I had a wonderful night's sleep. I think the secret is not setting the alarm and not having any plans for the next day. Perhaps I can see retirement in my future!

We eventually wandered down the street to Blondie's Diner for breakfast - but they didn't open until 11. We ended up at the grocery, which was well stocked with a meat counter that also provided a few deli items. That was lunch.

We watched a movie. Jacinto bemoaned that we could already be riding and in Gateway. I assured him that taking a rest day every 12 days is not unreasonable . . .

I thought the day passed quickly. We went to Blondie's for dinner. It was more of a fast food burger place where you ordered at the window. Jacinto had a super hot bacon cheeseburger, which actually met his criteria of hot. Every other table was marked off. Otherwise we saw no COVID accommodations such as masks or partitions. Jacinto said he saw one woman with a mask in the entire time. I saw none. No partitions anyway, including the grocery. We are clear out in the middle of nowhere, nowhere. It's possible they haven't had any cases. Jim said Dove Creek was one of the few places in the entire nation that had zero cases.

We watched another movie tonight. Tomorrow is a mostly downhill day with spectacular scenery. We are at the extremely expensive Gateway Canyon Resort. We are taking this more direct route home as we used up too many days avoiding Navajo Nation on the weekend. We need to get back on track. Typically making reservations in advance works very well for us. It has been a problem in these COVID times.

I plan my usual 8 AM departure and will have a little headwind. I hope I sleep as well tonight as last night. This is a nice room, I recommend the Rimrock Inn. The room is inviting and spacious. This trip we seem to have had more than our share of bare bones rooms. All have been clean, but it wears on the soul to have an unpleasant space. Luckily our next few nights should be pleasant.

I've made arrangements for a mechanically inclined friend to look at my thumping rear tire. I've ordered new brake pads and I'm prepared to swap out the rear wheel from my other bike. We can change the cassette over, so shifting should be no problem. Our bodies are holding up well, as are the bikes (other than the thumping issue). Jacinto's belt drive is perfect. He has had five flat tires, which is terrible for four weeks on the road. We have new tires at home, but the tread on all tires looks fine. I think the flat are just unfortunate.

We've been looking at the second half of the route. So far we've concentrated on the first part. We've called a few places to make sure they are open and that there's food available. There's a couple of bare bones kind of places early in Utah. I will just have to be happy they are there and power through.