DISTANCE TRAVELED: 33.33 Miles
AVERAGE SPEED: 10.92 MPH

          I got up at 7:00 and packed up most of my things before eating two pop tarts for breakfast. After eating, I finished packing my tent and was ready by 8:30. I actually was among the first to be ready! We were about to leave when Brian realized that he had a flat, so we waited until he was done and then began to ride at 8:45. After a short climb, we descended for many miles through more beautiful country. The road was rocky and had potholes, which would have been fine but because of the dense pine forest, the shadows made it impossible to see. I let myself fly down the hill anyway and let my reflexes save me when I hit the rocks. (Picture179) Along the way down, we passed a beautiful lake that reflected the image of a large mountain in the background that was brilliant with minerals. (Picture180,Picture181) At the bottom of this descent, we crossed over a river and began a steep climb that I decided to sprint up. (Picture182) I rode as fast as possible and hit 4.8 mph as my lowest speed of the climb. When I reached the top, there was an incredible view of the valley that we would descend into. (Picture183) At the bottom, we could see Platoro, still four miles away. We continued down a rocky and sandy descent and rode into the main part of town to buy groceries to find that the owner had gone to a larger town to buy more supplies and that he would not be back to open the store for the rest of the day. I rode back up the road to a ranch where we sat down to lunch. For $4.99, I had a huge hamburger with cheese and green peppers, and a pile of French fries that must have been made from at least two whole potatoes. After lunch, we were able to buy food at the same place and then ride the final 15 miles into camp. We began riding along the river on a gradual downhill but although we were to begin and end along the same river at a lower point, we did not have a gradual downhill. The entire trip, although beautiful, was filled with climbs and descents. (Picture184) Soon enough however, we reached the campground and picked two spots close to the river. I set up my tent among the flies and did some work until everyone else arrived and while Mike slept in his half-erected tent. (Picture185) A few hours later, we had dinner followed by standing around the fire and then going to bed at 9:15