October 1
46mi/74km
5200ft/1550m elevation gain
I’m not totally certain, but I’m fairly confident that we haven’t done this much climbing in a day on this journey so far. Maybe back in Alaska, but that feels like a long time ago.
We started a little later than we should have, because we ate breakfast at the market, and heard about the history of the A-frames we slept in from the owner of the basecamp. They were first built by the Rashneesh cult, and later became part of a Young Life camp, before being moved to the basecamp. The owner said they got the help of local ranchers and equipment to move 16 of the huts. Ten came to the basecamp and six went out to the ranchers who had helped. We recognized one on a ranch we passed later in the day.
We started the day among sage and scrub, but as we gained elevation in the afternoon we got into more trees, first juniper and then pine. We rode through some burned areas that still smelled of campfire. We even passed a tree that was still smoldering. It was a warm day, so the shade of the trees was a nice reprieve. By the time we finally reached the top of the climb we were ready to find a place to camp. We pulled off into the woods, far enough from the road to be out of sight. We are beat! I told Paul that when I’m tired there is a particular road surface I find extra annoying: hard packed dirt but with a thin layer of loose, golf-ball sized rocks sitting on the top. He laughed knowingly. The loose rocks are hard to avoid, and easily cause the tires to slip. When you are already climbing, and tired, it’s frustrating. These were the last few miles of the day.
Fortunately, we had a pretty good dinner of fettuccine with onion, zucchini, and red bell pepper to finish off the evening. Once again, the night sky is especially brilliant, at least before the moon rises.