After a beautiful ride in the Capitol Reef National park, we were refreshed and energetic when we woke up. I was starving, as per usual these days, upon waking up, so we took full advantage of the free continental breakfast in the lobby. The make your own Belgium waffle station was a delight, but did little to curb my hunger. Oatmeal, muffins... The orange juice was joyous. Full of sugar and carbs, one would think that we would be hurrying to get on the on the road, but that was not the case. For some reason, which was probably due to the fact that subconsciously we didn't think we had far to go and the maps didn't look that bad, we took our sweet time. Lindsay put on the oldies station on Pandora, and i must say that it is hard to pack up when you are dancing, singing, and laughing at each other. When we finally did leave, at 1030, we kept the singing and laughing up, especially when we saw signs for the Wayne County Idol Auditions that we were just barely missing. Unfortunately Lindsay is going to have to wait for next year for that to happen.<br />
it was a fun ride to Hanksville, 18 miles flat and slightly down hill, through the desert canyons. It felt like we were biking through a sand castle. The sand at the bottom of the canyon "walls" had clearly been weathered off. The ground was cracked and dry. I must say this was aesthetically more like what you would think a desert should look like, which made it easier to ride through than the one in Nevada. We saw a family that had climbed up a sand dune. We kind of wanted to join them, and then realized it would be difficult in bike shoes (barefeet are not recommended.... Thistle weeds are everywhere, and the thorns are sneaky and cheeky). Simply walking is difficult in bike shoes... And you certainly have to watch your self in grocery store tiles and wet surfaces. Hioll sprinting in them is also not easy. A few days before we were descending down from one of our climbs and my cell phone flew out of my case (since then, changes have been made as to where i keep it). I stopped my bike quickly (as quickly as you can stop over 200 lbs with cantilever brake pads that were already hot), and heard a car approaching. I threw my bike down and pretty much did a hill sprint to save my phone from the RV barrling down the hill. (my phone is my camera, my GPS, and the only connection we have with the outside world, I'm car of emergency especially) Hill sprints are not my idea of fun, and especially not in bike shoes with very little surface area and a cleat protruding one half inch out of the ball of you're foot. But alas, you gotta do what you gotta do.<br />
<br />
We stopped in Hanksville to enjoy some lovely homemade sandwiches (ham, Kraft singles and hamburger buns) We stocked up on food at the market, it was the last grocery store w would osoee for miles. The campsite at Hite National Park, the only service in 124 miles and our destination for the day, only had a convenient store, so we had to be prepared with enough food and water for two days. We had expected we could restock some supplies (chef boyardee for example) that we would use at lunch and have extra on hand.
The next stop was the gas station down the road to fill our water bottles with ice and water, and get twoo extra galllons each. While Lindsay was inside the store, I was watching our bikes in the shade, and i was overwhelmed by the heat, just standing there. It was getting to be afternoon at that point and i don't think we realized that we would face such heat, and the heat only gets exponentially worse as the afternoon progresses out in the West. So, i remembered some advice from two doctors from work about putting ice in tube socks and putting them around our necks so as the ice melts it runs down our backs. Now, we didn't have tube socks, and the socks that we did have were certainly not fit to be worn around our necks, as we have only a few pair, and they were covered in swear, salt, and blood. Not to mention they would asphyxiate us, as we were far from our last laundry day....
We bought a bag of ice and i put some in a tshirt and tied it around my neck like a cape (it was almost like a travel pillow, and had dual purposes, because as we carried on and i threw my head back in frustration from heat, i had a nice little refreshing cushion to lay my head on) Lindsay put ice in her back pockets of her jersey. She could take me seriously as we ventured forth, and started laughing, which i caught, and we almost had to get off our bikes (for the third time that day) due to laughing induced weakness. We strapped the rest of to my bike in a garbage bag ( loved the extra 3 lbs) and headed towards the desert. As the ice in the bag melted, we dipped our shirts into the ice cold water, as much as we could. The 98 degree heat was quick to dry them, but for the 2 minutes that they were cold, they were a nice reprieve for our bodies that felt sluggish in the heat. The ice was gone within an hour.
