July 7, 2006
Day 58: Dubois to Some RV Park: Actual text on this page!
I HATE being behind in all these updates, but I just can't seem to get enough library time...oh well.
Woke up to an alarm I didn't want to hear after a short night's sleep and had trouble getting moving in the chilly morning. I just didn't want to put on my bike shorts, but I got packed up, finally changing at the last minute and heading out of camp to a nearby Exxon for snacks and to see if Alvin could get sunglasses there to replace the ones he'd lost yesterday (the least of his worries with all the wheel problems going on). Took an obligatory photo of the giant jackalope there and hit the road for 14 miles of hills and headwinds (yes, headwinds even before 7 a.m.) on the way to a 9 a.m. pickup to transport us through road construction on Togwotee pass, our 2nd highest pass of the trip. The wind was bad enough that I had the indignity of pedalling downhill just to get anywhere.
I got passed by a few people along the way but made it in plenty of time, as did almost everyone else even though the group had another transport scheduled at 10, too.
Once the trailer arrived, the guys started piling bikes on, and we managed to get all of us set on one trip. There wasn't anything to tie the bikes onto, so Will, Toni, Alvin, and I sat on the end of the trailer to hold them all on. I'm not sure how many miles we did (edit: 8 miles), but we had a blast on the back, telling stories and hanging on for dear life over the bumpy unpaved section.
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Our ride was over sooner than expected as we found we hadn't been dropped off anywhere near the summit but still have 12 uphill miles to ride. Some people are better at dealing with misinformation than others, and it was funny watching some of the group excited to get to ride more, some mentally steel themselves for the climb, and at least one whine about the hill.
I guess I was slow at the stop before we started climbing again, because I was one of the last to leave, but the climbing wasn't bad and the wind seemed less up on the mountain, which was a huge relief.
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I'm really glad we didn't get taken all the way to the top. We had some gorgeous scenery to ride through (finally--part of WY has been dry and less than pretty). Alvin and I took a little side trip to a great waterfall we'd heard from the road then I climbed to the summit alone, thinking Patrick was still behind me somewhere, but when I got to the top, there was this great little lake and some of the group, including Patrick, still there. Snack time as we laughed and ate.
Then the liars!!! Wyoming DOT told us we'd have 17 miles of 6% downhill. There was a sign and everything. Patrick and I were so excited. But it was all lies. Less than 2 miles of downhill like that, then I had to pedal again. The signs kept appearing...I don't even want to talk about it. But we had our first sighting of the Tetons, which were gorgeous even though the pics didn't turn out great.
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The day was generally an easy ride, a relief after how slowly I'd started the morning. I'm tired and tonight will probably be cold, but it was a good day chatting with people along the way. Alvin doesn't look so good tonight, though. He had me pick up some stuff for him at the campground store so he could refuel. I think he's just plain exhausted. I need some more sleep, too. Too much evening socializing and too many early, early mornings.
Today's ride: 47 miles (76 km)
Total: 2,985 miles (4,804 km)
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