Apparently the mental health day was quite effective. Lindsay and I clocked in 112.29 miles today, and once again i am extremely proud of us(and I feel like this will probably not be the last time i say this this trip, as everyday we face a new challenge).
We started off with great speed as we left Fallon and began the first of many miles on Highway 50, which its dubbed "the loneliest highway in America." There is some truth to that. We were ready and confident to take on the heat, with 2 gallons of water (to bring our total load to about 65 lbs of gear/supply), and to face the many climbs one at a time. The extra 15 lbs were quite noticeable, but you begin took get used to it and almost ignore it up the hills, because you can't focus on what you wish was different. Wishing doesn't get you up a hill. 15 extra lbs was totally worth hydration, and even survival.
The first 25 miles were beautiful, the desert was dry and cracked and we had mountains on either side of us. People names were written along the side of the road with dark rocks to contrast the light sand. This went on for a few miles. Also at this point, we came to a very amusing realization. People would zoom by us and this fog horn type sound would be emitted before and after they passed us. We thought that they were honking at us. Every car, multiple hunks... One, two, sometimes three. First, we contemplated why they were all honking so much, and were they being rude our just acknowledging us. Next, we didn't know why their horns sounded so different from the ones we are used to. So at around mile 25, right before our first climb, and after many many cars had passed, we realized sound was was actually from their tires crossing the rumble strip in pavement in the center if the road. In fact, not one single car had honked at us even once, and their horns do sound like regular car horns.
The heat hit early, and we couldn't get enough cold water. At the summit of our warm-up pass of 4644, a man and his nephew gave us two bottles of brilliantly cold water. They were headed towards Ely, NV from Vegas, where his soon had won a motor cycle race from Reno to Vegas. The man offered up his home when we got to Ely. It was very nice of him, but I'm sure the campground will suit us just fine. That was miles away from where we were at the time.
I don't know why we thought that the desert is flat, because it is exactly the opposite. There were beautiful hills at the end of vast plains of sand and thistle bushes, as well as another weed that gave some green color to the browns and blues of the hills. The shadows from the clouds added another element of beauty. I must say that the desert is quite a lonely place, untouched, and despite the beating sun, it is peaceful--Not a place where i would ever like to live (yes, we passed some ranches). I would miss the green trees and streams too much. We have not seen any thistle weed or cacti! We had a great time not swerving onto the rumble bars on the shoulders of we looked up at something (they are wide and long, it just doesn't look that way from the car), or if we wanted to stop and take a picture. If you serve in them by mistake it can take what seems like forever to get out... And it hurts your brain, it feels like your brain is getting jostled. It is awful, and doesn't feel good on your seat either. It typically is accompanied by a varying degree of muttering curse words.
At mile 50 our map tools us that we would have access to groceries, a hotel, gas station, restaurant and a campground at Middlegate. (This is great stuff to know and have nearby at that point, but through these desert Towns, we are mainly interested to see if they have any water) because of all the amenities, we were picturing a quaint little Western town... A few buildings on the side of the road. Instead, we found about 20 RVs next to an old, in need of repair building that housed the restaurant... Groceries, bar, campsite with a large gas tank next to a pump. There wee old buggies and wagons left haphazardly on the gravel around the building, as decoration almost. The hotel adjacent looked vacant. We were definitely in the desert, and we cracked up at our surprise. The small store let us fill our water and our stomachs, and we were grateful. There is nothing better than cold water in the desert.
We left the town and pedaled for another 15 miles or so. We were saved by the breeze, however it was somewhat of a headwind so it made it tough to battle our food coma and the small climb to 5800 ft. It doesn't help that you can't tell if you are going up hill or slightly downhill sometimes, and the energy from the heat bends the light so it looks like the cars and tractor trailors are coming out of the sky. It is very peculiar. We stopped at a little station called Cold Springs to replenish our nice cold water (the two gallons each was for emergency supply, and for keeping I'd hydrated between Towns, as sometimes out can be 80 miles between any service stations). We stayed on the porch of the building for a couple of hours to get out of the 3-5 cruel heat. We dosed off once our twice. There were many people drinking at the bar inside, and they actually tried to tell us that Austin, our destination was at 11,000 ft and we would never make it there tonight. We had been told not to listen to locals about terrain in these parts because they are way off and don't actually know what they are talking about (Austin pass is 7484') I personally think they wetter trying to scare us, but we had all the info we needed about elevation on our map. It is frustrating.
E left child springs with 48 miles ahead of us to Austin, the next town after Middlegate. Clouds and smoke curtained us from the sun. We were tired from the 65 miles we had already completed, but looking forward to beating both of our personal records, (which Lindsay had set only two days before) and it gave us much motivation. At around 80 miles we began two big climbs and the wind was fighting us, making us feel incredibly fatigued. It was starting to spit rain, and while it was refreshing in some ways, it stung our eyes and faces. As skin s we got to the top of the pass, the wind turned around and we flew for miles down hill, which is wonderful because we were absolutely exhausted.
At mile 102 we hit a wall. My left hand had been numb for hours, my thumbs in excruciating pain from the day before. Then you add in every other muscle that kept you on the bike and got you to that point, just screaming to be done. I could hardly turn, my head to see where Lindsay was behind me. And then we had a 5 mile climb, because of course the towns in a desert have to be on a hill (worst idea ever). The last 5 miles were the hardest miles of the trip, by far, because of physical pain, and pushing ourselves to the physical and mental limit. A 100 mile ride with a road bike is hard enough.. add 65 lbs and a desert, and what a combination you have. We kept each other going, checking in and telling each other we were almost there, even though each quarter miles felt like 10 miles. we stayed strong for the other person. When we got into town, it was hard to push our bikes. Each day we find another challenge. It is a new one, and typically one that we weren't foreseeing, and while they are frustrating and demanding to get through, you realize that you can always find more in you if you just choose to dig a little deeper.
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