Another hot dry day cycling thru scrub desert in southern Idaho. A relatively easy day. We are going to pay for these low mileage days down the road, to keep our daily average. Later this week and next week, our long days combined with much higher elevations will begin in earnest. I am looking forward to the challenge.
We found a sofa someone dumped along the side of the road and it became a Sea to Sea rest stop.
Tuesday July 15: 103 km. 97 F partly cloudy. Mountain Home Idaho to Gooding Idaho.We actually saw clouds in the sky today for the first time in almost two weeks! It was also somewhat humid today, so it was a little more like home for many of us. More travelling thru scrub desert in southern Idaho, interspersed with some agriculture. At one point along the route the temperature hit 103 F, but that was a few hours after I went thru there, so I was spared the worst of it. A little tougher going today, but still a relative easy day for most of us.
When there are no Tim Hortons............. The Pacific North West is full of these little coffee stops. Shades of Starbucks I guess, which is based in Seattle.
Nothing grows here without irrigation 
Wednesday July 16: 132 km. 94 F sunny. Gooding Idaho to Burley Idaho
Today was the longest mileage day of the tour so far. Another hot dry day, but with a nice tail wind most of the day. This was a good test for our longer days to come. I did alright, tired by the time we were done. Made it back to camp at 3:30 PM after a 7:30 AM start. Lots of stops along the way, beginning with a stop at Ted Miller's dairy farm. Refreshments (milk of course!) were served as well as a tour of his milking operations. He milks 1,700 cows and his operation is mid size for Idaho. All cows are milked three times a day and this takes 20 hours in two ten hour shifts. The Twin Falls Reformed Church served us a wonderful lunch along the way. We always appreciate these meals, far better than warm peanut butter sandwiches that we pack ourselves. Most of the cyclists made a short detour to visit Shoshone Falls, Twin Fall ID, the highest waterfalls west of the Mississippi River.
Shoshone Falls, Twin Falls ID.
Snake River Canyon in Twin Falls ID.
Zonked out after a hard day's cycling.
Our longest ride to date. We began with a pretty long climb and later in the day temps in excess of 100 F. The last 80 km. was literally thru the middle of nowhere with a good stiff headwind blowing. Thank goodness for SAG wagons with lots of water. A number of people couldn't make the whole day. I did very well in the heat, glad that I ride regularly in these kind of temperatures. We are staying at the city park in the very small town of Snowville UT, with no showers available, so a makeshift shower was constructed out of a garden hose and tarps around the baseball backstop. Quite a bonding experience for all the naked guys swarming around one garden hose hanging from the backstop!
The road goes on forever................
One more state down.
Friday July 18: 110 km. 97 F sunny. Snowville Utah to Willard Utah
Another in a seemingly endless string of hot, dry and sunny days. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. When it is cold and raining all day, chilled to the bone, days like this will be fondly remembered. It was another day of travel thru the middle of nowhere for the first 80 km. We skirted the northern edge of the Great Basin which contains Great Salt Lake and the Bonneville Salt Flats. In all my travels I have never seen any landscape so perfectly flat, stetching to the horizon. However, we came upon a rather unusual sight about halfway into the ride. A huge industrial facility out in the Utah desert, miles from anywhere. It was ATK, formerly Morton Thiokol, the maker of the external rocket boosters for the space shuttle, as well as all kinds of rocket motors for the US military. They had a display of all their products for public viewing. Soon there were scores of cyclists swarming all over them. We are staying this evening at Willard State Park, just south of Brigham City UT, which has a swimming lake, a pleasant reprieve from the heat. Everyone is trying to ready themselves for tomorrow's ride, 153 km. with a 2700 ft climb to 7000 ft. in the last 50 km. All this in near 100 F heat. We shall prevail!
All kinds of rockets! The upright one on the right is an ICBM for a US submarine. Gives one an idea of the size of these submarines.
Which way to New Jersey?
Sea to Sea camp in the shadows of the Wasatch Mountains south of Brigham City UT.
Saturday July 20: 162 km. 99 F sunny. Willard Utah to Salt Lake City.
Success! This was without a doubt my toughest day cycling ever. Not just on the tour, but in all my years of cycling. Longest ride of the tour, and 5700 ft. total climbing with a net elevation gain of 2700 ft. and all the climbing in the last 30 miles of a 100 mile ride. Started cycling at 7 AM and finished at 5:40 PM, making for a long day, but it sure felt good to finish the whole route. A number of cyclists were not able to finish and had to catch a ride to camp. First CRC Church in Salt Lake City served refreshments at their church, which was only one block off our route, and again on top of the first grade coming out of Salt lake city after an 1800 ft climb in temperatures nearing 100 F. A woman totally unconnected to the Sea to Sea tour or the CRC was handing out freezie pops halfway up to all the cyclists. Maybe that was typical Utah hospitality. I drank about 15 litres of water thru out the day.
Refreshments served by First CRC of Salt Lake City on top our our first climb of the day.
Reservoir dependant on snow melt supplying Salt Lake City with drinking water.
Ski jumps used for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Park City UT.
Sunday July 20: Jordanelle State Park, Park City UtahWe spend Sunday camped at a beautiful state park on a reservoir near the site of the 2002 Winter Olympics. There was an evening celebration service held in the park with the Salt Lake City CRC churches preceded by an abundant potluck supper supplied by the good folks from these congregations.
Jordanelle State Park, Park City UT.
Potluck supper at Sea to Sea camp with local CRC churches.
2 comments:
Hello! I just found out through a friend you are headed our way , Snowville Utah! We are quite a small place so your tour is pretty big news to us. I randomly clicked on your blog and glad I did - it is wonderful and I love the photos! Hope all is well as you travel eastward - will look forward to waving you on! I work at the Ranch House Diner, volunteer on the ambulance and town council here on our tiny town. Hope you enjoy your stay in our town park! Shanna
Hi, well be sensible, well-all described
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