Second rest day in Springfield, Missouri

We woke at 8 am and had homemade pancakes for breakfast. Lorraine played with the kittens and played Nintendo with Andy. Lenny made phone calls to arrange for more slide film to be sent to a campground in Berea, Kentucky. We went to pick up Lenny’s bike from the bike shop and had lunch at Burger King, then went to Andy’s for frozen custard. We went to the post office and Wal-Mart, then came home and went swimming. Later, we all went to Zio’s Italian Kitchen and had great pasta dishes for dinner. We packed our panniers to prepare for leaving tomorrow – we need to get back on the bikes to work off all this food!

Rest day in Springfield, Missouri

We woke at 7 am and had bagels for breakfast with Curtis, Becky and Andy. They were the ultimate hosts during our stay – we felt just like family! Lenny made phone calls to find a bike shop that could replace his tire rim, and then Becky drove us to Cycle Adventures to get the rim that Lenny wanted. They had to order it and have it shipped overnight so that they could do the repairs tomorrow. We went to Curtis’s office and he introduced us like celebrities! We met some of his Amish-Mennonite patients and chatted with them. We met Celesta and Chester Shrock and their daughters Treasure and Kristina. We also met Treasure’s daughter Charmin, who is just beginning to walk. Celesta asked us many questions about our ride and was a pleasure to speak with. Curtis checked and adjusted Lenny & Lorraine.

We all went to Steak & Shake for lunch, then Becky took us to Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World – Missouri’s biggest tourist attraction. We saw an 82-pound catfish and a 110-pound alligator snapping turtle in the aquarium. Andy kicked Lorraine’s butt at Nintendo, then Andy had a baseball game to play, but we stayed at home and took a nap. They came home to pick us up at 8:45 pm so we could go to Nakado for dinner. Nakado is a Japanese steak house, and Andy’s favorite restaurant. The chef cooked our food right in front of us! Lenny and Andy had a late-night swim in the pool.

Pittsburg, Kansas, to Everton, Missouri -- Biked 62 miles, drove 20 miles to Springfield

We woke at 5 am, and began biking at 5:50 am. We passed a buffalo farm and nearly caused a stampede as we rode by. Lorraine joked that we were “pedaling for pies” because we planned on stopping at Cooky’s Cafe in Golden City, Missouri – they are famous among bikers for having 20 different kinds of pies! We had 6 slices – one chocolate, one coconut cream, two strawberry, and two blackberry.

The hills became like a roller coaster ride – and we haven’t ridden hills at all since we left Colorado. In Everton, we stopped to get sodas and Lenny noticed that one of his spokes had pulled a round chunk of the rim out. The wheel was still true, but we were afraid that the rim might collapse if he rode on it.

A few days ago, we had arranged for Lenny’s colleague Curtis Horton and his wife Becky to pick us up in Walnut Grove. We called them and asked if they could pick us up here instead. Curtis and his son Andrew rescued us and our bikes. Andrew (who is 8 years old) gave us a $10 donation toward the scholarship fund. Curtis showed us where he grew up in Willard; we also rode past his office and then came to his home. He has a gorgeous new house on 10 acres of land. We met Becky’s sister Bonnie & her husband Gerald Burkhart, who live next door. We also met another sister Pat Hoppis, who lives near Walnut Grove. She is a mail carrier and has a jeep with the steering wheel on the right side of the car!

We got settled in, played with their pets, and went swimming just as it was starting to rain. We floated in the pool as the rain poured down, but got out when we heard thunder. Suddenly, the wind started blowing at about 60 mph; it was pushing the hanging ferns out sideways and moving Andrew’s swingset across the yard for about 2 minutes. We saw our photos on the website for the first time (we haven’t had access to the internet for awhile). Lenny played Nintendo, and Andrew kicked his butt! We had a delicious dinner of steak, corn, salad, wild rice casserole and the best carrot cake we’ve ever had.

Chanute, Kansas, to Pittsburg, Kansas -- 58 miles

We got up at 6 am and got on the road at 6:50 am. Biking was tough because of the serious headwind that pushed against us. We saw two clever church signs along the way – one said, “You think it’s hot here?”; the other said, “Exposure to the SON prevents burning!” Lenny rescued a turtle from being run over in the road. Lorraine wanted to know where all the live armadillos were, since we already saw several dead ones on the road. 

