Day 50

Friday, August 26

Miles today: 76
Lander to Dubois, WY

It's late and we are tired so here is the quick version of today's events:

We rode 76 miles and gained about 1,600 ft in elevation (5300 to 6900). This is in preparation for tomorrow's climb over Togwotee Pass at about 9600 ft. It is the second highest pass on the route. We've been informed by other cyclists that there is construction on the other side of the pass, so after we climb it we get to celebrate by taking a truck ride from the construction crew down the other side. There is no option- they won't let bikers ride down. This is no fun for us and we are jealous of the people coming up the other side because they don't have to climb but can enjoy the downhill!

We passed through the Wind River Indian Reservation for a while today. It didn't look any different than the rest of the state, but they did have a trading post which was very commercialized and nothing was actually handmade.

The town of Crowheart was named after Crowheart's Butte, this odd formation that stands just off the road

There is a gas station/post office combination store in Crowheart so we stopped for a break. A storm hit just as we were getting ready to leave so we waited it out for 30 minutes and got back on the road as the sun came out. About 8 miles outside of Dubois we were caught in another storm, this time with nowhere to take cover. We had our rain jackets so we were fine and just rode through it.

At breakfast this morning, a man from Lander who had ridden from Oregon to Maine a few years ago told us to go to the Cowboy Cafe in Dubois for excellent pie. As soon as we got to town, we looked for the cafe because we were afraid the would be closed after we cooked dinner. (FYI, Dubois is pronounced Du-boys, not the French way, but it's hard not to say it that way!). We walked into the Cafe and a group of guys immediately started asking us about our trip. There were 6 of them, all middle aged and they were on an 8 day mountain biking trip around Utah, Wyoming and Idaho. One of them was from Jenkintown, which is right near Ben's house. There were no seats in the restaurant and these guys had two extra at their table so they invited us to sit with them! They were a fun group so it was cool to hang with them for a little while. Ben got forest fruit pie and I had blueberry almond crunch, both a la mode. The pies definitely lived up to their reputation! The other biker guys even picked up our tab, which was so kind and awesome!

We went down a few blocks to the KOA campground and set up our tent, went swimming (indoor pool), showered and cooked some delicious pasta under a patio while it poured again. It's so awesome to have a waterproof tent! It stopped raining (these storms pass pretty quickly usually) and we packed up and got in the tent. It's rather cold out tonight so it's a zippered-up sleeping bag night for sure.

Looking forward to tomorrow's climb and getting to Jackson Hole!

Some more pictures from today:

Location:W Welty St,Dubois,United States

Day 49

Thursday, August 25

Rest day in Lander

We woke up at 7:30 am to the loud roar of a lawn mower outside our tent. So much for sleeping in! We eventually got up and had bagels with cream cheese for breakfast. We toasted the bagels over the open flame of the stove and they actually came out pretty good.

The whole day was spent just lounging and catching up on things. We hung out at a coffee shop for a while.

And went to the bike shop- Ben lost his gloves and my favorite bike shorts were mysteriously missing from my locker in Hot Sulphur Springs last week so we replaced those. Then we went to the library for a long while and surfed the web, catching up on all the news and celebrity gossip. We did laundry while it poured and thunder stormed outside- we were thankful not to be riding in that. We went out to dinner at Gansett Grill which was awesome. They had local organic beef, which Ben got in a burger and couldn't stop raving about. There are actually signs along the road that promote beef eating, one even on a cattle farm with cows standing under it- "Wyoming beef tastes great". Oof.

Ben waiting for his burger



I had a delightful southwestern salad, which was also delicious. After we digested for a little while, we went back to Ken and Betty's ice cream shop and got some cones. It was a perfect end to a very restful day.

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.

Location:S 3rd St,Lander,United States

Day 47

Tuesday, August 23

Miles today: 67
Rawlins to Jeffrey City, WY

Another windy day. The morning wasn't too bad and we rode an easy 30 miles to Lamant where we stopped at the only store in town, Grandma's Cafe. Lamant isn't actually a town, it used to be one but now it is just a cafe. We shared a piece of peach cheese cake with fresh peaches on top- it was delicious!

When we got back on the road, the wind had picked up and 11 miles later we stopped again at a gas station ($4.11 per gallon because it's the only service station for many miles). We only had another 23 miles into Jeffrey City but it took us over 3 hours. The wind was incredibly strong and directly in our faces. It was so brutal and there was just no relief. We stopped at the National Historic Site of Split Rock, a landmark used by people traveling the Oregon Trail. They could see the rock a day away and for two days behind them so it guided their path. It was pretty cool to keep looking back to see it.