When we were leaving Hanksville, there was a sign that said that Hite National Park was 44 miles away. That is what we mentally and physical prepared for. As the afternoon and heat progressed, we found that the heat was really taking a toll on our bodies, and the extra energy we were expending to keep them cool needed to be replaced, so we had to tap into our food supplies earlier than we had thought . Then a headwind hit, and a strong a one. We had spent most of our time in the heat on a slight uphill, and when We finally got to the "descent" and we had to pedal against the wind... It was infuriating... And then we saw the sign that said that Hite National Park was 7 miles further than the sign had originally stated. Now, this was a huge blew for us. 7 miles is a lot, especially after a day of extreme heat--we were exhausted. We make mental milestones throughout the day... "10 miles, only 5 miles to 15, double that and we will be at 30, which is almost half way there.... So that's good...." (yes this is something that has actually gone through my head) so 7 miles screwed with our flow. At that point, we ate a snack, cursed and then laughed at our situation, and, recharged, headed back into the headwind. We had a lovely time through another canyon, talking, joking. It is amazing how fast the scenery can change in Utah. You can turn a corner and find a drastic change in landscape... Desert to red canyon in an instant.... You can also turn a corner and find an unexpected hill to climb... Like we did. It. Was steep, we were back in the sun. We were running on fumes and the thought keeping us going was that we would be near a lake soon where we could wash the salt off and cool off our overheated bodies. Water is water, even when it is warm, and we would never turn it down even if it was hot. But there is something about ice water that is just perfect. It cools you down, it quenches your thirst. It is a reward at the top of a hill. Our water was warm by mile 5 in this heat. We cherished what we had, but it made the lake seem that much more enticing.
When we got to the top of the hill we saw start of lake powell, blue water surrounded
by the glow of the red canyons in the setting sun, and the burning muscles in my legs, which was on the forefront of my mind, lessened as i concentrated on what my eyes were seeing. Utah had given us some nasty hills, but some great rewards, and that's what it is all about.
We finished the hill and descended in tunnel of rock on 8% grades and slammed on the brakes when we saw the rest of the lake. These sights seemed like ones that you think of in fairytales.
Our campground was 5 miles away, and we had to go around the lake and cross it first, up steep hills. The sun was setting. We were starving. A quick snack allowed us to finish the last few miles. Our final ascent was up the steepest hill of the day and led to the campsite road. After 68 miles of heat, wind, and lots of hills, there is something extremely special about the fact that Lindsay and were yelling back and forth to each other as we gave everything else we had to make it up the hill, saying "you are almost there, you can do it," when you hardly can think of making another pedal.
We got to where the campsite and convenient store were supposed to be, only to find the convenient store had closed for the night and there no place to stake our tents. We found this odd residential area and decided that there was an area that looked as much as a RV hookup as it did somebody's lawn, so we put up a tent, ate (aka inhaled) a can of chef boyardee and spaghettios (Lindsay realized she should have spent the extra 50 cents for the gourmet beefaroni as she choked down some spaghetti and meet balls in a can).during this time we tried to figure out what day it was... Tuesday or Wednesday. After a few minutes we decided on Tuesday, only to find out 45 minutes that it was Wednesday. When your days consist of sleep,.biking eating, hydrating, surviving, and not knowing where you will be able to lay down for the night, they blend together easily. Improvisation is key. We set up the other tent and climbed in for the night, tucked in with smelly gloves and gear.
It was still hot. We were unable to swim in the lake, and we had salt caked on our bodies (no bathroom or shower), and we were in our respective tents sweating. Everytime i rolled over, it felt like someone was rubbing sand paper into my arms and legs.... Skin exfoliation, anyone? We were honestly glad to be out of the sun, laying down, and closing our eyes. A cement floor, or even a shower stall would have been fine at that point.
