One last rip through the PNW

By: John Rathwell

By KAVU

May 10^th, 2022

Sometimes plans change....

Which is the reason we we went on this one last rip in the PNW (Pacific Northwest). Ha! And, even during 'this' motorcycle trip.... plans ended up changing.

We moved out to Vancouver Island a few years back with the plan of staying. Which, was a great plan until cost of housing went through the roof and we felt we needed to start looking toward moving back east.

I have dreamed of doing a motorcycle trip around the Olympic Peninsula since moving here, but with the Canada/US border closed to land crossings during the pandemic, it never happened.

With 2 weeks before our big move..... it was time to do it.

KAVU Days Ahead!!

Everything is better with good friends!

I asked Amy if she wanted to come along, and of course she was down for this KAVU adventure.

So, we loaded up our bikes with camping gear, warm clothes and a bit of food and headed to the Coho Ferry to cross from Victoria BC, to Port Angeles WA. The plan..... to get off the boat and first, head to Neah Bay.

We we sailed across the Juan de Fuca Straight we noticed it was pretty socked in with fog and clouds towards Neah Bay, so we decided last minute to flip our route and go clockwise around the Peninsula instead of the other way around.

We rode our bikes through Port Angeles and headed east in search of those endless windy dirt roads the Olympics are known for.... and they did not disappoint.

The forest was green, lush and full of fresh, spring life. The views were expansive with massive rock walls and huge cedars. It was the kind of riding where you just lose track of everything. Time, problems and where you are going just melt away as you twist the throttle and look around the next corner, wondering what view you will be presented with next.

Will it be a waterfall, snow capped peak or massive rain forest trees?

As we rode higher into the mountains on the first day, you could feel the air begin to get crisp. A slight chill hit us, so we stopped to add more layers. I have to admit, the thought of hitting snowpack that can’t be crossed safely on motorcycle started to enter my mind. And sure enough, at 900m of elevation, there it was. Our planned route blocked and impassable. Time for another change of plans, so I opened the map to look for an alternative route around to the next town to fuel up our bikes and buy some peanut butter and tortilla wraps (a key supply for any bike trip).

After stopping, it was time to find our camping spot for the night. We headed back into the mountains in search of a dreamy creek side spot to spend the night but ended up in a grassy parking lot, too exhausted and hungry to keep searching. But it was just fine by us;-)

Day 2....

..... was by far are nicest weather day. The sun was out and air was warm. We came across a few amazing lookouts that offered views of Puget Sound. Every time to stopped we were peeling our motorcycle gear off and enjoying the spring sunshine.

That changed quick though as we rounded the corner in Olympia and started heading west towards the Pacific Ocean. The wind started to pick up and dark storm clouds rolled towards us. It wasn’t long after that the rain started to fall. The air went extremely cold and I began to wonder if that rain was going to turn to snow.

With every mile, the air became colder until our teeth were chattering inside our helmets. I stopped and asked Amy how she felt about a hotel for the night so we could get our wet boots dried out.

The next morning, I woke up to a surprise winter storm warning on my phone. The air temp was hovering around freezing but we needed to start heading North, so we decided to pack our bags and go anyways.

As we started climbing, we noticed snow in the ditches, then on the side of the road and eventually even some on the road. Our speed slowed as the combination of bikes and ice was not ideal. We eventually decided to stop for a coffee and wait to see if it will warm up enough to melt the snow off the road.

After delaying for over an hour, we decided to hit the road again. A dirt road lead us deep into the rain forest, where snow covered ferns and giant waterfalls dominated the views. It was beautiful enough for us to forget how cold we were.

Day 4

The last day of our trip, was another morning of waking up in a warm, dry hotel after arriving like a pair of popsicles from the ride the day before. The plan was for a chill ride down the 101 from Forks to Port Angeles, with a few off road sections along the way. It was only around 60 miles, so there was plenty of time to get to the ferry.

The air was crisp again, but at least no snow in Forks. We hit the road on route to the ferry and the feeling set in that it might be my last time in Washington for awhile.

I soon forgot about that though when I saw a snow plow coming the other way! I thought to myself that "a plow seems a little overkill? There is just a dusting of snow in the ditches as this point?"

But, as we continued to climb in elevation on hwy 101, the snow really started to add up. Our speed slowed to about 20mph and the risk of hitting ice and crashing started to get real. I now understood why they were plowing the road. Our relaxing one hour ride to the ferry quickly turned into a long, slow, scary ride.

Finally, we got off the 101 after a couple hours and hit our last stretch of dirt on this trip. It’s always an exciting but sad time. Nothing beats riding motorcycles off road.

We crossed our last dirt section, much of it covered in snow and headed toward the ferry. To our delight, the sun came out and air warmed up in Port Angeles. We relaxed in the sun while waiting to load the ferry, which marked the official end of the trip as well as the end of my time living in the PNW.