by Richelle Olsen, She Science Ambassador
Huh? Whats that? You thought we were riding together? Well we were, until.... So last we checked in, I was having a couple of days break on the trail at Steamboat Springs, to rest the very tired legberts, and the even more exhausted mind....well after my lift in the car to Breckenridge there was a lot of soul searching done, more tears, but much more relief when I finally decided that Colorado was the end of the Great Dividing MTB Route for me. 10 weeks and nearly 4,000kms was pretty much my limit for now. There was another 1,600kms to go to get to the Mexico border (with something like 22,000m of climbing), and probable stupid headwinds, and well I knew I just didnt have it in me. We were both disappointed, but very relieved. I was happy with my decision for a break, and Shane was happy that I was happy. He was also pretty excited that he would be able to spend the next 1,600kms smashing himself, doing in 2 weeks what would have taken 4 weeks if I was still riding with him. And so began 2 parallel adventures..... First things first, I had to get myself to Salida, 160km away, as there were a couple of parcels I was expecting there (new tires for me, and a replacement OR jacket for Shane). For me to get there, it involved a lift to the bus, a 1hr bus ride to Denver where I had to drop my bike off at a bike shop to be boxed up, and for safe keeping for a few days, then jusp on a Greyhound bus for the 3hr bus ride to Salida. Rolling into town on the bus, who's bike is sitting outside Maccas? Shane's of course, the little bugger had beaten me under his own steam, even after climbing Boreas Pass in the snow!​
It was nice to have one more night together in Salida, and as it turned out the next day was our anniversary which was even better! But then it was proper goodbyes, and well, Ill be honest, I was left feeling a bit lost and directionless. No Shane, no bike, no purpose. I was used to this constant forward motion, and well suddenly I was stalled "resting". It also didnt help that I discovered that there was a stabbing the night before at the hostel I planned to stay at. Gulp! No matter i stayed there anyway and felt very safe, i even borrowed a bike to cruise around on, that was better. But I'm nearly ready for the next chapter in the adventure....Shane's only 2 days from the Mexico border, after having some crazy adventures of his own (dog attacks, replacement panniers, rattlesnakes, crazy headwinds, sleeping out back of Walmart.....thats just the tip of the iceberg, I'll let him write about what he's been doing). Once he gets there, he will make his way back up to Napa via lifts/buses/trains etc, where I might make him take a shower, before we head out on the bikes again to ride the Number 1 from San Francisco to Los Angeles, then down to the border and cross at Tijuana, and ride through Mexico till the money runs out! The adventure continues!
1 Comment
Shane encounters his first skunk just outside Wise River on the Great Dividing MTB Route
A brief glimpse at life on the trail, through Montana, on the Great Dividing MTB Route.
After being on the road a little over 3 weeks, we have done some reflecting on those little acts of kindness we have received from strangers.. Heather and Jeff in Whistler who plied us with beers and chips, and many many words of advice in bike touring, the Divide, bears and happy bums. And donated us their bear spray! When strangers become friends! The young couple in whistler who donated some cheese and jalepeno sausages, yum! Then the Irish/English couple in Whistler who donated beers and sausages. Then there was the crazy dog man who was a gift from the gods when he took our panniers for us as we climbed up the insane Highline road to Seton Portage. And Mark a fellow cycle tourer who shared many a cycling story, our campsite and his powdered hummus with us at Pavillion Lake. We ran into him again in the Main Street of Canmore, a few weeks later! Then there was the couple in Revelstoke who shared their beers, and a potential trail building job for Shane, including a chopper ride to the site....ahhhh! The campground in Canoe that offered half price camping for cyclists! Tanya from the Kicking Horse Hostel in Golden, who provided her yard for camping and access to all her facilities for free. The mozzies were a not so welcome bonus! And the poor Dutch couple at Lake Louise who asked to borrow a lighter for their fire, and suddenly found us drinking their beers, and Shane building their fire! The life saving Japanese couple we met in Banff at the Banff Adventure Film Fest, who gave us a lift back to our campsite, and saved us from walking home in the storm. Wilma from the Rocky Mountains Chalet in Canmore who saved us from the cold and the rain, and every hotel being booked out, and gave us a 2 bedroom apartment she wasn't meant to rent out, and did it for half the price, angel!! The crazy 3 Alaskans, Dave, Tom and Chris, who we shared days 2&3 on the Great Divide. Great company, some amazing stories, delicious brownies, a few shots of rum, and now a place for us to stay when we go to Alaska at some point! It was really sad to leave the gang!!! The Calgary couple at the Blue Lake Campsite, there for the serenity, then 5 cyclists destroyed their peace, so they sat us down in their comfy chairs and shared their beers!! And that's only 3 weeks worth! UPDATED!!The random RV park in Baines Lake, just before we crossed the border into the States. We rolled up to an RV park, pretty much full of permanent RV's. Befre we were off the bikes, some retirees offerred us beer. Then they invited us to their annual park Pot Luck Dinner, at the local hall. Picture table after table full of home cooked food they had been cooking all day, as well as a big table of desserts, and free beer. This was INSANE we ate so much that I we had to roll around town on the bike for an hour before we could even consider going to bed!
