.5mi out, Sharon's derailleur cable snapped, and she had to turn around to go back to the rest stop to get it fixed. In the time it took to get from R1 to R2 my chain dropped twice, so Connor looked at it at R2. After R2, we had a big climb into camp. The grade wasn't to bad, and it wasn't that long, but we were in direct sunlight and it was boiling hot. I was pretty relieved when we finally rolled in to camp. We're staying at the Beaver Lodge tonight, and it is really fantastic. We had lunch at the restaurant, and found out that there were showers, which we didn't think we had access to. Sharon also asked if there were laundry facilities, and the manager let us use it for free, even though it's not technically for guests. We hung out at the restaurant and used the wifi for most of the afternoon, and then I took a short nap in my hammock before dinner. After dinner, we hung out at camp reading the pun book that Catherine sent us in the mail. Pretty good day over all! Day 63 - July 29 - Coleville National Forest, WA to Republic, WA - 81.7miWow today was tough. We got an early start, and left camp at 6am. I forgot my Rumble Supershake on the picnic table though, and remembered it 2 minutes in, so I had to turn around and get it. Sharon and Frank waited for me at a beautiful waterfall a few miles into the route. It was mostly downhill into Coleville, where we stopped at a gas station for water. It was freezing cold when we left camp, but by this point it was starting to get really hot. We had to detour around some construction, and got a little mixed up leaving town, but we found our way back to the route. 15mi later, we stopped at another gas station in Kettle Falls, to refill our bottles, and get an extra bottle for the climb. We also got some snacks, and hung out for a bit, procrastinating what we knew would be a tough climb. The climb started as soon as we crossed the river and left Kettle Falls. This was a really tough climb. It was about 20mi long, and we gained over 4000ft of elevation. It was also super hot, and there was very little shade along the road. Connor had popsicles and ice cold water waiting for us halfway up, which helped quite a bit. The last 7mi were the hardest though, and I had to take a number of breaks. I almost completely wiped out at one point when I was standing up pedalling, and took one hand off my bars to skip a song on my iPod, and totally lost my balance. Eventually, I made it to the top of Sherman Pass. Sharon, Grant, and Chandler were hanging out at the top, and Frank, Eddie, and Vikki came up after me. I somehow managed to find the energy to hold my bike over my head, and hang from the elevation sign for pictures. The descent down was nice, but it was clear that it was got hotter the further down the mountain we went. Going downhill, without pedalling, we were getting hit by waves of heat. I also had to stop at one point, because a butterfly flew into the side of my head, and I ended up with butterfly guts all over my right ear. When Frank and I got to the bottom, we were flagged down by Sharon, who had found a restaurant for lunch. We cooled off in the air conditioning, and had a pretty good meal. We are staying at the fairgrounds tonight, and they have wifi and showers! I used the wifi for a bit, then set up my tent in the shade. Everyone was hanging out in the shade next to the van, so I joined until dinner. We also got to open A second gift from Catherine, which was a bag of Fritos (her snack of choice at rest stops). Thanks Catherine! A bunch of us walked back up to the same restaurant to eat again. Jen asked us to pick up some pie for her, so we decided to play a prank and got her the good pie, as well as some prepackaged gas station pie. When we got back to camp, Julia gave her the gas station pie, and apologized, saying it was all they had. Unfortunately I missed the whole thing, because I was washing my dishes, but it was pretty hilarious. Day 64 - July 30 - Republic, WA to Tonasket, WA - 43.8miWhat a great day! Woke up to the sound of roosters at a nearby farm, and was on the road just after 8am. We took a bike path into Republic, then started the climb immediately after town. The climb was nowhere near as tough as yesterday's. It was a lot cooler in temperature, and parts of the climb were shaded. It was also a lower grade, and about half the amount of climbing (2000ft). I finished the 15mi climb in 1h 48m, just before 10am. This is the first mountain pass we've done where I didn't have to take a single break on the ascent, so I was pretty proud of myself. Jen was already at the top talking to some German cyclists, and Sharon and Frank arrived shortly after me. We hung out for a bit, got the obligatory photo, and we're just about to leave when the van arrived, followed by Vikki and Alison. The descent, 4000ft over 30mi, was not as good as I had hoped for, but it was still pretty great. There