July 3, 2013
Abraham Lincoln Looks Annoyed
Day 10: Curt Gowdy State Park to Laramie, Wyoming
Chilliest morning yet. This was also the best night's sleep in the tent yet, and I was refreshed and ready to ride the 20-some miles to Laramie, which was so short it would be almost a rest day. First, though, I had to climb a few thousand feet to the famous "Lincoln's Head" rest area on I-80, from which I would then coast down about ten miles into Laramie.
Leaving the campground required an immediate steep climb, and then more miles of climbing. On the longest and steepest of these, I resorted to the smallest chain ring for the first time on the trip.
The scenery was great, the air smelled fresh, and there was hardly any traffic on Happy Jack Road this morning. Eventually, though I reached the busy rest area where the head of Abraham Lincoln, perched on a stone column, looks down on everything kind of annoyed-like.
A young guy from Washington, D.C., Ramon, asked me to take several pictures of him in front of the statue, which of course I obliged. Then, apparently presuming I was some sort of celebrity because I was doing a long bike ride (there was also a bit of a language barrier), he asked other people to take pictures of he and I together. These pictures on Ramon's cell phone are the only photographic evidence of the terrible beard I'm currently growing.
After my new friend Ramon left, a lady walked up to me, looked at the bike, and said "I did that!" Turns out she rode the TransAm, west-to-east , as part of an Adventure Cycling group in 1981. We had an enjoyable conversation about this while her two teenage daughters rolled their eyes. I guess they've heard their mom's stories more than once.
It was ten brief but unpleasant (for me, who doesn't like descending) miles on I-80 to the first Laramie exit. I wound my way through back streets and then busy Grand Avenue until I reached the old part of town. I secured a barely-OK motel room, partially based on its proximity various sources of food, including a Qdoba about 300 feet away. I had a burrito for lunch then dropped the bike off at a shop to get a new tire put on, and took care of various boring chores.
Later my plans to eat dinner at a Thai restaurant were altered when the power went off soon after I was seated. I left and went back to Qdoba for another burrito, which turned out to be free when the restaurant's credit card processing system went down after my burrito was already made! Surely one of the best things that ever happened to me; well, in the last couple of days, at least.
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Today's ride: 28 miles (45 km)
Total: 844 miles (1,358 km)
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