Afton, WY - Swan Valley, ID - The cat named Chevy won't stop this tour, and neither can COVID

July 9, 2020

Afton, WY - Swan Valley, ID

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1,364 elevation gain

Talking to myself like I'm a two year old seems to be working. "Go to sleep, go to sleep." I slept well until the trash truck arrived at 5:45 AM. Ah, well. That was longer than usual. I did the morning things and was out the door at 8 AM. Jacinto was astounded I would be leaving. It was 41 degrees by his phone. Mine said 50 degrees. I was a little chilly for a couple of blocks until my blood got going. The sun was out and it was a good morning for a ride. I was headed downhill with no wind. Look at me go! The SLC couple had spent the night at a warmshowers host in Thayne, 13 miles down the road. I felt sorry for them last night, they had to fight the headwind that much further. But, they were ahead today. Payback. From Thayne to Alpine, I kept glancing in my mirror to see if they were catching me. It sounded like they ride late. I didn't expect to see them. They were headed to Jackson where their tour would end. I believe they spent five days on the road. That would be a good/scenic tour for the time frame. They were able to get a one way car rental for $180. back to SLC. FYI.

Life was good for 40 miles to Alpine. I was feeling strong, riding 15 mph with little effort for so long. That was about to change! I took the left toward Swan Valley and a headwind appeared from the west. That was not a surprise. It wasn't a terrible wind, just annoying. The road had a few little ups and downs now, instead of all down. I was also expecting that. My average speed was dropping . . . ah, well.

I got to Palisades Reservoir. I did not realize how large it was, looking on the map. It went for miles and miles. There didn't appear to be a lot of recreational development on the lake. Certainly nothing like Bear Lake. Perhaps it was the time of day, but I seemed to have a lot of semi traffic in this area. The shoulder wasn't generous and all I wanted to do was get through here. The lake was pretty when I could steal a glance. The traffic seemed to come in bunches. The road was two lane, twisty, turny and went up and down drainages. There were two climbs of ~300 feet each, which weren't a problem other than things being busy. I didn't think the lake would ever end. Finally I got out the other side. I pulled over and got out my apple to eat. I've had two bad apples lately - mushy, soft, and brown. I think they were frozen at some point. At home I would have thrown them away. On the road, I ate them. Today's apple was nice and crisp. My mood increased proportionately.

There were a number of homes and businesses spread out after the lake. I'm quite picky now about my stopping spots, with the flat tires I've been having. I really prefer a guard rail so my bike can stay on the pavement. I needed to pee. I was getting to the point that I would take any spot that had a solid surface to lean the bike against that wasn't populated. Unfortunately, that was a difficult request. I pulled into the town of Irwin. I could see the elementary school had a potty around back. I wonder how easy that would be to access. At that exact moment, I could tell my tire was soft. No, no, no! I had four miles to go! I tried to kid myself that I could make it four miles. No, I could not. Shoot. And I need to pee. I pulled into the school. At least I could change the tube in the shade on the grass. I sat down. Immediately I had ants crawling on both legs. Ugh. I moved to the pavement, but still in the shade. Ants still climbed on me. I ignored them, mostly. Does that say anything about my frame of mind? I had no trouble finding the source of the flat. It appeared to be a staple, but I tried and tried to pull it out with the tweezers and it wouldn't budge. Finally, I succeeded! It was a fish hook! If I can considered that as a possibility, I would have pulled it from the inside. There were two holes in the tube. I hope I did a good job patching them, as I only have two spare tubes. One tube has a leaking patch. Today I'm going to try patching a patch. I've never done that before. It's possible? Jim said he's had more luck patching a patch than pulling a bad patch off and repatching. I'm desperate enough to try.

I still had to pee. BAD! I debated hiding behind a bush at the school, but there were men working on the exterior of the building across the street. I guess I didn't have to go badly enough, I did not explore if I could access the potty around back. It looked like it was on an enclosed playground.

I've held it this long, I could hold it four more downhill miles. Did I mention that once I got away from the lake, I had a tailwind and the road was downhill again? That is always a nice way to finish the day - provided you don't have a flat tire, or have to pee so bad that's all you can think about. I am extra thankful I didn't have that flat up by the lake in the narrow area.

Four miles to go - I saw a convenience store. I had been looking for a place to get a quick bite to eat. Something similar to yesterday's food truck would be perfect. Nothing was seen. I debated going in the C store, but didn't want to use the bathroom there. I went on to the cabins. It's an attractive set up. All of the cabins are in a circle around the gravel parking area. The cabins are new. The inside is surprisingly spacious. The bedroom is roomy and has a door. Full bathroom. Living room area. Jacinto noted that there are two TV's. I was sad that there isn't an ice machine or even a freezer to put ice in. There is a large meeting room with a full refrigerator that I can put a bag of ice in . . .

Jacinto didn't leave Afton until 10:30. Even with my flat tire, he was a couple of hours behind me. He stopped at the convenience store and bought Tostitos avocado salsa ( tasty, although the thick texture is odd), and a can of beans. We have munchies for the next couple of days.

There are two restaurants in the immediate area. Both are heavy on sandwiches and burgers. I'm sure we will try both while we are here. Tomorrow is a layover day! I've already told Jacinto to sleep in tomorrow. I'm enjoying this relaxed schedule. The last rest day we had was after eight riding days. This time it was after five riding days. We are in Idaho for three riding days. Then we wander around Montana a little. I wanted Jacinto to see the Jackson/Sula area. I rode it years ago on the Lewis and Clark trip.

Later - We walked over to the Roadhouse for dinner. The entry in the front was blocked off and we entered through the enclosed patio, which was full of people. We ended up eating in the bar, because it was cooler. Other than the strange entry arrangement, we saw no COVID accommodations. Wait - they did bring me ketchup in a little to go cup. Who knows why that one thing is an important COVID concession. Hot sauce and BBQ sauce were brought to the table in their regular containers . . . we haven't seen masks/partitions/gloves for days. We see the TV and read the news about the huge spikes everywhere. It all seems very distant from us, bicycle touring.

Looking down the Snake River at Alpine, towards Jackson. We turned the opposite direction.

The Palisades Reservoir didn't have a lot of recreational traffic. Perhaps because of the day of the week?

The road at the bottom of the nest says Osprey Lane. Thus, it must be an osprey nest?

I thought this was a staple, but it wouldn't come out and I really had to work at it with the tweezers. The reason it wouldn't come out is because it's a fish hook!

I am sitting in this chair as we speak with the massager going. Please, do not judge.

Today's ride: 61 miles (98 km)
Total: 1,656 miles (2,665 km)

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