were a number of flat sections mixed in with parts that were 5-6% grade. There were headwinds for most of it, so I didn't get to go too fast. At one point, when Sharon was way ahead of me, and Frank was way behind me, I started singing along to my iPod. All of a sudden, I look in my mirror and Frank is right behind me, definitely within earshot. I'm not the best singer under regular conditions, and certainly much worse when I am out of breath, so I really hope he didn't hear me. It is really amazing how fast the terrain changed. The past couple days we have been going through thick green forests, but as soon as we got to the other side of the pass, it was like we were in a desert. By the time we got to town, it was ridiculously hot, probably 35-40 degrees Celsius. We grabbed lunch at the Texas Diner across the street from camp, and then headed to the laundromat to shower and do laundry. While the laundry was in, Vikki, Sharon, Julia, and I ran across the street for ice cream to cool down. After laundry, I spent most of my afternoon in my hammock in the gazebo at camp, watching Netflix, and taking advantage of the fact that I finally have service and can use my data. Later in the afternoon, I went for round two of ice cream, watched more Netflix, then joined some people at the Mexican restaurant. I didn't eat there though, because later I went to the taco truck with Eddie, Stefan, Megan, Vikki, and Chandler. These tacos were fantastic, and only $1.25 each! I ate 7 of them, and had absolutely no regrets. Apparently the record from previous years is 20 tacos. Sleeping in the hammock tonight, with Grant and Chandler in their hammocks beside me. Hoping the support beam we are hanging from is strong enough to hold all of us! Day 65 - July 31 - Tonasket, WA to Winthrop, WA - 70.7miGood news, the support beam didn't break! I had a great sleep in my hammock, and was ready to go super fast this morning because I didn't have to take the time to put away my tent. Sharon, Frank, and I went to the gas station to fill our water bottles with ice cold water, and then took highway 20 out of town. We had a good ride into Omak, and the roads were quiet enough at times that we could ride side by side and chat. At one point, we came across a heavy duty farm field watering system that was spraying water onto the road, and had to ride straight through it. It was a bit on the chilly side, but later in the day I would have given anything to go through it again. We were slightly ahead of the van, so we made our own rest stop at a gas station, and fuelled up with snacks. After leaving town, we started our third mountain climb in three days - Loup Loup Pass. The beginning of this one was really tough. It was a decent grade, and then all of a sudden it got really steep, with absolutely nothing around to shade us from the hot sun. Thankfully, this didn't last for too long though. I refilled with water at the van and trailer about 10mi from the top, and then picked up speed down a nice little descent in the middle of the climb. This pass wasn't as physically challenging as Sherman Pass, but it was mentally challenging at times. At one point, I got really mad at my Garmin bike computer for displaying that I was losing elevation, when I was working my butt off to go uphill. Eventually though, as always, I got to the top and relaxed for a bit before the descent. The descent was pretty great at times, and the first segment was 6% grade for 8mi. As we went down, we were surrounded by badly charred trees - evidence that there must have been a forest fire not too long ago. We stopped for Mexican food in Twisp, then slowly, and full of food, finished the last 8mi into camp. At the KOA, we had a relaxing afternoon soaking in lawn chairs in the river. The water was pretty cold, but once my feet went numb it was alright. I had cereal for dinner, and hung out in my hammock for a bit afterwards. Only one more day of mountain passes! Day 66 - August 1 - Winthrop, WA to Diablo, WA - 65miGot up at 5:45, and was on the road by 7am with Frank and Sharon. Wishing I had gone into town to explore it last night, because it looked so cute as we biked through this morning! Rest stop one was supposed to be at a market at mile 20, but this turned out not to exist, so we snacked on the side of the road instead, slightly into the beginning of the climb. Washington Pass was definitely the most scenic climb we have had since Glacier. It was really beautiful, and I stopped a couple times for pictures. It was a decent climb, and had a large switchback right before the top. After stopping for pictures, we had a 3mi descent, then a short climb to our second pass of the day, and final pass of the trip - Rainy Pass. We had R2 here, got some photos, and then had a pretty great descent, at least for the first little bit. Eventually, the winds picked up and we were having to fight them a little bit. There