It’s Too Dang Hot to Even Type

July 14, 2022

Leaving Halfway, OR this morning with Oregon showing off some more of her beauty.

This was on the route before the climbing began. No clue what it’s really called but I dubbed it Pyramid Valley.

Yesterday a stampede and today a blockade. For the record, they blinked first 😉

Two happy boys finally crossing out of Oregon and into Idaho. Little did we know all that Idaho had in store for us. If we knew, just maybe we wouldn’t be smiling.

Another look back into the BrownLee Reservoir from the start of the climb.

Yup we made it to the top of the Pass and for our effort they stuck that tiny little sign on the side of the road. I’m sure they didn’t want us getting too full of ourselves as there is plenty more climbing ahead.

The requisite barn picture. Once again took over 50 miles to find a good one. This one was as we were coming into Cambridge,ID

In case you didn’t believe my rant about the temperature.

And finally, a little education about the town of Council.

Let’s just start with the title…we peaked today at 102 degrees. And it’s now 8:30 pm and it’s cooled off a whole 6 friggin degrees! We drank more Gatorade today than I think we have the whole rest of the trip. For the record, after this trip I may have to take a year off from Gatorade.

Had a great breakfast this morning at the Pine Valley Lodge. Shellie was a great host and came in an hour early to accommodate our early departure ( we were trying to beat the heat and well you can see that didn’t work out). The ride out of Halfway, OR was pretty fast and uneventful until (cue up the Jaws music)…we ran into (virtually and almost physically) a cow blockade. What’s up with that? We literally had about a two minute stare down before they finally blinked and crossed the road.

After that we resumed a solid pace and reached the Oxbow Dam and Reservoir, and then the BrownLee Dam and Reservoir (both part of the Snake River system). Why are they important, first because they are really beautiful bodies of water. And second because the BrownLee Dam is the dividing line between Oregon and Idaho. If I’m being honest here, Oregon eased us out and Idaho was initially not very friendly. First we had to climb up to the top of the dam which was about a 9 percent grade for a bit and in total almost 300 feet of elevation in maybe 3/4’s of a mile. Then we had a gradual climb for about 7 miles gaining 300 more feet and then 6.5 miles and 1,800 feet to the summit at an elevation 4,131 feet. Finally after proving our worth, Idaho welcomed us with a nice long downhill into Cambridge,ID. There we were informed that the only restaurant that was open in the entire town (ok it’s a really tiny town) was Lee’s (a one man Chinese Restaurant). Now who the heck eats Chinese food in the middle of an 81 mile ride on a 102 degree day? Answer…Ian and Dan. And it was really good, but seriously not what we’re were looking for.

After our gourmet meal, we jumped on the Weiser (pronounced Weezer) Trail for 20 miles into Council, ID. It’s a very long rails to trails trail (hmmm that seems redundant) consisting of lots of gravel, packed dirt, some cinder, rocky areas, wood bridges, and about a dozen pasture gates we had to stop and open and then close (really brakes up your rhythm). Anyway we finally made it into Council, had sandwiches for dinner at Spokes and then made it to the campsite. But of course it’s still too hot to set up and get into the tents.

Hope that all wasn’t too detailed and or boring.

Ok so yes you’ll get a barn picture. It’s getting harder to find a cool barn, but I keep looking. And yes there is an educational opportunity. And finally a bit of social commentary:

So we’ve seen a lot of cows and cattle. There have been black ones, brown ones, tan ones, white ones, and myriad biracial ones (Max, can cows be biracial?). But the bottom line is that they all pasture together and get along. So what’s our problem? Maybe we need to pay more attention to the cows and behave more like them. Just saying…

Ok so in closing, thanks Oregon for being a challenging host and sharing some of your beauty, small towns, and colorful people. We’ll miss you but at the same time we’re happy to be in state number two.

Night all. Oh yeah, if you have t created a log in, please do as it’s the only way I know if you’re enjoying my musings.

Ian

Today's ride: 81 miles (130 km)
Total: 3,857 miles (6,207 km)

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Michele GordonWow 4131 feet of climbing …..in 102 degrees 😬it’s painful reading that 😳
I can’t imagine cycling it
Who knows …….this trip may actually have you drinking water (since Gatorade may be out and I can’t imagine you are finding much seltzer 😉) well done Ian and Dan
Welcome to Idaho 🥳
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2 years ago

Ben WaKeep it up, Ian and Dan! So fun to read along about your adventures. All our best! Ben and Liya
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2 years ago