Robyn's 2023 California Zephyr and BAM II Adventure: BAM II (Missive 6)

NOTE:  This is the sixth and final missive for Robyn's 2023 California Zephyr and BAM II bike-packing adventure in Arizona, Utah, Nevada, California, and Maine. The fifth missive is at https://attitude-maneuver.blogspot.com/2024/03/robyns-2023-california-zephyr-and-bam_31.html. Note also that this year I am writing the missives in both English and Russian for my Russian-speaking friends.

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Slideshow

A  slideshow  of photos of my travel up the Downeast Bold Coast in Maine can be found at  https://photos.app.goo.gl/whHBmumMkpMXKBsXA

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Missive No. 6:  Bicycle Around Maine (BAM) II

At the end of my last missive I wrote:

As my readers know, the ride to my home from the final train station takes 3-4 days, but perhaps this year I’ll choose a longer route? Perhaps my dreams did not die in Palmdale but only transformed? Stay tuned.

That's precisely what happened. I spent a week and a half with family and friends in Maryland and then took the train to Boston and onward by bus to Belfast, Maine. I spent a day there with my friend Ellen and then, on July 20, got back in the saddle and continued forward on two wheels with WoodsWoman. Instead of my usual route straight home, I rode along the Bold Coast of Downeast Maine. I went all the way to Lubec, the easternmost town in the US, and then crossed the bridge into Canada to Campobello Island where the Roosevelt family vacationed in the summers in the early 20th century. I had wanted to visit Campobello ever since, as a teenager, seeing the movie Sunrise at Campobello about how future President Franklin Roosevelt was stricken with polio while on the island in 1921. After Campobello I took US 1 through Calais to Topsfield, where I turned west on ME 6. I spent two nights at Pleasant Lake before continuing on to Lincoln. I reached Burlington and turned into my own driveway last Sunday evening, July 30.

So it turns out that my dreams really did not die in Palmdale but only took on a different form. There is a certain "circular logic" to this transformation. In 2020 I suspended my ride around the state of Maine (Bike Around Maine -- BAM) and went west all the way to Washington State. This year I suspended my ride in California . . . and in exchange continued my intended 2020 route in my home state of Maine. In sum, I'm content. I spent a wonderful week on the Bold Coast of Maine and on Campobello Island. Unlike in the California desert, here it was cool. The weather was perfect. Instead of cheap motels, I was camping again. I also spent a wonderful night with my WarmShowers hosts Larry and Tanya. It turned out that Tanya is from Ukraine, and the evening became a Russian language event for me.

Of course, it's hard to compare this year's bike-packing adventure with those of previous years. I traveled all of 3720km (2325 miles), whereas in 2021 I went almost double that distance. That said, this year I visited five national parks and monuments, Lowell Observatory, and Campobello Island. I am content.

There is only one song that properly captures the mixed emotions that one has at the end of a bike-packing journey. The emotions are mixed in the sense that there is happiness at completing the journey successfully at the same time that there is a certain sadness that one is not going to be in the saddle each day. But this song also hints that this may not be the last such journey. That song -- one that goes through my head at the end of each of these journeys -- is Last Time on the Road. Time will show what next year brings.

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В конце прошлого послания я написала так:

Как читатели мои знают, из последнего железнодорожного вокзала до моего дома, это дня 3-4 в седле. А может быть в этом году найду себе новый маршрут подлиннее? Возможно мечты мои не умерли в городе Пальмдейл а только и превратились, приобрели новый облик? Посмотрим.

Так и было. Я провела полтора недели с родными и друзьями в штате Мэриленд и потом села в поезд до Бостона и оттуда в автобус до Белфаста в штате Мэн. Я провела день с подругой Еленой и 20-го июля села в седло и поехала дальше на двух колёсах с ЛесНицей. Вместо обычного прямого маршрута до дома, я ехала по "Бодрому побережью" в районе Мэн, который называется "Внизу-по-востоку." Я доехала вплоть до самого восточного населённого пункта в США, города Лубек, и оттуда переехала мост в Канаду на остров Кампобелло где семья Рузевельт отдыхала в начале 20-го века. Я давно хотела посетить этот остров с тех пор как в молодости я смотрела фильм Восход солнца на Кампобелло о том, как будущий президент Франклин Рузевельт заразился детским параличом когда он провёл лето на острове в 1921. После Кампобелло я держала путь на US 1 через город Калис до Топсфильда, где я повернула на запад по дороге ME 6. Я провела две ночи у "Приятного озера," прежде чем продолжать путь до Линкольна. Я доехала до Берлингтона и повернула на дорожку к собственному дому вечером в прошлое воскресенье, 30-го июля.

Итак, мечты не умерли в городе Пальмдейл а только приобрели новый облик. Есть некоторый "круглый смысл" в том, как они превратились. Дело в том, что в 2020-ом я прекратила поход по штату Мэн (Bike Around Maine -- BAM -- БАМ), чтобы поехать на запад вплоть до штата Вашингтон. А в этом году я прекратила поход в Калифорнии раньше срока . . . а взамен возобновила намеченный маршрут 2020-го года в родном штате Мэн. В итоге, я довольна. Я отлично провела время на "Бодром побережье" и на острове Кампобелло. В отличии от пустыни в Калифорнии, здесь было прохладно. Погода стояла отлично. Вместо дешёвых гостиниц, я снова жила на кемпингах и отлично провела ночь с Ларри и Таней по программе "Тёплые души." Оказалось, что Таня из Украины, и так этот вечер оказался для меня русскоязычным.

Конечно, этот летний поход не сравнить с походами в предыдущих годах. Я проехала всего 3720 км (2325 миль), а в 2021-ом я проехала почти в два раза дальше. Но зато я посетила пять национальных парков и монументов, Обсерваторию им. Лоуэлла, и остров Кампобелло. Я довольна.

Есть только одна песня, которая правильно описывает противоречивые чувства при завершении этих летних походов. Чувства смешанные в там смысле, что есть радость от того, что поход удачно завершается а вместе с радостью есть некоторое горе от того, что больше не будешь каждый день в седле. Но эта песня тоже намекает на то, что возможно это не последний раз. Песня называется Последний раз на дороге. Посмотрим, что будет в моей жизни в следующем году.

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Daily Log

Monday-Tuesday, July 3-4, 2023 -- 9872 km cum - 0 km/day

This was it, my last few miles in California on this summer's journey. In Merced I spent the morning going to the grocery store for a few snacks and to the post office to mail a few things home. I now have some regret about that. I'm writing onboard the California Zephyr on Wednesday, and I am starting to think of a longer after-ride when I arrive back in Maine.

In Emmeryville I rode from the Amtrak station to the Hilton Garden Inn on Monday and back to the station on Tuesday morning. Three years ago on July 4 I was on Mackinac Island and on Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Two years ago I was in Missouri. Last year I was in Fairbanks. This year I was on the California Zephyr.

On the Zephyr I have had a number of good conversations. Richard, a retired football coach from Dartmouth, is across the hall from me. This morning I spent several hours with Venus, a young trans woman, and two other women talking about LGBT issues. It's been a good train journey so far. I write as we enter the California Rockies.

July 5-17, 2023 -- 9940 km cum - 68 km/week

[Writing in Boston on Tuesday, July 18]

This 40+ mile total surprised me when I wrote it down. It's more than I expected but is, in fact, right. It mainly reflects 12+ miles from Union Station in DC to Matthew's in Silver Spring on Friday, July 7, and a 22-mile ride with Matthew and Rachel on Saturday, July 8. The rest is "little bits" in Emmeryville and some "walk the bike" short distances in Maryland and Boston.

It was a good, in fact excellent week in Maryland. I spent the first two night with Matthew and got to meet Rachel. Despite all my riding, they wore me out on our Saturday ride. Age!

I spent Sunday night at Irene's and the next three with John. We saw the new "Indiana Jones" movie, which also served as an age reminder. I saw the first one in 1981! Outdoors, we went on long walks in Frederick, Hagerstown, and Williamsport.

I was back with Irene for Thursday and Friday nights before returning to Matthew's for Saturday and Sunday. At last I got to spend time with E-J! Going on nine years old, she's no longer shy. I spent hours playing "house" with her and her dolls.

Yesterday I took Amtrak to Boston and overnight-ed at the too expensive Doubletree that I hadn't stayed at in years. Today I take the bus to Belfast for a couple of nights with Ellen.

Thursday, July 20, 2023 -- 10,005 km cum - 65 km/day

The after-ride has begun! Today's ride was an easy, pleasant 40-miles from Ellen's to the Patten Pond campground just short of Ellsworth. (At $48, the campground is outrageously overpriced, even more so then the one KOA campground I stayed at in 2019, but at least it's pleasant with free showers.) The weather was sunny and warm but nothing like the mid-Atlantic in 2021 or the California oven of this summer.

Most of all, it feels good to be riding again. This summer's adventure is nearing its end, but it's not over yet. There is more to come.

Friday, July 21, 2023 -- 10,087 km cum - 82 km/day

Saturday, July 22, 2023 -- 10,193 km cum - 100 km/day

These have been two excellent days.

Friday began with a diner breakfast in Ellsworth. Just as my breakfast arrived, so did Dave, a bike-packer who used a week's vacation from USFS to ride in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. He stayed with me all through breakfast as we talked over our experiences. A young guy only fifty years old, he is scheduled for major cancer surgery on August 1 that will remove his large intestine. He worries what this might mean for his bicycling future. I will be thinking of him on August 1.

From Ellsworth I attempted to ride the Downeast Sunrise Trail but abandoned it for the road after ten miles. The gravel surface was meant for ATVs, not a loaded touring bike. For the rest of the day I had a very pleasant, scenic ride on USBR 1.

In Addison I had a wonderful WS night with Larry and Tanya. Larry is from Baltimore, and Tanya is from L'viv in Ukraine. They met and married in the 1990s after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Tanya and I spent the evening talking in Russian. She made dinner and set me up in the guest bedroom for the night.

Today started out in such a thick mist that I wore rain gear. Fortunately, the mist cleared as I was having a gas station breakfast in Columbia Falls.

I stayed on USBR 1 for another beautiful ride. It was also a mistake that added an extra fifteen miles to the day. Tom, my WS host for the night, had given me his address as 340 US 1. Well, Google maps told me this address is near the intersection of USBR 1 and US 1. Wrong. Turns out there are multiple addresses "340 US 1." The one I needed was some twelve miles away. If I had gone to the right address in the first place, the day would have been much shorter. Oh well, it was still a very good day. I'm set up for "indoor camping" in Tom's "screen house."