were also a few hills that we had to go up near the bottom of the climb. The last 7mi, I was just really ready to be done for the day. Right before camp though, we got a breathtaking view of Diablo Lake, which is a really pretty shade of blue. There is absolutely nothing here besides the campground, which I was totally unprepared for and had barely any food to make for lunch or dinner. I hosed off at the spigot, then took a nap for most of the afternoon. When I woke up, I made instant mashed potatoes and refried beans - the only two dinner items left in my food cubby. It was not a very satisfying dinner, especially after a mountain climbing day. Later in the evening, we all hung around by the picnic table and chatted. When it got dark, we made a campfire. At one point, we heard someone snoring, and we're trying to figure out if it was Frank or Julia. Frank overheard us, and shouted from his tent "it's not Frank". Day 67 - August 2 - Diablo, WA to Darrington, WA - 56.3miLast night was one of the worst sleeps I have had on the trip. Every sound I heard, I was convinced was a bear, and couldn't sleep for hours. When my alarm went off at 6:45, I could hear rain. I peaked through the little window on my tent, and saw nobody was moving, so I went back to sleep. Maybe 30min later, Sharon came over to my tent, and we decided to wait until the rain ended to get going. This meant I got to sleep until 8, which was much needed. I was slow moving in the morning, and ended up having to rush in order to leave with Frank and Sharon. I stopped for a couple photos of Diablo Lake, and then started the day off with a small climb. The scenery was incredible this morning, with the clouds covering the tops of the mountains. We stopped at a general store in Newhalem, got some snacks, and took photos with the train. Luke, Ethan, and Guy caught up to us here, and we all rode on to Marblemount together. We got breakfast in Marblemount, and it was amazing. I got eggs benedict, and split an order or cinnamon french toast with Sharon. There was light rain, on and off, for most of the day. Frank, Sharon, and I rode into Darrington together, and stopped at the grocery store to get food for dinner. After the grocery store, we went to the Burger Barn to get ice cream, but were told that they were out. We stuck around and used the wifi for a bit, and then biked the last 4mi to camp. Washington's geography is pretty amazing. We have been through mountains, a desert, and now we are basically in a rainforest. Camp tonight is pretty beautiful, which makes up for the fact that it was impossible to get the stakes of my tent into the ground. I had my dinner, and hung out while the guys played wiffleball. Currently I'm sitting by the campfire with almost the whole team. Can't believe this is going to be over in a couple days! Day 68 - August 3- Darrington, WA to Snohomish, WA - 48.1miSecond last day. Crazy. Had a much better sleep last night, and woke up in the beautiful rainforest. The route leaders set up a cereal buffet for us for breakfast, which was super great of them. Frank, Sharon, and I rolled out together, and headed to Arlington for the first rest stop. We grabbed an awesome second breakfast at the Stilly Diner. After the diner, we headed back to the official rest stop and met Shayna, Ethan's girlfriend who had flown out to surprise him. We waited around to see his reaction, which was adorable. Also during this time, Sharon pointed out that my tire pressure looked low. I pumped them up, and discovered that I had been riding at 45psi for the past little while (normally I ride at around 90psi). I rode with Chandler and Sharon, and we managed to go at a pretty fast pace along the bike path. We were in Snohomish in no time, and were able to shower at the aquatic centre nearby. Sharon, Frank, and I then walked about 3mi round trip to do laundry, which was probably not worth the walk. We attempted to taxi back, but it would have taken 45min to get one. Back at camp, a soccer field tonight, Ryan showed up and surprised Alison. We all went out for Thai food, and then ice cream. At the Thai restaurant, Julia told us about how her and Vikki had talked to the attendant at the laundromat, and he had asked if they were biking from Maine to Seattle. They said they were, and he replied that he had just met a mother, father, and daughter who were doing that ride. Apparently he though Frank and Sharon were my parents! After dinner, we set up our tents for the last time, and I attempted to start packing up my stuff. At around 10:30, Catherine arrived! She managed to get on an earlier flight, and drove out to camp so that she can ride the last day with us tomorrow. So great to have her back with the team. A bunch of us stayed up until around 12:30am, catching up, talking about tomorrow, and just hanging out. Day 69 - August 4 - Snohomish, WA to Seattle, WA - 39.3miThe last day. Still can't