Destination: Ash Camp, McCloud River
Miles: 29
Adrian:
The smoke has cleared...for today at least. We woke at 5:50 a.m. to a grand view of Mount Shasta bathed in the purple glow of sunrise. The visibility has improved dramatically and is the best since several hundred miles ago. Thanks for sending out those prayers for us. It worked!
The trail was more or less the same as yesterday with stands of beautiful pine trees towering hundreds of feet overhead mixed with clear-cut tracts overgrown with 10-foot high manzanita/creosote hell plants. The terrain was rolling except for a 1,000-foot plus climb in the morning. The tread was mostly kind though dusty, as per usual.
We are now in lower elevations ranging from 5,000 feet to 2,000 feet above sea level. The temperatures are in the 90s and feel much hotter when hiking through overgrown scrub brush. On the other hand, when in the majestic pine stands, the canopy totally blocks all sunlight and makes the midday temps much more tolerable.
Water, while still scarce, has become more available thanks to more springs. We still have 15-mile dry sections but only one or so a day.
Two more days till Mount Shasta City and badly needed showers and laundry. We won't zero, but we will stay in a motel for the night. Hopefully we'll get some new pictures uploaded at an Internet cafe. Ciao!
Kirsten:
OK, $20 we don't stay in Mount Shasta City.
You'll never understand how clear skies can change your spirits until you've hiked a month in haziness. Waking up to Mount Shasta - to be able to see it - was amazing. The morning flew by, in part because of the clarity.
I'm looking forward to catching up with (or having others catch us) some of our friends. The trail is so much more fun with our peeps.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
July 27, 2008 Pacific Crest Trail
Destination: Saddle near Bartle Gap
Miles: 23.5
Adrian:
The trail today was very much overgrown with manzanita and creosote, two very strong and tough shrub types. This does two things; shred your legs if you're not wearing pants, and breaks any breeze that might be swirling above you with the cooling power you need to keep from getting drenched in sweat. At least the trail was easy to follow with the help of tape on trees.
We walked through a mixture of awesome pine forests, clear cuts, and oak groves. This morning we crossed a big dam on Lake Britton. Water was gushing out the base and slamming into concrete dividers creating quite a spectacle. On the trail with us were Moonshine, Tiger Lily, Kathleen, iPod, Chris and Johnny Cache. Yep, we caught those two again. It's kinda fun catching people and being caught on the trail. It can totally change the dynamic of your hike.
Well, it's getting dark and my stuff is laying all over the place here in camp. Kirsten is in the tent and I'm headed there now. Good night and God bless you all.
Kirsten:
I had big aspirations of hiking 25 or more miles today and ended up completely bonking out. We still managed to eck out 23 miles or so. I guess it's sort of comforting that even on the hard days I can still manage to hike more than 20 miles.
I still can't quite believe that we've passed Burney Falls State Park. I remember back in April packing up our food boxes and thinking, "Will we ever reach Burney?" It seemed so far at the time.
A word about section O, the part of the trail we're walking through. I've been warned about it for some time now. The highlights up to this point have been poison oak so thick it's impossible to avoid and large clear-cut areas. Not exactly the most picturesque section. There have been a few beautiful sections of forest and I hope they don't suffer the same fate as some of these other logging areas. I'm not going to go on some environmental tirade. It's just a little sad to walk amongst these giant and then come upon a clear-cut area.
Miles: 23.5
Adrian:
The trail today was very much overgrown with manzanita and creosote, two very strong and tough shrub types. This does two things; shred your legs if you're not wearing pants, and breaks any breeze that might be swirling above you with the cooling power you need to keep from getting drenched in sweat. At least the trail was easy to follow with the help of tape on trees.
We walked through a mixture of awesome pine forests, clear cuts, and oak groves. This morning we crossed a big dam on Lake Britton. Water was gushing out the base and slamming into concrete dividers creating quite a spectacle. On the trail with us were Moonshine, Tiger Lily, Kathleen, iPod, Chris and Johnny Cache. Yep, we caught those two again. It's kinda fun catching people and being caught on the trail. It can totally change the dynamic of your hike.
Well, it's getting dark and my stuff is laying all over the place here in camp. Kirsten is in the tent and I'm headed there now. Good night and God bless you all.
Kirsten:
I had big aspirations of hiking 25 or more miles today and ended up completely bonking out. We still managed to eck out 23 miles or so. I guess it's sort of comforting that even on the hard days I can still manage to hike more than 20 miles.