We arrived in town at 1:00 pm and stopped at the Tailwind Cyclists bike shop to have our bike chains checked; they were fine. The owner filled us in on the Tour de France; we found out that unless Lance Armstrong crashed, he would have his third Tour de France victory in a row. It started raining about 30 seconds before we pulled into the Holiday Lodge motel parking lot! We relaxed in the motel room, and talked to Lorraine’s parents on the phone. We told them about the past week, and that we averaged 10 mph today – Lorraine’s dad helpfully reminded us, “Lance Armstrong averages 30 mph!” We went to Wal-Mart to get camera batteries and groceries, then had dinner at Applebee’s and dessert at Dairy Queen. We watched an interesting National Geographic show about bears.

Eureka, Kansas, to Chanute, Kansas -- 63 miles

We woke at 6 am and began biking at 7 am. We could hear thunder in the distance, and as we left town, the rain began. We stopped on the road to put on our rain gear. It rained steadily for about 2 hours, then cleared and turned sunny by the afternoon. We met Stuart and Sandra Waterhouse from Lancaster, England, who are taking two years to bike around the world. Stuart is a postman, and gets a 1- to 3-year leave of absence from work as part of his service contract. They sold their cars to purchase their plane tickets, and are renting out their home to pay for other travel expenses. We spoke about the route they had traveled thus far, and they told us about the “Dog Dazer,” an electronic device that they used to deal with the aggressive dogs in Kentucky.

We stopped at the grocery store in Chanute at 3:30 pm, and spoke to Orval and Margaret Peterson about our trip. We stayed at the Guest House Motel, and had a buffet dinner at the Holiday Park Restaurant.

Newton, Kansas, to Eureka, Kansas -- 74 miles

When the alarm went off at 5 am, we could hear heavy rain coming down, so we rolled over and went back to sleep! When we woke at 8 am, the rain had stopped, so we decided to get on the road. We started biking at 8:45 am. Lenny’s front tire was low on air; we stopped for him to fill it up. It was overcast and breezy – much more comfortable for biking. Lenny hit his fender with his foot; the fender caught on the moving tire and and bent completely in half. Fortunately, the fender is made of a flexible and durable type of plastic, so it popped back into shape when he took the tire off. 

We stopped in Cassoday – “The Prairie Chicken Capital of the World” – to fill our water bottles and have a Pepsi. We didn’t ask where the prairie chickens were. As we were heading out of town, two young children waved and yelled “Hi!” then “Goodbye!” to us. We were heading south for about 18 miles, and there was less wind, but when we turned east at Rosalia, the headwinds hit us full force. We were exhausted when we finally reached Eureka at 5:30 pm. We stayed at the Carriage House Motel – the proprietor was very jovial and gave us a biker discount. We bought groceries, then had awesome fajitas at The Paddock Restaurant.

Sterling, Kansas, to Newton, Kansas -- 61 miles

We woke at 5 am, and started biking at 6 am. We stopped in the town of Nickerson at Hendrick’s Exotic Animal Farm for about an hour. The donkeys were biting each other and fighting over who was getting fed; one drew blood on the other’s nostril. We saw the strangest-looking bulls, with a rounded hump on their back, a frilly flap of skin on their chest, and long floppy ears; it turns out they were Brahma bulls from India. Lorraine fed grass to the camels, zebras, giraffes, and gazelles. We especially liked the gentle giraffe – he would slowly lower his head and then scoop up the grass with his long tongue.

When we started biking again, the wind was gusting from the southeast at 10 mph. We stopped at 11 am to eat lunch under a tree by the road. It had been relatively cool, but started getting warmer. We stopped at the Hesston Chiropractic Center to drop off a brochure. We arrived in Newton at 1:30 pm and checked into the First Interstate Motel, then ate at the diner next door. We called Curtis Horton (a chiropractor in Springfield, MO, and fellow member of the Sherman College Board of Trustees) and made arrangements to meet on Sunday. He would pick us up in Walnut Grove, Missouri at around 3 pm, and we would call on Saturday to confirm.

Larned, Kansas, to Sterling, Kansas -- 55 miles

We woke at 5 am, and began biking at 6 am. Streetlights lit the route and the sky was overcast with clouds. Lenny noticed that his tire was almost flat, and had succumbed to the “Texas tacks,” so he stopped to inflate it. It started raining big, fat raindrops for a few minutes, and stopped just as quickly. After 30 miles, Lenny had to patch the tire tube because it wasn’t holding air. Several Adventure Cycling members stopped to say hello and see if we needed help. They were headed to the church hostel in Hutchinson, a larger town of about 40,000 people. We decided to go to Sterling instead (a smaller town of 2,000 people) and stay in a motel. 

