The rundown -- Rawlins, WY
I crossed the Colorado line yesterday. Bon voyage -- I will miss you. Now it's on to Wyoming, land of big desert and big wind. I'm taking a half day here in Rawlins, at a motel that charges $40 flat (tax included). They have the dish, but for some reason forgot to include ESPN. So I've had to watch my World Cup games en espanol.
Far southern WY surprised me. As soon as I hit the Wyoming line, it turned to desert again like magic. So I figured, this is New Mexico all over again. But it's not. The far south part was another climb into aspens and timber, sort of like the area around Steamboat but with more gradual hills. And I had my base layer on all day. I don't think it ever got over 65, and by the end of the day it was downright cold. (There was snow on the side of the hill by my camping spot.) I ended up getting caught between sites and sort of camping on the side of the county highway. Oh well.
But, once I was out of the national forest it was more like what I expected. Big wind, sagebrush, and not a lot of water. And, worst of all, the road started going straight up and down over the hills. Short, steep ups and downs are the absolute worst thing you can hit doing loaded touring. The grades are too short to get in a good rhythm, and there's no time to rest in between. Ugh. But, it looks like things will be flatter from here.
OK -- I'm out. Lots of errands to run, and not much time to do it. Tomorrow is a big wind day -- 15-25 out of the SW, which means partly a crosswind and partly a wind in my face. I'm going to try to be rolling by 6 am and off the bike by 2. Then it can blow all it wants. Word.
Far southern WY surprised me. As soon as I hit the Wyoming line, it turned to desert again like magic. So I figured, this is New Mexico all over again. But it's not. The far south part was another climb into aspens and timber, sort of like the area around Steamboat but with more gradual hills. And I had my base layer on all day. I don't think it ever got over 65, and by the end of the day it was downright cold. (There was snow on the side of the hill by my camping spot.) I ended up getting caught between sites and sort of camping on the side of the county highway. Oh well.
But, once I was out of the national forest it was more like what I expected. Big wind, sagebrush, and not a lot of water. And, worst of all, the road started going straight up and down over the hills. Short, steep ups and downs are the absolute worst thing you can hit doing loaded touring. The grades are too short to get in a good rhythm, and there's no time to rest in between. Ugh. But, it looks like things will be flatter from here.
OK -- I'm out. Lots of errands to run, and not much time to do it. Tomorrow is a big wind day -- 15-25 out of the SW, which means partly a crosswind and partly a wind in my face. I'm going to try to be rolling by 6 am and off the bike by 2. Then it can blow all it wants. Word.
posted by Mike at 2:58 PM
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