I still can't quite believe that we've passed Burney Falls State Park. I remember back in April packing up our food boxes and thinking, "Will we ever reach Burney?" It seemed so far at the time.
A word about section O, the part of the trail we're walking through. I've been warned about it for some time now. The highlights up to this point have been poison oak so thick it's impossible to avoid and large clear-cut areas. Not exactly the most picturesque section. There have been a few beautiful sections of forest and I hope they don't suffer the same fate as some of these other logging areas. I'm not going to go on some environmental tirade. It's just a little sad to walk amongst these giant and then come upon a clear-cut area.
July 26, 2008 Pacific Crest Trail
Destination: Burney Falls State Park Campground
Miles: 20
Adrian:
We are camped at Burney Falls State Park campground in the hiker/biker sites. The only other person sharing the site with us is Joel, a PCTer.
Burney Falls starts as a dry creek and in a half mile becomes California's biggest waterfall in terms of volume; bigger than any of the falls in Yosemite. It's secret is a series of springs that start as a trickle and soon become a raging torrent.
The park has a nice store where we bought a hotdog and some soda while picking up the resupply box we sent here. Moonshine, Tiger Lily, and iPod are with us. Since we packed to much food in the box way back in April, they got to score some free food. Most of the stuff was from Trader Joe's, so we are eating well this stretch.
Smoke still limits visibility and thus our views of Mount Shasta. It's been real hazy since Mammoth at mile 906. Crazy. There's another fire near Etna that I hear has been out for some time but still has 20 miles of the PCT closed causing a 40-mile road walk. We hope the trail will be reopened by the time we get up there.
All is well. I hope everyone will pray for less smoke and fire in Cali!
Kirsten:
We woke up this morning and jetted down to our next on trail water about seven miles north. The dust and heat seemed a little better today. Although the promise of food - real food - at the Burney Falls campground may have eased any discomfort caused by the blazing sun.
I was shocked by how much food we sent ourselves. How could we have been that far off? We probably packed seven days of food in the box we shipped to Burney Falls. The food amounts were off. Way off. The food choices we made were brilliant. Chocolate-covered espresso beans, for one. The joy we got out of opening the box and tearing through the contents made me realize how much we or at least I think, dream, and obsess about food. I wasn't like this before getting on the trail. There were the occasional cravings usually centered around a favorite dish at a restaurant. These days I think about food all the time. Sometimes I imagine what I might buy in the next town. Other times I reminisce about meals in my past. It's sort of sad and scary when I think of how many hours I spend daydreaming about food while I hike. So you ask, what did I eat today once we arrived at the campground? Hmmmm. A hot dog, soda, ice cream bar, tortilla chips and then an assortment of snacks from our box!
Then I had dinner.
Miles: 20
Adrian:
We are camped at Burney Falls State Park campground in the hiker/biker sites. The only other person sharing the site with us is Joel, a PCTer.
Burney Falls starts as a dry creek and in a half mile becomes California's biggest waterfall in terms of volume; bigger than any of the falls in Yosemite. It's secret is a series of springs that start as a trickle and soon become a raging torrent.
The park has a nice store where we bought a hotdog and some soda while picking up the resupply box we sent here. Moonshine, Tiger Lily, and iPod are with us. Since we packed to much food in the box way back in April, they got to score some free food. Most of the stuff was from Trader Joe's, so we are eating well this stretch.
Smoke still limits visibility and thus our views of Mount Shasta. It's been real hazy since Mammoth at mile 906. Crazy. There's another fire near Etna that I hear has been out for some time but still has 20 miles of the PCT closed causing a 40-mile road walk. We hope the trail will be reopened by the time we get up there.
All is well. I hope everyone will pray for less smoke and fire in Cali!
Kirsten:
We woke up this morning and jetted down to our next on trail water about seven miles north. The dust and heat seemed a little better today. Although the promise of food - real food - at the Burney Falls campground may have eased any discomfort caused by the blazing sun.
