A Slight Change of Plans

Joplin, Missouri

I have decided to call it a day. Jodi was ready to return home and I had no real reason to discourage her from leaving early. Riding through Kansas and Missouri is an integral part of the Ocean-to-Ocean experience, but I currently have no intentions of completing the entire trip. If I do I can always start in Tribune where I left off. The persistent cold has made the trip difficult: camping out has given way to second rate hotels, and my concern over the lingering congestion and coughing has taken a prominant role in the ride. I'll sum up the details and give final observations later, but this summer's ride is at an end. It was great, particlarly when healthy.

At Last - Kansas

Wednesday
Ordway to Eads: 67 miles; 6:15 moving time

There is nothing to recommend this 70 miles: rolling hills running due East with a road that is punctuted by butt-wrenching cracks. The earth is hot and dry and the benefit of late afternoon clouds was more than offset by a persistent headwind. The difference from the previous several weeks is pervasive: I think the only reason one would choose to ride these roads is to get from the East to the West Coast. My cold is improving but still troublesome. The food choices were even fewer than the night before: hamburgers are becoming an evening staple.

Thursday
Eads to Tribune, Kansas: 60 miles: 6:00 moving time

The roads continue straight, with sight-lines of up to seven miles. You see your destination - a a grain elevator - and than commence to cycle for upwards of forty-five minutes to get there. The towns are different than those in the West: there is much less money and thus the availablity of decent foods is hit or miss with the emphasis on miss. It is really hard to get the nutrition you need for the rides. The gaps between places for liquid replenishment are challenging. The land is turning greener as I ride East and the road has improved somewhat, but you are still dealing with trucks wizzing by at 65-70 mph with you on some sort of shoulder.

South-East Colorado

Tuesday

Pueblo City to Ordway: Mileage 50: riding time 4:00

Slept in 'till 8:00 and headed east toward Ordway. There is nothing in this part of Colorado other than prisons, a leading employer of the region. The roads are straight and rolling and I had to deal with a wind from the SE as I headed due East.

Ordway is a very small town with a low standard of living: the price of milkshakes has fallen from $4.50 to $1.99. The problem is finding tolerable food. People clearly lack the funds to eat out and there is no other traffic in the town. A real downer, to say the least. I stayed in a nice old hotel and tried a new cough fighting strategy - it worked!

What a Difference

Pueblo City, Colorado

Sunday
Breckenridge to Guffy Mileage 67.1: seat time 5:34

My appetite has returned at least, but I still spend considerable time dealing with my cold during the nite. I left Breckenridge early and took a steady approach to the assent of Hoosier Pass, a 2,00 foot climb to 11,542 feet. The grade was tolerable, but the combination of the high altitude and my congestion led to a number of short, breath-catching, stops. I couldn't believe the difference on the Southern side of the pass - no ski slopes, no resorts, no nothing. Guess where all the snow and rain falls. Fair Play, about twenty miles past the pass, featured an excellent pizza/sub shop. After this respite, however, things became very desolate.

Turns out there were no accomodations of any sort in the areas where I had expected them to be. I ended up riding far more than I wanted and had to transit a second, smaller, pass before staggering (no great exaggeration here) into a hole-in-the-wall called Guffy. A ghost town turned into an antique center (ragtag), Guffy did have a place with a cabin and an jury-rigged shower that worked fine. The TV had no reception but the owners had '50s movies for the VCR. The mini-town boasted its own black bear, who apparently had free roam.

At dinner -another hamburger- I met a couple going west to live near their grandchild. Turns out they sold their home in Massachusetts, sent their household effects ahead, and peddled their way across.

Monday

Guffy to Pueblo City Mileage 75.4: moving time 6:00

The day started with a terrific ride down a canyon, a 2,000+ drop over some fifteen miles. I was in Canyon City in no time. Cyclists had told me to take a different route to Pueblo City -- 36 miles on the shoulder of a divided highway. It was shorter, and offered the only way I could hope to make it in one day so off I went. Unfortunately the wind was in my face most of the way. Not unexpectedly the temperature started to rise as I continued to lose altitude.

Riding into Pueblo City I looked up to see the temperature was 103 degrees.

This trip now changed fundamentally. Climbing and coasting are out while 95+ degree days are a sure thing. Jodi has agreed to meet me along the trail circa 1 August. I should make it to Springfield by the 31st: it is 750 miles away and there are twenty days left in the month. We'll see what happens. If I get there early I will continue along the trail to the Mississippi. Much will depend on my cold and the direction of the winds.