Day 43: Ennis to Dillion Montana
Mark and Jolee wanted to have a lay in so everyone else packed up and hit the road. The Chinese couple gets up ridiculously early so I wasn’t surprised to see them gone when I got up. I wasn’t looking forward to this climb as it was one of the steepest ones on the map. At the base of it Brent and Evan caught up to me. I was feeling discouraged but after fist bumping them and promising to see each other on the other side I attacked the climb with renewed vigor. It wasn’t long before I climbed to the top. The view was spectacular. The last hour or so hardly seemed relevant as I stared at the landscape before me. The descent was trilling. I tried to get a new speed record but it was too curvy to really fly. I ate up the miles until I hit Twin Bridges. I stopped at the park for a snack break and to refill my water. I met an older man who said his daughter was biking the continental divide. I was impressed as that route is really challenging. It’s almost all in complete backcountry. Continue reading Day 43 →

Day 42: west Yellowstone to Ennis 
Looking at the map the day before we saw that it was mostly flat/downhill. Google maps said 5 and a half hours for 70 miles. The elevation profile didn’t show any major climbs but it didn’t show any major descents either. I was skeptical of google maps but I followed it all the same out of town. Everyone else was enjoying a longer breakfast but I wanted to hit the road. Google maps took me out of town and soon I found myself on a stretch of road with no shoulder. I should have gotten the hint then. The TransAm ACA maps try to avoid taking you on narrow roads. I saw a sign coming up that said Ennis: 65 miles. I figured I was on the right road as Ennis was our end destination. 10 miles later I knew I had made a big mistake. I hit the Welcome to Idaho sign. ‘This isn’t right’ I thought. ‘I should be staying in Montana for the next couple of days…’ I took a picture with the sign all the same. I then did what I should have done from the start. I cross checked google maps with my transAm maps. Sure enough they were different. Google maps took me around the left of Hebgen Lake while the TransAm maps took you around the right. Oh well nothing I could do but continue. Continue reading Day 42 →

Day 41: grand Teton to wear Yellowstone
Woke up cold again. Geeze this was getting old. I didn’t care that it was 5:20 in the morning. I wasn’t going back to sleep in this weather. I gathered my things and half walked/ half ran to the bathroom. It must have been 15 degrees warmer. I took my time brushing my teeth and getting ready. I ran into Ellen on my way back and we just gave each other a look that said ‘why is it so cold’?! I know I should expect colder weather now that I’m in the mountains but it’s still hard for me to deal with it. Not taking the time to balance my panniers I loaded up my bike. I saw that Dan had built a fire and everyone was gathered around it. Mark was starting to boil water so I knew it would be a while before everyone was ready. I was really tempted to join them but I knew once I got warm it would be impossible for me to leave. So I said goodbye and took off. The plan was to meet at Old Faithful and decide where to go from there. The first couple miles were freezing and it was a struggle to keep going. My nose kept running and I could see my breathe in the air. The air was so still it seemed like the world was frozen. My phone battery doesn’t do well in the cold either and was completely dead. It was a shame because I passed a lot of scenic pull offs. I tried to commit the scenes to memory but I’m sure I’ve forgotten most of them. Continue reading Day 41 →

So I still thought I had some catching up to do on what happened on what day. Last night I started typing what I remembered of day 40 only to discover I had already written about that day! I decided to post both of them and you can see how they compare. Continue reading Day 40  →

Day 38: 
I’ve been lacking in updating my blog so the details of day by day have faded from my memory. 

I woke up still in the tunnel. Thankfully the wind had died down a lot and my tent haven’t moved while I was sleeping. I packed up and pushed my bike back up to the road. It was a lot more difficult to get it back up then it was to get it down. The sage underbrush kept getting caught in my spokes. The mosquitos weren’t bad under the tunnel but as soon as I started riding they attacked. For the next 12 miles I was more concerned about not getting torn to shreds than the road. I got to Jeffery City without too much trouble. I debated on buying breakfast at the restaurant. However there wasn’t any wind so I decided to take advance of the weather. The sky was beautiful and the road clear of bumps. I couldn’t have asked for a better morning. There were a couple of small climbs but it was all worth it when I got to this sign: 6% grade downhill. This descent hands down ranks as one of the top 5 scenic downhills. I tried to take in the landscape as much as possible while not wrecking. The beauty of the descent stayed with me as I hit a headwind 10 miles outside of Lander. The magnificent outcrops continued and it was impossible to be annoyed at my slow pace. After getting into town I checked in with Brent. He was at the local bike shop getting a new chain. I headed to McDonald’s for a snack and use of their free wifi. It wasn’t long before everyone arrived. We headed over to the holiday inn motel. They let hikers and bikers camp in the back. We took turns showering and doing laundry. It was still too early for dinner so I set off to explore town. They had lots of outdoor gear shops and hipster looking cafes. Wondering around a shop I checked to see if they had any clif bars because I was out. Continue reading Day 38 →