I was shocked by how much food we sent ourselves. How could we have been that far off? We probably packed seven days of food in the box we shipped to Burney Falls. The food amounts were off. Way off. The food choices we made were brilliant. Chocolate-covered espresso beans, for one. The joy we got out of opening the box and tearing through the contents made me realize how much we or at least I think, dream, and obsess about food. I wasn't like this before getting on the trail. There were the occasional cravings usually centered around a favorite dish at a restaurant. These days I think about food all the time. Sometimes I imagine what I might buy in the next town. Other times I reminisce about meals in my past. It's sort of sad and scary when I think of how many hours I spend daydreaming about food while I hike. So you ask, what did I eat today once we arrived at the campground? Hmmmm. A hot dog, soda, ice cream bar, tortilla chips and then an assortment of snacks from our box!
Then I had dinner.
July 25, 2008 Pacific Crest Trail
Destination: Near Road 36N18 in a Lava Bed
Miles: 23
Adrian:
We stayed at Subway Cave Campground last night after hiking into the dark. Lots of people were there and only a few spots next to the highway were still available.
After leaving camp around 6:30 a.m., a short stroll to the Subway Cave led us to the 25'x50' entrance to the lava tube. The walls and floor were quite smooth and the ceiling arched just like a subway. There was a total lack of any stalactites or stalagmites as one would find in a karst limestone cavern. We did need headlamps and jackets, as it was cold and over a third of a mile long.
After leaving the cave we began our 30-mile waterless section. The trail climbed up to Hat Creek Rim, a fault line basically. The area burned back in the 80's if I remember correctly, and now it is a totally exposed, crazy hot section. Lots of lava around gives it a Vulcan's Realm look and feel.
We hooked up with Glowworm for a bit, who is recovering from a nasty spider bite. While visiting the doctor for treatment, he was told for the second time this trip (first time was for an infected blister) that the current ailment would most likely take him off the trail. Guess what? He's still on and hanging in there. He's a toughy.
Just before camp I spotted a cute looking owl and we spent a few minutes blinking at each other no more than 20 feet apart. He flew away before I could show Kirsten. Shortly after that encounter, I was surprised by a nice sized garner snake basking on the trail. It was nice to see some other living beings on the trail again (other than just PCTers, who are also becoming more scarce these days). Good times...
Kirsten:
Ever hike through fine powdered hot chocolate mix - you know, the gourmet stuff that comes in a large metal can? That's what I did today. Only the powdery mix was dirt.
This superfine talcum powder is amazingly sticky. With every step little dust plumes rise into the air, attaching itself to my legs, hands and pack.
My time in the desert was the perfect prep course for Hat Creek Rim. The oftentimes-stifling heat didn't slow me down as much as I had expected. The hike started out pretty nice this morning as we rose from the valley floor up to the rim. The temperature was manageable until about 1 p.m. It was around that time I started to fade and hourly breaks became necessary. Thankfully, there are two water caches along this 30-mile dry section.
The views today, and just about every other day the past two weeks, are limited at best. Smoke from area fires has settled on the horizon, blotting out the mountains including Lassen Peak and Mount Shasta. I thought back to a time on the trail when the sky was bluebird clear. And I realized there has been a smoky haze for at least part of the day since Mammoth Lakes. That was mile 950. My mind these days is focused on possible fires north of here and I wonder, will the whole trail be up in flames by the end of summer?
Miles: 23
Adrian:
We stayed at Subway Cave Campground last night after hiking into the dark. Lots of people were there and only a few spots next to the highway were still available.
After leaving camp around 6:30 a.m., a short stroll to the Subway Cave led us to the 25'x50' entrance to the lava tube. The walls and floor were quite smooth and the ceiling arched just like a subway. There was a total lack of any stalactites or stalagmites as one would find in a karst limestone cavern. We did need headlamps and jackets, as it was cold and over a third of a mile long.
After leaving the cave we began our 30-mile waterless section. The trail climbed up to Hat Creek Rim, a fault line basically. The area burned back in the 80's if I remember correctly, and now it is a totally exposed, crazy hot section. Lots of lava around gives it a Vulcan's Realm look and feel.
We hooked up with Glowworm for a bit, who is recovering from a nasty spider bite. While visiting the doctor for treatment, he was told for the second time this trip (first time was for an infected blister) that the current ailment would most likely take him off the trail. Guess what? He's still on and hanging in there. He's a toughy.
Just before camp I spotted a cute looking owl and we spent a few minutes blinking at each other no more than 20 feet apart. He flew away before I could show Kirsten. Shortly after that encounter, I was surprised by a nice sized garner snake basking on the trail. It was nice to see some other living beings on the trail again (other than just PCTers, who are also becoming more scarce these days). Good times...
