Today's trip was, from a bicycling perspective, the best day so far. 

Temperatures were expected to be in the 90's, so an early start seemed wise. At 7:45 AM, I was on the way.

The first task was to ride over the 4th of July Pass. As passes go, this was not as difficult as Steven's Pass or the Orondo Grade. It was not as steep or as long, but it still feels punitive when riding up its slope.  Yet, it only took an hour and one half to the top. The descent could have been much faster, but I braked to keep the speed close to 30 mph. After several miles of descending, I left I-90, to have an early lunch. It was then that I discovered a new trailhead onto the Coeur d'Alene Trail, so I took it.

The advantage of most rail trails is that the slope tends to be much more gradual than are found on highways. Trains just could not pull heavy loads up anything except gradual slopes. So these are great for bicyclers, and this trail was no exception. It was flat out gorgeous. A moose decided to move away from the trail when I approached. I did not know that moose were common here.

At any rate, I was able go fairly fast, for this bike, 12-13 mph, uphill, for extended periods of time.

There was even time to take a side trip to the Catalog Mission, the oldest building in Idaho, and still one of the most interesting.

On the trail again, I approached the back of a large concrete building. It was a Walmart. Not exactly what or where I expected, but I took advantage of this opportunity. Several days earlier, my lips got sunburned . I had forgotten sunblock lip chapstick, and could not  find it in any store until this Walmart.

The arm that was so badly sunburned was still red but the pain had subsided from the aloe vera lotion applications. Though it seemed better, I did the same thing that I did on Saturday. After noon, when things really started to heat up, I would let the left arm drop to the side, resting on a pannier, and using my body to shade it from the sun. It seems to have helped.

65 miles today. 

Tomorrow I cross my third mountain pass, Lookout Pass. It has two other distinctions:  It is the state line between Idaho and Montana; It also puts me onto Mountain Standard Time, the first of three time zone changes as I head east.

Getting sleepy. Good night all. 

Today is a day of rest, both literally and figuratively.  After 9 hours of sleep, I awoke to get ready for church. Getting ready did not take long since I wore the exact same clothes that i slept in, to church. I only have one non-bicycling shirt and one non-bicycling pants. They are multi-functional.

The church service was vibrant, and the pastor's message, on Fear, had many thoughts that resonated with what I am doing.

Did I mention that I got a severe sunburn on my left arm? It was shocking to see the intensity of the burn, but I have been putting aloe vera lotion on it consistently all day, and multiple times during the night. 

Tomorrow, I ride to Wallace, Idaho. 

The owner of the motel in Davenport had a great idea. Instead of taking Hwy 2, with all its traffic, why not take a side road, which will have little traffic? I would need to leave early to avoid the closing of Hwy 2 at 10 AM in Reardon, the next town east, 10 miles down the road. If I could leave the motel by 7 AM, then I should get to Reardon early enough to have breakfast there. My stomach has been queasy in the morning, so maybe it will calm down after bicycling for an hour.

Rising at 5 AM, I spent an hour in prayer and devotions, then packed everything up, and was on the road (the side road) by 6:45 AM. The side road started out great, then became rough,  bumpy, and hilly. I was relieved to get finished with it. Hwy 2 would have been better and faster. Uh oh, the highway is closing early, so I cannot stop to eat. There will be something down the road.  And there was........at 10 AM.  Finding the Centennial Trail between Spokane and Coeur d'Alene was comical, but finally, I was on it and headed to my destination.  Once again, I had misjudged the distance, and did not arrive at my motel until after 5 PM. It was 76 miles, and made for a very long and tiring day.   

Tomorrow will be a day of rest (and laundry). Tuesday, I will be summiting Lookout Pass, and will be entering Montana.   

It is hard to describe how I feel, physically. 336 miles in 5 days. I am very tired. Hopefully tomorrow's inactivity will help. I am looking forward to worship tomorrow morning. 

