Thursday, August 25, 2011

Day 48

Wednesday, August 24

Miles today: 65
Jeffrey City to Lander, WY

The locals told us that the wind is not as bad in the morning so we got up a little earlier than usual to try to avoid it. We quickly packed up and went back across the street to the Split Rock Cafe for some breakfast. They had incredible coffee in a mug that just felt so good in my hands. We brushed our teeth in the bathroom while we waited for our food- again, free camping is great but has some drawbacks! Our eggs, toast and homefries were top-notch and provided us with the perfect start to our day.



We stopped at a rest area in Sweetwater Station Junction, another one of those towns that is no longer a town. Although they do have a book store there


We couldn't get our water bottles to fit under the faucet or water fountain at the rest stop so we had to continue on without additional water. About 10 miles later we were approaching Beaver Rim, which is a huge canon carved out by the Beaver River. By looking at the elevation profile on our map, we knew that this was a huge decline for us and we would not have to climb back up until the next day. Just as we got to the rim, we saw 2 other cyclists riding up. They stopped to talk to us, and we congratulated them on their climb. They were 26 days into their journey east. It was probably smart of them to start at this time because Kansas and Missouri will likely not be as hot by the time they get there. A few minutes later, another guy came climbing up the hill and we realized they were all together, the last guy was just taking his time! So we swapped stories a bit about where to stay, the usual cyclist chit chat. Then we headed down the 8 mile descent- it was awesome!


This is our absolute favorite sign to see on the road! It was a beautiful view coming down the rim because we could see the Wind River Mountains in the distance, which are normally blocked by the closer sandy/desert mountains.

As we were riding along, Ben was in front of me and stopped to check if he had phone service yet, and I did not stop in time so I hit him and fell over. Exactly whose fault this is is still being debated. Anyways, I hit my elbow pretty hard and got a big welt. I think I must have also hit my knee because it really started hurting after the fall. We road the next 9 miles into town very slowly because I was in pain and I decided that after 6 days of riding, Thursday would be a good day for a rest. We got into Lander around 4:30 and stopped for a sandwich and then headed for the showers at the public pool. We found out that open swim was at 7:30 and if we waited until then for our showers it would be the same price to use the pool and jacuzzi as well ($2 per person). So we went into town and got some ice cream to kill some time until then. The pool and hot tub felt incredible and the showers were great too. After riding a bike for 2 days with no shower, it feels so amazing to be clean again! After that we rode down to the city park and set up our tent and made dinner. Again, free camping wahoo! This park has bathrooms too, even better!

Lander is a pretty cool town, with about 6,000 people. There are coffee shops, book stores, a bike shop, groceries, everything we need so it's a great place to take a rest and healing day.

3 comments:

  1. Hi Jen and Ben:

    Love your blogs but I did a boo boo and logged myself out and lost my google, sounds familiar, ha ha. Dad and the gang are here (Thursday) and he and Andy helped me get it back, Enough of that, but your trip is almost coming to an end. You will have so many memories, I am so jealous of you,
    but now your dad is going to help me send this comment. Love you dearly, nanny

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  2. I've seen used books sold with coffee, with movies, and with antiques, but never paired up with fresh eggs. That's quite a marketing ploy. Enjoy your day off.
    (P.S. It was Ben's fault.)

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  3. I survived the great RI earthquake of 2011.

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