Thankfully today was the last of the all-day slogs through the high desert of Wyoming. Tomorrow's push should get us into the Medicine Bow Mountains along the northern border of Colorado, which should offer some visual, vertical, and mental relief from desert travel. If you've ever had the pleasure of traveling I-80 through the southern part of Wyoming you'll have a pretty good mental image of the terrain - lots of sand, sage, wind, and very dry looking mountains.
I've read and heard of lots of strategies for beating the brutal wind and heat of the Wyoming desert. Strategies include starting mega-early, riding at night, doing 3-4 hours in the morning and then a few more hours in the evening. I'm an idiot and have employed none of them.
I seem to be coping OK with the heat and dry despite my idiocy (the humidity when we arrived in Rawlins today was 7% - temperature 94) . . . am drinking tons and have managed to keep the bike moving forward without tipping over.
Had a big time today checking out more pioneer stuff, including landmarks like Split Rock, Ice Slough, Independence Rock, Devil's Gate, and Martin's Cove. I think we've all gained a pretty good appreciation for how difficult it must have been for those parties to cross this territory - especially when only managing 10-15 miles per day for weeks on end.
| Split Rock - a major visual landmark for fur trappers, pioneers, and the Pony Express |
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| One final pass to climb before reaching Rawlins . . . |
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| . . . and confirmation of the effort: another crossing of the Continental Divide. The Divide sort of snakes through this whole area. The result is that you wind up crossing it more than just once. |
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Before I arrived in Rawlins, Amy rejected a Days Inn that featured "unknown sheen on pool surface", "hot lobby", and general "ickiness" (Amy's terminology), and she checked into a magnificent Comfort Inn this afternoon. I took a well-earned (and much- needed) shower - I Hollywooded in that shower for at least 30 minutes. We also enjoyed some really excellent Thai food tonight at 'Anong's Thai Cuisine' and we checked out "Ratatoille" I was concerned that I would konk out during the movie but it was pretty good and kept me awake all the way through. Complimentary refills of our 'bucket' of 7UP were much appreciated and eagerly consumed.
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