For the last 10 miles Ben and I took turns drafting off each other- we switched who was in front every mile because it was so much work to push through the wind. Being behind Ben was a good relief, but he had to duck down really far to catch a draft from me because I'm much shorter. At last, we reached Jeffrey "City" and came into the bar/cafe for dinner. Ben had a burger and I had a grilled cheese. Both were delicious and filled us up. We went across the street to the pottery store, where the owner let us set up our tent in his field. I wished I could have bought some of his pottery but there is no room for souvenirs on this trip, and pottery would probably break within a day in my bag.

We crossed the Continental Divide today for the third time- back into the Pacific Watershed

And then again, for the fourth time- right back to the Atlantic Watershed

This gets less and less exciting each time.

We are basically in the desert out here. The best word to describe it is desolate.

Yup, nothing too exciting. But we did stop for a while and watch these two road workers install a new sign. We have to find entertainment in unique ways out here. 

Location:Ore Rd,Lander,United States

Day 46

Monday, August 22

Miles today: 46
Saratoga to Rawlins WY

Well, we were warned yesterday about the winds in Wyoming and today we experienced the phenomenon for ourselves. We had planned to go 30 miles further to Lamant but once we reached Rawlins we had nothing left so we decided to stay here.

This morning was beautiful- I woke up at 7am to a dry field (thankfully no sprinklers) and walked into town to get us coffee. Ben really likes this new habit because he gets to sleep a little longer and then there is hot coffee ready for him when he gets up! It's a great method to get him out of bed, so I guess it's a win-win. We had the last of the English muffins, cheese and almond butter for breakfast- finally. We also had peaches which were delicious!

We started out with a pretty hilly ride to Walcott Junction, 20 miles away. The hills here are extremely long and gradual, not too steep. They are good because it isn't too tiring to ride up them but it just takes forever because we are going sooo slow. At Walcott, we stopped at a gas station and met another couple that had been on a road trip for the past 6 months (22,000 miles in 25 states). They were driving a Prius, started in Maine and had known each other for only 2 weeks when it started. Now they are a couple and have spent every second tougher since February! They were really cool and interesting to talk to. They gave us a chocolate bar for the road, and then another guy came up to us and gave us granola bars and trail mix packages! He said he was a cyclist as well and knows "how it is" so he gave us some snacks. It felt pretty cool to ride out of there like celebrities, with gifts in our bags.

We had to ride on Interstate 80 for 13 miles after Walcott. We said our prayers and rode onto the onramp, cursing Wyoming for it's low population and limited roadways. We had a very wide shoulder and were separated from the traffic by a rumble strip, but it was still pretty scary. On top of the semi trucks screaming past us, we had to contend with the wind and long hills for the whole time. We could have taken the highway all the way into Rawlins but we exited as soon as we could at Sinclaire to get off that awful road. Just as we approached the exit ramp, Ben got a flat in his front tire so we walked off to the nearest gas station. I guess when you ride on the freeway, you have to expect some metal pieces to get into your tire somehow. He changed the tube easily and we rode the next 6 miles very slowly to Rawlins. The wind was directly in our faces and the strongest that we've experienced on this trip. We rode into town and stayed at McDonalds for at least 2 hours. We were exhausted! Once we decided to stay here for the night, we went grocery shopping and then to our campground a few miles down the road. Again, we had very strong winds so we were happy not to be riding any further.

Ben made us a delicious dinner of tofu, broccoli, and green pepper sautéed in a Thai lemongrass sauce. Yum!

Ben hard at work

 The sun setting over the mountains behind us

A cowboy chillin at our fence/wind shield

 

The end product :)

Keeping our fingers crossed for some kinder winds tomorrow! We are headed north so there is hope that it won't be directly in our face.

Location:Western Hills Rd,Rawlins,United States

Day 45

Sunday, August 21

Miles today: 68
Walden, CO to Saratoga, WY

We woke up to another brisk morning in Colorado. I went down to the cafe and bought us two coffees while Ben took down the tent. We warmed up with the coffee and had English muffins with cheese and almond butter (we don't suggest trying this combo) for breakfast. Since we had an electrical outlet in our gazebo we blasted some music from the iPhone to get us pumped up for the day- it was a great way to start!

We got out on the road and went 22 miles to the border of Wyoming! We pulled up to the welcome sign at the same time as a family from Chicago (by car) so they took our picture. They were staying at a dude ranch for the week, which sounded pretty fun.

