Up at 3:15 this morning. It was sure hard to roll out of this nice comfortable bed. On the road at 4:15, nice cool morning.
5:12 AM 8.7 miles and my hands are freezing this morning. It’s cold out here.
Once I get out of Wyoming I’ll have to reassess these early morning starts—it’s just too cold…need to wait for the sun to come up. But, for now it’s worth it just to try to get miles in before the wind kicks up.
6:13 AM 17.6 miles and I’m still a block of ice, but the sun is coming up over the mountain so there’s hope for Warmth. Been climbing I think I’m going up to 9700 feet.
6:43 AM 21.3 miles in and I’m still a block of ice it’s taking a long time to warm up this morning. It’s 43° and it’s cold.
8:20 AM 33 miles and getting a little warmer and feeling a lot better. Just entered Bridger national forest and got the reminders about being bear aware—I’m in grizzly country now so I do need to be alert and keep my bear spray close by.
9:30 and 41.2 miles in on a rough road here going up to Union Pass. Had to stop and dig out my mosquito spray, they were eating me alive, put that on and it seems to have done the trick. So just having a snack while I’m stopped here—pop tart and orange juice.
10:30 AM 42.6 miles in and on a big climb up the mountain with chunky rock dirt road—hard climbing—have a thunderstorm behind me, I hope he stays behind me, I’m getting a few drops so I don’t know, seems like it might be moving away I might get lucky.
11:40 AM 49.8 miles and just hit 9,000 feet I think the peak is about 9600. This isn’t the highest mountain I’ve climbed it doesn’t have the steepest grades, but is the hardest just because of the rough riding conditions. Just miles and miles of Chucky rock, holes, rough uneven surface—have to keep my eyes on the road all the time it’s just slow grinding.
12:50 57.6 miles in I am still climbing had to stop for a beef jerky and Gatorade break. Thunderstorms all around me one got me a little bit but so far been lucky.
Still trying to get to the top of this mountain. I’ll climb up over 9000 feet and then drop back down 3 or 4 hundred feet and then climb back over 9000 and drop back down. Torture.
2:30 PM I’m at 63 miles still climbing just looked down and noticed my go Pro is gone. It must’ve fallen off back down the road. I started to walk back a couple hundred yards—didn’t see it but I just don’t have the energy to backtrack until I find it. Not so concerned about the go Pro itself but I hate losing the footage I had on it, but I can’t ride back down this mountain looking for it. I’ve still got pictures and stuff on my phone so not a total loss and as I think about it I swapped out the SD card at the campsite when I tried to capture the milkey way. So haven’t lost much footage. Will just have to rely on phone from here on out.
2:58 PM 65.8 miles in and still climbing. I’m entering my third national forest for the day, Shoshone. I started out in Bridger national forest, the Teton national forest and now this one.
3:47 PM almost at the top still patches of snow off the side road.
4:15 pm finally at the top of this crazy climb. This wasn’t the highest peak I’ve climbed this trip and it didn’t have the steepest inclines, but it was just rough riding – a full body workout all day long. Imagine the roughest dirt/rock country Road you’ve ever ridden on, Double that and then stretch it out over about 60 miles. A tough day. I also discovered at the end of the day that my rear Flashing light must’ve jarred off as well, because it’s missing and I know it was there in the morning when I turned it on. I strap things down pretty well to my bike, and this is the first time I’ve lost anything off of it and today I lost two things – that’s how rough the riding was.
Oh well, on to Colter Bay tomorrow at the foot of the Tetons. I camped there on my Trans Am trip four years ago. Excellent campground with bear boxes for your food. Also a great place for breakfast. And a grand view of the Tetons.
Pics:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/dy4ot5dgd7q5i93/AABbIrybStuINHM6jJ6tLgtca?dl=0