Day 37
Woke up to the sound of voices. It seemed like someone was in the kitchen cooking breakfast. I kept thinking I should go and help but couldn’t make myself move. Someone was knocking on my door and saying breakfast was ready. ‘How long had I been laying there?’ I thought. I reluctantly got up and headed down the hall. I felt lazy for not helping. After eating I went back to my room. Stupid I thought I should help clean up. I went back and washed the dishes and wiped down the counters. I went back to my room again and marveled at the mess I had made of all my gear. Slowly I got everything together and headed outside. Out of all the days so far I really didn’t want to bike today. For some reason I couldn’t snap myself out of my mood. I was feeling really sluggish and slow. The scenery was stunning but I couldn’t make myself care. I told myself I was being stupid and letting yourself get bogged down over one ride wasn’t a good idea. For some reason I wanted to cry so I stopped and sat down on the side of the road and for about 10 minutes sobbed. After I was done I rolled my eyes at how ridiculous I was being and caught up to the rest of the group. We took a break at a gas station right before we got on interstate 80. Unfortunately we were going to turn left and head directly into a massive headwind. We decided to ride in groups of two with one in the back. Every mile we would shift over so everyone took turns ridding in the wind. There was construction on one side of the road but the workers let us have the road to ourselves anyway. Riding in the shifting pattern reminded me of Ender’s Game. It felt like we made a toon to battle the wind. Continue reading Day 37 →

Day 36: 
Woke up at 7:15. Standard routine. Broke down camp and was in the road by 8:15. 

22 miles in we hit the Wyoming welcome sign. 

 On the way out of walden I was attacked by hundreds of mosquitos. I don’t really mind them so much at camp but when they’re bitting me while I’m riding I minded. There was nothing to do but try and ride in the middle of the road away from the grass. I put on my rain jacket to keep them off my arms. Continue reading Day 36 →

Day 35

We are now officially on our own. Evan’s family left yesterday so we have all our stuff back again. I can’t believe my good fortune in terms of having people carry my gear. Today we have to climb the last pass of the Rockies. It was a gradual climb but a climb nonetheless. The last two miles were going to be steep. I started out the day with no service but as soon as I cleared town I had 5 bars again. I called my mom to say hello. After I hung up the terrain starting to incline. I turned on some Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban audio book. Harry’s problems seemed greater than my own haha. The scenery was just as beautiful as ever. There were a bunch of older cyclist coming the opposite was. Continue reading Day 35 →

Day 34 I woke up really having to pee. This always happens when there’s no bathroom around. Evan’s dad was already up and before I could say anything he said there was a bathroom about 1/4 mile down the road on the bike path. Perfect! 
After getting back everyone was still sleeping (except Brent who had already left). It was kinda chilly so I packed up quietly and headed out. Brent texted the group and said if you follow the bike path you’ll hit the town Sliverthorne. He was at a McDonald’s where we all met up for the beginning of the day. I have the McDonald’s app and got a free breakfast sandwich. I also figured out the coffee drink I like is a frappe. I ordered an iced something the first time so I ended up drinking two coffees. I was so wired I didn’t wait for anyone and headed out. We were still on our descent and following the blue River. The air was cool and crisp and the Rockies fall in the background. All my pictures don’t do them any justice. The vastness of the west amazes me everytime. I put my GoPro on my helmet and videoed the ride for a while. Unfortunately having the camera on my helmet makes it too heavy and causes it to slip forward. I know I’ve said it before but today was hands down the best day of riding. The weather was perfect. Traffic wasn’t too bad. There was an excellent bike path. The scenery was incredible. It felt like the day was over in no time. With 5 miles left the road took us through this huge canyon. It was any geologist dream to be able to ride through here. I was probably grinning the whole time. Continue reading Day 34 →