We arrived at 12:30 pm and checked into the Sterling Inn. Lenny went to the post office, and we had lunch at the Sterling Café. The waitresses were wonderful as usual – they let us sit with our iced teas until our brains began to function again. We spoke with them about our trip and our cause. Lenny dropped off a brochure and chatted with Dr. Shannon Sauer at the Sauer Chiropractic Clinic in town. We returned to the motel and watched Dr. Phil on Oprah. We were still hungry, so we went to Gambino’s Pizza for dinner.

Ness City, Kansas, to Larned, Kansas -- 67 miles

We woke at 6 am and got on the road at 6:30 am. It was windier than yesterday, which slowed us down a lot. When we turned to head south along the route, the wind hit us head-on. We met Sam from Rhode Island, and Marty from Seattle, who are biking east-to-west. We stopped at the Fort Larned Historic Site; this fort was used to protect the Santa Fe Trail for commerce for 19 years, and it’s one of the most well-preserved forts in the U.S. We met Jim from the Adventure Cycling group and chatted with him for a while.

When we reached Larned at 3:30 pm, we stopped at a diner to rehydrate with iced tea and have a bite to eat. We met Bob Grubb, who invited us to stay at his home. Bob was probably in his 70’s although he was as physically fit as a healthy 50-year-old. He had been in the oil business and owned his own company at one time. He now owned a farm where he raised cattle and grew hay. He started talking to us in the diner, and many people seemed to know him, so when he invited us to his home, we accepted. He said to have a friend, you have to be a friend and someone has to make the first move. 

He told us about farming and his frustrations about it. He also told Lenny about his perspective on the Civil War. He let us borrow his truck to pick up groceries and then brought us to his farm. We drove around the farm in his pickup and got to see his cows (that he calls his “pets”) up close. They were like big dogs! We stayed up past our usual bedtime, as Bob talked late into the night.

Scott City, Kansas, to Ness City, Kansas -- 56 miles

We woke at 5 am Central Time and started biking at 6:15 am. The sun was just coming up and we navigated by the streetlights. As we were leaving town, the sign on the bank reported that it was 78 degrees. It was overcast, with little wind – comfortable for biking. As the sun rose higher into the sky it made for an amazing light show. Scott Krizek caught up with us, and we rode together and talked. After riding a short distance, we passed a huge field of bright yellow sunflowers that seemed to go on forever – it was an amazing sight.

In Dighton, we ran into Lou, the leader from the Adventure Cycling group. He said that they only biked 24 miles yesterday, in order to spend some time at the county fair. When we arrived in Ness City, we all had lunch at the Derrick Restaurant. When we were in line to pay for our meal, a couple asked us about biking in the heat. We told them that today was much better than yesterday. We told them we heard that it got as high as 106 degrees yesterday. She mentioned that she works for a construction company and on days when it is this hot, the pavement is between 130 to 150 degrees. She also mentioned that if there is no rain soon, the crops are going to die – especially the dryland crops.

Scott continued biking on to LaCrosse, to meet the Adventure Cycling group. It was getting very hot, so we decided to stay put and get into some air-conditioning at the Derrick Inn, the only motel in town. We watched the movie “Look Who’s Talking” with Kirstie Alley and John Travolta. When we left the room to get pizza for dinner, it was like walking into an oven. At 6:30 pm, the bank sign said it was 103 degrees.

Sheridan Lake, Colorado, to Scott City, Kansas -- 76 miles

We woke at 5:30 am and began biking just after 6:30 am. After 15 miles, we crossed into Kansas and, of course, we stopped to take pictures. After 30 miles, we stopped in Tribune to buy Pepsi and fruit. The route was flat, and we were biking from one grain silo to the next!

After 50 miles, we stopped in Leoti and ate lunch on a bench by the grocery store, out of the sun. According to the sign on the bank, it was 98 degrees. We ran into Scott Krizek from the Adventure Cycling group – he had gone off on his own to spend a few days in Boulder, CO, and now he was going to catch up with the group again. We continued another 25 miles – it felt like the wind was coming at us from all directions. Lorraine was getting exhausted and had difficulty coping with the heat, so we decided that in the coming days, we would attempt to get off the road by noon. We reached Scott City by 2:30 pm. The time changed from Mountain to Central time when we entered Wichita County so we set our watches ahead one hour.

We checked into the Chaparral Inn Motel and relaxed in the air-conditioned room. We went to the grocery store, and as we left, Lenny asked the clerk to recommend a restaurant. She said the bowling alley had some of the best food and certainly the biggest burgers in town, so we walked 8 blocks to go there. The cook was telling us about her sons who are in the service, one in Washington state and one in Cherry Point, NC. When she visited North Carolina (having lived in Western Kansas her whole life), she said, “There were so many trees, I couldn’t see the countryside!” She said she would like more trees in Kansas, but not that many. It was an interesting perspective that we never would have considered. We found out that the temperature reached 101 today and may hit 105 tomorrow!