The stars and moon were bright and beautiful....and the crickets eventually lulled us off to sleep. We made it through the day... one that we had expected to be much easier and shorter than it was. I will finish with a quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson that i have reminded myself of more than a few times on this trip. To quote , “Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in, forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day, you shall begin it well and serenely...”
Luckily we can laugh at most of those blunders.
it was a fun ride to Hanksville, 18 miles flat and slightly down hill, through the desert canyons. It felt like we were biking through a sand castle. The sand at the bottom of the canyon "walls" had clearly been weathered off. The ground was cracked and dry. I must say this was aesthetically more like what you would think a desert should look like, which made it easier to ride through than the one in Nevada. We saw a family that had climbed up a sand dune. We kind of wanted to join them, and then realized it would be difficult in bike shoes (barefeet are not recommended.... Thistle weeds are everywhere, and the thorns are sneaky and cheeky). Simply walking is difficult in bike shoes... And you certainly have to watch your self in grocery store tiles and wet surfaces. Hioll sprinting in them is also not easy. A few days before we were descending down from one of our climbs and my cell phone flew out of my case (since then, changes have been made as to where i keep it). I stopped my bike quickly (as quickly as you can stop over 200 lbs with cantilever brake pads that were already hot), and heard a car approaching. I threw my bike down and pretty much did a hill sprint to save my phone from the RV barrling down the hill. (my phone is my camera, my GPS, and the only connection we have with the outside world, I'm car of emergency especially) Hill sprints are not my idea of fun, and especially not in bike shoes with very little surface area and a cleat protruding one half inch out of the ball of you're foot. But alas, you gotta do what you gotta do.<br />
<br />
We stopped in Hanksville to enjoy some lovely homemade sandwiches (ham, Kraft singles and hamburger buns) We stocked up on food at the market, it was the last grocery store w would osoee for miles. The campsite at Hite National Park, the only service in 124 miles and our destination for the day, only had a convenient store, so we had to be prepared with enough food and water for two days. We had expected we could restock some supplies (chef boyardee for example) that we would use at lunch and have extra on hand.
The next stop was the gas station down the road to fill our water bottles with ice and water, and get twoo extra galllons each. While Lindsay was inside the store, I was watching our bikes in the shade, and i was overwhelmed by the heat, just standing there. It was getting to be afternoon at that point and i don't think we realized that we would face such heat, and the heat only gets exponentially worse as the afternoon progresses out in the West. So, i remembered some advice from two doctors from work about putting ice in tube socks and putting them around our necks so as the ice melts it runs down our backs. Now, we didn't have tube socks, and the socks that we did have were certainly not fit to be worn around our necks, as we have only a few pair, and they were covered in swear, salt, and blood. Not to mention they would asphyxiate us, as we were far from our last laundry day....
We bought a bag of ice and i put some in a tshirt and tied it around my neck like a cape (it was almost like a travel pillow, and had dual purposes, because as we carried on and i threw my head back in frustration from heat, i had a nice little refreshing cushion to lay my head on) Lindsay put ice in her back pockets of her jersey. She could take me seriously as we ventured forth, and started laughing, which i caught, and we almost had to get off our bikes (for the third time that day) due to laughing induced weakness. We strapped the rest of to my bike in a garbage bag ( loved the extra 3 lbs) and headed towards the desert. As the ice in the bag melted, we dipped our shirts into the ice cold water, as much as we could. The 98 degree heat was quick to dry them, but for the 2 minutes that they were cold, they were a nice reprieve for our bodies that felt sluggish in the heat. The ice was gone within an hour.
