June 24, 2008

June 24, 2008 Easton to Vantage, WA 71 miles (73)

Two days in, 46 more to go – if they are like today this ride is going to be beyond belief! We woke up to a very cool (46 degrees) morning. Tights, fleece, gloves, and a jacket were needed to cut the chill. An early ride climb did nothing to warm me up! Riding out of Easton presented a continuous view of valleys and pine trees.

Accompanied by a strong tail wind, which was to assist us all day, the early riding was almost effortless, even the climbs.

At about the 45 mile mark, just after the town of Cle Elum, the road climbed relentlessly; up, up, up, and still more up. The temp had warmed up, the excess clothing was shed, and our surroundings took a sudden change. No longer were we in pine forests, no longer was the foliage green; sun baked, dry, treeless arid land was all we could see. There was no escape from the sun as we climbed 15 miles, very slowly, to the top of the pass that eventually would lead to Vantage, our stop for the day.

The downhill into Vantage was unbelievable! Eleven miles of uninterrupted coasting at between 30 and 45 mph! There is no better way to end a days’ ride!

While early in the day I rode with Liz, Darrell, and Bob we kept leap-froging Brandon. I lost contact with my riding partners when taking a picture stop, Brandon passed by and I eventually caught up with him. Together we finished the ride, arriving arriving in camp first. We unloaded everyone’s gear from the truck, set up camp, took showers, and then went to get a bite to eat. A nice low-key evening at camp, a great-catered dinner, followed by more conversation with other riders ended the evening.