Ordway, Colorado, to Sheridan Lake, Colorado -- 91 miles

We woke up at 6:00 am and got on the road at 7:00 am. The scenery consisted of fields as far as the eye could see. It was flat, pleasant riding, with not a lot of cars on the road. We were averaging 12 mph and reached Eads (60 miles) by noon. We decided to have a big lunch and get out of the sun for a little while. Lenny stopped at the post office, then we went to Our Place Restaurant, where the sign outside said, “Under New Management – Come on in or we’ll both starve!” The waitress became our new best friend when she brought a PITCHER of iced tea to our table. We had awesome Mexican food and delicious pie for dessert. We met Marie and Tom from Illinois, who are biking east-to-west, and chatted with them about the route.

Once we were fed and watered, at 2:15 pm, we were feeling ambitious and decided to bike an additional 57 miles to Tribune, Kansas, the next town with motels and other services. However, it was hotter, the winds had picked up, and digestion was also slowing us down. By 5:45 pm, we still had another 30 miles to go – had we continued, we might still be biking after dark! We decided to camp for free in the Lions Club public park. There was a nice breeze and it started to cool off, but it was still sticky and uncomfortable in the tent.

Pueblo, Colorado, to Ordway, Colorado -- 53 miles

We woke up at 7:30 am and began biking at 8:30 am. The sky was overcast, and it felt cooler than yesterday. We biked through town, then out along the highway. As the buildings of Pueblo disappeared, the scenery was replaced by fields and two big correctional facilities. We met Peter and Maren Helm from Hamburg, Germany, in a park in the town of Boone. They are a couple in their fifties that took early retirement; they started biking east-to-west on May 10, and are taking their time. They told us that they only camped once in Kansas, because it didn’t cool off until 4:00 am, and they only got a couple hours of sleep before it was time to get up again. We also met Steve Blattman from Phoenix, who started in Yorktown, VA, on June 4 and is ending in San Francsico, CA. He said that he took a “detour” because his wife was getting lonely, and he wants to finish the trip before his 9-year-old starts school.

We ate lunch under a tree by the road, and it was getting hotter by the time we started biking again. We arrived in Ordway at 2 pm, and got a hostel room at the Hotel Ordway, run by Madeline Ferguson. We asked if anyone ever escaped from the correctional facilities, and she told us about a couple of women who hijacked a plane to try and get their boyfriends out. They put a gun to the head of the pilot to drop down in the outdoor recreation area and picked up the men. They had a van waiting, but were caught two states later. The women actually stayed at the hostel, and Madeline suspected they were up to no good. We bought groceries, and had disappointing, mediocre Mexican food at a local restaurant.

Rest day in Pueblo, Colorado

Lorraine did laundry while Lenny made phone calls. We made another walking pilgrimage, this time to IHOP for omelets and pancakes. We had planned to go to the Pueblo Zoo or take a walking tour of the historic section of town, but it was so hot, we didn’t want to leave our air-conditioned room! Lorraine was sleepy after we ate, so she took a nap while Lenny went to the post office and grocery store. In the afternoon, we went swimming in the motel pool, read, watched TV and called Lorraine’s parents. We went to Ruby Tuesday again for a tasty soup and salad bar dinner. The last thing to do was pack the bikes for the following day.

Canon City, Colorado, to Pueblo, Colorado -- 52 miles

We got up at 5:30 am and began biking at 7:00 am. We saw two commercial buffalo ranches and lots of wide open spaces. It was a hot day – the thermometer reached 92 degrees. We biked through Pueblo to Bob’s Bicycles – they were closed until 1:30 pm, so we ate lunch at Burrito’s Betty and had great Mexican food.

At the bike shop, we got 4 new tires and tire liners to protect against “Texas tacks” – sharp thorns that are the scourge of cyclists in this part of the country. The employees here went above and beyond the call of duty for us. Andy went to their competitor’s bike shop to pick up a tire that we needed, and the owner, Roger, gave Penny permission to run Lorraine out to the KOA campground to pick up a package that we were expecting (the KOA was 15 miles in the opposite direction of where we were headed). 

