May 22, 2016
Custer to Edgemont: Sunday, May 22nd 2016
It rained lightly much of the night, but fortunately the wind was calm.
I got up in the morning and packed up. Everything outside was wet, so I stuffed my sleeping pad and mattress inside the tent. Unfortunately, I found a couple of more bedbugs that I had brought from the KOA.
I had some oatmeal and coffee, using the microwave at the camp common area to heat my water. Then I packed up my wet tent. I stopped by Subway and picked up a breakfast sandwich to eat later, and hit the trail. It was a beautiful day!
I passed through Pringle again. The restaurant wasn't open yet, but I sat down in the shelter and ate my Subway sandwich. Before Pringle, I met a couple and a dog who were hiking the trail to Custer, and had camped in Pringle, like I had on my way north. There is a "no camping" sign, but it is only visible when approaching from the north. That's the direction the trail is heading downhill, and I wonder if it is intentional. It's much easier to keep going when heading downhill!
I met a guy on a horse just before the Sheep Canyon rest stop. A should say "a guy with a horse", since he was sleeping by the trail and his horse was tied up at one of the cattle gates. I couldn't help but disturb his nap when I opened and then closed the gate to pass through.
The wind had really picked up. Of course, it was a strong headwind. While the trail was predominantly downhill, I was pedaling hard to keep moving. I was pretty beat when I arrived back at the Edgewood trail head, and happy to see my car just as I had left it.
| Heart | 0 | Comment | 0 | Link |
From the trail head, I headed to a convenience store I found with Google maps, and bought a box of garbage bags to bag up all of my bed bug contaminated gear. I went back to the car, unloaded the bike, and bagged everything except my small handle Bar bag and some toiletries. I grabbed some clean clothes from the car, and rode my bike to the municipal camp, where I showered and changed into the clean clothes. I rode back to my car, and bagged the dirty clothes, including the handle bar bag. I only kept out my wallet, my phone and charger, and some medications (including an antihistamine for the itchy bites!). I managed to load my bike into my car as it was spitting rain.
Then I headed to Hot Springs, where I've taken a hotel room for the night. I visited the center of town to find some dinner, and was pleasantly surprised by how pretty the town is, with a walk along the river and falls. It's worth the visit.
48.3 miles, 600 feet of elevation gain, 2441 feet of elevation loss.
Today's ride: 48 miles (77 km)
Total: 136 miles (219 km)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 1 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 0 |