July 29, 2017
Day 7, Kirkwood, CA to Carson City, NV: Where Did the Trees Go?
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Mileage Today; 55 Total So Far; 262 Remaining; 1,337
Climbing Today; 2,344 Total So Far; 18,636 Remaining; 81,482
Max Grade Today; 9.8% Average Uphill Grade; 2.2%
Average Speed While Riding; 11.7 mph
Mechanical Issues; None
Photos Credit; Bud, unless noted otherwise
Bud Speaking:
We rolled out of Kirkwood early this morning in anticipation of what the ACA maps said were steep portions of the climb up to Carson Pass. The scenery with Caples Lake and snow covered mountains in the background was quite spectacular.
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Slowly and steadily we worked our way up towards the pass and we were surprised that the climb seemed to be a bit easier than we expected. At the summit we talked to a group of hikers and one of them took our glory picture.
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After discussing our plans for breakfast, we rolled out to enjoy the long downhill run that we had earned. We slowed as we approached Sorensen’s resort, and pulled in for breakfast. Second breakfast is a bicycling tradition, wherein cyclists have their first breakfast before leaving for the day and then seek a place along the way to enjoy a second breakfast. Our second breakfast today was quite good and we finished up and continued our journey.
Further down the descent we were able to exit from highway 88 and take a lesser traveled road that went into Genoa and then eventually to Carson City. The advantage of using the ACA Maps Is that they seek out these lesser traveled roads. As we traveled along the Old Immigrant way, we eventually reached Nevada!
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This was a major milestone for all of us in that we had now traversed California, even though it was the "short" way across the state. This was the first state crossing of any state for Sis and Doc, so it is a major milestone for them as well. As we rolled down toward Genoa we encountered lots of cyclists coming up the hill the other way. Some of these folks were locals who were enjoying their Saturday out on a cycling run, but many of them belonged to a commercial tour group and there was a van following them. The van carried all their gear as they rode to each day’s destination. Some scenery along the route to Carson City follows.
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We stopped in Genoa for a cold drink and snack, then continued on towards Carson City.
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As we continued down the road toward Carson City we encountered fresh construction. While it didn't affect our travel directly, we were riding on a shoulder that had lots of asphalt and gravel spilled on it from the construction operations, and we picked up some of the sticky stuff and bits of gravel in our tires.
A thunderstorm was brewing in the near distance, and we were anxious to get to our hotels for the night. However, we made a stop at a bicycle store to look for a new seat bag for me as my tried and true Trek bag's zipper had finally failed and it was being held together with safety pins. Doc wanted to stop at the bicycle store to look for a way to carry more water as we are nearing the long no-services stretches.
I went on to my motel for the night, and left Doc and Sis outside a Best Buy store where Doc was going to buy an Apple tablet computer so he could conduct some business along the way. Arriving at my motel (which is also a casino), I checked in and wheeled my loaded touring bike directly through the casino to reach the elevator which took me to the top floor. I would have preferred to stay on the ground floor with the bike, because it's much easier to roll it into your room without having to use the elevator, but there were no ground floor rooms at this hotel. I was using hotel points to get a free night, so I really couldn't complain. Sis and Doc stayed directly across the street from me in a hotel where they had a first floor room, and we met later for dinner. We enjoyed a great meal at Reds 395 grill very close to our motels, and retired early for the night. Tomorrow will be our first taste of the Nevada basin and range province as we roll to Fallon. There are plenty of places to stop along the way, so it's a good way to break into the hot climate because there will be lots of stores where we can get a cold drink.
Looking at my bike I noticed that there were lots of little gravel bits and sticky asphalt stuck in between my treads from where we had rolled along past the new construction today. I used a blade of my Swiss Army knife and picked out all the little gravels and all the little sticky asphalt bits from both tires so that they wouldn't cause a puncture later on. Because I'm a nice guy, or maybe it's just because my momma taught me that I should clean up after myself, I picked up all the little gravels and sticky bits and disposed of them so the maid wouldn't wonder what in tarnation happened here.
Tomorrow we get to experience the basin and range provinces of Nevada for the first time as we roll to Fallon. It will be an easy introduction because there are lots of stores along the way where we can refresh ourselves. We anticipate that the real test in Nevada will begin the day after tomorrow, when we begin to experience long distances with no support services and we must carry lots of water. I really feel like I need my rest, so goodnight everyone...
Today's ride: 55 miles (89 km)
Total: 261 miles (420 km)
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