After we settled into the Motel 6, Lenny wanted to go to Ruby Tuesday for dinner – it was on the other side of the highway, so we made a walking pilgrimage across the urban jungle. Walking back, a friendly young gray cat came up to us. It was wearing a harness, with a rabies tag from Corvis, New Mexico, and we were worried someone had lost their pet. The cat let Lorraine pick it up, and we walked across the parking lot to PetSmart to see if they could help. The store manager Corbrin Heyn was sympathetic and said he would feed him and keep him in the store for the night, and call the phone # on the tag to try and find the owner.

Fairplay, Colorado, to Canon City, Colorado -- 75 miles

Last night was the coldest of the trip; we were camping at 10,000 feet elevation, and the temperature got down into the low 40s. This was also the first night we used our new lightweight fleece sleeping bags that we had purchased in Silverthorne. We kept putting on layers of clothes to stay warm, but we were not in any danger. 

We woke at 5:30 am, and started biking at 7:15 am. The route was downhill most of the way, with one pass to climb. The mountains were behind us, and there was less traffic on the roads. We ate lunch just after cresting the top of the pass. There was a crew doing tar and chip work on the roadway for about 4 miles. The sharp stones are bad for our bike tires, so we got a ride from the lead vehicle. The driver climbed up into the truck bed, grabbed the tube of Lenny’s 90-pound bike, and hauled it up in one swift move. 

We rode in the bed of the truck with the bikes, as well as the ladders, signs, and tools. When we reached the end of the construction, the driver made a “K” turn and we assumed that he was going to let us off, but he started heading back in the other direction. Suddenly, he slammed on the brakes, and we found out that Ryan, the flag guy, had radioed the driver to remind him that we were still in the truck bed. He got out of the cab and said, “I almost forgot you were there!” Standing on the pavement, he lifted the bikes out of the truck bed by the frame. He was as strong as an ox! 

We continued our downhill ride into a canyon and arrived in Canon (pronounced canyon) City at 3:00 pm. We stopped at the visitor’s center and asked for a recommendation of a doctor who could take out Lorraine’s stitches. Marj Woodward, the attendant, said there is a severe shortage of doctors in town, but gave us the name of her own doctor and said that perhaps he could help. We went to the office, where Lorraine saw a nurse practitioner, and we were in and out within half an hour. We ate at Captain D’s Seafood and camped at the Maverick RV Park.

Silverthorne, Colorado, to Fairplay, Colorado -- 38 miles

We woke at 5:30 am, and got started at 6:53 am. We enjoyed riding for 15 miles on the smooth paved bike path that wound around Dillon Reservoir, past Frisco, and ended in Breckenridge. Lenny spoke to Bernie McMenamy, who was mowing his lawn, and asked if we could fill up our water bottles with his hose. He told us that in the 30 years he has lived in Breckenridge, the population has gone from 200 to 2,000. He said that 40% are second homes. He mentioned that he used to be the Mayor of the town at one time.

We stopped in a bike shop to have the mechanic look at our tires because Lenny noticed small cracks in the rubber. The mechanic said it indicates a weakening of the tires; he said at minimum they would last about 100 miles and that we should change them as soon as possible because if they go, the tube may herniate through. On the way up the pass, we saw dark clouds forming in the sky, but decided to keep biking. Suddenly, it started pouring rain when we were about 8 miles from Hoosier Pass. 

We stopped at a private residence, and ducked under the roof overhang to put on our rain gear. There were a lot of cars on the road, and we kept pulling over to get out of the way. It stopped raining as the climb became steeper, and about 4 miles from the top, the sun came out. We met Ted Borstad, whose son Chris is also biking across the U.S. He is ahead of us, and we probably won’t catch up since he is averaging 75 miles per day. We reached Hoosier Pass, elevation 11,542 feet, the highest pass of the trip, and took photos.

 We ate lunch here, then got back on our bikes to go downhill. The wind was very strong, and we had to go slower to avoid being blown all over the road. We got back on a paved bike path for 6 miles between Alma and Fairplay. In town, we camped at the South Park Lodge and had a tasty dinner at the Brown Burro Cafe. The Mexican food out west beats anything we’ve had in the east!

Kremmling, Colorado, to Silverthorne, Colorado -- 38 miles

We woke at 5:30 am, and began biking at 6:30 am. The traffic was still bad, despite our early start. It was another tense day on the road - we were pedaling furiously to reach our destination. Most drivers are not aware that a bicycle with a fluorescent triangle (indicating a slow-moving vehicle) is entitled to ride anywhere in the lane. The shoulder widened about 6 miles before Silverthorne. We reached town by 10:30 am, and stayed in a private room at the Alpen Hutte hostel.

