Day – 12 A New Game Plan

As discussed in yesterday’s post it is hot. Like fry an egg on a rock hot. The good news is it does cool to the high 60s/low 70s at night. So starting today it is ride from sun up to noon then nap in the shade. If need be eke out a few more miles after the sun starts to fade.

So that was the plan and shockingly when the alarm went off this morning the body responded and I was out the door by 6:00. Back on the Palouse to Cascade (PTC from here on out) I ground up a 10 mile hill. The terrain has changed to a barren dry and dusty no mans land. So much so the Army put a live fire range out here that you have to ride 20 miles through.

I had the opportunity to speak with a park ranger yesterday (This trail is all part of the Washington State Parks system). He had warned me that due to red tape with the feds they don’t maintain the trail to the same standard through this section. He was correct, very correct. The surface was squishy sand with pockets of powder fine sand that threatened to send you tumbling as you came to an immediate and wildly turbulent stop. There was lots of hike a bike and the 22 miles in front of me threatened to take all day and by this point I only had 4 hours before I risked spontaneous combustion.

There was a tunnel but it was closed due to cave in. There was a detour that climbed up and over the saddle, oh goodie! It was paved with 2-3” blast rock threatening to shred Alister’s new rubber. Yes, more hike a bike.

Thankfully the other side presented a downhill ride to my destination. It was still sandy and pocked with powder traps but with gravity assist it seemed that I would make town by noon.

The path has all of these rock cut canyons to maintain grade just wide enough for a train. Every time I was riding through one I expected a Tusken Raider to stand up and start yelling while waving a staff above his head. That never happened and I actually never saw a single person the whole time I was there.

After signing out of the military base (self serve with a ticket you drop in when you start and a stub from the ticket you put in the box at the other end) it was down to the Columbia River to cross this bridge.

Across the bridge and to a convenience store for cold drinks and a shady place to rest. Well…they had the cold drinks but no shade. I stocked up and went another mile to a County “Park” by the river. It was a gravel lot with a port-a-John and no picnic tables but it did have trees for shade. I seemed to be an annoyance to all the kids drinking beer and smoking weed. But I did not care. I laid out a tarp and lounged the afternoon away waiting for the sun to go away so I could get 5 more miles in to a camp site. It was 102 degrees by noon.

Around 7:00 I was brave enough to ride 6 more miles in 95 degree heat to a “campground” by a lake. The map said it was a campground and I took their word for it but there was little indication it was meant for camping. No one was around to ask so I stayed.

Also today, I was attacked by a pack of Chihuahuas. They don’t seem menacing until there are ten of them going nuts surrounding you on your bike. Their massive Rottweiler friend recognized it was too hot and just watched but seriously those Chihuahuas gave chase for close to a mile.