Sunday, July 23, 2023 -- 10,240 km cum - 47 km/day

I'm in Canada again, in New Brunswick to be specific, camped at Herring Cove campground on Campobello Island. I had wanted to come here for years ever since seeing the movie "Sunrise at Campobello" on TV when I was perhaps 10-12 years old. I already visited the FDR summer home on my way in.

The ride itself today was, as I intended, a short one. I had breakfast in Lubec where I got into a long and interesting conversation with John and Jane from Iowa. From Lubec I rode to the Quoddy Lighthouse, where I had another good conversation with Hannah, a young woman from Massachusetts who is working on a farm in Maine this summer. From the lighthouse I returned to Lubec, bought groceries, and crossed the bridge into Canada.

It has occurred to me that this ride up the Bold Coast is a continuation of my 2020 BAM (Bike Around Maine) ride. That year I abandoned BAM to ride across the U.S. on the Northern Tier. This year I curtailed the Sierra-Cascades ride and have resumed the BAM. There is circularity to this, a good sense of complementarity and completion.

Monday, July 24, 2023 -- 10,272 km cum - 32 km/day

Today's was just a fun ride out to the East Quoddy Light at the far end of Campobello Island. I got there as the tide was starting to come in, and thus I couldn't walk across to the sandbar to the lighthouse itself. Still, I lingered for over an hour and watched as the legendary Bay of Fundy tide came in and covered the sandbar completely. At the campground in the evening I met a couple from Rockland County, NY!

Wednesday, July 26, 2023 -- 10,364 km cum - 92 km/day

This was a good, pretty riding day from Campobello to a motel night in Calais. It was also much longer than I expected. I had planned to take the "water taxi" from Lubec to Eastport only to find that the ferry has not run in two years. Thus instead of a 30+ file water and road ride, I had to ride 57 miles totally on-road.

I may be at this motel for two nights. The forecast for tomorrow afternoon is a stormy one.

Friday, July 28, 2023 -- 10,443 km cum - 79 km/day

I did stay in Calais a second day, and it's good I did. It poured rain all afternoon. I was soaked after a two mile walk to a grocery store. My other task of the day was laundry, and I was lucky to meet and start talking with Scott at the laundromat. A motorcyclist from northern Virginia with a camp in Princeton, ME, he drove me back to my room at the International Motel. If he hadn't, I would have been soaked twice in one day.

Today's ride up Rt. 1 to Topsfield was an easy one. Turning west on Rt. 6 -- the trans-Maine Highway -- I felt I had entered into home territory.

As in past years, I'm holding on, delaying my return to "normal life" just a bit. Tonight and tomorrow night, I'm staying in a cabin at Maine Wilderness Camps on Pleasant Lake. This spot has significance in my life. I camped here in 2007 as I was finishing my driving/camping trip around Maine, The Maritime, and Newfoundland. In the morning, I met a couple in an RV who invited me to breakfast. Both were divorced but in the aftermath had found each other and a happier life. I opened up to them about my marriage and my fears that I did not have the courage to go through with divorce. It was that morning with them that gave me the courage. If it had not been for that morning, I might not have started down the road that led to where I am today.

Yes, this is a special spot, in its way another "Little Orleans." I'm glad I am here for this year's "Last Time on the Road."

Sunday, July 30, 2023 -- 10,527 km cum - 84 km/day

[Writing Monday morning, July 31]

Just three days short of three months since I rolled out of Tucson on May 2, I am home. As I sit with my coffee on my front porch this morning, I feel disoriented, bewildered, at loose ends. The feelings are familiar. I felt them after riding home from DC in 2019, after riding the Northern Tier in 2020, after riding the TransAm in 2021, and after last year's Alaska-to-Montana Northstar adventure. Their familiarity, however, does not diminish their intensity. It takes time to readjust to "normal life." It doesn't happen in one day. I'm still holding on to my life on the road. Today I'm dressed in my usual travel town clothes: red top and black slacks. Even my underwear comes from my panniers. If anything, I'm treating today as a travel rest day. That is, in a way, what it is. Tomorrow I'll be on WoodsWoman for a 45-mile Lincoln-Howland loop to do grocery shopping and to take some cash from my credit union. And so, I'm not quite done. I have one more day ahead of me that I declare is still part of this California Zephyr / BAM II summer.

Yesterday's ride was a hilly but good one. I had forgotten just how hilly Maine Rt. 6 is, in particular from Topsfield to Lee. I stopped in Lincoln long enough to get what I thought would be my most needed groceries. That added about fifteen pounds to my load. For the first time in more than a year, I had to push WoodsWoman up the two steepest hills on Transalpine Road. Perhaps I could have pedaled up, but I followed my rule. Once my speed drops below 6 km/hr, there is no point in suffering. I can walk up at 3-4 km/hr.

As I stopped to take a "selfie" at the Burlington town sign, Seb pulled up in his car to welcome me home. I stopped to say "Hi" to Kelly and Frank, and then I rolled up to my own porch. Inside, a Hawaiian pizza from Laurie waited in my refrigerator. I made a black Russian, went out on the porch, and watched the sun set through my woods. I am home.

PS -- I didn't lose any weight this summer. I weighed in last night at 140-141 lbs. What gives?

Tuesday, August 1, 2023 -- 10,594 km/cum - 67 km/day

This was it, my final day, a 46-47 mile loop to Lincoln for groceries and to the credit union in Howland to replenish my cash supply. I may have had empty bags on my way to Lincoln, but I was drenched in an unexpected cloudburst. After Lincoln, however, I was carrying full weight with camping gear replaced by groceries.

As I expected, I was in a down mood on Monday. It has been this way after each of my summer trips, but expecting it does not make it less real. It's a process. After today's final ride, I'm feeling much more positive.

And so, this is it, the end of my California Zephyr / BAM II summer. It was not of the scale as my adventures of 2020, 2021, and 2022, but I am content and am left to wonder what next year will bring.

ending km:  10,594 km

total distance:  3720 km (2325 miles)

Robyn's 2023 California Zephyr and BAM II Adventure: A Tale of Palmdale (Missive 5)

NOTE:  This is the fifth missive for Robyn's 2023 California Zephyr and BAM II bike-packing adventure in Arizona, Utah, Nevada, California, and Maine. The fourth missive is at https://attitude-maneuver.blogspot.com/2024/03/robyns-2023-california-zephyr-and-bam_50.html. The sixth missive can be found at https://attitude-maneuver.blogspot.com/2024/03/robyns-2023-california-zephyr-and-bam_78.html. Note also that this year I am writing the missives in both English and Russian for my Russian-speaking friends.

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Slideshow

A  slideshow  of photos of my travel in the California Sierras as far as Yosemite Valley can be found at  https://photos.app.goo.gl/AqiBqGmE3968KTXXA

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Missive No. 5:  A Tale of Palmdale

Palmdale. That’s where dreams go to die. In just a few words that describes what happened with me in California. Things didn’t turn out quite like I hoped. Truth be told, they turned out far from what I had hoped.

My first day in the Sierras was wonderful. I climbed nearly 4500 feet (1400 meters) and left the desert behind. It was cool at last. For the first time since I left Utah, I set up to camp and slept beautifully in the fresh air.

The next morning I continued north along the ridge on Rt. 2. The weather was beautiful and so were the views . . . until I saw a sign warning “road closed in five miles.” Sure enough, I reached a gate closing the road to motorized traffic, but I saw that WoodsWoman and I could go around it easily. And so we did. I continued further. The views became even more impressive. I was completely by myself. Everything was wonderful until I came to a second, much more serious gate. This one had jersey barriers and boulders behind it and to the sides. There was no way to go around it. As I found out later, a short distance beyond this gate, the road had completely washed away down the cliffs as a result of the winter snows. The road no longer existed.

There was nothing to do but backtrack and then descend into the valley back into the desert. I spent the night in a cheap motel in Palmdale. My mood was dismal. When I set out the next morning, I was again in the Mojave Desert. The heat was oppressive, but I began to climb in the second half of the day. I spent the night in a motel in Tehachapi. That evening I went to the Internet and learned that Rt. 2 wasn’t the only road on my route that was closed. There were several others. I would have to detour again and again into the valley, into the heat. It would be impossible to follow the route I had intended. I nearly ended my trip right then and there. Had I crossed the desert for nothing?

But the next morning I got in touch with Abel, a local WarmShowers host in Tehachapi. He and his wife Kim offered to host me for the night. Abel also connected me with a bike-packer who had been with him two or so weeks earlier and who also was traveling north on the Sierra-Cascades route. That bike-packer confirmed that the road through Sequoia National Park was closed and that he was heading to Yosemite National Park by detouring through the valley.

That evening I talked over my options with Abel. In the end I came up with a plan: 1) Travel north on the ridge to the Giant Sequoia National **Monument** as close as I could get to the Sequoia National **Park** road closure; 2) Backtrack and descend by bus to Bakersfield; 3) Take Amtrak to Merced; 4) Ride and climb with WoodsWoman to Yosemite National Park; 5) Return to Merced; and 6) End my trip and return east by train.

That’s what I did. This way I managed to camp for several nights next to the most majestic trees on this planet: the sequoias. And although Tioga Pass at Yosemite was closed, I was able to spend two days in Yosemite Valley and see the famous waterfalls that this oldest U.S. park is known for.

I should note that even the valley of Yosemite is at an altitude of 4000 ft (1200 m). Riding there from Merced, just a few hundred feet above sea level, is not easy. There are long climbs with gradients of 7-8%. On the return these transform to steep descents with the exception of a long 8% climb to Mariposa.

Add to this that on my return from Yosemite I experienced the hottest temperatures of the summer, above 40C (104F). On my last morning returning to Merced, I got up at 2:00 a.m. so that I could start riding at 4:00 a.m. using my headlight. That way I beat the worst of the heat.

Bike-packers and backpackers believe in “trail magic.” This was the magic that found me on the road to Merced on that final morning. The sun was already 20 degrees above the horizon, and the predawn coolness was evaporating fast. Suddenly a bicyclist pulled up next to me. We began chatting and riding slowly together. His name was Ron, a retired attorney and a cyclist from way back. Now over 80 years old, he still rides every day. He’s even done a transcontinental ride as I did in 2020 and 2021. He asked about my plans when I reached the city. I said it was too early for me to check into my motel and that I would probably find a coffee shop where I could sit for a few hours. “No way,” he answered. “You’ll come to my house and wait there.” So it was that I spent that final morning with Ron and his wife Terry in their comfortable home. That was true “trail magic.”

