In those early years, many of Harry’s relatives were cycle tourists, and for five years, Alan and Kath "got the early miles in" riding their solo bikes with Harry, and the Holmes family who lived in Ermine Street in Everton. There was Les and Eva with their son Peter riding a triplet, and George with his two boys riding another triplet. And if we crossed the River Mersey by ferry to Birkenhead, we would call for Eva’s sister and husband and continue through Wirral to Two Mills Café for a break.
The Holmes Family, Eva, Peter and Les.
If the group preferred to cycle to Delamere forest, another popular venue, we would cross the River Mersey on the Transporter Bridge from Widnes to Runcorn, then on through Frodsham. Living in an area popular with football enthusiasts, we had to have a football with us to kick around after our lunch break. From the age of twelve, Alan was towing his new baby sister Sylvia in a trailer with his Jim Soens bicycle. Alan joined a Liverpool section of the Cyclists’ Touring Club in 1957, the Runcorn section of the CTC in 1982 when living in Warrington, and from 1989, was a member of the Mersey Roads racing club for ten years.
How Barbara and Alan met. We both prefer the countryside to big cities, and met during a group walk which started at Loggerheads, North Wales on the 1st September 1992. I was a regular midweek group leader; Barbara was a regular Sunday group walker and was invited to join the midweek group for a trial period. What neither knew at that time, one of the midweek walking group was matchmaking. Two weeks later, we met again. Barbara was invited by the midweek matchmaker to join the group on a walk through Dunham Massey Deer Park in Cheshire. It was during that gentle midweek walk, when Barbara asked me if I did anything more challenging. And by the end of that day, arrangements were made to visit Snowdon National Park the following Sunday.
The following few years. Barbara wasn’t a cyclist at that time, she didn’t have a bike. The matchmaker invited me to join the Sunday walking group for a trial period. Unlike the midweek group, this was a large, serious group. They have walks every Sunday for different abilities, visiting Lakeland, North Wales, Derbyshire and Yorkshire by coach. They also have a strong social scene using a clubroom in Oxton, Wirral for talks/slide shows every Thursday evening. But what about the Sunday bike rides? They became Saturday bike rides for me when Barbara had family over. Eight months on from when we met at Loggerheads, and Barbara had bought a new bicycle, an 18 inch ladies Raleigh Pioneer Endeavour, complete with triple chain-set, flex handlebar stem, mudguards, rear carrier, and pannier bags… a hybrid bike with 700c x 37 mm tyres that can be used on, or off road. The pain starts here.
Walking for Barbara was quite easy, living on a hill in Lower Heswall for years, even the hill walking was rewarding once she learned how to pace herself when with a group of ramblers. But how do you encourage a person to cycle, knowing it would be difficult at first? One of Barbara’s daughters lived in Liscard, a ten mile ride from Heswall. That short ride was fine at first, somewhere to aim for, and a place to rest and recover. By selecting when she cycled helped also, avoiding riding against strong winds, or in wet cold weather, not always possible in Britain!!! When the venue for food and rest wasn’t family’s house, it was a café popular with cyclists’ such as the Eureka café at Two Mills, or later when she was much fitter, Linda and Tim’s café in Rhydymwyn by Mold.
The regular miles paid off, Barbara was soon riding the Merseyside CTC Early Season Tourist Trials. A bit of a challenge. I had spoken many times to Barbara of the joys of cycle touring…..packing a bag with the bare minimum of luggage, and heading for the country lanes, and finding a comfortable place to sleep for the night. Shrewsbury in Shropshire was Barbara’s first long weekend away, cycle touring. The only problem, she thought the contents of her wardrobe would fit into four panniers bags!!! The comments from the cyclists’ when we arrived at the Eureka café, they thought we were starting a round the world tour, the amount of stuff we had!!! It was a great first cycling tour for Barbara, two nights B&B in Shrewsbury, and a ride to Powis Castle by Welshpool on what should have been a rest day. We cycled 160 miles for the three days…. pain free.