Then there was our fantastic Warm Showers hosts in Denver, Allison and Jim, who let me stay 2 nights in their beautiful home, its so nice to have the comforts of home!
There are certainly some amazing people out there!!! After some 9hr plus days in the saddle, and 2 weeks since our last rest day, this week we rolled into Steamboat Springs, Colorado, for 2 days of R&R. Eating, reading, replacing tyres, bottom brackets, brake pads, and eating some more! Steamboat is a great little town for that! But alas, yesterday morning it was time to hit the road again, a 70km day of gradual climbing up over Lynx Pass, and beyond. Rolling out of town it was quickly apparent that not only were we climbing, but We were climbing into a bitch of a headwind. By 20km in I was falling further and further behind Shane, so slow that I was wobbling all over attempting to stay upright, with my legs pretty much saying no way, we are NOT doing this today...and I was getting more and more pissed about being out there. And knowing that I'd be out there for another 3 days of climbing until we reached Breckenridge! Shane, bless his cotton socks was asking what was wrong, and through my tears all I could explain was that I just didn't want to be on the bike. Not today. Not for the next 3 days. We managed another 10kms of trying to convince myself that I could do it, before we sat under a tree for some lunch, and I decided once and for all that i couldn't muster the mental strength to push myself through the next few days...I would go back to Steamboat and meet Shane further down the trail. One of the toughest decisions I've had to make.. Skipping part of the trail that I have been following for over 2 months and over 3,000kms. But holy crap I've done over 3,000km that's massive for me, in reality I'm surprised I've lasted till now to crack! And we are riding for the fun of it, what's the point in riding when you are miserable? Leaving Shane to ride it alone, without me his chief map reader, and without me there if something happens. This is the hardest. But there's other tourers we know just ahead and just behind him on the trail, so there's people around. His biggest hurdle will be to stop himself from covering the 250kms in one day! And as a bonus, he gets to ride at his own pace without waiting for slowpoke here. He says he doesn't mind waiting, but it makes me feel better knowing I'm not holding him up! What will people think of me, bailing out when it gets too hard? Ah who the hell cares I'm sure people will understand! So I find myself today back in Steamboat. Shane rode back with me yesterday (returning with an amazing tailwind!) as we needed to repack all our stuff, so we both had a tent each (we have been carrying 2 for this eventuality!) and Shane could offload some of his stuff onto me so he could go a bit lighter. He headed out early this morning, but not before stopping for a breakfast burrito at Taco Cabo! I slept until 9am, packed up the tent and have been hanging out in Karen and Ray's RV with Bodie the Golden Retriever all morning reading and laying on their couch. Karen and Ray are doing the Divide Trail as day rides, and car shuffling back to their trailer each night, at age 70 they are absolutely inspirational! They have spoilt us with beers, dinner, spare tyres and great company. They are out riding today while I veg out! It's worked perfectly as they are headed to Denver tomorrow, so will drop me off at Silverthorne on the way, so I can meet up with Shane Sunday night or Minday morning. This break was meant to be! I'm hoping these couple of days will be the reset that I need, but I'll decide on Monday whether I take a few more or not... Yes, I do feel I'm missing out, but I'm so super excited to be doing nothing right now!!!! By Richelle Well tomorrow marks 8 weeks since we started our ride in Whistler, but more importantly, as we depart Pinedale, Wyoming, it marks exactly halfway through the Great Dividing MTB Route! Holy crap, I can't believe we have made it this far! Since we last checked in, we have left the beautiful Montana, spent a couple of days in Idaho, and are now deep in the cowboy heartland of Wyoming. There's been a ton of ups, and a few downs: The Ups: Every corner we turn continues to show us how amazing the landscapes are here, snow capped mountains, mountains that look like icebergs, crystal clear lakes, rock formations that look like they are from Mars and skies filled with a zillion stars. The people we are riding with...we are now riding everyday with Chris from Montana, a 66yo bundle of energy who is keeping Shane in his toes, and he's great company! Then on and off we are riding with the 3 English, Sam, Claire and Andy. Then there's the crazy kiwis, Sammy and Josh, and the English nutter Joe....every now and then others