Kirsten:
Ever hike through fine powdered hot chocolate mix - you know, the gourmet stuff that comes in a large metal can? That's what I did today. Only the powdery mix was dirt.
This superfine talcum powder is amazingly sticky. With every step little dust plumes rise into the air, attaching itself to my legs, hands and pack.
My time in the desert was the perfect prep course for Hat Creek Rim. The oftentimes-stifling heat didn't slow me down as much as I had expected. The hike started out pretty nice this morning as we rose from the valley floor up to the rim. The temperature was manageable until about 1 p.m. It was around that time I started to fade and hourly breaks became necessary. Thankfully, there are two water caches along this 30-mile dry section.
The views today, and just about every other day the past two weeks, are limited at best. Smoke from area fires has settled on the horizon, blotting out the mountains including Lassen Peak and Mount Shasta. I thought back to a time on the trail when the sky was bluebird clear. And I realized there has been a smoky haze for at least part of the day since Mammoth Lakes. That was mile 950. My mind these days is focused on possible fires north of here and I wonder, will the whole trail be up in flames by the end of summer?
July 24, 2008 Pacific Crest Trail
Destination: Subway Cave Campground, Old Station
Miles: 25
Adrian:
We had to do 21 miles before 5 p.m., when we thought the Hat Creek store closed. We did the miles but really didn't need to because we found out that they do not close until 7. Oh well, we got milk shakes, burgers and beer as a reward.
The day was hot but the miles were relatively easy due to a good tread and downhills from high in Lassen National Park.
Lassen is like a mini Yellowstone with lots of hydrothermic formations such as mud pots, vents and geysers. It's much less developed than Yellowstone, so one can get much closer to the attractions here due to fewer restrictions.
Tonight we are camped next to a big cave complex, really lava tubes, and plan to explore it in the morning. You need headlamps and jackets for the unguided trip and I'm excited to check it out.
We will forego the birthday party at the Heitmann's tonight in order to keep moving along.
Stay tuned for caving tomorrow!
Miles: 25
Adrian:
We had to do 21 miles before 5 p.m., when we thought the Hat Creek store closed. We did the miles but really didn't need to because we found out that they do not close until 7. Oh well, we got milk shakes, burgers and beer as a reward.
The day was hot but the miles were relatively easy due to a good tread and downhills from high in Lassen National Park.
Lassen is like a mini Yellowstone with lots of hydrothermic formations such as mud pots, vents and geysers. It's much less developed than Yellowstone, so one can get much closer to the attractions here due to fewer restrictions.
Tonight we are camped next to a big cave complex, really lava tubes, and plan to explore it in the morning. You need headlamps and jackets for the unguided trip and I'm excited to check it out.
We will forego the birthday party at the Heitmann's tonight in order to keep moving along.
Stay tuned for caving tomorrow!
July 23, 2008 Pacific Crest Trail
Destination: Summit Lake Junction
Miles: 21
Adrian:
We woke up this morning at 7:30 a.m. for our rendezvous with Frodo for the bike return. I ate yogurt, an Odwalla Super Protein fruit juice, and a fresh mango. I hear the yogurt offers probiotics to help replace the good bacteria in my gut being killed off by water treatments we've been using. The mango and fruit juice is to stave off scurvy :)
Frodo showed at 9:30 and we drove to the trail on Highway 36. Gazelle was there, as was Squatch, Mike and Kat.
Yeti caught us again. We haven't seen him for more than 900 miles. I'm happy to hike with him again.
The days walk was through thick evergreen forests with trees over 200 feet tall. Big Jeffery Pine cones littered the floor of the forest. We passed many Forest Service roads and the trail was well marked.
At mile 16 for the day we hit the Terminal Geyser. More steam vents than geyser, hot air and boiling water jetted from holes in the earth. Scalding water flowed from the spring and the rotten egg smell of sulfur hung thick in the hot, moist air. Kirsten scolded me for walking too close to a vent.
A mile later we hit the junction to Drakesbad. A German immigrant from the late 1800's (I think) started the resort. It features hot springs, a main lodge, dining lodge and several cabins. Kirsten insisted we go, so I was trapped. I'm glad we did. For $10 we ate a full BBQ buffet with steak and hot dogs with all the fixins. They even served Gallo wines out of 5-gallon boxes...bliss.
We are camped with the "6 pack". More on them tomorrow. They are a fun group. A birthday party is coming up tomorrow as well, so stay tuned!