We ate lunch, then went to the Pearl Izumi outlet store to look at bicycle clothes! Lenny got a new long-sleeve jersey. We also got lightweight fleece sleeping bags at the Coleman outlet store, and sent our heavier Polarguard bags back home. We went to get groceries, and when we came out, it was raining heavily. We went back to the hostel to shower, cook dinner and relax. Lorraine made stir-fry chicken, vegetables, and rice in the kitchen, while Lenny seam-sealed the tent rain fly. We went to bed at 8:30 pm.

Walden, Colorado, to Kremmling, Colorado -- 62 miles

Happy Anniversary! Lenny and Lorraine celebrated 5 years of wedded bliss today. The festivities included: Biking up hills! Camping in the rain! Cooking over a campstove! We got on the road at 7:15 am. The route was mostly rolling hills. We met Dusten Dennis & Melissa Rasmussen from Monterrey, California, who are biking west-to-east along their own route, ending in Washington, DC. They were traveling very light, and we asked them questions about how they were able to accomplish that. They were using one rectangular sleeping bag between the two of them with a bottom sheet that they attached to the sleeping bag with snaps. They were also buying food at their evening destination, to avoid carrying any excess weight. Dusten also created his own adaptations of bike tools that were lighter but just as effective. We talked to them about vertebral subluxation, and they said they’d be interested in checking out our website.

We ate lunch at the top of Muddy Pass (elevation 8,772 feet). As we turned onto US 40, the shoulder disappeared and the vehicles became more impatient and more aggressive. We experienced more intolerance in this 40-mile stretch than in the previous 1,800 miles combined. We reached Kremmling at 2:30 pm and met a biker named Jen, headed east-to-west. We camped behind the old fire station for free with fellow bikers Dan, Theresa and Jen. Lorraine cooked pasta and sauce. It started raining heavily around 6 pm and continued until 10 pm.

Riverside, Wyoming, to Walden, Colorado -- 51 miles

It took us awhile to get the show on the road this morning. The mosquitoes continued to attack as we broke down camp, then Lenny experimented with packing the bikes differently, and made a few phone calls before we left. We started biking at 9:20 am. No wind today - just rolling hills.

The sky was cloudy and we heard thunder in the distance, so we were biking to keep ahead of the storm. It began raining, just spits at first, then harder and heavier. Lenny was afraid that we would be a ripe target for lighting, being the highest object on the plains and riding metal bikes, so we pulled over at Ginger Quill Ranch and knocked on the manager’s door. There was no answer - just a big barking dog in the house - so we stood on a covered porch for about 15 minutes to let the storm subside. There were two hummingbird feeders hanging from the roof; we watched the hummingbirds chase each other and touch down a few feet away from us to sip from the feeder.

When it stopped raining, we continued cycling, then took a break to eat lunch by the Platte River. We arrived in Walden at 3:00 pm and stayed at the North Park Motel. We had a great dinner at the Moose Corner Restaurant.

Rawlins, Wyoming, to Riverside, Wyoming -- 64 miles

We woke at 6:15 am and started biking at 7:45 am. Lorraine had no pain from her injuries, but wore a band-aid on her lip to cover the stitches. There was a lot of road construction, which made the roads quite narrow. We asked the construction workers for permission to ride on the road that was closed off and they consented. Even though the roads were rough, we had no cars to deal with for about 10 miles. We ate our PB&J sandwiches for lunch in a turn-out by the side of the road. We met Walter Francke, a former professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who was biking east-to-west.

We stopped in Saratoga, but there was no camping, so we ate lunch/dinner at Stumpy’s Cafe and continued another 18 miles to Riverside. We stayed at the Lazy Acres Campground, and escaped to our tent early because the mosquitoes wanted to eat us alive.

Jeffrey City, Wyoming, to Rawlins, Wyoming -- Lenny, 67 miles; Lorraine, 7 miles

We got up at 6:00 am - Lenny had a few phone calls to make, and we started biking at 7:20 am. We had gone about 7 miles when Lenny stopped suddenly because he saw an antelope. Lorraine had been following close behind and did not hear him say “stopping” because of the wind. Her front tire hit his back tire and she went flying off the bike, kissing the ground with the left side of her face. Her top lip was bleeding a lot, and Lenny got out the first aid kit to bandage it up. 

We were still 55 miles away from Rawlins, but a kind woman named Sheila Underwood stopped to help - she was on her way to pick up her daughter from the airport in Denver, Colorado. She could only fit one bike in her car, so we decided that Lorraine should go to the hospital while Lenny continued on his bike. Lorraine had a gash in the area between her upper lip and nose that required stitches, and they also cleaned up her other cuts and scrapes. Her upper lip was swollen and scary-looking. Lorraine passed the time in the waiting room, reading and composing e-mails to friends, and worrying about Lenny, all by himself on the road. Lenny said he was biking as fast as he could, but the incredible headwind and road construction slowed his pace. He tried to hitchhike, but no one stopped to give him a ride!

