After leaving the KOA in Ely we had a great ride ahead of us to a town called Baker, next to Great Basin National Park. The weather and wind cooperated with us and we made the 65 miles and 2 passes in great time. On the way there we rode with our two friends and a had beer with them in the only place in town that was opened. The campsites for Great Basin National Park were another 6 miles and 2,000 ft up the mountain so we said goodbye and started the trek up.
On the way up we some some interesting artwork along the sides and some really neat houses. About 2 miles from the campsite we met a lady named Lori who was walking the other way to her house. She was also a cyclist so we got to talking and the subject of Chantale's shoes came up (remember the ones she threw on the shoe tree). We had meant to pick some new ones up along the way, but all the towns weren't large enough to have a shoe store. When Lori found this out, she took the shoes right off her feet and offered them to Chantale. Not many people I this world would give a random stranger the shoes they are wearing, we are meeting so many kind and generous people along the way.
Our campsite had a wonderful grassy patch for our tent, and stream running through with water that we could filter for drinking. We slept in, took our time eating breakfast, explored our surroundings a bit, and then headed down to the visitors center for a tour of Lehman's cave (one the natural wonders that Great Basin is famous for). The caves were really neat -- at one point we were 192 feet underground. The pictures don't do it justice of what it was really like down there. After the tour, we walked back to our campsite and took a nap and basked in the sun. After dinner we had a small fire and then headed off to bed.
The next we woke up bright and early and got to start our day with the 6 mile and 2,000 foot descent. It was a great way to start the day. We got into town in no time flat and had breakfast at a little place in town. We hit the road at 10:00 and had a really long, but satisfying day. We finally crossed over into Utah.
Below: our bike halfway between Nevada and Utah
We rode 90 miles to milford and beat our record for the most miles per day. We rolled into town just as the sun was setting and found the cheapest motel. We had a late, but filling dinner, and then settled into a deep sleep.
Above: one of the roads that go on forever...I think we came from the lowest part of the saddle of the range in the background.
Today we have 50 miles to Cedar City -- it is the largest town that we will have seen in weeks. It might be kind of refreshing to see a stoplight.
Until next time,
Chantale & Josh
I must say I had been concerned when Chantale donated her sneakers to the shoe tree!
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