My name is Carter Krewson. I am 21 years old and currently a student and boat painter by trade living in Santa Cruz, California. When I found out I was going to “have to” take a lengthy break before starting my majors coursework at Humboldt State University in Arcata, California. I knew I wanted to do something worthwhile. You don’t get 7 months of freedom often, so I was definitely taking advantage of it.
Exploring Salinas Valley farmland in 2011
I settled on traveling across the United States seeing as much of my country as I could in the time I had. But, I would have to do it on a slim budget, a challenge in todays world. Bikes are awesome, cheap, and faster than walking. I don‘t need gas and since I have plenty of camping gear, I don’t need crumby hotel rooms either. I have no serious goals besides crossing the US from coast to coast, learning a little bit about the country I live in, and having a good time doing it all. I figure I can pretty much travel around the US for 7 months, pay for food, spare parts, and campsites on occasion. Follow my journey and see how this works out for me here, check out the first leg of my trip below.
Redding to the California Coast via Highway 36
Starting the 31 mile decent to the California coast
Riding over highway 36 west was all it was expected to be and more. And by “more”, I mean more difficult, cold and lonely. The roads were icy and the snow piled up along the roads made it impossible to stay in any “bike lane” or shoulder. The weather was down to single digits both nights while I was in the snow. My feet were half frozen almost the whole 150 miles from Redding to the 101 and I had to stop more than a couple times to scrap ice out from between my toes.
Stopping to look out over Redding once more before hightailing it into the mountains. Leaving family and friends in Redding was bittersweet, but within the couple hours of riding I remembered why I was leaving
Riding into the mountains, ready to live in the snow for a couple days
Fortunately, there was a lot of awesomeness that would make this ride worth doing again, even if it was in the winter. I had the highway to my self for the most part, on average seeing probably one or two cars every fifteen minutes for the three days I rode. Although, the number of cars increased drastically after getting out of the mountains and closer to the coast. The solitude in the mountains was peaceful, and the road grew more silent as the miles rolled on. Listening to music seemed disrespectful so I did not touch my ipod for three days.
Stumbled across a great spot along the 36 just outside of Platina. With a bare patch of ground and a small seep in the hillside for water, it ended up making the perfect camp for my first night on the road
Frozen ground and an icy trailer on a cold morning along the Mad River
The snowy surroundings were something out of a book, with beautiful winter landscapes in every direction. The climbing and descending was surprisingly easy, even with the 50-60 pound load distributed between my rear panniers and BOB trailer. There were definitely some challenging climbs on the route. But, the gradual descents and long rolling highways, that are so much fun to ride, dominated. There were even some sections that were freshly paved and a blast to ride! A couple sections of road were easily some of the best roads I have ridden and were cleverly disguised with big yellow “rough road” signs at their starts.
Starting day 2 with a clear sky and a 5 mile climb to Wildwood
Snowed-in barns along the Hayfork River
Descending from South Fork Mountain Summit at 4000 ft
The lack of people in general made camping easy. Pulling over wherever I ended up after a day of riding and throwing up a tent worked well for this first leg. My goal of paying next to nothing for lodging/camping throughout my tour is off to an encouraging start. Overall the scenery was beautiful and the people reclusive but friendly at times. I met some good people and made a couple friends coming down out of the coast range. I got offered warm coffee and food by generous mountain folk and got lots of waves by passing motorists. People were surprised to see a winter cyclist braving their roads, but they welcomed it.
Preparing for a cold night in a Mad River church parking lot
My early morning routine and its benefits. Waking up to a beautiful sunrise in Mad River
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