Bicycle for two. Tandem bicycles are the answer to balancing rider’s abilities, but it was with much trepidation when I noticed a used tandem for sale on the notice board in the Eureka cyclists’ café, because tandem riding doesn’t suit everyone! A short ride to Great Sutton to view, and it was ours. The reason for sale, the owners had bought it new before their two children were born, and had put it into store. What was amazing, the saddle heights, and handlebar reach fitted us, and what was a bonus, Barbara liked the blue colour of our….Dawes Super Galaxy Tandem. Hitting the Sweet Spot. Riding a tandem is more fun than a solo bike, a lot faster with two pushing. The first full day riding their tandem;- Out through Mold to Turner’s café in Saint Asaph for lunch, then called at Rhuddlan Castle, and Rhyl, before riding the North Wales coast road and home. The problem…it rained all that day.
Many happy days followed, riding every Wednesdays and Sundays for the next twelve months, sometimes with the cycling club, but mainly alone, because Barbara feels nervous riding the tandem when with a group. Why did they choose to cycle across America? During a visit to Knutsford, we learned of a Penny Farthing Bicycle Museum at 92, King Street. The museum owner, Glynn Stockdale had during 1995, rode an 1884 Penny Farthing Bicycle 3,300 miles from San Francisco to Boston. After reading Glynn’s account of his fantastic adventure, we knew what we wanted to do…
The Main Event. Planning our route across North America. There are many routes across North America that are used and recommended by bicycle clubs and travel companies, but none of them met our requirements. When my mum and dad realized we were serious about attempting this ride of a lifetime, they suggested that they all meet up at Kath’s home in Greenville, South Carolina. But where should we start our ride from? Friends in the walking club who had travelled around the world by air, talked about their visit to Vancouver and the splendid Butchart Gardens on Vancouver Island. Cycling from West to East, we may be lucky and have a tail wind every day! And if we started our ride in Vancouver in July, it should be warm and dry all the way to South Carolina! When Barbara looked at the large scale map of America, she realized we had to cross the high Rocky Mountain Range, which worried her.
The next stage was to pencil in places of interest, such as National Parks that would help give some focus on this very long cycle ride. A rough estimate of mileage from Vancouver to South Carolina was 3,500 to 4,000 miles (the popular Lands End to John O Groats cycle ride in Britain is approx 870 miles). Travelling without a support vehicle would mean the tandem would be heavy, slow going up-hills, and there would be lots of those, right from the start. The planned monthly mileage was 1,000 miles, approximately 250 miles per week, not so much when you look at it that way?
Flights, Passports/Visa and Accommodation. A direct flight from Manchester to Vancouver would have been expensive, as was a direct flight to Manchester from South Carolina. To get ‘a deal’ would mean hopping on and off a few planes, but how many? The travel agent was notified that a tandem bicycle would be part of our baggage allowance, and an ‘open flight ticket’ was required in case of any problems. Getting new passports was simple at the Liverpool Passport Office, but staying in North America for more than ninety days, a visa is required (this applied during 1997). A ten year visa was fixed to our passports at the American Embassy in London. When the British Columbia (BC) Tourist Information Office sent accommodation lists, a guest house was pre-booked for four nights in Vancouver. For accommodation across America, we planned to visit State Tourist Offices and obtain State Maps and accommodation details. Barbara doesn’t like camping, so that was out of the question.
Testing the tandem for what’s ahead. It’s always better to find a weakness in equipment before a long hard ride to anywhere. The English Lake District’s roads would be a good testing ground. A cottage was booked in Bowness-in-Windermere for two weeks about two months before the flight to Vancouver. And so it was, a weak link was found with the tandem, not one link, but a couple. After returning home, a stronger rear wheel was ordered from and fitted by Swallow Tandems, and the cantilever brakes and drum brake were altered to give more braking power, with better lever control. And to make doubly sure, chains and chain rings were renewed.
Trouble with flight arrangements. As you may know, flight tickets are delivered to your home about seven days in advance. Being thorough in these matters, I checked with the travel agent to make doubly sure there would be space on the aeroplane for the tandem, and was told no, only for solo bikes!!! The guy who had taken the booking for the tandem had left the travel agent company and there was no record about space for a tandem. What now? They were sorry, but there would be a 50% refund if we choose to cancel the flights. Following threats of court action, it was agreed that the tandem could go, only if it was boxed, and all fittings removed from the frame to make it more compact. The only way we could take our tandem to Vancouver was to do as ordered by the airline…. or was it the travel agent? Checking the flight tickets, we would be flying from Manchester to Amsterdam, change for Seattle, and then change again for Vancouver. Swallow Tandems recommend that the flight booking agent only be told that bicycles would be part of the passenger’s luggage and not mention the tandem.