And so, I now sit in Amtrak’s “California Zephyr” train as I return east. Perhaps it’s no accident that I chose “California Zephyr” as the name for this, my fourth summer journey with WoodsWoman? In the nearly four years since I retired in 2019, WoodsWoman and I have spent an entire year together, even more if you add in my local riding in Maine. More than a quarter of my retirement has been spent in the saddle. In Chicago I will transfer to the “Capitol Limited” and continue on to Washington. I’ll spend a week or ten days with family and friends before continuing home to Maine. As my readers know, the ride to my home from the final train station takes 3-4 days, but perhaps this year I’ll choose a longer route? Perhaps my dreams did not die in Palmdale but only transformed? Stay tuned.

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Пальмдейл, где мечты умирают. Несколькими словами, это описывает то, что было со мной в Калифорнии. Всё получилось не так, как я хотела. Правду сказать, получилось далеко не так.

Отличный был первый день в горах Сьерра. Я поднялась метров 1400 и оставила пустыню позади. Было прохладно. Наконец-то. Впервые с тех пор, как я уехала из Юты, я устроилась на кемпинге и спала крепко крепко на свежем воздухе.

Следующим утром я продолжала путь на север по хребту по дороге 2. Отличная погода и отличные виды . . . пока я не увидела дорожный знак, предупреждающий о том, что через восемь километров дорога перекрыта. Я доехала до преграды и решила, что мы с ЛесНицей можем её легко объехать. Так мы и сделали. Поехали дальше. Виды стали даже более впечатляющими. Я была совсем одна. Здорово было, пока я не попала на вторую, куда более серьёзную преграду. Её не обойти даже пешком. Как я узнала потом, через некоторое расстояние после этой преграды, дорога совсем смылась в результате зимних снегопадов. Дорога больше не существует.

Пришлось вернуться назад и спуститься в долину, обратно в пустыню. Я ночевала в плохой дешёвой гостинице в городе Пальмдейл. Настроение моё было удручающее. Следующим утром я снова отправилась в путь через пустыню Мохаве. Жутко было жарко. Под конец дня я начала снова подниматься. Я ночевала в гостинице в городе Техачапи. Вечером я зашла в Интернет и узнала, что по моей дальнейшем пути не одна дорога перекрыта. Придётся снова и снова спускаться в долину, в жару. Совершить первоначально придуманное путешествие невозможно. В тот вечер я чуть не решила сразу прекратить поход и вернуться домой. Разве я переехала пустыню зря?

Но следующим утром я связалась с Абелом из велосипедной сети «Тёплые души» в Техапачи. Он пригласил меня ночевать у него с женой Ким. Он тоже связал меня с одним велосипедистом, который был у него недели две до меня и который тоже ехал на север по хребту. Этот велосипедист подтвердил, что дорога через Национальный парк Секвойя перекрыта и что ему пришлось ехать в Парк Йосемити не по хребту а по долине.

Вечером мы с Абелом обсуждали возможности. В конце концов я придумала вот такой план: 1) Проехать по хребту через Национальный **Монумент** Секвойя до начала **парка** Секвойя, где дорога перекрыта; 2) Вернуться назад и спускаться в долину на автобусе в город Бейкерсфильд; 3) В поезде поехать в город Мерсед; 4) На велике снова подняться в горы и поехать в Парк Йосемити; 5) Вернуться в город Мерсед; и 6) Всё – вернуться домой в поезде.

Я так и поступила. Таким образом мне удалось ночевать несколько ночей в горах рядом с величайшими деревьями на планете: секвойя. И хотя перевал Тиога в Парке Йосемити перекрыта, мне удалось провести два дня в долине Йосемити и посмотреть на знаменитые водопады, чем известен этот самый известный парк в США.

Следует отметить, что даже долина Йосемити находится на высоте 1200м. Подняться туда из города Мерсед было дело нелёгкое. Были длительные подъёмы с градиентом в 7-8%. На обратном пути они превратились в крутые спуски – хотя было тоже ещё один крутой подъём в 8%.

К тому же, стояла самая жаркая погода за всё лето с температурой выше 40C. Следовательно, в последнее утро я встала в 2ч утра и тронулась в путь при фаре в 4ч. Таким образом я избежала жару.

Есть у велосипедных туристов и у альпинистов легенда о «магии пути.» Такая магия нашла меня по дороге в Мерсед в то последнее утро. Солнце уже стояло градусов 20 над горизонтом. Прохлада ночного пробега испарялась. Вдруг рядом со мной появился Рон на своём велосипеде. Мы катались медленно и болтались. Оказалось, что он адвокат и велосипедист с давних времён. Сейчас на пенсии, ему за 80 . . . и ещё каждый день на своём велосипедом. Даже переехал всю страну как я и сделала в 2020 и в 2021. Он спросил, какие у меня планы, когда доеду до самого города. Я ответила, что ещё слишком рано, чтобы занять номер в мотели. Скорее всего найду кофейню и там посижу несколько часов. «Никак нет,» он ответил. «Вы приедете ко мне и у нас посидите.» Так я провела то последнее утро не одна а в уютном доме Рона с женой Терри. Это и есть сущая «магия пути.»

Итак, я сижу в поезде «Калифорнийский ветерок» и возвращаюсь на восток. Может быть не случайно я выбрала то же название для этого, моего четвёртого летнего похода вместе с ЛесНицей. С тех пор, как я вышла на пенсию в 2019, мы с ней провели вместе целый год, даже чуть больше. Больше одной четверти моей пенсионной жизни я провела в седле.

В Чикаго я пересяду в поезд «Капитолий Лтд.» и поеду в Вашингтон. Там проведу дней десять с родными и друзьями прежде чем поехать к себе домой в Мэн. Как читатели мои знают, из последнего железнодорожного вокзала до моего дома, это дня 3-4 в седле. А может быть в этом году найду себе новый маршрут подлиннее? Возможно мечты мои не умерли в городе Пальмдейл а только и превратились, приобрели новый облик? Посмотрим.

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Daily Log

Wednesday, June 14, 2023 -- 9102 km cum - 100 km/day

I'm in motion again after two days that I used for nothing more substantive than rest . . . and finding Mollie who colored my hair with the henna that I carried all this way. Main Street in Barstow is sad, essentially abandoned as in so many towns I saw on the TransAm two years ago, all bypassed by the Interstates. Commerce has moved from Main Street to the Interstate interchanges. Even the Rt. 66 Museum was closed Mon-Thurs, but I had a nice consolation in the Goldstone DSN Museum. I hadn't realized that Goldstone is so close to Barstow. When I exited, I met Bill, who is something of a frame builder. He was riding a "chopper bike" that he built for his niece.

The ride today as far as Victorville wasn't bad, but after that the headwind became as strong, even worse, than during the ride from Baker to Barstow. Added to that, the pavement on Mariposa Road that was so degraded that it felt like riding on cobblestones. It was miserable.

**But**, I have climbed into the foothills of the Sierras. Tomorrow I turn north. This summer's поход has been nothing but a grind since I entered Nevada. I hope that begins to change tomorrow.

Thursday, June 15, 2023 -- 9129 km cum - 27 km/day

A very short mileage day, but not so for elevation. In the course of seventeen miles, I went from 1000 to 2500m (~3000 to 7500 ft.), a whopping elevation gain of 1500m (~4500 ft.). I think I pushed up more than I rode today. The grades were that steep. The most insane grade was the entry road to the Table Mountain campground to the west of Wrightwood. It feels good to be camping again and to be among trees. Despite the insane climb, my mood that suffered through more than a week of desert is somewhat improved.

Friday, June 16, 2023 -- 9205 km cum - 76 km/day

A beautiful night was followed by a miserable day. Only about five miles into the day, I encountered a "Rt. 2 Closed" gate. I went around it in hope that a bicycle could go through. Five miles further on, there was a second gate with jersey barriers and boulders arranged on the sides to make sure no one, not even someone on foot, could get past. There was even a "no bicycles" sign.

And so, I had to return to where I had camped and take the only detour available down into the valley. I lost 1000 m of elevation that I had worked so hard to gain yesterday. The ride was not pretty. Once in the valley, I was met (again!) by a strong headwind. I'm in a super cheap -- in all senses -- motel in Palmdale.

There has been precious little fun in this trip since I left Utah. If I could, I might turn on my communicator and say, "Beam me up, Scotty."

Saturday, June 17, 2023 -- 9286 km cum - 81 km/day

Sunday, June 18, 2023 -- 9300 km cum - 14 km/day

Monday, June 19, 2023 -- 8360 km cum - 80 km/day

I nearly abandoned after Saturday's ride from Palmdale to Tehachapi. When I passed Edwards Air Force Base and stopped at Antelope Acres for a break, the temperature must have been 40C. It was HOT. I hydrated religiously. Then there was the climb of over 700 m to Oak Creek Pass. I pushed up much of the final 3 km. I now have a wound on my right ankle from a blister that broke from all the rubbing as I walked and pushed.

Tehachapi was another motel night. It's also when I checked the route carefully and found that the Sierra-Cascade route through Sequoia National Park is completely closed. So, apparently, is the Western Divide Highway through Giant Sequoia National Monument (GSNM).

What saved the situation, at least in part, was WS host Abel in Tehachapi. I only heard from him after I was a the motel. He put me in touch with Mike, another Sierra-Cascade cyclist who is about a week ahead of me. Mike confirmed that Sequoia National Park is totally closed, but he said the Western Divide Highway is passable on a bike. And so . . .

On Sunday I rode the short distance to Abel's and spent the afternoon and night with him and his wife Kim, a retired teacher. They are both cyclists, and Abel is also a backpacker. He is, in addition, a font of local information.

And so, on Monday I made it to Lake Isabella. It was a tough day that started downhill but was followed by three climbs. I pushed up more than I rode. The first climb was the worst, some 800 m of elevation gain in 11-12 km.

I'm at an AirBnB in Lake Isabella and am taking a rest day. My plan is to continue into GSNM for two days so that I can see some sequoias. Then I'll return to Lake Isabella, take the bus to Bakersfield and, from there, Amtrak to Merced. From there it is about a two day ride to Yosemite Valley. My hope is that by making it to GSNM and Yosemite, I will have made the post-Zion misery worth the effort.

Wednesday, June 21, 2023 -- 9426 km cum - 46 km/day

A short day, not even 30 miles, by design from Lake Isabella to the USFS Fairview Campground in Sequoia National Forest. I'm camped next to the Kern River, but alas, the sequoias are much further along. At least I'm camping . . . for only the second time since leaving Utah.

One year ago today, I was already into my second day on the Dalton Highway in Alaska. What a different ride that was. Since leaving Utah this year, I am finding "the bloom is off the rose."

