Day 9: Winthrop to Pateros

August 24, 2011

Route map for days 9 and 10, from Winthrop to Lake Chelan State Park. Terrain view looks best.

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I felt terrible this morning. Last night's pizza didn't agree with me. It took me a long time to eat breakfast. I left the KOA at 10:25, still not feeling well. The sunshine, low humidity, and warmth were helpful. It feels good to be on the dry side.

First I rode back into Winthrop to take pictures and buy a fuel canister at the alpine store. The downtown western storefronts look about the same as in 1989. But the east side of town has really sprawled since then.

Winthrop, a thriving tourist town with a contrived Western theme.

In Winthrop I mentioned that I had 17 hours of rain on the west side. I wasn't surprised to learn that Winthrop was mostly sunny with no rain.

Washington has three thriving tourist towns on the east slope of the Cascades. Seattle folks flock to these towns because the weather is much warmer and sunnier. Each town is unique-Winthrop has a contrived western theme, Chelan has a huge glacial lake, and Leavenworth has a contrived Bavarian theme.

I left Winthrop on Twisp-Winthrop Eastside road which is across the river and much higher than highway 20. High enough to give partial views of the Cascades to the west. I appreciated the wide open view after 8 days in dense forest.

Looking west across the Methow valley to the Cascades.

Methow valley, north central Washington.

Swimming hole in Twisp. The air and water are warmer on the east side of the Cascades.

In Twisp I rejoined highway 20 for a couple miles until highway 20 turns east. I continued south on highway 153 to follow the Methow river down to the Columbia river. It was a hot afternoon and I cooled down twice in the Methow river.

Methow river and WA 153 descending to the Columbia river.

There were plenty of lunch options in Twisp, but I wasn't hungry yet. Unfortunately there was no store or cafe in Carlton, so lunch never happened and I pressed on another 22 miles to Pateros.

Houses overlooking the Methow river in Pateros. Here Lake Pateros backs up into the river.

The Methow river flows into the Columbia river in Pateros. The original riverside town of Pateros was flooded in about 1970 after Wells Dam was built. The character-less new town is on the shore of Lake Pateros.

I arrived in Pateros at 5:30 PM, wandered around the city park area and stumbled upon free camping at the far east end of the park. A quarter mile away in the middle of the park is a very nice bathroom building with free showers! Warm sunny weather, lake view, free camping on irrigated grass, free shower. Life is good.

I forgot their names, but the other cyclists were traveling north on the Sierra Cascades route. We had dinner together at the only restaurant in town. They told me that after Lake Chelan I should ride Old Blewett Pass road instead of US 97 over Blewett Pass. The old road is shorter, has less climbing, and much less traffic.

Free lakeside camping at Pateros, not mentioned on the ACA map. Fortunately the sprinklers are manually operated.

Today I followed the Methow river downstream all day. But I had a stomach bug in the morning and was still recovering from yesterday's massive climb. The weather is sunnier, warmer, and drier on the east side. High of 95F (35C) with a gentle cooling headwind. The road was in the sun most of the time but it was easy to find shade when stopped.

Distance: 51.1 mi. (82 km)
Climbing: 935 ft. (283 m)
Average Speed: 11.6 mph (18.6 km/h)

Today's ride: 51 miles (82 km)
Total: 449 miles (723 km)

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