The big day is here. Tuesday 15th July 1997…..the first day of the big adventure. We didn’t get much sleep that night wondering what lay ahead for the next four months (we had booked the return flight for November). The taxi arrived at 4 am taking us to Manchester airport for the 6.30 am flight to Amsterdam. Our bags were checked through without any problems, but the box containing the tandem frame and parts had to pass through a large x-ray machine, and we had to be with it. But no problem, no drugs, explosives or illegal immigrants were found in the box or the frame. It was fascinating seeing through the tandem frame tubing in colour.
The Flight Journey. I don’t know much about the types of aircraft. All I can say is that Barbara was fine flying until we boarded the jumbo jet in Amsterdam. It was so large; she wondered how it would manage to lift off the runway. It was the width of the passenger lounge that impressed Barbara, row upon row of seats, like sitting in a cinema. The unexpected happed when crossing America; for some unknown reason we stopped at Detroit airport before reaching Seattle and had to collect the bags and tandem, then pass through immigration control. This caused a big delay, and when we eventually arrived at Seattle airport, we didn’t have time to collect the tandem or bags before boarding the very small plane to Vancouver. They were sent on to Henley House guest home the next morning. As it happened, we were able to assemble the tandem in the comfort of the guest home garden instead of at the airport complex! It was a long day for us, we arrived at the guest house by taxi at 8.30 pm Pacific Time = GMT minus 8 hours. More than 24 hours from leaving home!!!
Time to relax. It was by chance that Kath’s husband Allen had a business meeting in Vancouver on the 17th July, and that Kath was able to accompany him. They were staying in the city centre at Hotel Vancouver and had arranged a hire car for a few days. We were staying a short train journey away in New Westminster, a suburb of Vancouver. During the relaxing few days in Vancouver, we enjoyed the sun, sea, and the nearby hills during a visit to Squarmish, when driving the Sea to Sky Road with Kath at the helm. Vancouver Travel Guide 1997; Virtually everyone that comes to Vancouver comments on the city’s beauty – its extraordinary greenery, its spectacular backdrop of mountains, its stretches of oceanfront. Over 200 years ago Captain George Vancouver arrived at the site of our city, and lent his name to a place that has grown into a major Pacific Rim City and with an International Profile and diverse cultural heritage…We all enjoyed Vancouver. Kath and Allen’s short visit was over by the 19th, they returned to Seattle by road, followed by a long flight to their home in South Carolina. This gave Barbara a chance to meet Kath and Allen for the first time before our visit to their home in three to four months time.
Vancouver Island, province of British Columbia. Vancouver to Brentwood Bay – 50 road miles – dry & sunny 85’f. We couldn’t have asked for better weather as we said thank you and goodbye to Ross and Ann, our Henley House guest home hosts. This was our first day riding the tandem with all our luggage on board, and it took some time getting used to the extra weight on the hills (we had it weighed = over 100 pounds). After crossing the Fraser River, we cycled the few kilometres south (Canadian miles) to the car ferry terminal at Tsawwassen. The one and a half hour ferry crossing to Swartz Bay on Vancouver Island was a delight. After visiting a tourist information office to find the location of The Butchart Gardens, we cycled to Brentwood Bay and found The Shires B&B, owned by Gwen and Tom Cooper who had lived most of their lives in Leicester, England. Leaving our heavy luggage in our room, we cycled the short distance down hill to the famous gardens. After food and a tour of the gardens (in that order), we joined the many visitors and watched the Saturday evening Firework Display. Well worth the visit, fabulous day. Brentwood Bay to Anacortes – 15 road miles – dry & sunny 85’f.