Thursday, June 22, 2023 -- 9486 km cum - 60 km/day

[Writing on Friday, June 23]

This was a "leave all weight at the campground and climb" day much as at Glacier National Park in 2020. Even so, it was not an easy climb to the Western Divide Highway and the Trail of 100 Hundred Giants. The grades during this 1000m climb may not have been as steep as on the Road to the Sun, but they were significant. The climb took me three hours. I pedaled most of the way, but there were a few places where I got off and pushed. Only on the delightful descent did I realize how much I had climbed.

But on the Trail of 100 Giants I saw the Sequoias, at least some of them. I was still on WoodsWoman when I saw the first one. I stopped short, the sight taking my breath away. No matter how many pictures I have seen, nothing had prepared me for their size, their majesty. The first one on the Trail, "proclamation Sequoia," has an open base. I actually stood within the tree! In their size and lifespan of centuries, even thousands of years, they dwarf human life. Seeing, touching the Sequoias has gone a long way toward justifying the hard, grueling days since I left Utah.

Today (i.e., Friday) is a rest day for me at the Fairview Campground next to the Kern River. The sound of the rapids at night brings back memories of the surf during trips to Ocean City when Matthew was little.

As to the Sierra-Cascade route, what little of it I have ridden, I've learned a humbling lesson. It is not a route for heavy, loaded touring such as I have been doing. It is a difficult route with ups and downs reminiscent of the TransAm in VA-KY-MS in 2021, only more so. I never should have combined it with Arizona and Utah. It's a route best tackled on its own. For the Sierra-Cascade, "less is more" in terms of weight. The ride up to Trail of 100 Giants was difficult even though I was carrying almost nothing. I hate to think what it would have been like if I had been carrying all my weight. I planned so thoroughly for Alaska and Canada last year and did it right. This year I did almost no planning. Instead, I packed as I had last year and went forth "to fight the last war." I have paid the price for that hubris.

That said, seeing the Sequoias did much to make the pain worthwhile.

Saturday, June 24, 2023 -- 9533 km cum - 47 km/day

I'm back in Lake Isabella after an easy 30-mile ride from the Fairview Campground. Although there were a couple of climbs near the end, this was largely downhill. Along the way I stopped for a good breakfast at the Blue Bear in Kern.

I actually got away without paying at all for my three nights at Fairview. I tried, but there were no fee envelopes. Also, the camp host was barely to be found.

Laundry done, I'm settled in at the Lake Isabella Motel, my "cheap motel" for the night. Tomorrow I take the bus to Bakersfield and the Amtrak to Merced.

Meanwhile, in Russia, Prigozhin marched his forces toward Moscow and then stopped. Что там творится?

Sunday-Monday, June 25-26, 2023 -- 9541 km cum - 8 km/day

Just local riding in Bakersfield and Merced. On Sunday I used Kearn Valley Transit to go from Lake Isabella to Bakersfield, for the first time in my life using a bus bicycle rack. (By the time re reached Bakersfield, the "hook" over the front wheel had descended and no longer "hooked" the wheel, but WoodsWoman survived nonetheless.) Today I took Amtrak to Merced, where I'm in a Motel 6 for the night. Tomorrow I start riding to Yosemite.

Tuesday, June 27, 2023 -- 9607 km cum -- 66 km/day

This was a good 40-mile day from Merced to a camping night at the county fairground in Mariposa. The first 15+ miles were beautiful and flat on a back road with almost no traffic. The next ten miles on Rt. 140 with traffic and almost no shoulder weren't exactly fun. The final fifteen miles were on a back road again, now with steady climbing plus a bad road surface. I think, overall, that I climbed 600-700m. All in all, this was a good day.

Camping at a fairground brings back good memories from two years ago when I camped at a fairground the day before I rode into Missoula.

Wednesday, June 28, 2023 -- 9687 km cum - 80 km/day

Thursday, June 29, 2023 -- 9716 km cum - 29 km/day

Friday, June 30, 2023 -- 9775 km cum - 59 km/day

Saturday, July 1, 2023 -- 9803 km cum - 28 km/day

Sunday, July 2, 2023 -- 9872 km cum - 69 km/day

[Writing on Monday, July 3]

And so it ends. I'm writing on board the San Joaquin train bound from Merced to Emmeryville. Hard riding days and limited time meant I had no opportunity to write over these days, but I achieved my goal: Yosemite.

The ride from Mariposa to Yosemite was tough, no two ways about it. There was a short but sharp climb right out of Mariposa followed by a long, 13-14 km descent to the Merced River, much of it at a 7-8% grade. From there the climb was gradual at first as far as El Portal, где я познакомилась с молодым парнем, Павел, из Псковской области. Он работает там в мини-маркете.

A very steep climb at 8% grade begins right after El Portal and continues nearly 16 km into Yosemite Valley. I had to push WoodsWoman up much of it. But then, suddenly, one enters the Valley, and the route becomes almost flat. I breathed a sigh of relief . . . and looked up. The view was breathtaking, everything I had hoped for. To my right was Bridal Veil Falls, and El Capitan was to my left.

It took some time to find the hiker/biker at Yosemite. When I did, I was in shock. A sign informed that one could camp for one night only. But since no one official was present, I decided on a little deceit. I didn't register. In the morning I packed up and left early. I spent the day riding the blessedly flat valley with full weight. I would have preferred day hikes, but oh well. I got to spend the full day marveling at John Muir's Yosemite. In the evening I went to the NPS office and registered officially for the night, never saying a word about the previous night. When the young woman registering me saw my senior card, she declined to take any payment at all.

On Friday I lingered late knowing I would have a thrilling descent to the Merced River and a BLM campground. When I got there, however, the campground was full. In the end, Alejandra invited me to pitch my tent at the spot where she and her extended family were having a weekend reunion. She even gave me a wonderful dinner of carne assada, beans, and rice. Alas, however, it was to be a noisy night with so many people at the reunion. Also, it was **hot**. The daytime temperature had reached 40C, I hardly slept at all.

I rose and packed as early as I could on Saturday and pushed at least half of the way up the 8% grade to Midpines summit. The remaining three mile descent into Mariposa was a welcome end to the day. I enjoyed a simple hot dog, fries, and lemonade dinner at the "Happy Hamburger" cafe.

It was even hotter on Saturday, and I knew I should spend the night indoors if I could. It being a holiday weekend, however, all motels were fully booked. The best I could manage was a tent cabin at the Fairgrounds. There was no AC, and the shared facilities were the same as when I had camped there on Tuesday. The price, $280, was absurdly, shockingly high. It felt like highway robbery, but it did have one important plus side. Staying in this tent cabin meant I could get an early start on Sunday.

And I do mean early. After only a short, fitful sleep, I got up at 2:00 a.m. and was on the road a little after 4:00 a.m.. Using my lights for the first time this summer, I managed to ride 15+ miles before the sun came up. This pre-dawn ride was actually cool, pleasant, and largely downhill after an initial ascent out of Mariposa. I chose to ride on Rt. 140 rather than on "Old Highway," the route I had use on my way to Mariposa. It was the right choice. The pavement was good, and there was very little traffic on this Sunday of a holiday weekend.

About fifteen miles from Merced, I turned off Rt. 140 onto the same back road I had ridden on Tuesday. I took a break and listened to "Last Time on the Road." I had tears in my eyes. This was it, two months to the day since I had left Tucson. My last day of riding had come. This summer's journey was not as thrilling as those of the past three summers, but it was something. I visited four national parks and one national monument. I saw where Clyde Tombaugh discovered Pluto. I even spent a day in Las Vegas. And I did it all on two wheels with WoodsWoman.

Shortly after my break, a cyclist passed me going the other way. Then there was a peleton of young riders who waved and shouted. I have seen so few cyclists this summer, and suddenly, on the outskirts of Merced, I felt I had a welcoming committee. Then the first cyclist caught up with me. He had turned around so that he could meet me. His name was Ron, a 78-year-old retired attorney who lives in Merced, and he invited me to his home where I spent a delightful several hours with him and his wife Terry. I only left when I felt my room at the Motel 6 would be ready.

And that's it. In Emeryville tonight I will have dinner with Marilyn Newhouse from my CSC days. I don't remember when we may have seen each other last. Tomorrow I board the California Zephyr to Chicago. It's a fitting end to this summer's journey that I had named "California Zephyr."

Robyn's 2023 California Zephyr and BAM II Adventure: Desert Crossing (Missive 4)

NOTE:  This is the fourth missive for Robyn's 2023 California Zephyr and BAM II bike-packing adventure in Arizona, Utah, Nevada, California, and Maine. The third missive is at https://attitude-maneuver.blogspot.com/2024/03/robyns-2023-california-zephyr-and-bam_30.html. The fifth missive can be found at https://attitude-maneuver.blogspot.com/2024/03/robyns-2023-california-zephyr-and-bam_31.html. Note also that this year I am writing the missives in both English and Russian for my Russian-speaking friends.

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Slideshow

A  slideshow  of photos of my desert crossing through Nevada -- including Las Vegas -- to Barstow, California, can be found at  https://photos.app.goo.gl/AqiBqGmE3968KTXXA

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Missive No. 4:  Desert Crossing

Apologies in advance, this will be a short missive. Right now I'm in Barstow, CA, where my Internet connection is weak and keeps dropping.

In brief, I spent a week crossing the Mojave Desert. On my very first day in Nevada I understood that this was not a place for camping -- at least not in June. It was too hot, and water for camping would be problematic. I quickly decided that i needed to be indoors at night in cheap motels where it would be cool and I had water. I also abandoned my original plan to travel US 66, aka the mother road. Although a historic route, it is also a lonely one with few real towns along its path. And so, I crossed Nevada on the modern highway, I-15. WoodsWoman and I traveled the shoulder, which is legal in western states. (If you're curious what this is like, see this short video that I shot along the way.) I had never been in Las Vegas, but I-15 goes right through it. And so, I decided to spend a day. No, I did not spend my day in a casino, but I did get a ride in a gondola. If you don't believe me, just look at the photos :) .

The most difficult part came after Las Vegas in the middle of the desert. I carried much more water than usual and drank all of it by the end of each day. Yesterday -- 115 km (72 miles) from Baker to Barstow -- was the hardest. A strong wind blew directly in my face the whole way. I barely maintained a speed of 10 km/hr (6 miles/hour). I cranked the pedals a full ten hours and arrived only just before sunset. I was so exhausted that I decided to rest two days in Barstow.

What comes next? The day after tomorrow I will turn north and begin riding through the Sierras. Unfortunately, Tioga Pass at Yosemite National Park is still closed due to snow. If the pass has not been cleared by the time I get there, I likely will declare that this has already been a good summer trip and will begin looking for an Amtrak station. Time will show. I have my fingers crossed.

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Извиняюсь заранее, что это будет только короткое послание. В данный момент я нахожусь в городе Барстов, штат Калифорния, где подключение к Интернету слабый и часто пропадает.

