I had a chance to stop in at the Cedar Cycles bike shop in Cedar City yesterday to get everything cleaned and greased up. I picked up a new chain and got a nice new pair of shorts, too. I really like hanging out in these shops because the workers and other patrons all seem to understand what's going on. Ever since I've come into Utah, I've felt like somewhat of a sideshow. It's fun at first, but it can be tiring answering the same questions and pretending to care about other peoples' lame excuse for a vacation as they try to compare their trip to mine.
This begins the part of the route which is defined by the lack of towns and services. I've had a couple of tough days, but there was always a town to look forward to at night. Not anymore. The goal for today is Cedar City to Wah Wah Summit; a total of 89 miles. Wah Wah Summit is not a town, it is literally just the summit of the Wah Wah mountain range. If I make it there, it puts me about fifty miles from the next town, so if I pack enough water for the day and next morning, I should make it.
I've strapped a few extra liters of water to the racks and I'm confident that I'll be ok. I try to hydrate a lot overnight and in the mornings before I go so I always keep enough fluids flowing through that I don't become desperate halfway through the day. It has worked well so far. I only need half of one bottle to cook my rice for the night, so I'm in good shape.
And we're off.
The geography out here basically consists of a recurring pattern of range-valley-range-valley. I climb for about two hours, then start a descent into the valley from which I can see the entire length of the road and into the next climb. It's actually pretty impressive, but it messes with my mind.
The climbing isn't that steep or difficult, but it's a consistent grade for about fifteen miles. After a little while, the uphill starts to feel like flat ground and my orientation recalibrates. By the time I reach the top, it looks a lot steeper than it is. At the bottom of the descent, the valley is totally flat for twelve to fifteen miles, but it still feels like downhill. This is a very odd sensation. I feel like it should be easier to pedal across the valley because my perception is out of alignment with reality, so effort required to cross the valley conflicts with my minds idea of what it should take.
It's hard to describe, obviously, but these range-valley combos really do play psychological games with my senses.
Anyway, none of the riding is too difficult, especially after the last two huge mountains I dealt with.
I eventually made it to the summit of Wah Wah, pushed my bike a ways into the wilderness and quickly set up camp. I had been taking a little rain for the last few hours, so I wasn't going to wait around for the real storm and be stuck setting up in the pouring rain. Luckily, soon after I finished erecting my tent and stashing everything inside, the rain did come and in full force. I hid, cozy and dry, as the rain fell. I pulled out my recorder and played some tunes as I listened to the rain and thunder.
Periodically, the rain would slow enough for me to get out and walk around a bit. I decided to snap a photo of my campsite and cook up some rice. I have a little film case of Old Bay seasoning which makes anything bearable, so I ate four servings of white rice with a little maritime flavor.
I was very pleased with the site I chose for camping and satisfied with my first "stealth camping" experience. The rain put a bit of a damper on the whole cowboy-by-the-campfire fantasy, but I made due with my environment. Next time I hope to set up a nice fire and live out the old Western image of the lonesome traveler leaning against the tree before the crackling flames.
Time for bed. Not sure what tomorrow holds, other than more of the exact same ridge-valley progression. For a desert, it sure does rain a lot. I'll be in Nevade tomorrow! Only about 8 more days until I coast down the California hills into San Francisco...
Location:Wah Wah Summit, UT
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