Since we arrived, locals have been telling us how lucky we are with regard to the weather. Instead of bright and clear, they say, it could just as easily be gloomy and pouring rain.
It started raining today as we were eating lunch. In a land of fish and chips, steaks, and fresh oysters, this vegetarian won't need to eat any cheese again for a while. Thank goodness for the continental breakfast, where I can, with my coffee, get fruit and oatmeal.
As we were paying for our lunch, the gentleman behind the counter
told us, Yep, it's gonna rain all day, then it's going to freeze
over. Drive carefully!
That's a prediction I hope doesn't come true.
This morning we did some housekeeping, taking our laundry up to Corkrey's Coin-op Laundry in Nehalem, and the wifi reception there is surprisingly good. The downtime—yes, on vacation, I'm talking about downtime—gave me a chance to catch up on some email.
We planned to take a walk on the beach on the way back from lunch, but the rain and chill put the kibosh on that, so we just parked off the road up the beach from the Twin Rocks and watched the surf for a while.
After a turn around the antique shop in Wheeler, we came back to the hotel for a quiet evening. Tomorrow, we'll drive up 101, cross the Astoria bridge into Washington, and head into Seattle. The debate we're having, now, is how long to keep the car, once we get back to Portland. We planned to turn it in right away, and use public transportation to get around, but since we've arrived, we keep learning of things we're interested in doing in the Portland area that aren't well-served by public transport.
It's a question we're going to have to answer soon, so we can extend the contract on the car if we need to.
I'm still getting the hang of this cold weather riding thing. I've made two subfreezing rides in my life, and many in the 0-5°C range.
Last week, for a ride when it was about 4°, I wore tights and piled a wicking layer, a wool jersey, and a windbreaker on top. I thought I was going to die. After about a mile I had to unzip the windbreaker and the jersey. I wore my normal fingerless gloves though, and those were a serious chink in my armor.
Today the readout on my panel says -3°; I wore tights again, full gloves over my bicycle gloves, which provide padding the full gloves don't. My hands and legs were fine. On top, I wore a wicking layer and a sweater. I know my face is vulnerable, so I grabbed a fleece scarf and a hat to cover my ears. Unfortunately, the scarf would not stay in place over my nose and mouth, fine for today, but I'm going to need something better for colder temperatures. I also need to look into better footgear. My toes are still numb.
My prediction that the cold snap we endured near the beginning of the year would be our annual bout of frigid weather has been debunked.
I woke up this morning to a blanket of white. I finished shoveling a little while ago. It's cold, but not unpleasantly so. Grainy ice lay under the powdery snow.
Barbara had a hot cup of coffee waiting for me when I came back inside. When I finish warming up, I'm going to foolishly venture to work. Where else can I get anything done, but in a certain building? After all, in Oswego, NY they've almost four meters of snow; a few inches is nothin'.