I confess. I have not been completely honest up to this point.......but for a really good reason.  You see, Karen was not supposed to accompany me on this venture, but a friend of hers said she would love to keep Karen company for a few days on the road following me.  So, Karen and her friend, Esther Harmon, have been following me for the last three and one half days. I had concerns about our house being robbed, so I did not go public with the information.

They would drive ahead and wait for me with iced cold water, Gatorade and power bars. On the Orondo Grade they would wait 2 miles up hill (30 minutes of climbing), but on more level areas, they would go 8-13 miles. More than once I was tempted to lighten my load by throwing my panniers in the car, but God is not the temptor.

After 2 tough days, riding 73 miles and 68 miles, I was looking forward to today's ride of only 60. Of course that mileage was predicated on my paying attention to the road signs. Apparently, when the sign says to turn right, one should do exactly that. Two miles into the ride this morning, I rode past this enormous sign instructing me to turn right if I was to continue on Highway 2. Three miles later, I suspected something was wrong, and called Karen to get directions from the motel owner. Fortunatelly, I had not gone further astray. At the end of the day, my odometer showed 66 miles riding.

Today I learned that the SPF 50 sunblock does not work on areas that I miss when applying the lotion.

Tomorrow, I will ride directly into downtown Spokane, then hop the Centennial Trail, a bicycle trail, which connects Spokane and Couer d'Alene. While the distance is around 70 miles, the last half will be level.

After five days of riding, I will be taking a day of rest in Couerd'Alene on Sunday. It is truly something I am looking forward to. That and a laundromat! 

Bicycling Steven's Pass yesterday was absolutely miserable despite its beauty.  I was so exhausted that I fell asleep at 8:30 PM.

Today had multiple challenges:  (1) I had to go up the Orondo Grade, a ride that bicycles rate harder than Steven's Pass. If I could barely make it up, Stevens, what were my chances with a more difficult ride. (2) Because relatives planned to drive up to visit me in Coulee City, I had to get there in a timely manner. (3) Assuming that I conquered Orondo Grade, there was another significant climb about 15 miles out of Coulee City.

Up early, I had breakfast then started out at 7 AM. Perhaps this would solve challenge #2. Unfortunately, the consequences of yesterday's exertion left my stomach queasy, so most of breakfast remained on the plate. Starting up the Grade at 8:45 AM, I took a break every 2 miles of climbing. Climbing consisted of putting the bike in a low gear, then pedaling with a steady cadence, straining, for 2 miles. By 11:30, I was in Waterville, ordering lunch.

The last climb was a little steeper than the Grade, but was only for a mile. Whew!  

My relatives, Valli and Don Millaed, drove up for dinner at Big Wally's. They are such nice people, and it was good to catch up on things.

I was reminded of something today. That voice in my head telling me to quit was not the voice of God.  

Today's ride will have been the hardest day until I leave Missoula. Even the Fourth of July Pass, and Lookout Pass will not be as tough.  My reckoning was that if I could survive Days two and three, then I should be okay for awhile as I adjust to bike travel.

With God's mercy, we will see. 

Past experience has shown that when on a bicycle journey, the morning starts with Plan A, and ends on Plan D.  That is reasonable as one visits new areas. But it should not happen here, on a route that I have ridden several times before. Welcome to my new normal.

I left Skykomish heading to Steven's Pass, only 16 miles away, but most of it uphill.  A 73 mile day awaited. Better to get the hard part out of the way early.

It ended up being grueling, far more difficult than I expected. 50 minutes of riding, then a short break. Another 50 minutes of riding. Then 30 minutes. Then 20. Then 10. I was surprised at how hard my heart was pounding.

Yet, close to noon, I crested the summit. Having not eaten since 7 AM, one would expect a ravenous appetite. Yet food did not interest me. Nor did riding another 57 miles to Wenatchee, but I started downhill  eastbound. Twenty miles later my legs were like mush, but I stopped to eat, even though I had little appetite.