wizz by, Wolt, JD and Sanjay, all much faster than us, but keep showing up somehow! Campsites in the middle of nowhere, absolutely stunning. Instant mash potato with a tin of chili...dinnr most nights yum! Random restaurants in the wilderness....marked with nothing more than a knife and fork on the map...we are obsessed with the knife and fork, and it's the end of the world to find they are closed! Sunny days...see below for the downs, but man we are loving the sunny days! Camping in the middle of nowhere, and being buzzed at sunset by a pair of low flying USAF fighter jets what a buzz! Moose! We saw 2 young moose! Shane also made friends with a bear! Finally! I still haven't seen one, gutted! The downs (from Richelles point of view!): Torrential rain, muddy dirt roads and freezing temps from Upper Red Rock Lake to Island Park. I cracked it big time that day I was so wet and miserable. Luckily we waited out the rain for 2 days in a wonderful warm apartment! The freezing nights. We have been so blessed this last 4 days or so with spectacular warm sunny days...but it means spectacularly freezing nights, with the tent covered in ice inside and out each morning! I have a great -4 degree C sleeping bag, but I'm still cold at night, even wearing my whole wardrobe to bed! I think I'm getting used to it, but I can't wait for our special delivery of winter weight I/O Merino gear when we hit Colorado in a few weeks! Climbing, climbing and climbing some more, nearly 3,000m in the past 2 days, I think the kms are finally catching up, my little legs managed an average of 3.4km per hr on the last 7km climb. (With a number of midway meltdowns...why am I doing this again?!) I did consider today taking a week off and meeting Shane in Colorado (and miss the Great Basin), but for FOMO I'm sucking it up and keeping at it...I'm not allowed to whinge that I'm tired/cold/dead, and Shane's not allowed to whinge about me being too slow....haha wish us luck! Tomorrow we leave Pinedale and begin our trek toward the Great Basin, pulling some big kms each day to ensure we get to a water source each day. It will be flat but long as we head south to Colorado! And now I get to sleep in a warm comfy bed....night all!!! One of the great parts of this trip is getting the time to play with the "Vision" camera, our Olympus OM-D. Some pics... As we sit here having another rest day I thought it was time for me ( Shane ) to write about the trip thus far. So 5 weeks have gone by pretty dam quick. So far the trail has been everything I had hoped for. Beautiful scenery and some challenging weather conditions. We have had bushfires, snow, rain and 40+ degrees. We have crossed the divide 4 times so 28 to go :) After the initial slow and hard start for R i decided to take almost all of her gear in an Osprey pack we purchased. The ride has been much more pleasurable and faster for both us. I don't mind carrying the gear as it gives my legs a good solid work out every day. I like to ride hard up all the hills and passes just for the added challenge. The terrain has changed immensely. We started in mountains and glaciers to now riding through open fields with " hills " either side. We had a 2 day stop in Glacier National Park in the hope that we could see something but unfortunately the smoke was too thick. However we did have one of the best camp sites yet. Set amongst beautiful Cedar trees and picturesque Glacier lake. We have been saving money by swimming in the lakes as a bath Ahhhh so fresh. Canada turned out to be a LOT more expensive than we had planned so it has been great to be free camping the last 4 out of 5 nights. We have seen Deer, Cows, rabbits, foxes, woodpeckers but NO BEARS........... Camped by Lakes and in a field with no people and stayed in 2 motels :) In the next few days we will head into Butte Montana probably get a new chain for the bike and maybe a proper service. It seems the longer we travel the more we enjoy being away from the towns and people and on the open trail. I think this trip has already had a profound impact on both of us. As we go longer we are realising the things that really matter to us. Anyway no need for the deep and meaningful hahahaha. Loving life and trying to out ride the winter Shane After days on the highway dodging wildfires, last Saturday we rolled into Seeley Lake, absolutely wrecked after 120kms that day, and 100km the day before. Arriving at the Big Larch campground, we found our fellow cycling buddy Brian, who told us we could set up next to the camp host RV and camp for free. Always keen to save $10, we jumped at the chance....then we met the camp hosts, Dan and Bev Foster. These guys hail from Florida, and have spent their summer by the lake in Montana, volunteering as camp hosts, and generally looking after cyclists