When he arrived, we went to the grocery store, had dinner at Pizza Hut, and checked into the Jade Motel. There was a heavy thunder and hailstorm, so we were happy to be indoors, watching “Pretty Woman” on TV!

Lander, Wyoming, to Jeffrey City, Wyoming -- 60 miles

We had planned to get up earlier, but slept in until 6:15 am. We packed up camp and rode to McDonald’s for breakfast, then biked out of town at 8:00 am. On the road, we met brothers Ed and Ernie MacPhearson, who are biking to Washington State. Ernie is from Coburg, Oregon, a town on the Adventure Cycling route, and Ed is from Washington. They were biking to Ed’s home. We took their photos. 

The scenery was comprised of dry brown hills and sagebrush. We stopped at a rest area and ate lunch with Ed Thomas from England. As we continued biking, we hit a strong headwind. It looked like a storm was coming in - we were riding with blue sky and clouds on the right, and dark clouds, lightning and thunder on the left. We got to Jeffrey City at about 3 pm and it was like a modern-day ghost town - lots of abandoned buildings, and only a few places were open. We stopped at the post office, and the clerk mentioned that people left town after the uranium mine closed. We checked in at the J.C. Motel, and were lucky to get a room because there was only one or two left. The room had air conditioning and was a delight after the miserable night we spent in Lander. 

We had dinner at the Split Rock Cafe. When we walked in, we were not sure if it was open for business because there were no people there and all the lights were out, even in the bar. Lorraine believes it was to keep the place cool because there was no air conditioning. We went into the bar side of the building and asked the owner if he was still serving and he said yes. The owner was working as bartender, waiter, and cook - he was gruff and a bit strange to us, like many we have met in the state of Wyoming. The burger Lenny had and the roast beef sandwich Lorraine had were quite good. The french fries were freshly cut by hand. There were four cycle tourists that came in just as we were finishing our meal. Lenny decided to have a beer to hang out with the locals who were drinking and chatting in the bar. On the cash register was a bumper sticker that said, “Don’t trust a government that tries to take away your guns.” A number of café customers came in and the owner seemed annoyed, like he wanted to spend time on the bar side with the locals instead. 

Lenny was taking photos around town and met two of the cycle tourists who were on a tandem - Martin and his son Claus Versluys. Lenny took their photo. Martin had participated in the BikeCenntennial ride in 1976. They were riding for two weeks from Pueblo, Colorado, to Missoula, Montana. He owns the Acorn B&B in Virginia with his wife Kathy. He mentioned that the owner of the cafe said that the mine shut down after Three Mile Island. The banks pulled out, and that was the end of the mine. He said, however, the mine has been reclaimed and they are now mining it again. Bill Coats, the owner of the J.C. Motel, told him that he used to pump millions of gallons of gas and had about 8 pumps. He said there used to be about 2,000 people living in the town - now, there are just 100.

Dubois, Wyoming, to Lander, Wyoming -- 76 miles

We got up at 6 am, even though Lenny didn’t want to wake up, and started biking at 7 am. At a service station, we met 5 guys who are also biking the TransAm, but doing more miles than us each day. The route was mostly downhill, with a few rolling hills. As we left Dubois, the landscape was a postcard desert with beautiful rock cliffs and buttes - Lenny stopped many times to take pictures. We met Roger and Steve, who are also biking to NJ, but following a different route. Around noon, we stopped at a rest area with covered picnic tables to eat lunch. After being in the sun all morning, it was a treat to get in the shade. These rest areas are like a little oasis in the harsh, arid high desert. 

Even with breaks, we were averaging 10 mph. Then, the headwind picked up and slowed us down. Biking through Wind River Indian Reservation, the landscape became even more desolate. We arrived in Lander at 2:30 pm and camped in the City Park for free. We tried to call Dave, but there was no answer, so we ate dinner at McDonald’s instead. It started raining for a while, but stopped by 8 pm. This evening’s camping was just awful. We were hot, sticky, uncomfortable, and unable to fall asleep because of all the noise from people using the park. There were children screaming, adults screaming, dogs barking, fire sirens blaring, and woodpeckers pecking. We finally fell asleep around 10:30 pm.