Вкратце, я провела неделю в пустыне, переехав пустыню Могаве. В первый же день в штате Неваде, я поняла, что здесь не место для кемпинга, Слишком уж жарко и тоже мало воды. Решила, что надо ночевать в дешёвых мотелях где прохладно и где вода обеспечена. Я тоже бросила первоначальный план ехать по знаменитой дороге US 68 ("дорога матушка"). Это дорога, хотя историческая, брошенная и почти без населённых пунктов по пути. Итак, я переехала штат Неваду по современной дороге I-15. Мы с ЛесНицей ездили по обочине, что позволено в западных штатах. (Если хочешь видеть как это выглядит, вот короткое видео я сняла по пути.) Так как I-15 проходит через город Лас Вегас, где я раньше не бывала, я решила провести там день. Нет, я не ходила в Казино, но зато плыла в лодке типа "гондолы." Если не веришь, смотри на фотографии :) .

Самое трудное было после Лас Вегас, в середине пустыни. Я носила с собой куда больше воды, чем обычно, и всё выпивала к концу каждого дня. Вчерашний день -- 115 км из Бейкера в Барстов -- оказался самым тяжёлым, Сильный ветер дул в лицо весь путь. Я еле держала скорость 10 кв/час. Я крутила педали 10 часов и доехала только незадолго до заката. Я так устала, что решила отдыхать два дня в Барстове.

А что дальше? Послезавтра я начну путь на север по хребту гор Сьерра-Невады и Каскадов, но перевал Тиога в Национальном парке Йосемити ещё перекрыт снегом, Если перевал не очищен к времени моего приезда, я скорее всего объявлю, что поход завершён и что пора найти путь к железнодорожному вокзалу Амтрак. Время покажет. Держу кулачки.

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Daily Log

Friday, June 2, 2023 -- 8498 km cum - 72 km/day

Saturday, June 3, 2023 -- 8584 km cum - 86 km/day

I am done with "canyonlands" and the first part of this summer's adventure. Zion turned out to be an over-loved, overcrowded Disney version of a national park, but its striking beauty still merited an almost three-day stay.

On Friday I rode to St. George and a backyard camping WS night with Judith and her nearly eight-year-old son Felix. Judith is German but lived/worked in both Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan. She is a violinist and both an LGBT and bicycle activist. Not surprisingly, we had a lively, engaging evening as Felix hovered nearby in a pair of wings.

On Saturday I crossed into Nevada on a hot, hilly day. I'm at a small AirBnB for two nights and spent today on laundry and my third missive. I see many motels and AirBnBs in my future for the coming week. I'm in the desert now, and the temperature today in St George was upper 30s C. The last thing I need is heat exhaustion.

On the way I got my third flat of this trip, time in the front wheel that I discovered was **entirely** flat after I had spent a half hour at a CV just before crossing into Nevada. I had just finished a fast and furious descent, and I know that tire was fine when I arrived at the CV. My fear is that the flat was intentional on the part of someone who is anti-trans. It's Pride Month, and I am displaying a small trans flag. I think someone may have decided "to teach me a lesson." by letting the air out of the tire when I wasn't looking. I did find/patch the smallest of slow leaks, but there is no way it could explain a tire that was suddenly and completely flat.

Monday, June 5, 2023 -- 8636 km/cum - 52 km/day

A short 32.5 mile day by design so that I can spend the night in a "Psycho-class" motel in Moapa as I "glamp" my way across the desert. Days will be short, and I will be doing motels until the desert is behind me. That said, today's ride on the I-15 shoulder was surprisingly easy despite a good climb at the start out of Mesquite. I accept the gift of a tailwind.

Administrative matters: I replaced my chain during my off-day in Mesquite.

Tuesday, June 6, 2023 -- 8703 km cum - 67 km/day

This was a hot, long, and brutal day, the type that makes me wonder I do this. The reason? CONSTRUCTION!

It started at about the halfway point where jersey barriers closed the left lane and moved traffic to the shoulder, **my** shoulder. I had to push WoodsWoman over two miles through gravel at the side of the highway.

That behind me, I cycled on for another five or so miles only to have the same type of construction zone again. This time I had to push through three miles of gravel. I got off I-15 at the Rt. 93 exit to take a break and find an alternate route.

And so, I thought all would be well. I was only twelve or thirteen miles from my motel for the night. Wrong!! About three or four miles in, the road was closed due to . . . CONSTRUCTION!! Google Maps sent me on to a circuitous detour on dirt roads that resembled the desert tracks I remember from the Ustyurt Plateau in Kazakhstan. After pushing WoodsWoman up and down several of these rocky, sandy tracks, I decided to ignore Google. I could see a truck park of some kind in the distance with the freeway behind it. I bushwhacked my way there and, thank goodness, found a paved road.

I am chilling tonight at a Motel 6 next to the Vegas Speedway. Today clinches it. Tomorrow I'll move to a nicer hotel on the Vegas strip. Only two days into Nevada, I've already earned a day off.

Wednesday, June 7, 2023 -- 8730 km cum - 27 km/day

A super-short day to the Hilton Virgin Curio Hotel just off "the strip" in downtown Las Vegas. I had never intended or wanted to come here, but here I am. Rather than preconceived notions, I will be able to say I have personal knowledge of Vegas.

The morning ride in through North Las Vegas was easy but depressing. It reminded me of down-and-out parts of Baltimore, a far cry from "the strip." The homeless problem seems deep here.

Anecdote: I was early, and no room was available yet. I asked about checking WoodsWoman, but the bell-captain would not let me roll her personally to the storage room. Based on experience, I was not going to put her in anyone's hands but my own. And so, I rolled her with me to a coffee shop in the lobby complex. I was sitting with my coffee and croissant when I was approached by Scott. He turned out to be from hotel security. The security staff had seen WoodsWoman through their cameras and were not happy. I explained the situation to Scott, who seemed satisfied. He came back a few minutes later and, apologizing, said his supervisor insisted that I leave. Scott, who was as apologetic as can be, went with me back to the check-in desk, where I was told that a room was ready. Based on this experience, I would have to say that bicycle tourism is not at the top of the list of tourist priorities in Las Vegas.

Friday, June 9, 2023 -- 8802 km cum - 72 km/day

I'm on the road again as I make my way west. Much of today's ride can be characterized as "get out of Vegas." A good part of the ride's start involved going half to three quarters of the way around the airport. I now know where Xi works when she's home in Vegas.

The ride once I was out of Vegas had some climbing but was not difficult. Plus, the heat has moderated some. I was back on I-13 for the last twelve miles.

Tonight I'm at a casino resort hotel in Primm where, alas, not all is proper. The "resort" has seen better days. The carpet is dirty, and there were no towels in the bathroom. Shades of "The Shining"?

Saturday, June 10, 2023 -- 8884 km cum - 82 km/day

A long, slow climb out of Primm was followed at the end by a delightful 17-mile descent to Baker, CA, in the middle of the Mohave Desert. I lost close to 1000m (3000 ft) in that descent. Delightful as it was, I know I'll have to recover much of that altitude tomorrow.

I'm staying at a small house that is an AirBnB. Thank goodness. The only other choice would have been wild camping without water.

I'm in California for only the second time in my life! The first and, until now, the only other time was in 1986 for meetings at Lockheed in Sunnyvale before the launch of Hubble.

Sunday, June 11, 2023 -- 9002 km cum - 118 km/day

[Writing on Monday, June 12]

The ride from Baker to Barstow was long and grueling. "Brutal" may be the better adjective. It wasn't the heat or hills. Rather, it was the wind, which was strong, at times gusty, and unrelentingly straight on into my face. My average speed for the ride was scarcely 10 km/hour. It was 6:30p.m. by the time I reached the Route 66 Motel on Main Street in Historic Downtown Barstow.

I'm taking two rest days here. I need them after yesterday's ordeal. At least the Mojave Desert is behind me now. I have crossed it.

Robyn's 2023 California Zephyr and BAM II Adventure: Canyonlands (part 2) (Missive 3)

NOTE:  This is the third missive for Robyn's 2023 California Zephyr and BAM II bike-packing adventure in Arizona, Utah, Nevada, California, and Maine. The second missive is at https://attitude-maneuver.blogspot.com/2024/03/robyns-2023-california-zephyr-and-bam_23.html. The fourth missive can be found at https://attitude-maneuver.blogspot.com/2024/03/robyns-2023-california-zephyr-and-bam_50.html. Note also that this year I am writing the missives in both English and Russian for my Russian-speaking friends.

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Slideshow

A  slideshow  of photos from Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park can be found at  https://photos.app.goo.gl/XDbJrmEooigtqf51A

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Missive No. 3:  Canyondlands (part 2)

My canyonland adventures continued in Utah. After resting a day in Kanab, I headed north to Bryce Canyon with its unique hoodoos that heretofore I had seen only in photographs. Seeing them with one's own eyes takes one's breath away. I spent the first day walking the canyon's rim and hiked down to the canyon's floor the next. When walking among the hoodoos on the canyon floor, one feels as though in a great cathedral. It seems improbable that this cathedral was built not by man but by nature itself over thousands if not millions of years.

It's also a surprise to find that Bryce Canyon is located at an altitude of 2400 meters (8000 ft). It was cold in the mornings, +1-3C (32-40F). When I was planning this trip, I almost decided to leave my warm clothing at home. After all, I reasoned, Arizona and Utah are not the Alaska and Yukon of last year. But altitude has its effect. I'm glad I took the warm clothing with me.

After Bryce Canyon I went 146km (91 miles) in one day to Cedar City. That's my daily record so far for this year. There was nowhere to stay along the route, and thus I had to keep going. Along the way I felt something wasn't right. It turned out that a thin wire had given me a flat tire. I had gone almost three years without a flat, but now I've had two flats in a month. I don't understand why this is happening here in Arizona and Utah. After fixing the flat, I reached Cedar City at sunset and stopped for the night in a cheap hotel.

I didn't go nearly as far the next day, all of 68 km (~43 miles) to La Verkin where I also stopped for two nights in a cheap motel. The Memorial Day weekend had arrived, and thus it's no surprise that there were no vacancies at the campgrounds in Zion National Park. I was able to continue to the park only on the day after Memorial Day.

To be honest, Zion National Park has been loved to death. The canyon is dramatic, but there are so many people that the park and the neighboring resort (!) town of Springville have a Disney feel to them. Of all the parks I have visited so far, only here did I feel I was more in an amusement park than in a wild, natural place.

But nevertheless, the cliffs, mountains, and the canyon itself at Zion are unique. It was worth spending nearly three days there. I climbed up to "Angels Landing" and continued further along the canyon rim where there were much fewer people. There I was able to experience the feeling of being in a national park.