After a good nights rest, and a full English breakfast with our hosts Gwen and Tom, we chatted for a while and admired the knitting that Gwen had done. Before we moved off, we agreed to send Gwen knitting patterns from England. Retrace, but only the short distance to Sidney car ferry terminal by Victoria National Airport where we checked through U.S.A. immigration control and boarded the car ferry. This time we had a longer cruise, three hours twisting and turning through the shallow waters between the San Juan Islands to Anacortes at the Northern tip of Whidbey Island. There were many cyclists’ visiting the islands, we were very close to Seattle where there are many cycling clubs. It was on this ferry that we were given advice on a tandem friendly route through the Cascade Mountains in Washington State. Looking at Anacortes, there weren’t many motels, and what there were looked full. At the Anacortes Inn, they had one vacant room, and that was upstairs. "Can we take the tandem into our room? No, but it will be safe in the laundry room". The view from our room over the motel swimming pool was wonderful. State of Washington U.S.A. Anacortes to Everett – 65 road miles – cloudy but dry 65’f. This would have been a good day, but for the road works that went on for miles. This meant following a pilot vehicle for miles, riding at higher than normal speeds at the front of a line of cars and trucks on a gravel surface, constantly being told to speed up by the pilot truck co-driver. Eventually we cleared the road works and were able to enjoy the scenery riding South on this narrow stretch of land called Whidbey Island.
On reaching the Southern tip, we used another car ferry, this time taking us the short distance to the mainland. We were now at Mukilteo, just a few miles South of Everett where we hoped to find Motel accommodation. As we approached the town, I asked a woman jogger for directions and was told to wait in the nearby parkland for a few minutes. She would complete her jog, and return very soon. From the park bench we could see across to the many islands that we had visited - a wonderful scene, what a glorious place to live we thought. When the woman returned, we were invited to be her guests for the night - Claudia lived across from the park. Once we were settled into the guest room, dinner with Claudia, and then off in her car to see the Boeing Aerospace Factory, and later, part of the cycle route we would follow the next morning. Everett to Index – 45 miles – dry sunny 70’f. Thank you, and goodbye to Claudia. As we were leaving she said sorry about the window curtains in the guest room, keep in touch, and if we had any problems on the road, she would help.
We knew today would be hard, the start of the long climb through the Cascade Mountains. In this area are several high peaks such as Mt. Baker to the North, Mt. Olympus to the West, and the daddy of them all at 14,411 feet - Mt. Rainier to the South. Although it was July 22nd, the lower 7,000 ft peaks were still covered in snow. Route #2 out of Everett is busy, but there is a wide hard shoulder to cycle on.
We are heading for Missoula in Montana to visit the headquarters of Adventure Cycling, and are using a minor road…. the heavy fast traffic would use Interstate 90, which is many miles South of route #2. After 45 very scenic miles, we came to Index, a small logging town off the main highway where we hoped to find accommodation. We couldn’t see any Hotel signs as we entered this small town. Then after a tour of the town, we decided to ask at the Post Office, they should help. Then a funny thing happened…we were approached by a guy with a Liverpool accent who looked very familiar. He was one of the actors from ‘Brookside’ (TV soap opera), on vacation in America, and staying in town with friends.
After a short introduction, we were directed to the Bush House Inn, a very old Inn dating back to 1893, complete with ghost, so we were told. Index to Leavenworth 65miles (no, not the penitentiary). Dry sunny 80 degrees Fahrenheit. The morning brought clear skies, the views of the mountains and forests from the Inn were great. We could see why the actor stayed here, friendly people, white water canoeing, hill walking, and lots of fresh clean air. Rejoined highway #2, and the start of our first mountain pass on the tandem, Stevens Pass at 4,061 feet elevation. After many miles riding those low ‘granny gears’, we came to more road works and had to walk four miles. Following a long rest stop at Deception Falls, we continued climbing to the Ski Centre at the summit, then raced down at speeds up to 44 miles per hour. This brought lots of concern for Barbara whose imagination can bring fear of crashing and injury. She had control of the rear wheel drum brake, and the speed was soon reduced to a calmer 27 miles per hour. At the end of an exhausting, but exciting day, we came to Leavenworth and looked for the guest house which had been recommended earlier, but it was full. Leavenworth is a Bavarian Town, and being very picturesque, brings many visitors. On the edge of town we found the Bavern Motor Inn on the river, and decided to stay for two nights.
