Day 37, Hatchet Resort to Dubois, WY

Miles – 47

Ave Riding Speed – 3-29 mph

Hours Start to Finish – 6.5

Weather – Cloudy, Rainy, Partly Sunny and 75

Last night we slept on one of the comfiest beds on the trip. We went to bed about 10pm and did wake up until 5am, then rolled over and got up at 7:45am. After my blog post last night, I went to bring our bikes in from outside. Wouldn’t you know it, another flat front tire on my bike. That was frustrating! I went through the tire changing routine and it was not in the same place as my previous flat, so I changed it out and kept the old tube for a repairable spare. Then went to bed.

First thing I did was check my tire pressure in the morning to see if it held. It did! Then I put the wheel back on my bike. I made coffee on the fancy Keurig coffee maker and we went about showering and packing up. We were not moving to fast as we were not yet feeling any adrenalin for this morning’s climb to Togwotee Pass. Kim went to the little resort store and picked up a few things for the ride and returned with some Clif Bars, beef sticks, a muffin and Gatorade. Then she went to work on breakfast, our last two hamburger buns with peanut butter and jelly.

We rolled out of the Hatchet Resort at 9:45am heading east on Hwy 287/26 wearing our shorts and standard riding short sleeve shirts. Kim had done some reading up on what she could find, from fellow riders, about todays earlier journey to 9,658 feet. What she could find was the first 9 miles was the toughest and then 8.5 miles of better than tough.

We rolled along pretty good and could ride some of the inclines much better than a month ago and reverted to walking when the steady incline just kept going. About 8 miles up we stopped at Togwotee Lodge for a bathroom and snack break. We had chips and Gatorade and chatted with the young lady from Kansas. We met a group of 7 supported riders who stopped in also. They were heading east on the TransAmerica Trail. Those light road bikes look pretty awesome!

Once we left the Lodge, we continued on up the climb with some dark clouds appearing. After we got a couple miles farther the incline was less steep and we rode more than walked. I commented to Kim that it’s funny how we can lose our sense of “level” when doing these climbs. The only real way of knowing is the difficulty of pedaling.

At 16 miles up the thunder and dark clouds were above us and we felt a few raindrops, so we put on our light, neon yellow, Gore jackets for a little protection and warmth. As soon as we reached the pass it started to rain. Getting to any pass is especially rewarding. Today was no exception. We crossed the Continental Divide at 9,584 feet and a half mile further we crossed the monster pass for the day at 9,658 feet. We decided we should try and ride out of the rain and kept going through the decline. After about 10 miles the rain let up and a little sun came out and we pulled into the Lava Mountain Lodge for a break. We parked on the wood sidewalk under the overhang. Before we could step inside the rain started to fall hard. We were very happy we stopped and walked inside. One of the staff asked if we brought the rain with us and then thanked us for it. I asked if I could pour a cup of coffee and he said it from this morning and to have at it, it’s on the house. So, I did. I needed just a little something to take the chill out.

After waiting out the rain and seeing a little sunshine we mounted up and continued on our route. 10 miles up we ran into road construction. They were laying some new tar. We stopped at the flagger guy and he said to continue on and keep an eye out for the one lane traffic. We road through and continued a nice ride into Dubois. 

As we rode through town, we noticed a town with old charm character, wide streets, old with new buildings and friendly people. Our destination was the St. Thomas Episcopal Church where they have a hiker/biker ministry. We rolled around the 90-degree turn heading south and there it was. We crossed the street to find a couple ladies putting up the church’s July 4^th Ice Cream Social side on the boulevard. We chatted and then Connie showed us to the building adjoining the church. It’s a large meeting room with conference room tables covered with picnic table clothes. She said they accommodate up to 8 people per night. Connie asked if I could help them staple their signs together and I was happy to be of service. So far, it’s just Kim and I in the room for the night. All Connie asked was that we put the room back to the way we found it. The idea of not having to put up our tent and have a bathroom feels pretty good. We made a donation for their ministry.

After laying out our stuff and getting to recharging our bike lights we set off for something to eat.  Anything but hamburgers! We found Noon Rock Pizza. Kim and I split a cider and each had a side salad and our own small pizza.  Leftovers are for breakfast. On the walk back Kim said she needed something sweet. We passed a lady on the sidewalk selling cookies and pie, so we bought some peanut butter chocolate chips cookies for an evening treat while we update our social media sites.