This will be a rendition of the Whidbey Wanderer. Excellent prep for PBP, lots of ups and downs.

The overnight control will be at the Coachman Inn in Oak Harbor @ 366km.

The town does fill up so book soon. There are a couple options.
Do not rely on sleeping at the hotel if you have not booked a room. We are guests in the town and the hotel and don't want folks sleeping in reception areas etc.

There will be a drop bag service with vigorous requirements (and it will be enforced without exception or compassion):

1. Your drop bag may not exceed 0.03 cubic metres (roughly 30cm x 30cm x 30cm ~ 1 cubic foot)
   I will bring a tape measure to the start, will measure, and will not accept any bags larger than this
2. Your drop bag may not contain:
   1. any prohibited items at the border: https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/travel-voyage/rpg-mrp-eng.html
      (in particular, no fruit, no home baked goods, no refrigerated dairy products)
   2. Any packages/containers liquids that not in a sealed plastic bag (e.g. sunscreen, chamois creams, gels)
   3. Any packages/containers of powders that are not labelled and double plastic bagged (e.g. maltodextrin, sport mix)
   4. Any glass containers, or stuff that can break if we just "toss it around"
   5. Any prescription medications (carry those with your person)
   6. Any items that require a stable temperature (i.e. chocolate may melt, batteries may be left in the sun)
   7. Any perishable goods that will smell awful somehow your bag isn't there at the finish
3. You must provide an itemized list of your drop bag contents
   1. You must provide this list via email to the organizer at the latest by 12pm noon the day before the ride
   2. The organizer may request removal of a particular item
   3. You must provide a paper copy of this list to the organizer at the bag-drop/check-in at ride start and notify if any changes since the day before
4. Your bag must not be unreasonably heavy
5. Your bag must be labelled with your name, and (or contain within) contact phone number, emergency contact info, address

The bags will depart 1hr after the start or once all registered riders have departed, whichever comes first.
The bags will be transported across the border, and then to the control, although there may be detours en-route to allow our volunteers to supply or rest.
The bags will be returned across the border once the last rider has checked-in to the control, and the volunteers have had a chance to rest.

The finish will be close to the start, the start is chosen because there's a 7-11 with washrooms right there.
(Plan to buy something please if you need to use the washroom)

Notes from the pre-ride (https://ridewithgps.com/trips/122038544):

• Holy carp this route is gorgeous
• Pretty much all construction you can just ignore and ride around
• The lower trail by Burns Bog is a bit gnarly with rocks and sand, so we're going out and back on the upper trail
• Whidbey
  • Don't underestimate the hills! The hardest section is between the last control in Clinton and the overnight, plan your efforts accordingly
  • The Mobil on Whidbey closes at 11pm, you will pass another Mobil before that, confusingly, but feel free to stop at either for supplies if you're running short on time, otherwise, definitely pre-pack supplies
  • Once you reach the island, your last convient supplies stop before the south isle is the Farm Stand, but they have ice cream and shave ice, so that's a win
  • Lots going on in Oak Harbor, but you can ride up to the control for some grub
• There's some services just off route in Mount Vernon, should you want to deviate and not do a super sharp turn
• The route into Bellingham from Sudden Valley is nice, but then the bike lane just randomly ends sometimes. It's the most direct route across town though, and it passes by lots of choices for food and resupply. So if you can suffer a bit of busy rd, it saves you time and is worth it.
• Watch out for construction on King George
• We moved the Richmond return onto River Rd. Less lights, easier to avoid traffic