June 22nd – Troutdale, Oregon (BST -7hrs)

We rode the Pacific Coast Highway from Eureka to Crescent City, stopping for breakfast at Klamath. It was, perhaps, not the most interesting stretch of this road, with most of the coastline being hidden by the redwood forests. But we did catch the odd tantalising glimpse of the sea before we headed inland to link up with the I-5.

In addition to the malfunctioning servo, I had no brake light, so it was decided that it would be safer for me to lead the group – with the others watching my ass, as it were.

Being principally an Interstate day, there is little to tell. We got into our motel in Troutdale around 6.30pm, put some washing on, and went out to dinner. George’s group had arrived earlier and had gone to look at a waterfall. They caught up with us at the restaurant. This is probably the last time our two groups will coincide. From tomorrow, we will gradually fall behind, as we stop over for a bike service in Portland and a rodeo in Williams Lake. But, with the ever-present possibility of mechanical problems, it is possible we may pick up some stragglers along the way. Willie has already encountered a final drive problem with his Harley, so he and Jim are still around 500 miles behind us in Redding, getting it fixed.