My phone and solar charger died on Day 2, so I wasn’t able to take pictures, but I LOVE PORT TOWNSEND! I caught the Coupville- Port Townsend ferry ($3.50) early. It was a cold, 45 minute ride. Upon arrival at Port Townsend, I ended up at a restaurant called Blue Moose Cafe for breakfast. After, I took the Larry Scott Trail (located directly behind Blue Moose Cafe) until it ended on highway 20. I have a road bike and the trail is pretty much all gravel (or rocks), so that was rough, but it was nice not being next to traffic.
I started to ride down Highway 20 to get to Discovery Bay, and almost got hit a few times. The shoulder becomes quickly nonexistent, and you have to ride aggressively in the middle of the road or the RVs and trucks won’t see you. Luckily, someone pulled over and offered to drive me down the road a few miles to Discovery Bay so that I didn’t have to ride in heavy traffic. The driver (who worked at a bike shop in Port Townsend) recommends that cyclists take the backroads. (If I had my GPS, I probably would’ve tried to take his advice.)
From Discovery Bay onward, I road on the Olympic Discovery Trail until I reached Sequim State Park. I got lost on the part of the trail where you have to navigate backroads, and I added lots of miles doing so. Oops. The trail cuts through rural areas, and I was admittedly nervous biking solo for hours without passing a single soul (or house).
I somehow ended up overshooting Sequim and ended up near Port Angeles, so I back-tracked and stayed the night at the Great House Motel. It was an affordable ($60) and lovely place to rest after a long day. I’ve come to realize that the physical part of bike touring exhausts you less than the mental stress you’re under. As a female riding solo, I have to constantly be hypersensitive about my surroundings while I’m riding and camping. This results in not so well-rested nights.
In summary: Port Townsend is so quaint and easy to navigate. I loved walking around the little shops and the marina. The Olympic Discovery Trail was a godsend, and I didn’t see traffic for what felt like 20 miles.
A note on the Olympic Discovery Trail— The trail is (mostly) clearly marked with signs that look like this:
However, it does get confusing at times. The path switches between paved and loose gravel, and at some turns it’s hard to tell if you’re on the trail or have wandered onto someone’s private property.
That girl on a bike 