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Wow! What a difference being off the coast makes in temperatures. Cycling down highway 101 between Bandon and Humbug, we were much more inland than any other day on the ride thus far, and boy, we could tell a difference with the weather.
Cycling Bandon to Humbug State Park is the 12th of nearly 30 daily diaries of our cycle trip from Seattle to San Francisco.
If you’d like to read from the beginning, check out, getting to Seattle. Each post in this cycle series will contain our daily journal entries that we kept via Track My Tour, photos captured throughout the day, and the exact route, duration, and elevation gains for the given ride.
Read Our Complete Guide to Cycling the Pacific Coast Highway Here
Let’s dive into Biking the Pacific Coast Highway, Day 11, Bandon to Humbug State Park.
Cycling Bandon to Humbug State Park
Starting our morning today with Ed and Suzy was so special. They really were the best hosts, and truly went above and beyond to make us feel welcomed and cared for!
Today we had only a few short hours of saddle time, but boy was it a much warmer day than the days past! The ride from Bandon to Humbug State Park is much more inland than any other day, meaning you don’t get the cool coastal weather for the majority of the ride.
We decided to have our first day with literally no saddle time at Humbug State Park, and while it’s a nice place to be, it’s also pretty secluded from other things, and in our experience, the wind was pretty bad on the actual beach. Thinking about it now, I’m honestly not sure why we picked Humbug as our rest day with how isolated the state park actually is!
Biking Bandon to Humbug Mountain State Park Day 11 Quick Facts
- Miles // 30.11 miles
- Saddle Time // 2 hrs 31 min
- Elevation // 1,487 feet
- Accommodation // hiker-biker site at Humbug State Park
- Water // in Bandon and at State Park.. bring lots today as it’s an inland ride with more heat
- Food // Langlois and Port Orford (fill up for the night in Port Orford)
Pacific Coast Bike Tour Blog Day 11
Sunday 16 Aug 2015 20:59
Day 11 & a rest day: We left the wonderful cabin on Laurel Lake just a little bit past 11 am due to a wonderfully relaxed morning with Suzy and Ed. Suzy got up early to get the mornings eggs from the chickens, made homemade blueberry muffins, and cut up some fresh cantaloupe. We spent a few hours hanging out, talking, and eating before it was time to take down camp and set off down the road for yet another day.
The route for the day took us quite a bit inland before spitting us back out on the coast just north of Port Orford. As we arrived in Port Orford, we went straight to the “ocean view” to have lunch and relax before we went to the store and make the final 6-mile stretch to Humbug State Park for two nights.
Heather and I loaded up our bikes with a bunch of food and wine and hit the road. We hadn’t carried this much extra stuff and we could definitely tell a difference, especially going up the hills. Arriving at camp around 3:30 in the afternoon, we quickly set up camp to hurry down to the beach and cool off from the very hot day of riding inland.
Hanging out at Humbug Mountain State Park…
We quickly found out this beach is an extremely windy beach and there wasn’t much relaxing that could be had. However, we made do and enjoyed it the best we could.
Maarten jumped in the ocean while Heather and I sat in our chairs cooling off in the wind. Brian and Ashley (our friends from southern Oregon) were just a few miles south in Gold Beach so they decided to make the drive with the two little ones and Charlie (their dog). It was really nice being able to hang out for an hour or so catching up and seeing how things were going.
In the evening, we were able to have a fire with dinner because we were able to scrounge up some firewood from other vacant campsites. We sat around chatting and drinking wine and didn’t get to bed till about midnight. Taking full advantage of staying up late because the next day we would be sleeping in and taking our first rest day with absolutely no riding.
Our Total Gear List for Cycle Packing // Shared Even in The Netherlands!
Our first day with absolutely no saddle time…
Heather and I got up out of bed around 10 am and made breakfast. After we ate, we got our stuff together to go to the beach. As we were walking to the beach, we hid some meat and eggs in the cold stream next to the site because we didn’t have a cooler or frig to put them in.
We ended up spending about 3 hours down by the water hanging out and relaxing. After that, we came back to have lunch and relax in camp. Heather and Maarten read while I made a bracelet from some rope that had washed ashore.
To waste more time Heather took a long shower as did I. After each of our showers, we made dinner, then walked back down to the beach to see what it was like. It was super cold and windy, so we decided to come back to make a fire and play games.
Yesterday we rode 30.1 miles with 1,488 feet of elevation gain. Our overall mileage is 538.00 miles.
Cycler’s Tips for Bandon to Humbug State Park | PCH Day 11
- Be wary of the temperatures today. You ride much further inland than the rest of the ride thus far, making the temps a bit warmer than normal.
- Humbug State Park is a great place to pitch for the night. The hiker/biker sites there are great!
- Load up food for the evening in Port Orford, as that’s the last bigger town before getting into camp.
- Port Orford has a nice lookout and beach area that you could spend some time at today before doing the final stretch into Humbug State Park.
More on Cycling the Pacific Coast Highway
The Ultimate Guide to Cycle Packing Gear
Our complete list of all the bike gear we took on our trip from Seattle to San Fransisco. Ideas of where to get your bike gear so you don’t spend an arm and a leg, and a printable checklist for ensuring you pack all the gear you need!
Cycle Rules in Oregon | A Bicyclist’s Manual
Did you know, in Oregon, as a cyclist you’re technically considered a car and must oblige by vehicle road rules? Use that knowledge as confidence to take over the lane when there’s not a safe shoulder and really own the road!
Biking the Pacific Coast Highway Prep, Gear, Route Info
This post contains our gear list, all our daily journal entries, FAQs on cycling the PCH, and downloads to make your PCH cycle trip easier!
Next Daily Journal Entry on our Pacific Coast Highway Bike Tour
Interested in seeing what the next day of the tour holds? This post is for you! Cycling Humbug State Park to Harris Beach.
Previous Daily Journal Entry on our Pacific Coast Highway Bike Tour
Climbing 7 Devils, and the most perfect Warm Shower stay… Cycling Sunset Bay to Bandon, Oregon.
Camping for Free on your Bike Tour
Interested in learning more about camping for free on your bike tour? We’re sharing ways to find free camping, what you need to know about free camping, and even our favorite places!
Have questions about day 11, cycling Bandon to Humbug State Park? Need a bit more information about the trip as a whole? Or just want to share your experiences? We’d love to hear from you.. start a conversation below!
