OK, that was a bit more difficult than I expected! Rain, wind, and hills all working against us.
It was raining when we left Anacortes. Rained for the first hour and last hour of the day. It was a gentle rain but you still get gently wet…especially your shoes and socks. Note to self…buy some dark colored socks.
The first 10 miles I felt really good and we were able to keep up a good pace. It was pretty hilly at the start but I was fresh and probably had some extra adrenaline.
Shortly after that the rain stopped, the wind started. It was “only” 10 mph but right in our face. That was way worse than the rain.
We also started having some longish climbs. Nothing that big but way bigger than anything I’d ridden previously. Plus this was my first time riding with 20-25 lbs on the back wheel. Gerty, we’re not in Florida anymore!
That was probably 25 miles in…and my legs were tired. I was starting to struggle a bit. About mile 30, Dennis had a flat. Bummer but I got to watch a tire being changed and got a bit of rest.
The next 5 miles were excruciating. I was struggling and knew I needed to sit down for a bit and I’m not talking sitting on the saddle of my bike!
There was a town 1.8 miles ahead. We planned to stop, get something to eat, and give my legs a break. Nothing. Crap!! Next town 3.6 miles ahead.
We scored. Nice little small town bar. The bartender asked where we had come from. She was shocked when she heard Anacortes. She almost fainted when she heard where I was going!
Had a nice break of about an hour. I was so exhausted that I ate one bite of my cheeseburger and about a dozen tater tots.
We have a couple big mountain passes (Rainy and Washington) coming up. We had hoped to make it over in 2 days but I realized at our lunch stop that I couldn’t make it far enough today to do that tomorrow. No towns up there plus too cold and maybe snowy to camp.
We made the decision to go 12 more miles to Concrete and stay at a motel. Tomorrow we will get as close to the passes as we can.
Overall a bit disappointed in my performance. Gerty and Dennis did great and I was the weak link.
Tomorrow’s another day for me to get ready to climb those passes.
Thanks for all of your support. I’ll be needing it.
Ride on.
Just Pete
Just Pete Hiking 