wrap my head around it. I woke up at 6:30, to the sound of people talking near the trailer. Getting ready this morning felt different than most other morning. I didn't feel rushed, everyone was chatting, and moving at a fairly slow pace. At one point, a few of the smaller people on the team tried squeezing ourselves into empty cubbies in the trailer. Turns out I actually fit in my cubby! We rolled out as a team just after 8am, and went for one last breakfast at Jake's in Snohomish. I ordered a scrambler, which is bacon, eggs, cheese, and hash browns all mixed together. This thing was huge! One of the only breakfasts on the trip that I couldn't finish. Even with Grant helping me, I only got through about half of it. We all rode out as a team, minus Grant who stayed behind to fix a flat and said he would catch up. The first part of the morning included a not-so-insignificant climb (~600ft) which I was not expecting, but it wasn’t too bad. R1 was at a Target about 15mi in, where we all stopped and regrouped. Eddie played the song “A Thousand Miles” for us, and we sang along as we left our last rest stop of the trip. We were on a bike path for the rest of the ride in. Catherine, Sharon, Chandler, and I stopped to take a photo of the “welcome to Seattle” sign. Sharon took off after the photo, and Andrea caught up to us, so Chandler, Catherine, Andrea, and I rode together for a while. Chandler blasted Disney songs off his phone, and we all sang along and took turns requesting songs. “Go the Distance” from Hercules turned out to be a very fitting song for how we were feeling. We eventually saw some teammates’ bikes in front of a bike shop along the trail, and stopped to check it out. After this, it was on to Gasworks Park, where we regrouped before riding in to Peddler’s as a team for our celebratory lunch. Peddler’s had a taco truck, free beer, and we were cheered on by a bunch of people as we rode in. It was really cool getting to meet everyone’s friends and family. We also got to meet some people from the Swedish MS Center in Seattle, who we got to present a $15,000 cheque to. It was at Peddler’s that we also got the long awaited 4,295 mile bumper sticker, and the BTUSFMS socks! This is definitely the hardest I have ever worked to earn a pair of socks. After we wrapped up lunch, we biked out as a group to finish the last 2mi of the summer. I rode near the front of the group, with Catherine, Grant, Eddie, Stefan, and Connor, as we headed towards the ocean. About 0.25mi from the finish line, my parents were hiding behind a tree taking pictures of us riding in! I almost crashed my bike when I saw them, because I didn’t know they were coming. Best surprise ever! We were directed off the bike path and onto the beach by a large group of people cheering and holding signs. As soon as we hopped off our bikes, we were each handed a bottle of champagne, and I was quickly covered head to toe by Grant spraying his champagne bottle over everyone. I honestly can’t put into words how I was feeling when we lined up along the water and dipped our front tires. We posed for photos, and then a bunch of us jumped into the Pacific, still wearing our jerseys. Julia unfortunately forgot to take her phone out of her back pocket, so it went swimming with her. Just as we were wrapping up, and people were starting to leave, Austin arrived! We got some more photos, and then headed up to the road to get an Uber to the hotel. Just as we were getting the Uber, I realized that I had to run back to the trailer, which was at the Edgewater Hotel (where the rest of the team is staying), so that I could get clothes to change into after a shower. This resulted in me running 0.3mi, soaking wet, with no shoes on, through a busy Seattle sidewalk, so that I could get everything I needed before the Uber showed up. Eventually, we made to the Sheraton, and I was able to rinse off the champagne and salt water before celebrating with Austin and my parents. Later in the night I cleaned out my cubby, signed the trailer wall, and went out with the team to celebrate making it across the country. It was hard saying goodbye to everyone at the end of the night, and there were some people that I didn’t even get to say goodbye to because of all the commotion at the beach. This team really became like a family over the course of the summer, and I’m going to miss everyone like crazy.
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katie macdonald
Summer 2016, I biked 4,295 miles, coast to coast across the USA to raise money and awareness for MS. March 2017, I biked self-contained from San Francisco to San Diego with my friend Carissa. August 2017 I connected the dots and biked from Seattle to San Francisco. Summer 2018 I am heading to the UK! Follow my journey here! Miles biked for MS:
6,800.13
Updated August 27, 2018 Archives
January 2019
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