Sunday was a shortish ride from Kremmling to Breckenridge, 58 miles and about 2,500 ft of a climb. Almost a quarter of it was on a cycle path. Particularly between Silverthorne and Breckenridge it was mobbed with cyclists. My first cycle mob on this trip (probably had to do with Labour Day). Anyway, it was good to know where I would stay for the two nights: in the Fireside Inn and my room is called the Mountain Bothie. The place is simple but homely. Breckenridge is very much a tourist town and rather attractive. With Labour Day tomorrow, it's absolutely heaving with people.
It's good to be under a roof, and do you know what, it's raining outside. It seems that I am timing my rest days perfectly. A previous time it also rained on my glamping. I haven't had to get my rain gear out once, and it's been exactly a month since I set out from Astoria.
On Saturday, it was over the Willow Creek Pass to Kremmling, population 1,444. I realised that I enjoyed climbing much more than crossing endless Prairies. When I got to the campsite, I paid my $10 and got all the usual information, including the bathroom code 1066. When I asked if there was any particular reason for choosing this number, the answer was, of course the Battle of Hastings! Here I was, in small-town rural Colorado, and people know about, and are interested in the battle of Hastings, and probably much more. Whatever next? Apparently, when they were looking for a new number the last time, the children choose 1066 as they had just learned about it. Anyway, it turned out that the couple were home schooling their children and tried to give them as broad an education as possible. Apparently the mother was homeschool as well. The curriculum in state school would definitely not have included that. Also, I was checked in on the computer, including handling my credit card, by their 13 old daughter. I was surprised and impressed. It was a bit like seeing Waldorf School pupils.
Friday was more straightforward. 65 miles from Saratoga to Walden, although uphill all the way. It has a population of 874 and an elevation of 8,100 ft. There are 5 motels and an RV park in town but the only camping is in the City Park. I called the Sheriff's office to check if it was OK and Monica answered. No problem, just camp anywhere in the park, was her reply. The park has a gazzibo, clean toilets and potable water. No litter, no dog poo, no graffiti and no vandalism anywhere, only a warning at the entrance that moose are likely to play in the park as well. I took Monica's advice literally, and set up everything, including my tent, in the gazzibo. It meant I wouldn't have to pack up a tent damp from dew in the morning. Just as I got set up, the most amazing thunderstorm broke loose, with thunder and lightning, lashing rain and swirling winds, but I was snug and dry. Anything else, apart from a motel room, would have been impossible with that storm. I did land on my feet here.
I have sometimes wondered about Jack Reacher, and his itinerary life style. Although his character is a bit extreme, but particularly here in the Midwest, he would not stick out at all. Everything is set up to support people staying for a short time and then moving on. 5 motels, an RV site and a park where anyone can camp, all in a town of 874 people! I think this probably isn't a new phenomenon, it goes right back to the Oregon Trail in the 1830s. People are still on the move, not in covered wagons anymore, but hitchhiking, walking, cycling, right up to RVs, the size of Stagecoach busses.
On Friday I also crossed into Colorado. So far its been Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, and after Colorado, it's Kansas already. Kansas means more than halfway.
On Thursday morning, I woke up in Muddy Gap with the wind buffeting the tent. It was clear that the way it was blowing, I would, if it keeps up, have 85 miles of headwind across the prairie of the Wyoming Basin. I probably wouldn't get to Saratoga, as my speed would be cut in half. The guy cycling in low gear across the prairie would be a piece of cake compared to that. Well, I had to be in Breckenridge by the 3rd, so no choice but to get off my backside, get going, and not think too far ahead. Anyway, I broke camp, packed the bike, said goodbye to my "lovely" home for the night, and started cycling. The first 2 miles were totally as I expected and then, going through the Muddy Gap, the wind suddenly dropped and my spirits lifted. What a change and what a waste of a steely resolve. There were still the occasional annoying gusts, but all in all straight forward cycling, all of 85 miles of it.
By the way, the flattened cardboard boxes worked. I still had air in my sleeping pad in the morning.
Also on Thursday, at one of the pullouts on the road, a woman, Jan, flagged me down and offered me some doughnuts and lemonade. She was with Half-moon (his trail name). Jan was an avid cyclist, currently doing the Great Divide Mountain Bike route from Canada to Mexico. It was interesting talking to someone so knowledgeable. I also talked to Half-moon, and it turned out he lived in Guffey, close to the TA route just over the Hoosier Pass. He offered to put me up for the night and we exchanged phone numbers. So, another night sleeping under a roof rather than in the tent. I am making a habit of it.