Kirsten:
Guess what happens when you follow Adrian. You get to watch him nearly burn his fingers off in scalding hot water. On this 0.2-mile detour off the PCT, visitors can walk along a path with steam vents and small mudpots. Giant red signs, maybe three or more, strategically located near the boiling creeks and vents. These signs basically say stay on the path and don't touch anything. This is about the time Adrian dipped his hand in some water and ten paces later stepped off the path to "get a closer look."
An hour later we were sitting with some other PCTers sipping wine and eating steak. Drakesbad, which has a hot springs pool, was awesome. I wish our stay was longer - at least to squeeze in a soak.
So the six-pack is Evie, Spaceman Spiff, Six Toes, V-nick, Treebeard and Jellybean. Glo-worm also is part of the 6-pack. The 6-pack were among the few hikers who roadwalked the fire closure. Spaceman Spiff and I were talking and I noticed Spiff was wearing a pair of Prana pants that looked just like the ripped ones I had placed in the hiker box at the Saufley's. It turns out Spiff rescued and repaired the pants and has been wearing them ever since. Spiff is clearly much more crafty than I. The 6-pack are always laughing and generally having a good time. I'm looking forward to hanging out with them over the next couple weeks if we stay on a similar pace.
Miles: 21
Adrian:
We woke up this morning at 7:30 a.m. for our rendezvous with Frodo for the bike return. I ate yogurt, an Odwalla Super Protein fruit juice, and a fresh mango. I hear the yogurt offers probiotics to help replace the good bacteria in my gut being killed off by water treatments we've been using. The mango and fruit juice is to stave off scurvy :)
Frodo showed at 9:30 and we drove to the trail on Highway 36. Gazelle was there, as was Squatch, Mike and Kat.
Yeti caught us again. We haven't seen him for more than 900 miles. I'm happy to hike with him again.
The days walk was through thick evergreen forests with trees over 200 feet tall. Big Jeffery Pine cones littered the floor of the forest. We passed many Forest Service roads and the trail was well marked.
At mile 16 for the day we hit the Terminal Geyser. More steam vents than geyser, hot air and boiling water jetted from holes in the earth. Scalding water flowed from the spring and the rotten egg smell of sulfur hung thick in the hot, moist air. Kirsten scolded me for walking too close to a vent.
A mile later we hit the junction to Drakesbad. A German immigrant from the late 1800's (I think) started the resort. It features hot springs, a main lodge, dining lodge and several cabins. Kirsten insisted we go, so I was trapped. I'm glad we did. For $10 we ate a full BBQ buffet with steak and hot dogs with all the fixins. They even served Gallo wines out of 5-gallon boxes...bliss.
We are camped with the "6 pack". More on them tomorrow. They are a fun group. A birthday party is coming up tomorrow as well, so stay tuned!
Kirsten:
Guess what happens when you follow Adrian. You get to watch him nearly burn his fingers off in scalding hot water. On this 0.2-mile detour off the PCT, visitors can walk along a path with steam vents and small mudpots. Giant red signs, maybe three or more, strategically located near the boiling creeks and vents. These signs basically say stay on the path and don't touch anything. This is about the time Adrian dipped his hand in some water and ten paces later stepped off the path to "get a closer look."
An hour later we were sitting with some other PCTers sipping wine and eating steak. Drakesbad, which has a hot springs pool, was awesome. I wish our stay was longer - at least to squeeze in a soak.
So the six-pack is Evie, Spaceman Spiff, Six Toes, V-nick, Treebeard and Jellybean. Glo-worm also is part of the 6-pack. The 6-pack were among the few hikers who roadwalked the fire closure. Spaceman Spiff and I were talking and I noticed Spiff was wearing a pair of Prana pants that looked just like the ripped ones I had placed in the hiker box at the Saufley's. It turns out Spiff rescued and repaired the pants and has been wearing them ever since. Spiff is clearly much more crafty than I. The 6-pack are always laughing and generally having a good time. I'm looking forward to hanging out with them over the next couple weeks if we stay on a similar pace.
July 22, 2008 Pacific Crest Trail
Destination: Seneca Motel, Chester
Miles: 46
Adrian:
The alarm went off at 5:15 a.m. in order to assure an early start to avoid some of the midday heat. We froze for the first few miles though, especially our hands on the downhills. Cold but fun. I'm amazed how fast the miles go compared to walking. We stopped at Anna's in Greenville for breakfast just before the big 1,200-foot climb of the day up to Canyon Dam. That was hard.
