Larry's log:
It was chilly again this morning, about 50. Normally, I wouldn't wear a jacket, but I did today, and dropped it off at the van at the first rest stop (30 miles). It was another clear, sunny day. Today was in the low 90s with low humidity again (19%). Yesterday was 17%. It still looks like we'll be steering clear of any weather systems for the next several days. The first 40 miles or so of the morning were fairly non-descript, mostly scrub and farms, a few rolling hills. It could have been New Mexico, West Texas or any other of a thousand places. One thing I did notice as we were heading out of town was a metal mailbox stand in the shape of an old highwheel bike. The box was in front, where a basket could be. Cute! We rode near the railroad, as we have a good part of most of the days, or so it seems. There is a lot of railroad activity out here. On this stretch, there was a long freight train coming by about every half our. In previous days, some of the only vehicles we saw on some of the roads were Union Pacific maintenance trucks. At about mile 40, we turned off of the state highway onto a small county road. The surface wasn't too good, but it was very quiet. There was a significant hill that we climbed for about two miles. You never knew when it was going to end because it just kept curving around and around. It had already been a slow ride up to the hill, since we seemed to be very gradually climbing into a headwind. There was a note as we entered this road that there was restricted access from it. Was the property alongside some top-secret government project? I don't really know what that was all about. About ten miles later, we entered Rt. 30, which we have ridden parallel to the interstate for a lot of this trip already. This section was the Thousand Springs Scenic Byway. It was scenic. There was a good climb that provided a nice view of the river, farms and valley below, with mountains off in the distance. We also rode by Salmon Falls, which was two waterfalls streaming down rocky cliffs. There are lots of other falls and springs in the area, but we did not see them. From the roadside signs, it appears that volcanic activity played a large role in shaping this region. There are also a lot of fossils along the route. One of the towns on this road, Hansen, had been a stage coach station in the late 1800s, until irrigated farming was introduced to the area. Speaking of that, there were a lot of irrigation ditches running along the edge of the highway. I think they collected the run-off from the fields and probably carried it somewhere to be disposed or reused. Near lunch, at mile 80 in Filer, was an ice cream store that offered potato ice cream. They advertised free samples, so I guess I should have checked it out.A few did after lunch and said there was nothing special about the ice cream itself.However, it sounded like the proprietor was quite entertaining. At 95 miles, we rode through Twin Falls. Twin Falls is a scenic area about 15 miles from the town. The town was like some of the other larger Idaho ones we've been through or stayed in; about two miles of commercial strip, and hard to tell what else the town really has to offer. Between there and Burley, bean farming seemed to be a big business. There were a lot of bean seed signs, silos and storehouses. Mormon influence is apparent in this southern part of Idaho. Many of the Adopt a Highway signs are adopted by various LDS "wards." Also, the street names in the smaller towns are numbers, like 100, 200, etc. The street names are also this way in Utah. I don't know specifically that this is Mormon related. However, on a previous tour through Utah someone told me it was. The gradual climbing, headwinds and six straight days took a bit of a toll today.The rear end is getting sore and other aches and pains begin to show up, as I've noticed on other tours as well. I was the first one to the motel, but not because of any speed on my part. I kept my breaks short, just in case I'd have to take an unexpected one later. If that happened, I didn't want to be rolling in too late. Fortunately, no unscheduled breaks were required. Here at the motel, I relaxed in the hot tub with several motorcyclists who are touring the area. They are from northern Minnesota. They seemed interested in what we were doing. They're doing 350 miles a day and we're doing a third of that. Not bad, when you think about it. Dinner was a grazing event again; subs and salads at Subway, a taco at Taco Bell, McFlurries at McDonalds and snacks that we had leftover from the day's rest stops.
-- Larry Schwartz
So much for the forecast of the tailwind!! We started off with a light headwind and the wind seemed to get stronger and stronger as the day continued. As Larry described, the first part of the ride was not very scenic. The highlight of the first stretch was the excitement we caused to a herd of about 40 cows. They chased along the fence and all piled up in the corner of the lot. They were mooing at us while we stopped to take off a layer of warm clothes. After we joined route 30, the ride became quite a bit more scenic. Which was much better since the wind was still a headwind. We saw nice waterfalls in the distance, along the snake river. Lunch was a welcome treat at mile 82. Just after the Potato Ice Cream place. Daniel and I were not up for any ice cream but we heard from other cyclists that the place was a real experience!! Oh well, I guess we will have to come back. It wasn't too long after lunch before the wind finally shifted to a tailwind. Light wind but it sure helped to push us in to Burley, Idaho...Population 9000. Daniel and I somehow managed to get another flat tire in the rear wheel. Fortunately, it was a slow leak and we made it back to the motel without having to change the tube. We have had a flat tire almost everyday!!! Dinner at Subway, Taco Bell and dessert at McDonald's was refreshing. So was the hot tub and the hot shower. It is time for bed since we have 141 miles and 3300 feet of climbing tomorrow. Suppose to have a tailwind, but we will see in the morning. The climbing has been wrong on the route sheet for the past 2 days and we have done double the climbing. If that is true for tomorrow, then we will really need our sleep tonight.
Judith Jolly (and Daniel Schaaf)