TA 2 - September 15

Oh boy - that was a workout!  We earned every inch today. Certainly the toughest ride yet this year. We had either crosswinds or headwinds all day long. Ugh!

We had a bit of a later start today. We left Lander about 8, drove to where we finished yesterday’s ride at Jeffrey City, packed lunches, and had our map meeting. It was about 9:30 before we pulled out onto the road. There were times during the day when I checked my speed and wondered if I would be in before dark. Only a slight exaggeration......  In fact I was in about 4 but it was a struggle at times. Not much new to report from a scenery perspective. Lots more..... emptiness....... except with a new addition here and there of interesting rock formations and  sometimes mountains on the horizon.

At about 11 miles We came to the “Split Rock Pullout”. I just can’t imagine what those pioneers were thinking when they travelled through this landscape. “So - this is the promised land??”  Of course it was just a section of the route, and not their final destination, but still.....

Another couple of miles to a historic site that had signs with info about the Pony Express, the Indigenous peoples and the various trails that went through here. For all its notoriety, the Pony Express only operated for 18 months, at which point it was replaced by telegraph lines.

Thought I would throw in a couple of pictures where you can (sort of) see the road we were riding.

Even the downhills were a struggle today.  It was one of those days where I was in my small ring peddling hard while the GPS told me it was a -5% grade. Oh well......  some scenery to distract on the way up to the Continental Divide.

So - on this lovely day of headwinds we climbed to and crossed the Continental Divide not once, but twice. We could see the climb to the second crossing from at least ten miles away.

Thank goodness it was a gentle climb to the top.

A final 9 mile push into Rawlins, and the end of a very tough day. Congrats to all who persevered. Just checked the forecast for tomorrow. Guess what?  More headwinds; argh!

Stats for the day:
Jeffrey City WY to Rawlins WY
67 miles. 108 km.
2043 feet up. 1674 feet down.
Temps:  21C to 32C. Strong crosswinds and headwinds pretty much all day. Lots of sun and not a speck of shade anywhere.