1998 - Bike-Aid 3,600 Miles Across The U.S.A.
1999 - The Great Divide Mountain Bike Expedition
June 15, 1998 - Index - Lake Wenatchee
DISTANCE TRAVELED: 58.59 MilesTIME: 7 Hours
AVERAGE SPEED: 11.9 Miles/Hour
TRAVEL CONDITIONS: From 10:00 - 3:00 it was very cold with lots of rain. After 3:00 the valley no longer had the cold weather but instead was warm and sunny.
ROAD CONDITIONS: Started out very well continuing on to many areas of construction consisting of lots of gravel and sand. The end was on smooth highways that were very easy to ride on.
TERRAIN/DIFFICULTY LEVEL: Beginning was very easy until we began the ascent to Steven's Pass. Starting here we had a slow ascent which turned onto a very steep climb to the top of Steven's Pass. We then had a long downhill which brought us down into a valley.
DAILY JOURNAL COMMENTS:
During the night we had been disturbed every 30 minutes by the continuous stream of trains that went by our camp site. We finally got up at 7:00 AM and ate a breakfast of oatmeal and then continued on by packing up all of our gear. We left camp around 9:30 and began to ride in shorts and short sleeve shorts. We then encountered a small amount of rain which forced us to put on our rain jackets before continuing. We continued on in the rain until about 11:30 when some of us stopped for lunch at a local store that had a few benches with a cover to keep us dry. I went into the store and bought three candy bars which I finished by the time the day was over. We ate quickly finding that if we stayed any longer we would all get much to cold to continue. After lunch we quickly started the ascent to Steven's Pass (Picture1) and encountered much stronger winds and a lot of rain. As the climb continued, it got steeper and I eventually had to get off and walk for about ¼ of a mile to keep my feet from freezing since my entire body was soaked. We climbed for about 15 miles and when we reached the top we barely had enough energy and courage to get off the bikes and take a quick picture (Picture2,Picture3) before making a bone chilling descent. My hands just about went so numb that I couldn't use my brakes so I stopped along the way to warm them up and make sure that they still worked. As I continued on, I tried holding my hands behind my back as I went down using the 3rd eye mirror to watch for oncoming traffic. We came down from the pass for about 7 miles before coming to the first of the flats and the first small rise. We actually were glad to see the rise since we knew that it would warm us up and keep the blood circulating. My hands became so cold that I actually couldn't open quick release snaps or open a candy bar. This lasted for about 3 hours. I used the aerobars as I was on the flats and began to average about 20-25 miles an hour for about 5 miles. We passed by a few diners where some of the people stopped but I continued on to the camp to try to get an early shower. Unfortunately we didn't have any of our gear at the time so I had to wait for a while. We all gathered around the fire that we made as soon as possible. Everyone dried all of their clothes and shoes to make everything ready for the next day. As we saw the people slowly coming into camp, we had about 12 people who actually made it all the way to the camp without any help from the SAG. I put up my tent and then ate a quick dinner of rice with spinach and a separate dish of tofu and beans. We will be going to bed tonight around 10:30 and hopefully it will be a good night to sleep.
TRIP ROUTE:
Go out of Index and turn right after bridge. Go one mile. Lt. on 2 to Steven's Pass summit. At approx. 20 miles after summit left on 207 at squirrel tree restaurant. Lt off 207 onto Cedar Brae Road. Follow toward lake. Come into park. Turn at South Park area. Sign on right says "group area"