From Zion I continued to St. George, where I set up my tent behind the home of my WS host Judith and here nearly 8-year-old son Freddie. Judith is from Germany but has spent significant time living and working in Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan. She is a musician and also an activist for both bicyclist and LGBT+ rights. We had much to talk about that evening. Meanwhile, Freddie was always nearby, curious about everything and wearing a pair of wings that a friend had given him. It was a lively evening.

The next day I crossed into Nevada, where I am spending today in Mesquite to do laundry and take care of other housekeeping details. With this I come to the end of the first part of this summer's bike-packing adventure. I will now move on to California, where I hope to ride north through the Sierras and Cascades to Washington State. Whether I'll be able to do this is something I don't yet know. It all depends on whether the snows have melted in the mountain passes. Time will show.

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Мои приключения на земле каньонов продолжаются в штате Юта. После отдыха в городе Канаб, я держала путь на север до Каньона Брайса со своими уникальными эрозионными столбами. Такие я видела раньше только во фотографиях. А видеть их собственными глазами, это зрелище, от чего захватывает дух. Я долго ходила по краю каньона первый день и спустилась почти до дна в следующий день. Когда ходишь по дну среди столбов, чувствуется, что находишься во великом храме. Невероятно, что этот храм построил не человек а самая природа в течение тысячных если не миллионов лет.

Тоже невероятно, что Каньон Брайс находится на высоте 2400м. Было холодно на кемпинге по утрам, +1-3C. Когда я планировала этот поход, я чуть не решила оставить тёплую одежду дома. Ведь, я размышляла, Аризона и Юта, это не Аляска или Юкон как в прошлом году. Но высота сказывается. Рада, что взяла эту тёплую одежду с собой.

После Каньона Брайса я проехала 146км до Города Кедров. Это мой рекорд до сих пор этим летом. Не было нигде ночевать по пути, и поэтому надо было ехать далеко. По пути мерещилось, что что-то не так. Оказалось, что мельчайшая проволочка проколола колесо. Почти три года я ездила без проколов, а вот уже дважды за этот месяц колесо оказалось проколотым. Не понимаю, от чего это происходит именно этим летом в Аризоне и в Юте. Пришлось ремонтировать по пути. Я приехала в Город Кедров в час заката и остановилась в дешёвом мотели.

В следующий день я проехала уж не так далеко, всего км 68 до "Ла Веркин" где тоже проживала две ночи в дешёвой гостинице. Дело в том, что стояли праздничные выходные в честь Дня поминовения. Не удивительно, что не осталось мест не кемпинге в Парке Зион. Можно было продолжить путь туда только в день после Дня поминовения.

Если честно, народ слишком влюбился в Парк Зион. Безусловно каньон впечатляющий, но народа настолько, что сам парк и находящийся рядом курортный (!) город Спрингвилль похожи на парк Дисней. Из всех парков, что я посещала до сих пор, только здесь такое ощущение, что находишься в парке развлечений а не в диком, природном месте.

Но всё-таки, скалы, горы, и сам каньон в Зионе уникальные. Стоило провести там почти три дня. Я поднялась до места, которое называется "Место приземления ангелов" и пошла дальше по краю каньона где было не столько народа. Там можно было чувствовать дух национального парка.

От Зиона я поехала дальше в город Св. Джордж, где по программе "Тёплые души" я поставила палатку за домом Judith со своим восьмилетним сыном Freddie. Judith из Германии но несколько лет жила и в Украине и в Кыргызстане до приезда в США. Она музыкант и активистка и по правам велосипедистов и по правам людей ЛГБТ+. Было у нас много общего о чём разговаривать в тот вечер. Тем временем крутился рядом всем интересующийся Freddie в подаренных ему крыльях. Очень было оживлённый вечер.

В следующий день я переехала в штат Неваду, где я провожу день в городе Мескит и занимаюсь стиркой и другими хозяйственными делами. На этом я заканчиваю первый этап этого летнего похода. Завтра начинается переезд в штат Калифорнию, где надеюсь ехать на север по хребту гор Сьерра-Невада и Каскады до штата Вашингтон. Возможно ли это пока не знаю. Зависит от того, растаял ли снег на высоте в горах. Время покажет.

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Daily Log

Tuesday, May 23, 2023 -- 8132 km cum - 84 km/day

Alas, I had a bout of food poisoning last night. That's what I get for going out for a "good meal." I ordered a vegan burger, and I suspect the lettuce hadn't been fully washed. I woke up in the middle of the night with stomach heaves and explosive diarrhea that continued until my system emptied.

And so, I left Kanab late. I nearly decided to stay an extra day, but it seemed the worst was over. I ate breakfast carefully and set out.

It was another climbing day, more so than I expected. This was especially true after Mt. Carmel Junction, where I diverted from the ACA route in order to go to Bryce Canyon. After more than forty miles, I realized it would be unwise to try for my 65-mile goal of camping at Red Canyon. Moreover, with a still-not-fully-recovered stomach, I thought it prudent to spend the night somewhere with indoor plumbing. Thus I am at a cheap motel in Hatch, run by Elaine and her husband Brian. They must be train buffs. My little room is decorated with vintage Amtrak brochures from the 1970s. They even advertise slumber coach! I remember riding in those in the 1970s in Amtrak's "heritage equipment."

Wednesday, May 24, 2023 -- 8177 km cum - 45 km/day

This was a short but good day to the Sunset Campground at Bryce Canyon. I'm at 2300 m (~8000 ft), having regained all the altitude I gave away when I descended from Jacob Lake to Kanab. I'll stay for three nights as I did at Grand Canyon so that I have time to explore. Alas, there is no hiker/biker here. I'm at an individual spot.

Saturday, May 27 2023 -- 8323 km cum - 146 km/day

91 miles from Bryce Canyon to a Travelodge in Cedar City. My biggest mileage day this summer. Enough said. Exhausted.

Sunday, May 28, 2023 -- 8391 km cum - 68 km/day

Thankfully an easier and shorter day from Cedar City to La Verkin, some 20 miles from Zion National Park. I'm at the cheapest of cheap motels for two nights. I couldn't get a campsite at Zion until Tuesday, and the one WS host in the vicinity has family commitments. In any case, I can use a day's rest after yesterday's marathon.

But the first task before starting out this morning was to fix a flat in the rear tire. Halfway into yesterday's ride, I realized there was a slow leak. I stopped several times to pump air into the tire, and I was lucky to get to Cedar City without patching the tire on the shoulder of I-15.

This morning, however, the tire was completely flat. The cause? Another thin wire had worked its way through the tire. I had not had a flat in over two and a half years, and now I have had two in one month. What is it about the Southwest?

Tuesday, May 30, 2023 -- 8426 km cum - 35 km/day

A short hop of a day to Watchman campground at Zion National Park. I'll be here for two days, although the day after tomorrow I need to move to the campsite next to mine.

I'll start exploring tomorrow, but my first impression is a strange one because the "village" here reminds me of Ocean City, Maryland. It is "built-up," very touristy. A wilderness experience this is not.

Robyn's 2023 California Zephyr and BAM II Adventure: Canyonlands (part 1) (Missive 2)

NOTE:  This is the second missive for Robyn's 2023 California Zephyr and BAM II bike-packing adventure in Arizona, Utah, Nevada, California, and Maine. The first missive is at https://attitude-maneuver.blogspot.com/2024/03/robyns-2023-california-zephyr-and-bam.html. The third missive can be found at https://attitude-maneuver.blogspot.com/2024/03/robyns-2023-california-zephyr-and-bam_30.html. Note also that this year I am writing the missives in both English and Russian for my Russian-speaking friends.

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Slideshow

A  slideshow  of photos from my Flagstaff, AZ, to the Utah border can be found at  https://photos.app.goo.gl/EgLs9gyGCmay9LnR8

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Missive No. 2:  Canyondlands (part 1)

When President Theodore Roosevelt visited the Grand Canyon early in the twentieth century, he said:

"In the Grand Canyon, Arizona has a natural wonder which is in kind absolutely unparalleled throughout the rest of the world. . . . Leave it as it is. You cannot improve on it. The ages have been at work on it, and man can only mar it."

Those words from Roosevelt hold their own to this day. When I first looked into the Grand Canyon, it was his words that came to mind. I could find no better words. I had thought I had seen canyons in my lifetime, but now I understand that they were only ditches. The Grand Canyon has no parallel anywhere.

This will be but a short missive. I'm resting today in Kanab, Utah. I'm in this state for the first time. I'm resting and doing laundry before continuing on tomorrow.

In brief, I've been living almost exclusively at campgrounds since I left Flagstaff. This was particularly wonderful at the Grand Canyon where I met a number of backpackers and bike-packers. We were all together at the hiker-biker site. (If you are over 62 years old, the cost is only $3/night!) In particular, I met Maritsa (from Mexico), Farrell, and three other young backpackers who gave me the trail name "Espresso Mama" when I told them how I had carried my espresso maker the whole way from the Atlantic to the Pacific in 2021.

I spent four days at the Grand Canyon before continuing to the north. I crossed the Navajo Reservation and passed the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument. At the campground in Marble Canyon, two remarkable girls Emmy-Lou and Savannah wanted to move into my tent. (See the video.) The climb from Marble Canyon to Jacob Lake was steep and took all my strength. The elevation change that day was more than 1400 meters (>4000 feet) with wind and under a stormy sky. I barely reached Jacob Lake before sunset. And who met me there? Maritsa and three of the other backpackers from the Grand Canyon. They had come by foot through the canyon while I had ridden around it. After a difficult climb, they were a sight for sore eyes. Maritsa's brothers were already there to take her home to Mexico, but the next morning I had breakfast with the other three backpackers before I started downhill to Kanab. The descent was thrilling, the opposite of the previous day's climb.

I'll continue on my way tomorrow. My next stop after several days will be at Bryce Canyon. I'll be in touch as conditions allow.

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В начале 20-го века Президент Теодор Рузвельт посетил Гранд каньон и сказал:

"Природная красота Гранда каньона в штате Аризоне без параллели нигде в этом мире. . . . Прошу оставить его как он есть. Невозможно его улучшать. Природа работала над ней веками, а человек может только его портить"

Эти слова Рузвельта стоят на своём и сейчас. При моём первом виде Гранд каньона, это его слова пришли мне в голову. Лучших слов не придумать. Я считала, что я и раньше видела каньоны, но сейчас я понимаю, что они только канавы. Гранд каньон без параллели нигде.

Это будет только короткое послание. Я отдыхаю сегодня в городе Канаб в штате Юта. Я впервые в этом штате. Отдыхаю и занимаюсь стиркой. Завтра поеду дальше.

