Day 32: I didn’t set an alarm but I woke up around 6:35. I laid in my tent for a few minutes as it was kinda chilly. I got up and only Brent was awake. Everyone else’s bikes were still in the shop so they were going to get a late start. I had no reason to wait around. I packed up my gear and for the first time in a while a strapped it to the back of my bike. Just biking out of the campground was a struggle. Everything felt horribly off balance. I climbed the first little hill and already I was frustrated with my pace. I wasn’t used to all this weight. It felt like I was dragging a couple of bowling balls behind me. I texted my sister Courtney to call me if she had a chance. I didn’t have to wait long and I chatted with her to pass the time. The wind picked up so I was having a hard time hearing so I said goodbye and trudged on alone. There was a small climb up to Wetmore Co. I called my mom to see how she was doing. After getting to Wetmore it was an 11 miles drop into Florance. It was such a relief although I still felt slow. I would just have to be patient. Four and a half hours later I made it to Canon City. It was the longest 30 miles of my life. I headed to the post office where I mailed a bunch of stuff home. While I was there I met a couple who was walking from the east coast to the west coast. They left from Slaughter Beach in Delaware on April 31. I told them I was from Delaware!
I didn’t stay long as the hard part of the day was about to begin. Getting out of Canon City was easy and there were a bunch of cool shops along the way. If I had more time I would have stopped to explore them. With 17 miles left I really starting feeling the elevation. I don’t get elevation sickness but I was definitely breathing a lot harder. I knew I couldn’t just power over this climb. I tried to take a break every two miles. It scenery also helped as I could focus on that. I like the rocky mountains a lot more than Appalachians just because they are more dramatic. A mile away from Guffey the road got so steep. I only made it halfway up before I got off and walked the rest of the way. The road flattened out at the top so I got back on and went in search of a guy named Bill. The maps say he owns a bunch of cabins and let’s cyclists stay in them if you make a donation. The town wasn’t very big and I found him in about 15 minutes of riding around. He gave me a tour of the area. I got to meet the mayor of the town too! His name is Monster Mayor. He also happens to be a black cat. There was no electric or running water in the cabins. That was fine with me because there was a separate cabin with a shower. I can’t remember that last time I took a shower. Chain grease had began to cake on my legs and it took me a good ten minutes of scrubbing to get it off. The shower ended up being a garden hose wrapped around a beam. I didn’t care it was warm and it was water. 

After showering I dropped my stuff off in my cabin and went in search of Brent. He ended up being at the Blue Moose restaurant. I quickly drained three glasses of water. I didn’t realize how thirsty I was! The burgers were suppose to be really good so I ordered a cheeseburger and fries. It lived up to the hype! Although I was so hungry it probably didn’t matter how good I was. We waited around from the rest of the crew. I called my parents to let them know what an awesome day it ended up being. Eventually everyone showed up and they ordered food. I took this opportunity to order dessert. The brownie sundae looked great. It was kinda expensive for dessert so I was slightly disappointed when it turned out to be small. Oh well. Evans dad and brother lives in Denver so they met us at the restaurant. It was Friday night and the restaurant had open karaoke. We all took turns embarrassing ourselves. I sang Horse with No Name by America. I thought it was fitting since we’re team America and they lyrics are relatable. I also sang Here comes the Sun as the final song. I’ve never sang Karaoke in front of so many people. This trip is all about extending my comfort zone and getting up there definitely did it. It was getting kinda late so we headed back up the road to the cabins. I quickly claimed one of the beds and fell asleep.