Hello from Dillon, Montana, where we are enjoying an afternoon off our saddles after 13 wonderful days of cycling. Our first blog entry has taken a while to arrive as our route really does go through small town America where internet access is scarce, but we will do our very best to keep those who are interested updated.
So this is what we’ve been up to so far:
26/6: 66.5 miles, Florence to Alvadore
27/6: 81 miles, McKenzie Bridge
28/6: 91 miles, Prineville
29/6, 89 miles, Dayville
30/6: 86 miles, Sumpter
1/7: 80.5 miles, Halfway
2/7: 80 miles, Council
3/7: 90.5 miles, White Bird
4/7: 71 miles, Lowell
5/7: 65 miles, Powell
6/7: 102 miles, Darby
7/7: 76 miles, Jackson
8/7: 48 miles, Dillon
We have been through three states, covered a total of 1026.5 miles, crossed 12 mountain passes that are higher than the peak of Ben Nevis (the highest being Big Hole Pass, Montana, at 7,360 feet), and loved (almost) every minute. We fought through the first 10 days or so of sore legs and knees and are now feeling really quite strong and fit. Steep hills are feeling less steep and we are well on our way to being the ultimate lean mean cycling machines.
Oregon was characterized by idyllic rural landscape in its west and a rugged wild west feel with lots of rocky outcrops in its east, all the while traversed on roads lined with wide cyclist friendly shoulders. Idaho saw us following picturesque rivers up and down gorgeous valleys as well as passing through an area know as “Hell’s Canyon”. Montana has been dominated by huge elevated plateaus that we have moved between via high mountain passes. All of this scenery has been staggeringly awesome and a bike is the best way to view it. By traveling at such a slow pace and not being penned in by a windshield you really feel part of the landscape.
The weather has for the most part been very kind to us. We hardly saw a cloud in the sky throughout our time in Oregon and this obviously facilitated rapid early tan development. Thanks to the silly clothing that cyclists wear this means some bizarre tan lines are taking shape, with Rob sporting a particularly amusing pattern on his hands due to his gloves. It looks like either he has had henna applied to him or he has some weird disease. It’s amusing in any case! After some welcome cloud cover while we passed through Hell’s Canyon, so called because of how hot it can get in its basin, temperatures then soared to over 100 Fahrenheit in Idaho. This was tough but by planning our days so we got most of our riding, and especially any serious hill climbing, done early in the day, we were fine. More recently we have been hit by a bit of rain here in Montana (thereby shattering Dan’s hopes of a second successive rain free summer following his work in Turkey last year), and due to the elevation it is also surprisingly cold. This morning even saw us huddled into a toilet cubicle for breakfast to take advantage of the heater. We did refrain from chopping the tomatoes on the toilet seat though! We’re confident, however, that this cold and wet stuff will pass. It is July afterall. Surely. Please…
A large part of the fun of this trip (yes, it is fun, but you just need a slightly masochistic streak to enjoy it) is meeting literally hundreds of wonderful people along the way. Americans are a fantastic bunch. When they ask you how you are, they are genuinely interested, and when they say the classic “have a nice day” they really mean it. So with the exception of a couple of xenophobic Idaho hill billies in their dilapidated trucks who treated us to their middle finger, we have come across nothing but kindness, warmth and enthusiasm and interest in our adventure. Examples have been a guy passing us in his caravan, seeing our charity bumper plates, and stopping within 100 metres and making a donation on the spot, a group giving us space for free in their camping patch when we arrived at the campsite to find it full, being given postcards by the owner of the one shop in a town with a population of 100 as a memento, and being given a water bottle by a café owner. Then of course there is the constant supportive waving and honking of horns by those passing us on the road. The incessant positive attitude is uplifting and hugely rewarding. We just won’t get bored of chatting to people, so long may it continue.
We started out the ride as relative biking novices, so we are learning a lot as we go, and indeed that is part of the adventure. For example, we have learnt not to pump tires over-zealously at the end of the day when the tubes are hot and liable to burst. We have had 4 punctures between the three of us and only one has been caused by the road. The others were self-inflicted idiocy/incompetence! Importantly we have also learned that “bum balm” is not to be scoffed at. Tony scoffed and got a sore rear end. Dan and Rob applied liberally from the start, in public places with little shame, and have reaped the benefits. Other important lessons are that bandanas, aside from looking super cool, are excellent at keeping sweat out of your eyes, and, similarly, that cycling tights are not just sexy but essential for maintaining any sensation in the lower half of your body when caught in a storm at 7,000 feet. And finally, NEVER be tempted to eat Hebrew National Beef Salami in English muffins for breakfast. The thought alone still sends shivers down the spine…
Other random little happenings and tidbits include nearly running over rattle snakes on the road, sighting a mother elk with its baby, coming across a pet bear in the tiniest of run down mining towns, passing through so-called “cities” with populations of less than 1000, witnessing a porcupine race on America’s Independence Day, and Rob producing 2009’s most graceful episode so far by tripping and falling into a river that can only be described as Baltic.
Hopefully this gives you all a little bit of insight into our adventure thus far. We really are having an incredible time and feel privileged to have the opportunity to undertake such a trip. We cannot thank enough those at home who are giving us their support, both in general and by donating to our charity page
(http://www.justgiving.com/robertdstevenson1) as it spurs us on massively. We have come a long way already, but we’ve only taken a tiny chunk out of the whole task, so please do keep that support coming.
Over and out for now.
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