Next, we wanted to add some songs to our list of trail music:
- Rocky Mountain High-John Denver
- Summertime-Kenny Chesney
- Rain is a Good Thing-Luke Bryan
We last left you on the 4th of July. The 5th of July started with another large continental breakfast at the longhorn. We started up the dreaded Union Pass and halfway through the first pitch of the climb, Joshua noticed his rack wiggling around a bunch and realized that it had sheared right above where it attaches to the frame. After some pondering, the obvious solution of duct tape was decided upon. Forget all the other repair supplies; next time we go on a bike tour the only things we will be bringing are zip ties and duct tape. Also on the way up we met George and Harlene, the "Trail Grandparents" both on Surly Long Haul Truckers who were very friendly.
Upon cresting Union Pass, Jasper began to recall the pain of his first Wyoming Wind River Range bike tour as an unexperienced but enthusiastic prepubescent. While he has gained plenty of riding experience since then, the pain of climbing pass after pass is just about the same.
We stopped in Pinedale at the end of a long day of riding, and gorged ourselves at the one and only Wind River Pizza (just another of many places Jasper visited almost 10 years ago). Our night was spent bumming it in the local park where Jasper slept with his knife clenched in his fist, ready to fend off a toothless and foamy-mouthed bum at a moments notice. The only thing we needed to fend off that night was the bum deterrent they had cleverly disguised in the park as sprinklers at 1:30 am. The next morning we stopped at the grocery store on the way out of town and stocked up on 3 days of food. Joshua bought some JB weld in what would soon be a failed attempt to fix his disintegrating rack. And into the Great Divide Basin the two rode.
In the Great Divide Basin there was nothing to see but the occasional pronghorn. No trees, not even the occasional tumbleweed. The most interesting thing the two found was an unopened bag of Cheetos next to a sparsely populated oil field. It was quite boring. As the two tested their patience, they dreampt of once again climbing through a shady hillside once upon entering Colorado.
Unfortunately for Joshus and Jasper, their wishes were heard as well as granted. A day after leaving Rawlins, with the Basin behind them, the two encountered the steepest and toughest climb they had faced yet on their final day into Steamboat Springs. If it were not for a short day into Rawlins due to a lack of foresight of the post office being closed on sunday, an unexpected Thai feast, and a delicious ambrosia of Pabst Blue Ribbon mixed with lemonade (a makeshift radler) they surely would not have made it into Colorado at all.
In an effort to make it to Steamboat Springs in a timely fashion, the J brothers gave themselves 6 days of riding from their depart in Dubois to make it into Steamboat. The first 3 of those 6 days ended up being 85 miles or more (the most we have riden in 3 days thus far). It had been a tough few days as Jasper's famous last words echoed in the pair's rattling skulls; "I think we should take it easy for the next few days, we should be able to make it in time without riding more than 70 miles a day". The rattling also may have been caused by the absurdly rocky and bumpy descent down from Hahn's Peak into Steamboat. Alas they made it into steamboat with the help of frequent ice cream stops (the newest trend in power food) and homemade brownies!
A steak dinner followed by a day of rest provided by the great Jim Kurowski was all that was needed for the two to fully recover. Tomorrow morning we will be at it again, and well on our way to Breckenridge, where it is quite possible that the beer will be more expensive than it was in Banff. Only time will tell.
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