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| Failing to find a real state line sign, we chalked our own. |
Payson, AZ – Riding from Heber, AZ, we climbed to 8,000 feet
then descended a 6% grade for over ten miles. We stopped for an extra day in
the small town of Payson to volunteer with Habitat and to help paint and
renovate a transitional women’s shelter.
Sedona, AZ – After our build day, we rode about 90 miles
into the town of Sedona – home of the world famous “Red Rocks.” A strange local told me many quotable things
about Sedona, including that “God may have created the Grand Canyon, but he
lives in Sedona.” He also recommended
that I go and see one of the famous Sedona Vortexes, where “this reality
touches the next.” We showered for free
at one of the town’s many resorts and prepared ourselves for a day of climbing
to come.
Flagstaff, AZ – Although our ride into Flagstaff was one of
the shortest of the trip (just over 30 miles), it was nearly all climbing. Along the way we made one of the most
memorable pit stops of the trip, at Slide Rock State Park, where we enjoyed
natural waterslides and a 40 foot free fall of a cliff above Oak Creek. Cliff jumping was absolutely exhilarating,
but led to many bruises. Poor Cassi even
ruptured an ear drum. Once we got to
Flagstaff we stopped for a day of volunteering with a local organization called
Bothands. One of our riders – Nick A. – departed the trip early after our build
day to get to grad school and we sent him off with a night of karaoke.
Grand Canyon, AZ – After 70 miles into the Grand Canyon we
enjoyed our third and final “day off” of the trip. Four other riders and I decided to descend
into the bottom of the canyon and back by foot – a voyage of 18 miles of trail
and nearly 2 miles of elevation change (down and up). Park signs and rangers highly recommend that
nobody attempt this hike in a day, but having only one day off, we all felt
compelled to give it a go. We made it
back safely and it was 100% worth it.
Williams, AZ – We were all sad to leave the Grand Canyon
behind us, but Williams was not a bad place to end up. To shake things up we organized ourselves by
height and broke into riding group accordingly.
I rode with three other very tall riders and we called ourselves the
“Four Pack of Tall Boys.’ We got into town early and enjoyed beer and live
music at a café on Route 66.
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| Meg and I admire a very large saguaro cactus in Cal Nev Ari, Nevada |
Seligman, AZ – Our next stop was in the tiny town of
Seligman, said to be the inspiration behind Radiator Springs of the Pixar movie
Cars.
Our sleeping quarters here were a little cramped, so I tried to sleep
outside and enjoy the dark night skies, but midnight rains pushed me back
indoors.
Kingman, AZ – Arriving in Kingman, we knew that we were
getting close to California because we found our first In & Out
Burger. Most of us went to bed early in
Kingman to rest up for our 4:30 a.m. wake-up and our night out in Vegas to follow.
Searchlight, NV – Our trip only spends one night in Nevada
and naturally we tried to make the best of it by chartering a bus and taking a
6-hour trip to Vegas. I would elaborate more about this mini-trip, but what
happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. Also
what happens in Denny’s, stays in Denny’s.
Baker, CA – After returning from Vegas around 1 am, we slept
for four hours and then rose to set off on the final century ride of our
trip. Fortunately nobody in my riding
group (nickname: “The Centurions”) was hungover and we made good time in the
morning, at least until we hit the Mojave National Preserve where 105+
temperatures and crappy roads slowed us down.
We were ecstatic as we entered California, but disappointed to find no
state sign to greet us. Instead we just chalked our own and made the best of
our entrance into San Bernardino County.
With just five days left of our trip, we are really starting
to feel short of time, but also proud of the accomplishment that is nearly
complete. Next comes the trip back… but
more on that later.
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