Blanding, UT - Dove Creek, CO - The cat named Chevy won't stop this tour, and neither can COVID

June 19, 2020

Blanding, UT - Dove Creek, CO

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2,768 elevation gain

I'm getting into this leisurely waking up (6:30 AM) and late departure of 8 AM. That works as long as the wind and temperature are friendly.

Today was something of a mystery. We checked the route on four different apps. Usually we don't go that far, but there were discrepancies of more than 1,000 feet on the amount of climbing today. That is significant. Especially for me, as a slow climber. One thing was for certain, there's a big hill climbing out of town. 1,200 feet of hill.

We had a roomy room last night. It was easy to move around and get ready in the morning. A big advantage to my leaving later is that Jacinto gets up, so I can turn on the lights to see what I'm doing. It's also nice to talk a little before leaving. This morning he was busy getting his new phone set up.

I was out the door at 8 sharp and promptly went the wrong direction out of the parking lot. It was a half mile before Bertha caught on that I was going the wrong way. That was an extra 50 feet of climbing to warm my legs up! I coasted back to the motel and went the other direction.

I told Jacinto my expectation for the day was an 8.8 mph average - that seems to be what I'm achieving this trip on climbing days. Spoiler - I averaged 9.2. It was an easier day than expected.

There was a short climb and descent as a warm up. I kept a paper towel handy to wipe the sweat before it got in my eyes. There should be a rule about sweating that much so early in the ride. I was happy to get the climbing out of the way. There's nothing worse than cruising along all day, easy and happy, and then having to do the work at the end of the ride when I'm tired and ready to be done. Thus, I looked forward to getting the big climb out of the way. It wasn't so bad. When I told Jacinto that, he said I"m getting cocky. I did the whole climb in my middle chainring except for two short sections.

There were some slightly worrisome looking black clouds as I did the big climb. I was happy for the shade while climbing. That helps with the sweat factor. I kept looking to my right, telling myself that's where I would end up and there were no black clouds to the east.

We had a good shoulder the entire distance. There were a few areas with retread tire pieces and a couple of sections that had rough chip seal surface - but it was a good road to ride. There was significantly more commercial (semi) traffic on 491 than we have seen the entire trip. Who knew this was a major road?

In Monticello I looked around to see what I recognized. Nothing. Oren and I had eaten at the Subway. That's where he drank so much Dr. Pepper he got chilled and had to go stand in the sun. That I remember. It has been interesting, reriding these days from last year. It hasn't been boring. The view this way is totally different. The climbs are certainly totally different! Even though the wind tends to blow from the south, I would say to ride it heading south because of the far away view of Monument Valley. It's a magical experience to ride closer and closer.

As I've said, I'm much better at one long climb than rollers. I like to engage my legs and disengage my mind and spin to the top of the climb. Jacinto loves rollers. He stands up, sits down, and repeats. The second half of our day today looked like rollers. Ugh. But, they were baby rollers. A couple of gears clicked one direction, and a couple the other. It's an easy way to gain elevation.

I was happy to see a few irrigated fields in this area. It was starting to look like Colorado. I swear the sky suddenly got bluer!

The state line should be around here somewhere. But where? Miles and miles ticked by happily. I had a brief respite when Daughter Marcela and her boyfriend, Scott, stopped to check on me. They offered cold water, but I had plenty. We took a couple of photos, and I told them we'd be home in a week. Can you believe that?

Just barely over the Colorado side of the state line was a busy cafe. Eight miles to town. We had to pass our turn for tomorrow to get to lodging tonight. I saw a busy looking grocery store. It says deli. That's good, because the only restaurant I've seen in town says closed. It looks very closed. I wonder how many businesses will be able to come back from the COVID closure.

I pulled in at the gas station. There were a couple of inviting benches in the shade to sit on. I bought both a lemonade and a V-8. I sat in the shade and drank both. A native woman stopped to chat. She said she'd seen me in Blanding and asked the usual questions.

The motel was right across the street. It didn't look so hopeful. I finally went over to check in. Our room is right in the front by the highway. It's actually an apartment and quite large. $72. It's clean. But it still feels depressing. I'm sure many people would be happy to live here. It still feels depressing.

I didn't get too hungry today. I had a generously mixed bottle of Spiz, a Cliff bar, an apple, and (I think the secret) left over chunks of rib eye steak. Too bad that's the secret - I don't have rib eye steak that often. It was nice to get to town without feeling ready to eat shoe leather.

A couple of days ago I mentioned an interesting thumping noise when I brake. We've done a lot of climbing since then and very little descending. The thump is still there. I called Jim for technical support. I had wiped the rim clean with an alcohol wipe. I looked for bulges and cracks and wear on the tire. Jim said to check that the V Brakes were not loose. No. Jacinto and I took it outside in the parking lot and narrowed down the thump spot to be conveniently located right at the rim decal. We took the wheel out and inspected it closer. Inspected the brake pads with the wheel out. Nothing looks abnormal to our eyes. We reassembled everything. All we got for our efforts was dirty hands. We don't have any huge descents between here and home. I think the closest bike shop is Grand Junction.

Jacinto is gone to the grocery to see what's at the deli. I asked for something green, even if it's just coleslaw. There was one restaurant open, a BBQ place, take out only. It's a mile away.

BTW, I haven't seen a mask anywhere in Dove Creek. I sat outside of the gas station for probably 30-45 minutes. It was a busy place. We must be in a low risk area.

At the top of the big climb I saw white pines. I think. I looked carefully at the needle length. They appeared to be 2-3".

After I dropped lower in elevation and was at the intersection in Monticello, I saw an irrigated field. I had to stop and appreciate the beauty.

I wonder what story these old buildings could tell?

Daughter Marcela and her boyfriend, Scott, were on the way back home after bringing Jacinto his new phone. They stopped to see if I wanted water.

This was a busy place, eight miles outside of Dove Creek. I bet the locals are happy they are back!

This is a silo! I wonder how tall it is. The tractor down below is small in comparison.

The last wheat back penny I obtained was found on the ground in-between Green River and Moab, in the middle of nowhere. This penny is older than I am!

I admired the lemons on the top of the bottle.

Is that sweat or rubbed off sunscreen? Possibly, it's both.

Jacinto's photo of Recapture Reservoir outside of Blanding.

Today's ride: 46 miles (74 km)
Total: 878 miles (1,413 km)

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