as they pass through town. First thing first...Bev is on it, "Can I get y'all a beer?". Then with his cheeky grin, Dan tells us that the girls, Marg and Rita popped by earlier, would I like to meet them? I looked at him cluelessly, what was this bloke on about? Who were these girls? Sniggering he strung me on for a few mins before he revealed that he was offering me a margarita! Haha we were definitely gonna be friends! And that was only the start....not just offering free camping, they gave us chairs (real comfy ones with backs!), a place to charge our stuff and let us store our food in the RV. Then they took us to town for burgers! Yum! Then it was breakfast time...wow! Dans famous homefries, scrambled eggs, sausages and toast with homemade huckleberry jam! All in the comfort of their super comfy RV. Yum! Brian literally rolled out of the campsite as he hit the road. Shane and i were having a rest day there, and well, it was raining, so what to do on a rainy day? Sit around in the warm and cosy RV talking rubbish with our new best friends, and watching back to back episodes of Reba and CSI on their cable TV of course! Oh look here, it's dinner time, and well our protestations of no, you have fed us enough, fell on deaf ears. For Dan had had his BBQ Pulled Chicken in the pressure cooker all arvo, and Bev had been to the market for fresh corn on the cob....well if we have to! So much yum, that chicken was to die for! We will be the first bike tourer's to get fat on tour I think! By then it was pretty chilly, but in case they hadn't spoilt us enough, they very kindly offered us showers inside their RV..with real towels! Bliss! We did manage to put our foot down however when we were offered their sofa bed to sleep on! Our tent keeps us plenty toasty! Their generosity surely knows no ends! And on our last morning we were sent off with French toast with sausages, plus leftover sausages for out on the trail. Man we were so spoilt! It's really the little bits of help we get here and there that we appreciate, but Dan and Bev blew that out of the water. Our time with them was truly one of the highlights of our trip so far, we felt part of the family. We had heard about trail Angels, and that's exactly what these guys were. We were so so sad to leave them...hopefully we can keep in touch....Bev and Dan you are one in a million!!! By Richelle Olsen - She Science Ambassador Last time we checked in we were cautiously looking forward to the Rogers Pass climb and its rather scary tunnels. Suffice to say, the climb was what Shane described as "LAME", with an incline averaging only about 2% for 70kms! And the tunnels were all super well lit, and as a result of some roadworks and an accident behind us, we didn't encounter any vehicles at all through any of them...winning!!! But the views were awesome!!! So after such an apparently lame climb, we pushed on to Golden, our biggest day yet, at 115km for the day...massive, I haven't done that kinda distance in years!! It was too long for Shane who decided to walk the last 6kms....nothing at all to do with blowing out the wall of his tyre or anything!!?? Just lucky it happened so close to town! Our digs for the night was a lovely Warm Showers host, Tanya, who offered free camping at the rear of her hostel, with shower and kitchen access. We hadn't seen almost any bike tourers till that point, but there were 7 of us camping there that night!! So new tyre on board....we pushed on and a few days later finally left the Trans Canada, such a relief, ahhh the quiet....temporary though, as we hit Lake Louise....gorgeous but wow thousands of people!!! Pics were taken and we escaped!! And then before we knew it....we were in Banff!!!!!! Wow can you believe it...we had made our start point!! 800kms cycled! Whoa that's massive! Super proud of ourselves!! Soo it's time to start the Great Dividing MTB Route....and that's what we did yesterday, the first 20km of the 4,400km trail!!! Yep it was freezing and pouring rain, but wow was it amazing to get on the trail...the peace and quiet! The trail is already way tougher than the road but it will be worth it! We have stopped for a day in Canmore to recover the legs and I haven't been feeling well...and to dry off our gear!! Back on the trail tomorrow!!! 3-4 days in the bush woo hoo!! Yep it was freezing and pouring rain, but wow was it amazing to get on the trail...the peace and quiet! The trail is already way tougher than the road but it will be worth it! We have stopped for a day in Canmore to recover the legs and I haven't been feeling well, and we needed to dry our gear! Back on the trail tomorrow!!! 3-4 days in the bush woo hoo!! |
Shane HuttonI am an ultra runner, Mountain biker, Packrafter, Climber, Ironman, Endurance Athlete Archives
December 2017
Categories
All
|