We had a good tailwind in the morning so we rode pretty fast for about an hour until we met another cyclist headed east. He started in Portland 26 days ago and was moving out to CO for the winter. His brother lived in Walden so he was finishing his trip today to stay with him. He was pretty excited to be done but jealous of our coast-to-coast adventure.

After talking to that guy for a while, and getting his advice about shortcuts through Idaho, we started pedaling into some headwind. Even though we were steadily decreasing in elevation, there were still a ton of hills that slowed us down along with the wind. We had one big hill of 7% grade that lasted about 2 miles. The wind made it even worse but a kind driver stopped to give us bananas so we enjoyed those as a victory snack at the top of the hill.

50 miles after we started for the day, we hit our first town- Riverside (pop. 59). We sat on a bench outside of the bar and had some snacks. There wasn't much going on there but it felt good to rest for a little. A hilly and windy 19 miles later, we came into Saratoga. We stopped at the grocery store, which was actually really nice and well priced for such a small town. Our maps told us that we could camp at the city park for free and shower at the public hot springs down the road, but unfortunately the showers were destroyed in a recent flood. We both needed showers pretty badly so Ben made a few phone calls and found a motel that would let us shower for $5 each. We decided it was well worth it, and it feels amazing to be clean again! Camping for free is awesome but it does have some drawbacks: no showers, restrooms or a place to wash dishes.

We found the park and set up camp and made a delicious dinner. We deviated from our normal meal for the first time in a while. We had salads! Big salads, of course, with hunks of cheddar cheese, carrots, and chick peas. It felt great to eat a fresh salad and not have to cook our meal!

After dinner we went down to the gas station for ice cream and as the sun set, it started getting chilly out. We got in our cozy sleeping bags and now here we are! We are both really happy about Wyoming, it seems like a great state even though they don't have a lottery. This is problematic for Ben's plan to play the state lottery in each state we pass through. We have about 300 more miles until we get to Jackson Hole, where we are debating renting a car to go to Yellowstone. Yellowstone is on the route, but we are taking a detour to save a lot of miles in Montana and Idaho because the route goes far north into Montana just to come back south into Oregon. We don't have anything against Montana and hear that it is beautiful, but we would rather save the miles (and time and money). It would take about 2 days to ride from jackson to yellowstone, and then two to ride back to take our shortcut across Idaho. It's possible that it would be cheaper and definitely faster to drive there from Jackson so we are still trying to decide what to do about that. We really want to see the park but don't want to add 4 days of riding... We still have a few more days to decide.

Let's keep our fingers crossed that if the sprinklers on this field come on in the morning, we stay dry!

Location:W Elm Ave,Saratoga,United States

Day 44

Miles today: 62
Hot Sulphur Spgs to Walden

This morning was the coldest temperature I have felt in many months. We awoke at 7:30 am and it was 37 degrees. To warm up we quickly got our stuff together and headed back to the Glory Hole (cafe) for some hot coffee and breakfast. I rarely drink coffee in the morning, but this trip/jen has Made me into a real coffee snob. The coffee was very good, and we both had about 3 mugs full before we left. As for the food, I ordered French toast which was incredible and Jen a breakfast sandwich. We hit the road at 9:15, full and well caffeinated. The ride to Walden took us east on US Rt. 40 for a few miles until we turned onto state highway 125 North. This road will take us all the way to the border of Wyoming. (now only 25 miles away)

Rt. 125 was a beautiful road taking us up and over the continental divide again. This time we took willow brook pass at elevation 9600+. On our way to the pass, we traveled through the Arapaho National Forest. The views were really nice. Below is a picture of the top of the pass showing us riding back into the Atlantic watershed.

Jen and I are happy about climbing up to the summit.

Many would say I need a haircut...

The first town we stopped in was Rand. We stopped and had lunch on the porch of the only store in town. Lunch was cheese sandwiches and granola bars. The store had some really good toffee candy of which both of us indulged. 22 miles later we were in Walden, CO. Walden is a classic small Colorado town, geared towards fishing, hunting, and drinking beer. The city park offered free camping on some of the nicest grass we have ever slept on! We did laundry, drank milkshakes, and cooked dinner, all before 9 pm! It's nice getting into town early(Ish).

View from the Rand store

Tomorrow we will stay in Saratoga, WYOMING. That will be our 7th state, only 2 more!

You stay classy San diego!

Location:Main St,Walden,United States