Jackson Hole, Wyoming to Dubois, Wyoming -- 93 miles

We woke at 4:45 am and began biking by 6:15 am. The weather was perfect - cool and overcast. We took a side route and saw a herd of buffalo plus a few antelope. Got back on route in Moran Junction and ate lunch at a service station, where we spoke to Dave and Terra Bowles. Dave invited us for dinner tomorrow night at his home in Lander. We started up Togwotee Pass at 11:30 am; the climb ranged from a 2-7% grade. Lenny was getting sleepy, but Lorraine kept prodding him on. 

We met two east-to-west cyclists; Elmer Watts invited us to stay at his house when we get to Virginia. We took a photo of him with his rig. Rain began about 4 miles from top, but ended when we got to the peak. We stopped at the Pinnacle Lodge to camp, and were told that they didn’t recommend camping because of the rocks. We continued downhill to Dubois (locally pronounced as “Do Boys”), finishing our fastest 20 miles ever - in 1 hour. We stayed at the Black Bear Inn, and had a great dinner at the Wild Bunch Cafe.

Jenny Lake, Wyoming, to Jackson Hole, Wyoming -- 28 miles

We woke at 5:20 am and began biking at 6:45 am. We biked down Antelope Flats Road and saw several bison and antelope. Lenny rescued a thrasher bird with a broken leg - he put it in his handlebar bag and brought it to the Park Headquarters in Moose Village. One of the rangers who was an ornithologist agreed to take the bird home and nurse it back to health. We set up camp at the Wagon Wheel Campground in town. We walked around on foot, used the phone, looked in a few shops and took photos, just like all the other tourists! We ate dinner at the Teton Steakhouse, saw “Artificial Intelligence” at the movies, had hot fudge sundaes at Dairy Queen, bought groceries, showered and went to bed.

Flagg Ranch, Wyoming, to Jenny Lake, Wyoming -- 37 miles

We woke at 7:30 am, later than usual, and began biking at 9:45 am. As we entered Grand Teton Park, we met up with a few of the Adventure Cycling group who we had been riding with for a number of weeks. As we rode into the park, we could see the Teton Range in all its magnificence reaching for the sky. 

We stopped at Colter Bay Village to have lunch. As we continued biking, we met Willem from Netherlands who was heading east-to-west. We camped at Jenny Lake because of Willem’s recommendation. We took a boat ride across the lake and hiked up to see Hidden Falls. The crystal clear water, supplied by the Teton glaciers, fell about 150 feet in a majestic rush. 

We then walked 2.5 miles back to camp. Lorraine rushed to cook lentil stew, because of threatening thunderstorms. Fortunately, they passed us with no rain at all. We camped and talked with a retired electrical engineer from Jupiter, Florida, who had biked here and was taking photographs of moose and bear.

Madison, Wyoming, to Flagg Ranch, Wyoming -- 66 miles

We woke at 3 am, to start biking by 4:30 am, but one of our flashlights was not working. By the time we packed up camp, we were on the road at 5 am. As we were riding in the twilight, we saw a female elk on the left side of the road - we looked at her and she stopped grazing to stare back at us. We heard a cracking sound, like something big stepping on a dry branch; we looked to our right and saw a second female elk. She gazed at us and then crossed the road to be with the other elk. We heard a hauntingly eerie howling sound in the distance - it caused an instinctive visceral reaction of fear, and the hairs on the back of our necks stood up. A few moments later, we realized it was a pack of coyotes. While we were riding down the road looking for animals in the early morning, we could see steam rising in the distance. We were approaching the geysers. As we came closer, Lorraine spotted a bison walking across the geyser field. He slowly moved across the field as the steam rose from the ground, then he disappeared into the distance. 

There were many signs warning people not to walk in the geyser fields. We found out later that as many as 20 people had been scalded to death when the thin crust gave way and they were exposed to the intense and caustic effects of the water and minerals it contained. There were many types of geysers, some bubbling mud, some gurgling water, some shooting intermittent spurts of water and others sending up almost continuous sprays. One such geyser sprayed us as we walked along the wooden elevated walkway. There were bacteria living in and around the geysers that created an array of pastel colors. 

We took our time touring the geysers, taking photos, and stopping to watch Old Faithful erupt. We rode across the Continental Divide three times in the space of a couple hours as we rode out of the park. We ate lunch/dinner at the Grant Village Grill. Met a few more bike tourers on the road - Pat & Tracy, who are traveling from Missouri to Seattle, and Alejandro, who has been on the road for 1 year, 4 months traveling from Argentina to Alaska. We got one of the last campsites at Flagg Ranch. No fireworks for the 4th of July! Stayed up until 10:30 pm taking care of cooking, showering, and laundry.