Коротко, я жила почти исключительно на кемпингах с тех пор, как я была в городе Флагстаффе. В особенности это было здорово у Гранд каньона, где я познакомилась с несколькими пешими туристами и велосипедистами. Мы все жили вместе на площадке, предназначенной только для тех, которые путешествуют без автомобиля. (Если тебе за 62 года, стоит всего $3 в сутки!) В особенности познакомилась с Марицой, с Фареллем, и с тремя молодыми пешими туристами. Они присвоили мне кличку "Эспрессо мама" когда я рассказала, как я носила с собой кофеварку весь путь с Атлантического до Тихого океанов в 2021-ом году.

Я провела четыре дня в районе Гранда каньона и потом отправилась дальше на север. Проехала автономную территорию индейцев Навахо и национальный монумент Скал вермильона. На кемпинге в Мраморном каньоне подружились со мной замечательные девочки Эми-лу и Саванна, которые хотели переселиться в мою палатку. (Смотрите на видео.) Подъём из Мраморного каньона в Озеро Джекоб оказался очень даже крутым и требовал от меня всю силу. Разница в высоте больше 1400м при ветре и грозе. Я еле добралась до Озера Джекоба до заката солнца. А кто меня там встретил? Марица и другие с которыми я была на кемпинге у Гранд каньона! Они пришли пешком через каньон пока я объехала а каньон. После трудного подъёма, здорово было видеть знакомые, добрые лица. Марицины братья были на месте, чтобы её отвезти домой в Мехико, а следующим утром мы с другими тремя пешеходными туристами позавтракали вмести прежде чем я тронулась в путь в Канаб. Хороший был спуск, противоположность подъёма накануне.

Завтра поеду дальше. Следующая остановка у Каньона Брайса через несколько дней. Буду на связи когда обстановка позволяет.

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Daily Log

Saturday May 13, 2023 -- 7673 km cum - 129 km/day

A wonderful day and much further than I expected, 80+ miles! I almost quit after 30 when I ran into cold rain and even hail (град) on I-40 as I returned to Williams. But when I turned onto SR 64, the sun came out and I kept going. More than that, I had that rarest of things: a tailwind! So I **really** kept going. I'm camped at the Ten-X FS campground just short of Tusayan. A short ride tomorrow will bring me to the Grand Canyon. To repeat, this was a wonderful day!

Sunday, May 14, 2023 -- 7688 km cum - 15 km/day

[Writing on Monday, May 15]

Not even 10 miles brought me to the Mather Campground at Grand Canyon National Park. I've reached the Grand Canyon! Living in Tashkent in 2008-10, I watched the Ken Burns documentary film about our national parks, only dreaming of seeing them someday. But now, since summer 2020, I've been in Yellowstone, North Cascades, Glacier (twice!), and now the Grand Canyon. Мечты сбываются -- dreams do come true :) .

And finally, at the hiker/biker site, I'm with other cyclists and backpackers for the first time this summer. I had been beginning to wonder, not having encountered a single bikepacker since starting from Tucson. We're a talkative bunch at the campground, in particular Fallon who at one time was a telescope operator on Mauna Kea. Others include Red, Mark, Diego, and Edwin from Belgium.

But I must also report my first flat since August 2020. I was completely dumbfounded to find my rear tire flat when I started to roll out of the Ten-X FS campground. The cause: the smallest of wires that had worked its way through my **brand new** Schwalbe Marathon tire. Unbelievable. Sigh.

Wednesday, May 17, 2023 -- 7733 km cum - 45 km/day

This was a short hop of a day from Mather to Desert View Campgrounds, much of it in the rain. The camp hosts at the latter are the snootiest I have encountered in four years of bike touring. If not for an RV that couldn't fit in its reserved spot, they said they would have turned me away. They kept repeating that Mather campground is "only" twenty-five miles away. In the rain.

The campground market was closed, and with another storm looming, I would have eaten only crackers and hummus if not for Destiny and Jared from Minnesota at the next site over. They treated me to a quick hot dog before the rain started again. Their kindness made up for the snootiness of the hosts. I finished my crackers and hummus in the tent. It was "one of those days." The rain stopped later in the evening.

Today is IDAHOT, a good day for another query rejection to arrive. Isn't there any interest in a trans success story?

Thursday, May 18, 2023 -- 7788 km cum - 55 km/day

This was a super-easy 30+ mile day almost entirely downhill from Desert View to Cameron in Navajo Territory. After five nights of camping, I'm enjoying a motel night and a trout dinner. The motel choice was easy. There's nothing else except dry, wild camping.

Tomorrow promises to be long, hot, uphill, and difficult.

Friday, May 19, 2023 -- 7911 km cum - 123 km/day

A tough day, no two ways about it.

[INTERRUPTED]

Saturday, May 20, 2023 -- 7987 km cum - 76 km/day

Sunday, May 21, 2023 -- 8048 km cum - 61 km/day

It's been a tough but very social three days, hence no writing.

Friday was tough, uphill, and into a strong headwind for all but the last 24 km. There was cold rain and hail mid-way, and in the afternoon there was blowing dust. But I camped at a nice NPS campground at Lee's Ferry in Marble Canyon. There I was immediately befriended by my neighbors Emmy-Lou and Savannah, ages four and five respectively, and their dad Travis.

I knew Saturday would be a serious climbing day, but I underestimated just how serious. A man at Cliff Dwellers told me he would buy me a car if I could ride all the way to Jacob Lake. Although two thirds of the ride was in the realm of normal climbing, the final third was intense. I don't know what the grade was, but I was usually in the "granniest of gears" with breaks every 1-2 km. The sky was dark and threatening, the wind varied from headwind to crosswind to tailwind depending on the switchback, and my fingers went numb from gripping the handlebars. When a couple offered to take me up in their pickup truck, I waved them off. I later wondered if I had been rash in declining their offer when I realized I had underestimated the climbing distance by about 8 km.

But I made it! When I saw the sign "Jacob Lake -- 7935 ft.," I breathed a sign of relief and remembered the man who had said he would buy me a car. When I rode up to the diner/CV, I couldn't open my panniers. My fingers were that numb and weak. I turned to a man sitting on a rock nearby and asked him to open my panniers for me. His name was Matt, and he insisted on giving me $20 for a hot meal. Ironically, I wasn't even wearing a jacket. I had been working so hard on the climb that I hadn't needed one. This climb rivaled the most difficult ones I remember from past years.

When I emerged from the CV and was getting ready to go, who called my name but Maritza, "Red," my backpacking friend from the Grand Canyon! Having just completed her hike on the AZT, she was getting ready to leave with her brothers who had come to drive her home to Mexico. What a nice surprise accompanied by warm hugs!

Another surprise came as I was rolling out of the parking lot. I heard someone calling, "Hey, Espresso Mama!" It was the three young backpackers -- Mud-Slinger, Pinata (Terry), and [???] -- who had also been at the Grand Canyon hiker/biker. They had hiked through the Grand Canyon and then hitched a ride up to Jacob Lake. They said they had passed me on the climb.

My three young friends were heading back to the woods to camp, and I went over to the FS campground. I warmed some hot soup and ate it in the dark. It was cold, perhaps 6-8C. What a difference altitude makes!

In the morning I rejoined my three young friends at the diner. From there it was, blessedly, a thrilling downhill all the way to Fredonia and then flat to Kanab. I've checked into a cheap motel for the two nights to rest up and do laundry. It's been a tough but good several days. Time to rest.

Robyn's 2023 California Zephyr and BAM II Adventure: Search for Planet X (Missive 1)

NOTE:  This is the first missive for Robyn's 2023 California Zephyr and BAM II bike-packing adventure in Arizona, Utah, Nevada, California, and Maine. The second missive can be found at https://attitude-maneuver.blogspot.com/2024/03/robyns-2023-california-zephyr-and-bam_23.html. Note also that this year I am writing the missives in both English and Russian for my Russian-speaking friends.

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After riding from Deadhorse, AK, to Whitefish, MT, in 2022, this year I turned my attention to the American Southwest. In the course of a month and a half, I traveled in Arizona and Utah, stopping along the way in Flagstaff, at Grand and Bryce Canyons, and at Zion National Park. If I had stopped right there, it would have been an excellent summer bike-packing adventure.

But alas, I ignored advice and crossed Nevada and California's Mojave Desert in order to ride north through the Sierras and Cascades. Crossing the desert in June was not fun, to put it mildly, even if I did take an unexpected day off in Las Vegas. Once in California, I climbed into the Sierras and breathed a cool sigh of relief that lasted for exactly one day until I ran into my first road closure. The snowfalls of the previous winter had washed out many mountain roads, and some of the high country was still snowbound. I made it ultimately to Yosemite Valley, but with the Yosemite High Country still closed, I abandoned my plans to ride all the way to Oregon and instead boarded the California Zephyr train for the trip back east.

That said, I changed my mind again once I arrived in Maine. I decided I wasn't quite done. Why not continue my Bike Around Maine (BAM) ride of 2020? And so I did, going up Maine's Downeast Bold Coast to New Brunswick's Campobello Island before turning for home.

Thus this 2023 bike-packing adventure did not have the magnitude or drama of earlier trips. but all-in-all, it was a very satisfying way to spend the summer.

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Slideshow

A  slideshow  of photos from my Tucson through Flagstaff, AZ, can be found at  https://photos.app.goo.gl/EgLs9gyGCmay9LnR8

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Missive No. 1:  The Search for Planet X

So where did I get this name for my new bike-packing adventure with WoodsWoman? I chose it mainly because it has a sweet sound and brings to mind a fresh breeze. It also happens to be the name of one of the most famous trains in the U.S. in the middle of the twentieth century. As many of you know, I love to travel by train.

But for now I'm in Arizona. I started out on May 2 after our family reunion at my sister's in Tucson. It took me three days to get from Tucson to Phoenix. Unlike in Alaska last year, this was a flat ride, something that I was happy for given that I had spent almost all of April immobile at the computer. These three days gave me a chance to restore my former physical condition. But on the other hand, was it ever hot. After all, this is desert with cactus.

I spent my first night camped at Picacho Peak State Park, and the second night I spent with Richard and Karen from our bicycling WarmShowers community. Instead of a tent, I slept in a soft bed, and instead of my own food, I enjoyed a wonderful dinner prepared by Richard. Both Richard and Karen are in their 80s and are still riding their bicycles.

In Phoenix I spent a day with my sister Chris before continuing northward. The hills began almost immediately. In the course of the following five days, I climbed more than 2000m (~6000ft). It was good that I had those first three days from Tucson to Phoenix to get back in shape. I left the desert behind and am now in Flagstaff, surrounded by mountains and evergreen forests. There is still snow on the some of those peaks. I'm taking two rest days here.