The road, a scenic byway, had many logging trucks clearing trees from the Moonlight Fire last year. Coupled with very small road shoulders, the ride through the canyons was quite frightening at times. Hills were abundant, but with the uphills also came the downhills. I think it ended with a net climb of around 1,500 feet.
Arriving at Canyon Dam, we saw Squatch, Gazelle, High Octane and Nathan at the store. They had some boxes forwarded there from Belden, which is where the trail normally goes through, but not this year due to fires. These hikers are road walking the 84-mile road detour, a noble cause.
The route joins a bike path off the highway and into trees. It went around about half the lake before ending back on highway 89. We continued on the highway until Highway 36 where we turned east towards Chester, and stayed the night in the Seneca Motel. Another typical hiker motel.
I feel good about not skipping the road section even though we did bike it instead of walking. I have a hard time understanding why people are skipping so much of the trail. Some trail angels are recommending a big skip and that might be influencing some people. Hike your own hike, but if you are going to skip a section, go back and finish it as a section hiker before saying you've hiked the trail. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
Kirsten:
The day started and ended with my bottom aching. The ride out of Quincy started well, a nice bike lane, a cool even cold climate. Within a few miles the lane ended and we were left with little to no shoulder. At first this didn't really bother me. The traffic on this scenic byway became busier with logging trucks, semis and fire-related trucks as our ride continued. About four miles from Canyon Dam I had a scary moment. As I began to slow down and pull over for a semi - which I heard coming up behind me - I lost my balance. The wind gusts created from the passing truck caused me to fall over onto the shoulder. I was a couple of feet from the road at the time. This small fact didn't ease my nerves and I shakily rode up a mile more before reaching Adrian. Thankfully, Cuddles told us about a bike path from Canyon Dam almost up to Chester. The 8 or 9-mile reprieve from traffic was nothing short of a miracle.
I'm still glad we did the ride. Something new on our adventure up to Canada. But any little dreams I had of biking back home after the hike have been permanently shelved.
Miles: 46
Adrian:
The alarm went off at 5:15 a.m. in order to assure an early start to avoid some of the midday heat. We froze for the first few miles though, especially our hands on the downhills. Cold but fun. I'm amazed how fast the miles go compared to walking. We stopped at Anna's in Greenville for breakfast just before the big 1,200-foot climb of the day up to Canyon Dam. That was hard.
The road, a scenic byway, had many logging trucks clearing trees from the Moonlight Fire last year. Coupled with very small road shoulders, the ride through the canyons was quite frightening at times. Hills were abundant, but with the uphills also came the downhills. I think it ended with a net climb of around 1,500 feet.
Arriving at Canyon Dam, we saw Squatch, Gazelle, High Octane and Nathan at the store. They had some boxes forwarded there from Belden, which is where the trail normally goes through, but not this year due to fires. These hikers are road walking the 84-mile road detour, a noble cause.
The route joins a bike path off the highway and into trees. It went around about half the lake before ending back on highway 89. We continued on the highway until Highway 36 where we turned east towards Chester, and stayed the night in the Seneca Motel. Another typical hiker motel.
I feel good about not skipping the road section even though we did bike it instead of walking. I have a hard time understanding why people are skipping so much of the trail. Some trail angels are recommending a big skip and that might be influencing some people. Hike your own hike, but if you are going to skip a section, go back and finish it as a section hiker before saying you've hiked the trail. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
Kirsten:
The day started and ended with my bottom aching. The ride out of Quincy started well, a nice bike lane, a cool even cold climate. Within a few miles the lane ended and we were left with little to no shoulder. At first this didn't really bother me. The traffic on this scenic byway became busier with logging trucks, semis and fire-related trucks as our ride continued. About four miles from Canyon Dam I had a scary moment. As I began to slow down and pull over for a semi - which I heard coming up behind me - I lost my balance. The wind gusts created from the passing truck caused me to fall over onto the shoulder. I was a couple of feet from the road at the time. This small fact didn't ease my nerves and I shakily rode up a mile more before reaching Adrian. Thankfully, Cuddles told us about a bike path from Canyon Dam almost up to Chester. The 8 or 9-mile reprieve from traffic was nothing short of a miracle.
I'm still glad we did the ride. Something new on our adventure up to Canada. But any little dreams I had of biking back home after the hike have been permanently shelved.
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