Yesterday began our longest stretch of biking: 732(ish) miles in 9 days through Utah and Nevada. Also known as Funky Fine Nevatah Nine, Benign Nine, or Devine Nine.
I actually ended up writing a blog post last night after our 106 mile ride into Salina, but it wouldn't post. Probably for the best though because it was really angsty and over dramatic. Yesterday was one of the hardest days for me, and most everyone else, physically and mentally, and I was not happy when I got in (at 7:30 pm, after 13 hours of being outside). Everything I had to say last night was out of frustration, but after a really nice ride today, and some time to decompress, I have (some) better things to say about yesterday's ride. Because when all is said and done it was also one of the most beautiful rides of the trip. So here's how things went down:
Things started off on the wrong foot...in the most literally sense possible. Jake accidentally took one of my shoes so for the first 46 miles until first lunch we were both riding with two different shoes.
Silver Lining: We pretty much have the same size feet. And it was pretty hilarious because he didn't even notice until 46 miles in that his shoes didn't match.
The first 46 miles were really tough as we were mostly on loose gravel roads or bumpy shoulders. Both doing a number on everyone's joints.
Silver Lining: We had good roadside distractions in the form of seemingly random rock formations. They looked like those drip sandcastles you would make when you were little but on a massive scale. In a way they looked more like sculptures because they were so sporadic and intricate.
The wind became an issue in the afternoon as it typically has in Utah. The steep climbs definitely became magnified by the blustery winds, which primarily came in the form of headwinds unfortunately.
Silver Lining: Yet again, and thank goodness, we were surrounded by more beautiful Utah landscape.
It was 4:00 by the time we left second lunch with 25 miles remaining and a ton of climbing.
Silver Lining: Pretty immediately after leaving second lunch we entered Capitol Reef National Park and it was like nothing I've ever seen. We were surrounded by these whimsical sandstone skyscrapers that seemed completely unrelated to anything else we had seen. I'll definitely be visiting again!
The last 10 miles were something akin to torture. They were almost entirely uphill. Turns out we ended up totaling more than 6,000 feet of climbing over the entire day which is more than any day in the Rockies. Pretty much the worst kind of way to end a hard day.
Silver Lining: We were done! And to top it off we were hosted by the most incredible couple who just took all of us in and fed us. I even got a bed (!) and one of the most incredible showers of the trip.
So when all is said and done, yes, it was an incredibly difficult day, but when I look back on these days I can always find silver linings. That's the incredible thing about this trip - even the worst days have moments that I'll remember as some of the most amazing times of my life.