Day 72: Lolo Creek CG to Wilderness Gateway CG

July 21, 2006

I am a pooped little puppy today. Beautiful scenery along a gorgeous river, but it's incredibly hot, and I'm tuckered out. Somebody stopping at a pulloff where I was resting gave me a bunch of ice today, which was awesome. I have plenty of water, but it's tough to keep anything cool with this heat. My waterbottles on the bike got as warm as hot-tub water today, so I've been keeping water in the panniers instead to keep it a little cooler.

Dale bought my breakfast in exchange for info about touring gear. He's thinking about an upcoming trip for himself, so it was nice to have someone interested in the nuts and bolts of planning and gearing up.

Caught up with Germans Maik and Stefan at Lolo Summit

Idaho (for real this time, not just for 30 seconds like last time)

The great downhill on the other side of the pass had to wait until I finished a video taped interview with Suzanne from Adventure Cycling at the top...but she gave me a cold club soda, so it was worth it.

Left on the side of the road by some trail angels

The road followed the rivers of Idaho for days. This is the Lochsa.

The temperature soared to well over 100 degrees in the canyon, but as I was stopped for a shade break to try to cool down, an ice angel came along and loaded me up with fresh ice from her cooler. I wish I could have stuck my head in the cooler, too, but the ice was very, very welcomed since I wouldn't have a service stop until the next day.

I soaked everything but the seat of my shorts in the river to try to cool off. The heat was really bothering me by the end of the day, even though the ride wasn't very demanding.

Camp with no vending machines with anything cold--at least the water was cool.

Today's ride: 70 miles (113 km)
Total: 3,628 miles (5,839 km)

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