Rest day in Leavenworth – dry sunny 80’f. If you ever visit America/Canada, you will find many different types of settlements, and Leavenworth is a wonderful example. The tall wooden houses with lots of flower filled window boxes looked fantastic in the sun. On the green, was a craft fair with some locals dressed in traditional Bavarian colourful costumes. The restaurant menus listed Bavarian dishes and wines. We had a bit of fun in one gift shop, trying hats with realistic hair pieces; Barbara looked like Dolly Parton, the country and western singer; I looked like an old farmer. Leavenworth to Quincy – 63 miles – dry sunny 110’f.
Leavenworth.
Leaving the very nice motel on the river, we joined highway #2 and #97 and had breakfast at Cashmere. After visiting the town shops to buy an air temperature gauge, we followed the signs to the old log cabins and museum to see how the town looked 200 years ago in the days of the fur trappers. Moving on to Wenatchee, a much larger town, we were directed along a cycle path which took us across a bridge, then along the mighty Columbia River to East Wenatchee where we had lunch in a supermarket cafe. Being midday, the air temperature was high, but we didn’t know how high. Looking at the many time/temperature displays outside the banks, we realized this was the hottest day so far – 110 degrees Fahrenheit, but were we drinking enough water?
As we followed highway #28, the river road, we could see changes to the landscape. The forests were replaced with sand dunes and scrub land. Looking back, we could see the snow on the Cascade Mountains. Many miles later after passing Rock Island Dam Power Station, we climbed high above the river valley to Trinidad and finally on that hot day, Quincy where we found a Motel. After a cool shower, we asked motel manager Greg where the diner was, "down the road aways, I will take you folks in my car, and when you’ve finished, ring that number and I will collect you from the diner". There are many small towns spaced out on the old roads in this part of central Washington State, but looking at the map, highway #28 looked more promising than continuing along highway #2 through Coulee City. It is important that we find food and water stops at frequent intervals. Quincy to Odessa – 66 miles – dry sunny high of 110’f.
Washington Farm Land.
After a good nights rest in our air conditioned motel room, we said thank you and goodbye to Greg and pedalled to the diner for breakfast. We always prefer a light breakfast, usually grits (similar to porridge, only different), toast and jam. Lucky again today finding food stops. Lunch was at a Safeway Store in Ephrata, then about twelve miles on, another rest out of the hot sun in a small shop at Stratford. We were also lucky today finding accommodation because highway #28 is very quiet, only the odd truck or farm tractor. We were surprised when we came to Odessa and found Derr House B&B.;Mainly desert with pockets of farm land, undulating quiet road which made us try hard at times. Odessa to Davenport – only 38 miles – dry sunny 95’f. It was a welcome change staying with a family in a guest house, the home cooking was wonderful. And with us being the only guests, our hosts were interested in knowing about our adventures, cycling across America. When we were about to leave, our host showed us his ‘Pride and Joy’, a ‘1956 Chevy Bell Air Classic Car’.
Today was another hot sunny day, riding through miles and miles of wheat fields without seeing a soul, we could see why Washington is called ‘the bread basket state’. No trees, no birds or animals, just hot sun overhead all day. After twenty four miles we came to Harrington, a small farming town where we had pancakes with maple syrup, and lots of cold drinks. When we reached Davenport, we found a motel with a diner next door. It was only mid afternoon, we were tired, and the sun was getting to us big time. Davenport to Spokane – 38 miles – dry sunny 95’f. Rejoin busy highway #2, with scenery now more interesting. It was strange seeing trees again, and hearing birds singing overhead. Highway #2 joined Interstate 90 as we approached the city of Spokane. We entered the city looking for the American Youth Hostel listed in our handbook. We eventually found it, but it was closed for business. The present owner gave us a tour of the house; he was having it converted into a hotel.
Back down the steep hill into town, looking again for suitable accommodation. When we came to Cavanaugh’s 4th Avenue Hotel, I asked at the reception desk for directions to a budget priced motel, and was surprised when the desk clerk offered me a deal for senior citizens. When the bell boy came for our bags, he was shocked when he saw the tandem. I was allowed to wheel the tandem over the thick pile carpet through the lobby to our fine room. From that day, we always asked for senior citizens rates, well done Cavanaugh’s! Wow, was this a first; English bicyclists’ staying in a posh hotel. Luck was on our side again when we went downtown to ‘Rock City Grill’ for dinner and talked with an Italian waiter. He told us of a way to avoid the busy highway from Spokane by using the Centennial Bicycle Trail which would take us East into Idaho State.
