I left Washburne beach and was immediately greeted with an orange sky. The air was hot and the light looked like sunset hour. A forest fire in Medford was raging, instead of blowing the fires to the East, the winds had reversed and the smoke was blowing to the coast (from the East to the West).

I hardly slept last night. A woman who was unfortunately using crystal meth and the campground (and missing her two front teeth) was up all night talking to herself. She didn't have a tent, only a blanket. Most of the other bicycle tourists at the campground were concerned that she would steal our items or food. People were a bit tense.

I finally fell asleep at 6 AM and when I awoke at 9 AM I realized that everyone else had left the campground. I was the only one left.

There is some 1980's high school movie where the main character sleeps through some important day and it's a disaster (can't remember which one) - I left like that loser.

It was demoralizing to say the least, but I put myself together, skipped breakfast, and got on the bike. I was greeted with 32°C heat, smoke, and hot winds. Everything smelled like cedar - the inside of a sauna - and it felt like one too.

My body aches all day on the bicycle. I have a large climb immediately when I leave camp (200m). The coffee helps me get up and the views of lighthouses, seals, and coastline are amazing - the rest is yet to come. I pedal all day, eating bars, mangos, and Swedish fish to keep me moving. There isn't enough time to stop for lunch, I am leaving 3 hours late and the next destination is 115km away.

By the time I reach North Bend, I am dizzy from the smoke and the sun is bearing down on me. I can feel my skin shrink and crack in the arid heat. I sit down for 30 minutes to rest.

As I leave North Bend, I see another cyclist with bags in the distance. I can tell he's also heading to the same campground as me, so I pedal a little faster to catch up.

I say hello and we quickly realize we have a lot in common. His name is also Jacob, he lives in Portland and rides fixed gear bikes without brakes (woah). After being tired from working a desk job he quit and decided to ride all the way down the coast (seems familiar). We had seen many of the same information about bicycle touring and started comparing notes: a Dutch couple on YouTube, adventure cycling, etc.

We rolled into camp and continued to talk. I think the company was welcomed equally after the challenging day we both had, and it was nice to have a friend so quickly.

After a hot shower and dinner. I collapsed, finally sleeping better.