From Phoenix to Flagstaff I stayed at campgrounds, in one cheap motel, and in one AirBnB. This last came as a big surprise in that I had reserved a camping spot. When I arrived, however, the proprietors Michael and Tammy wouldn't hear of me spending the night in my tent and instead put me in their little shipping-container AirBnB.

Another remarkable episode unfolded in the village of People's Choice where I stopped at a convenience store for breakfast. Just as I got off the bike, Frank came over and, after a short conversation about my travel, insisted on buying me breakfast. Over the course of breakfast, Frank introduced me to almost everyone who came into the store. It seemed he knows everyone in this village. Instead of a quick breakfast, I stayed for over two hours. And I'm happy I did. These chance meetings are one of the joys of traveling by bicycle.

So why did I decide to spend my first off days in Flagstaff? Because Lowell Observatory is here. The thing is, when I was eleven years old, I read the book The Search for Planet X about the 1930 discovery of Pluto by the young astronomer -- in truth still an amateur astronomer -- Clyde Tombaugh. This story inspired me and put me on the path to my first career. I never did become a professional astronomer, but I sent twenty-five years with a NASA contractor, most of that in the Hubble Space Telescope project. I also became a historian of astronomy and spent years researching the fate of Soviet astronomers during the Great Terror of 1936-37. Without that book, without the story of Clyde Tombaugh, none of that would have happened in my life. I visited the observatory yesterday. Better to say that I went on a pilgrimage. For me it was an emotional experience to stand next to the astrograph where the young Clyde Tombaugh spent many a long night in 1930. For me in my life, this isn't an observatory but, rather, a shrine that gave me one of the most important directions in my life.

I'll continue on my way tomorrow. My next stop after several days will be at the Grand Canyon. I'll be in touch as conditions allow.

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Откуда я выбрала такое название очередного похода на ЛесНице? Главным образом, потому что название красивое и напоминает о свежем ветре. Это тоже название одного из самых знаменитых поездов в США в середине 20-го века: Калифорнийский ветерок [California Zephyr]. Как многие знают, я люблю путешествовать в поездах.

Но пока я в штате Аризоне. Я тронулась в путь 2-го мая после нашего сбора всей семьи у сестры в городе Тусон. Потребовалось три дня поехать из Тусона в город Феникс. В отличие от похода в Аляске в прошлом году, это ровное место, и я радовалась этому в связи с тем, что я сидела почти неподвижно у компьютера в течение всего апреля. Эти три дня дали мне возможность вернуть прежнюю физическую форму. Но зато было очень жарко. Ведь это пустыня где растут кактусы!

Первую ночь я провела на кемпинге в парке Пикачо, а вторую у пары Ричард и Карен из нашего велосипедного сообщество "Тёплые души" [WarmShowers]. Вместо палатки, я спала в мягкой кровати, а вместо собственной пищи для кемпинга, я наслаждалась вкусным ужином, приготовленным Ричардом. И Ричарду и Карену за 80, а они ещё катаются на своих велосипедах.

В Фениксе я провела день с сестрой Кристин прежде чем продолжать путь на север. Подъёмы начались почти сразу. В течение следующих пяти дней я поднялась больше 2000м. Хорошо, что я воспользовалась первыми тремя днями из Тусона в Феникс, чтобы вернуть себе тонус! Я оставила пустыню позади и сейчас нахожусь в городе Флагстафф. Вокруг ёлочные леса и горы, а на вершинах самых высоких ещё лежит снег. Я здесь отдыхаю два дня.

По пути сюда из Феникса я жила на кемпингах, в одной дешёвой гостинице, и в одном AirBnB. Последнее было для меня сюрпризом, потому что я забронировала место для палатки. Когда доехала, хозяева Майкл и Тамми не хотели, чтобы я провела ночь в палатке и вместо места для кемпинга дали мне их крошечный контейнер AirBnB.

Ещё замечательный эпизод был в н.п. "Выбор народов" где я остановилась у минимаркета где собиралась позавтракать. Как только я слезла с велика, ко мне подошёл Франк. После короткого разговора а моём походе, он настаивал угостить меня завтраком. В течение завтрака он познакомил меня почти со всеми, которые зашли в минимаркет, Кажется, он лично знает всех в этом н.п. Вместо быстрого завтрака, я провела за столом больше двух часов и очень рада этому. Ведь такие случайные знакомства, это радость похода на велике.

А почему я решила провести первые выходные дни в городе Флагстафф? Потому что здесь находится Обсерватория им. Лоуэлла. Дело в том, что когда мне было одиннадцать лет, я прочитала книгу Поиск планеты X об открытии планеты Плутон в 1930-ом г. молодым астрономом -- скорее всего ещё любителем -- Клайдом Томбаугом. Это история вдохновила меня и поставила меня на путь к первой карьере. Я не стала профессиональном астрономом, но я провела лет двадцать пять инженером в космической программе, главным образом в проекте Космического телескопа им. Хаббла. Я тоже стала историком астрономии и долгое время исследовала судьбу советских астрономов во время великого террора в 1936-37. Если не это книга, если не история молодого Клайда Томбауга, ничего этого не стало бы в моей жизни. Я посетила обсерваторию вчера. Скорее, это было паломничество, святое дело. Повышенные были у меня эмоции, когда я стояла рядом с астрографом, где дежурил по ночам молодой Клайд Томбауг в 1930-ом году. В моей жизни это не обсерватория а храм, который дал мне один из важнейших толчков в жизни.

Завтра поеду дальше. Следующая остановка у Гранда каньона через несколько дней. Буду на связи как обстановка позволяет.

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Daily Log

Starting odometer reading:  6874 km

Tuesday, May 2, 2023 -- 6973 km cum - 99 km/day

This was a good 60+ mile first day just shy of a metric century on a route that was flat almost all the way. The exception came at the end, a steep climb into Picacho State Park for a night of camping. It's good that the way was flat given how out of shape I am. Still, it felt good to be on two wheels again for my fifth summer adventure in five years. The "California Zephyr" summer has begun! Forward!

Wednesday, May 3, 2023 -- 7062 km cum - 89 km/day

This was a good 55-mile day despite a headwind to a WarmShowers night in Maricopa. Dick and Karen are retired school music teachers. Now in their 80s, they continue to cycle. They prepared a wonderful spaghetti dinner, and the evening was taken up with good conversation. I'm in their guest bedroom. Karen and Dick are now in my pantheon of WS hosts.

Thursday, May 4, 2023 -- 7157 km cum - 95 km/day

I'm in Phoenix, and that means that the shakedown phase of this trip is complete! I'm staying in a "cheaper motel" for two nights and will spend tomorrow with my sister Chris. I actually stopped at her house first and enjoyed some refreshing watermelon before continuing on to the motel.

This initial "get-in-shape" phase went remarkably well considering how out-of-shape I am this year. These were good ride days, but the real test will come when I head north from Phoenix. That's where the hills will start.

Saturday, May 6, 2023 -- 7260 km cum - 103 km/day

This was my first 100+ km day complete with my first hills and a headwind much of the way. I'm just outside Wickenburg for the night.

And here's the surprise of the day. The two campgrounds in town do not allow tenting, and the one WS host never responded. I really didn't want to stay in a motel after two motel nights in Phoenix. I thought I might wild camp on state land, but I was loathe to camp in the desert without water.

As a last ditch thought, I tried AirBnB. That's where I found Tammy and Michael who had an empty spot for an RV. I reserved it, and Tammy called to ask what size RV I was driving. I explained that I am traveling by bicycle and carry a tent. She was surprised but agreed to let me use the RV spot.

When I got to Wickenburg, Tammy drove to the end of her driveway to guide me in. Then came the surprise. She wouldn't hear of me camping. Instead, she led me to a guest bunkhouse with a bed, AC, shower, and refrigerator. I'm in the unexpected lap of luxury! Trail magic -- the first for this year -- strikes again!

Sunday, May 7, 2023 -- 7306 km cum - 46 km/day

This was a short day by design because it involved a 3000 foot climb. Most of that was in the final five miles from Congress to Yarnell. I took it slowly. I did feel a twinge of a cramp in my right leg near the end, but it was only a twinge. (Note to self to drink more sport drinks for electrolytes.) I'm pretty pleased. I am close to having ridden myself back into shape.

It's a cheap $50 motel night for me at the Oak Park Motel and RV Park in Yarnell. I had expected to camp, but there is no water here for campers. So much for that. The motel room comes with water, albeit cold water only.

I just ordered a personal pizza as I enjoy an IPA at "Gilligan's." I'm sitting at a table in the sun for warmth. In the shade it's almost chilly. That's what the extra altitude does!

Monday, May 8, 2023 -- 7383 km cum - 77 km/day

More climbing today, but I was able to peddle all the way. I reached 6100 feet just before Prescott and am camped tonight at a commercial campground about 10-12 miles byond Prescott.

The highlight of the day came at the very beginning. I stopped for breakfast at the convenience store in Peoples Valley. Almost as soon as I stopped, up came Frank. He immediately introduced me by phone to his friend Richard in Texas. Frank then treated me to breakfast and introduced me to Chris and almost everyone else who came through the door. Instead of a quick breakfast, I spent over two and a half delightful hours in Peoples Valley.

Tuesday, May 9, 2023 -- 7460 km cum - 77 km/day

С Днём Победы? In view of what Russia has done and has become, it's hard to give this greeting anymore.

This was another day in which I traveled less than 50 miles. I'm camped in Ash Fork tonight. When I camp, it's almost always going to be a short mileage day. Camping involves that much time overhead, or at least it does given the way I camp. If I hadn't camped last night, I might have made it the extra twenty miles to Williams. In Ash Fork I nearly opted for a $59 motel room, but with a tent space costing only $20.84, camping makes sense. In any case, why am I carrying all the camping gear?

Wednesday, May 10, 2023 -- 7544 km cum - 84 km/day

This was a long day entirely on I-40 / Rt. 66 from Ash Fork to Flagstaff. The first 20+ miles to Williams were a long uphill slog. I crossed the "Arizona Divide" at 7355 feet where it was chilly with a temperature above 10C. I wore my jacket the entire way. What a contrast this is to the heat of the Tucson-Phoenix ride last week!

My bad news for the day is that my Big Agnes mattress has sprung a leak. I woke at 4 a.m. with my rear end touching the ground. I reinflated the mattress, but by 8 a.m. it was soft again. It seems the better choice yesterday would have been the cheap motel. I've ordered a replacement that will cost me some $130. It will be delivered to Flagstaff.

But indeed I'm in Flagstaff! I checked into a Super 8 motel for three nights. My first rest break after 418 miles on the road has arrived!