Ely to Eureka

September 11, 2023

7.1

At over 6600 feet elevation, it cools off quickly in Ely when the sun goes down. For the first time on this trip, I put on my cold weather gear. I had met up in Ely with my friends Chuck and his wife, Lynn. So, for the first time on this trip, I would now be riding with other people and would have a support vehicle.

With 80 miles to cover on this day, we headed out of town early. On the Western edge of town, we met up with a French cyclist named Michel. He started crossing the country from New York City on July 15th. He would loosely be traveling with us for a while.

Between Ely and Eureka are evidence of old and current mining operations, repeating cycles of mountain passes to climb, drops into valleys that must be crossed, and another pass to climb back out. In those valleys are occasional ranches far off in the distance. More often there are vast expanses of vacant land extending to the bases of rugged and sometimes foreboding mountains.

We were able to make decent time pedaling through this landscape. US-50 here is the Lincoln Highway. Back East, where I am from, the Lincoln Highway is US-30. It changes over, from 30 to 50, here in Eastern Nevada. Some mileposts and historical markers are present along the roadside if you watch closely.

We crested four passes on this day. They were, Robinson, Little Antelope, Pancake, and Pinto. All were long but reasonable grades where we simply had to grind them out. Pinto would test us late in the day .

Robinson Pass, with Michel (left) and Chuck (right).

Little Antelope Summit (photo by Michel).

Heading down from Little Antelope Summit. The sign was present before this point, on the other side of the road, and facing the other way. It was the only such sign placement on this stretch of road. Luckily, Michel got a photo and shared it with me.

All day long, storm clouds were around. We got hit with a few raindrops and rumbles of thunder but we dodged the worst of them for most of the day. The clouds kept the temperatures from rising too much. It really was a nearly perfect day.

Overcast but cool as we rode on US-50 on this day.

In my brain, before the ride was over, I thought that if there really is such a thing as a pleasant 80-mile ride, this one might be it. Of course, one should never speak or even think too quickly about such things.

Beginning the climb of Pinto Pass, under threatening skies.

Until late in the afternoon, I had only been in two counties since having entered Nevada on Friday. They were Lincoln and White Pine. As the base of the last pass was approached, we entered Eureka Country. On cue, the steady rain began.

The wet (and cold) summit of Pinto Pass.

The climb was long and the rain did not stop. I remember thinking that here I am in one of the driest parts of the country and I am getting rained on. At one brief point, it was coming down cold and sideways, stinging the face. Am I really in Nevada?

At the crest of Pinto Pass, the steep downhill ride began. The rain continued. I kept speed under control because I was cold and didn’t want to lose control on the wet pavement. By the time I reached town, I was definitely chilled. A warm hotel room on a night like this one is a beautiful thing. I sprung for another room, for Michel, at the Sundown Motel. This was not a night to be sleeping out when wet and cold. He was most appreciative.

I got clean and dry. Then we went over to the Owls Club across the street. Michel was there. We sat with him, ordered some food and traded stories. It was still raining when I settled down for the evening. I didn’t know Nevada got rain like this. You learn something new every day!

Today's ride: 79 miles (127 km)
Total: 599 miles (964 km)

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