Bill

Towards the end of 2024, during my last coastal drive for the year I had the unexpected pleasure of meeting one of the coolest people. Bill.

I drove out to the Southern Washington coast that day. I had planned on Long Beach as my destination. The route I traveled was up the Oregon side of the Columbia, then once I reached Astoria I crossed the bridge over to Washington.

Driving up the highway I saw a sign that indicated there were some hiking trails of to the left, towards the coast. That sounded good to me so I pulled off and decided to do some hiking.

When I got to an area where I could park I noticed a figure in a full-body yellow rain suit changing the back tire on his bicycle.

This was Bill

As I got closer I could tell he was having problems. I went over and asked if everything was cool. He looked a little discouraged as he told me that he had just changed the back tire but his air pump wasn’t working.

We talked a bit and I offered to give him and his bike a ride back to Long Beach where he lived. Fortunately I had my bike rack in my trunk so we loaded Bill’s bike up on the rack and started on our way to Long Beach.

Change of Plans

Once we were in the car Bill asked me if I had seen the section of the coast about 5 miles south of where we were currently. I hadn’t. I was more familiar with the Oregon Coast and Washington was a little new to me.

Bill said that he was on his way down there when his bike tire went flat. So, I suggested that before I take him back to Long Beach we first go down to the coast that Bill was referring to. Sounded good to both of us.

Oh man…

We got out of the car and Bill started taking me on a tour of his favorite spot on the coast. I’ll be brief and just say that this also quickly became my favorite part of the coast, as well.

It was just breathtaking, dramatic… told so many stories… just beautiful.

About Bill

As amazing as the coast is, and as happy as I am with the shots that I got that day, what I really want to do is tell you more about Bill.

I asked Bill how old he was. He said he didn’t really remember. I’m guessing he was in his late 60s, early 70s. But take that with a grain of salt because I’m terrible at guessing peoples age.

He’d lived in Long Beach for about 15 years. He told me that most days he would get on his bike and ride up and down visiting different spots on the coastline, walking in his bare feet, picking up trash by the bag-full and just enjoying this breathtaking beach and ocean.

I asked if I could take Bill’s photo but he declined. He did say I could take photos as long you couldn’t see his face. So respectfully, that’s what I did.

Man, we had a great time. I really enjoyed our conversations while on the coast and during the drive up to Long Beach. There I met Bill’s wife, Kat. These are easily a couple of the coolest people I’ve met in a long time.

We exchanged contact info and I will definitely look them up again on my next day at the beach.