As I hoped, the body felt much better with food in the belly. The remaining 37 miles were unconsequential.

Tomorrow, however, is the hardest ride for quite a while. It is called the Orondo Grade, a 6% grade for 7-8 miles with no flat spots.  If today was exhausting, what will tomorrow morning be like?  Sounds like I need to spend some time in prayer. 

Blesings.

Will McMahan 

Mood:  happy

Today was the first leg of a trip that is projected to end in late August.  The send off became quite different than I expected. I mean, really, who would be interested in a long bicycle trip? Then our church youth director, Sean Lian, asked if it would be okay for him to be at my house when I leave. Next a good friend, Ed Rengli asked to be there also. I was flattered.

Yet when the senior pastor at North Creek Presbyterian Church, asked to attend, and also to say a few words at the Sunday service, I was flabbergasted.

At 9 AM this morning, they showed up, as well as Pastor Kurt Helmcke and Molly Pankow, who does a great job at our church nursery.  After some last minute scrambling to find my new prescription sunglasses, we had prayer, then I started my journey.

One couldn't ask for better weather. Sunny, clear skies. Temperatures anticipated  to reach 80 degrees.   

 My goal for the day was to reach the small town of Skykomish, 52 miles away, and a scant 16 miles from the summit of Steven's Pass.  A nice hotel room awaited me there.

In order to go east from Western Washington, one must cross the Cascade mountain range. Several choices are available, each with advantages and disadvantages. The route with the least traffic was also the steepest and highest.  I did that route in 2008, and I am not sure if had the conditioning to do it again.

Steven's Pass, elevation of 4,300 feet, was a 1,000 feet lower, and lesser grade than the aforementioned route. The downside of this route is that the shoulders are narrow and there is much more traffic, seemingly in a hurry. I have ridden over Steven's Pass twice  (albeit without 50 pounds of gear.) . I didn't recall it being too difficult. Of course, my memory is not what it used to be.

I seemed to have forgotten the miles of two lane road where there was no shoulder at all.  I did remember a bridge or two with no bike lanes, but where did the other 10 bridges come from, with no room for bicycles!  And how long has that narrow tunnel been there!

Each bridge, and the tunnel, presented potential significant danger to a slow bicyclist as speeding inattentive drivers approached.

So what happened to me today? When I came to the beginning of each bridge, suddenly the eastbound lane became empty, with no traffic in sight (other than a ton of westbound cars).  As I got back onto the safe shoulder, eastbound traffic would suddenly appear again. The same thing happened in the tunnel.

For those you rolling your eyes, thinking, "Boy, were you lucky!", I want you to know that luck had nothing to do with it. It was God's Providence that kept me safe. 

 Tomorrow is Steven's Pass.  16 miles of climbing. The first 11.5 miles are a gradual climb. The last 4.5 miles will be tough. The secret is to have good gears, and being patient. I will be happy if I can achieve a steady pedal cadence at 4 miles per hour on the steep portion.  My goal is to leave Skykomish between 7-8 AM, and be at the summit in less than 3 hours.  

 This is Day 1 of a long trip. Let's hope that tomorrow goes well.

God's blessings on you all. 

"Are you serious?  You are going to try to bicycle across the country again?  Will, you are getting too old!  And it's dangerous out there!"  The voice of my brother, Jim, was a pitch higher than normal, an indication that he was truly concerned.  After listening to him, I gave Jim all the reasons why he did not need to worry:  I would watch out for traffic;  I would not travel in dangerous weather or circumstances. 

But in my mind, I was thinking something else entirely.  I was going over the response to the first question of the Heidelberg Catechism:  I am not my own, but belong, body and soul, in life and in death, to my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ.

Whatever happens on this trip will be in the hands of our Lord.  This summer-long journey is dedicated to Him and His providence.  And that is the way it is supposed to be.  Let the journey begin.