When we were leaving Hanksville, there was a sign that said that Hite National Park was 44 miles away. That is what we mentally and physical prepared for. As the afternoon and heat progressed, we found that the heat was really taking a toll on our bodies, and the extra energy we were expending to keep them cool needed to be replaced, so we had to tap into our food supplies earlier than we had thought . Then a headwind hit, and a strong a one. We had spent most of our time in the heat on a slight uphill, and when We finally got to the "descent" and we had to pedal against the wind... It was infuriating... And then we saw the sign that said that Hite National Park was 7 miles further than the sign had originally stated. Now, this was a huge blew for us. 7 miles is a lot, especially after a day of extreme heat--we were exhausted. We make mental milestones throughout the day... "10 miles, only 5 miles to 15, double that and we will be at 30, which is almost half way there.... So that's good...." (yes this is something that has actually gone through my head) so 7 miles screwed with our flow. At that point, we ate a snack, cursed and then laughed at our situation, and, recharged, headed back into the headwind. We had a lovely time through another canyon, talking, joking. It is amazing how fast the scenery can change in Utah. You can turn a corner and find a drastic change in landscape... Desert to red canyon in an instant.... You can also turn a corner and find an unexpected hill to climb... Like we did. It. Was steep, we were back in the sun. We were running on fumes and the thought keeping us going was that we would be near a lake soon where we could wash the salt off and cool off our overheated bodies. Water is water, even when it is warm, and we would never turn it down even if it was hot. But there is something about ice water that is just perfect. It cools you down, it quenches your thirst. It is a reward at the top of a hill. Our water was warm by mile 5 in this heat. We cherished what we had, but it made the lake seem that much more enticing.
When we got to the top of the hill we saw start of lake powell, blue water surrounded
by the glow of the red canyons in the setting sun, and the burning muscles in my legs, which was on the forefront of my mind, lessened as i concentrated on what my eyes were seeing. Utah had given us some nasty hills, but some great rewards, and that's what it is all about.
We finished the hill and descended in tunnel of rock on 8% grades and slammed on the brakes when we saw the rest of the lake. These sights seemed like ones that you think of in fairytales.
Our campground was 5 miles away, and we had to go around the lake and cross it first, up steep hills. The sun was setting. We were starving. A quick snack allowed us to finish the last few miles. Our final ascent was up the steepest hill of the day and led to the campsite road. After 68 miles of heat, wind, and lots of hills, there is something extremely special about the fact that Lindsay and were yelling back and forth to each other as we gave everything else we had to make it up the hill, saying "you are almost there, you can do it," when you hardly can think of making another pedal.
We got to where the campsite and convenient store were supposed to be, only to find the convenient store had closed for the night and there no place to stake our tents. We found this odd residential area and decided that there was an area that looked as much as a RV hookup as it did somebody's lawn, so we put up a tent, ate (aka inhaled) a can of chef boyardee and spaghettios (Lindsay realized she should have spent the extra 50 cents for the gourmet beefaroni as she choked down some spaghetti and meet balls in a can).during this time we tried to figure out what day it was... Tuesday or Wednesday. After a few minutes we decided on Tuesday, only to find out 45 minutes that it was Wednesday. When your days consist of sleep,.biking eating, hydrating, surviving, and not knowing where you will be able to lay down for the night, they blend together easily. Improvisation is key. We set up the other tent and climbed in for the night, tucked in with smelly gloves and gear.
It was still hot. We were unable to swim in the lake, and we had salt caked on our bodies (no bathroom or shower), and we were in our respective tents sweating. Everytime i rolled over, it felt like someone was rubbing sand paper into my arms and legs.... Skin exfoliation, anyone? We were honestly glad to be out of the sun, laying down, and closing our eyes. A cement floor, or even a shower stall would have been fine at that point.
The stars and moon were bright and beautiful....and the crickets eventually lulled us off to sleep. We made it through the day... one that we had expected to be much easier and shorter than it was. I will finish with a quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson that i have reminded myself of more than a few times on this trip. To quote , “Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in, forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day, you shall begin it well and serenely...”
Luckily we can laugh at most of those blunders.
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