As the water does, so do we...

We made it! We are over the rockies... Well we haven't made it into Pueblo yet, but we are close! Last night we stayed in the beautiful and scenic town of Sargents CO. We camped in a cabin at the base of Monarch pass at the only building in town... or so it seemed.

Sargents actually ended up being fun. We met a family driving from Denver to Telluride and were staying at the half way point. (Don't worry we wont forget you!) I was thinking we would get to bed early and then hit the road at the crack of dawn... well the last half came true. We sat up late talking and I think some mischief occured... (wait until I get the photos downloaded)

Well at 5:15am Erik popped up and was ready to go... (Maybe he was concerned the owners might see the handy work?) By 5:30 we were climbing the ten miles and almost 2,500 vertical feet to the pass. Around 8:30 I was jumping up and down at the summit. Not because of the accomplishment, but because it was soooooooo cold... OK I was a little over joyed, but who wouldn't be?

After the summit we coasted for about 20 some odd miles and ate breakfast in the town of Selada... After we were hit smack in the face with 40-50+ mile an hour winds! It was the longest and hardest 45 miles I have ever pedaled... down hill that is...

Tomorrow we are going to attempt to make it to Pueblo... wind willing.

Happy Birthday Michael! I wont say how old... but it is a biggie!

Much love and keep the comments coming!

T

Rolling on and soon to be over.

Today Erik and I were saddened to see Jim go. I think he got enough pictures and video to make a short documentary. I am hoping he got enough... of what ever he needed, while with us...to feed his soul for a while.

Colorado has been magical. The amazing natural beauty, the fun, the gentle incline of the hills... Don't get me wrong... the miles have been tough, but for some reason Colorado makes them all feel ok.

We made into Gunnison today. The skies threatened, but with a little patience we have seemingly avoided the rain... for now. Erik is at the bike shop getting a tune up. I am hoping to wait until Pueblo (in three days) Today's ride followed a river and crossed a beautiful lake/reservoir. We met Jim at the top of one of the passes and sat and had lunch looking at the valley below and the Elk in the distance.

I'm a good tired right now, but that leaves me short for words... know that I have been thinking of you all and that it makes me smile...

Much love
T

In the clothing optional hot springs with Little Debbie

Before you go blaming him for this posting, I should tell you that this is NOT Tom writing. Nor is it Erik. Nor is it any of the local talent we met in the clothing optional hot springs in Ridgway, Colorado last night. But then that's another story.

No folks, the truth is, this is Jim Donahue doing the guest blogger today. I just happened to be cruising down Highway 50 out of Grand Junction last Friday night and who should I run into but Tom and Erik on their cute little bikes. And it's a good thing I spotted them when I did because the scenery out here is so fantastic that anyone could be forgiven for driving past a train wreck! The purple mountains majesty are definitely all that. Actually they're snow-capped mountains, and I'm talking lots of it too.

But I digress. First, here's your on-the-spot report on Tom and Erik: they both look fantastic, somewhat slimmer, definitely hairier, and lving large in the U.S. of A. They are in GREAT spirits and quite obviously having the time of their lives. They're a little unhappy with their forward momentum to date--not covering as many miles each day as they'd like--but if you could see the size of these hills you'd understand. Frankly, I think it's amazing they've come this far this fast.

They press on toward very definite goals each day, usually 40-60 miles depending on terrain, and are normally setting up camp or tucking in to some roadside motel around 5 or 6. How to describe living conditions? Let's see: think of a frat house without the house.

Last night was so beautiful that we literally slept under the stars. We set up the tent because it looked like it might rain, but we ended up around a campfire with the full moon shining. We laughed ourselves stupid making up a new game that we haven't quite named yet but which we will be patenting and selling to Parker Brothers (or maybe MTV) in the next few months, so keep your eyes open. There are many variations, but the main theme is to come up with oddly juxtaposed pairings. Like: timid bookeepers and drunken archers. Endlessly entertaining and highly adaptable to all sorts of variations. Food marketing spokescharacters were another topic. Imagine Little Debbie in a switchblade fight with the Pillsbury Dough Boy. The funniest part is to wait until everyone is almost asleep and then blurt out a new pairing. Hilarious.

If Tom and Erik are having as much fun on this whole trip as I've had with them in the last three days, then we all have reason to be jealous. Everyone we meet is friendlier than the next person and they are all fascinated with the cross-country aspect of this effort. I will miss being with them when I return to Philly on Tuesday.

I have lots of pictures and video, so if you'd like to see them, give me a shout--or your email. I will be making a photo album for Mercedes--as soon as I finish the Costa Rica one.

Tom and Erik send their love and hugs to everyone ; if any of you would like me to hug you for them when I return, please call or write. I promise to shower first.

I'll try and squeeze in one more posting before I head home.
Best to all,
Jim

Telluride from Dolores

Well we had to stay in Dolores afterall. I got another flat and I was running out of day light and inner tubes so we camped along the Dolores River. It was beautiful. The almost full moon crested right over the mountain on the other side of the river. The river glowed in the moonlight. We had a camp fire and then rested for the hike up Lizzard Head.

Yesterday we enjoyed the gentile climb out of Dolores. We were saw that we were lucky not to have pushed on the night before as the place we had planned to stop was closed. We ate lunch almost at the top of the pass at Rico.

The climb was set in a wonderful valley that had the Dolores River running along our side, pretty much the whole trip. Erik and I both missed the climb on the map that was right after the summit and had to put our aching legs back into climbing gear.

Last night we stayed at a friend of a friend of Erik's. Walter and Erin were generous hosts. They gave us a condo to sleep in and fed us. I think it was the company that made the night.

Today we are stuck in Telluride waiting on my bike to be fixed and for Jim to fly in and follow us for a few day in a car. It will be nice to have some company from home.

So one Rocky mountain down... several more to go...

Much love
T

UPDATE: Chrissy Donahue was able to move mountains and got me my tires here, on time. It is a good thing, the bike shop told me that the tires I had on the bike were severely dry rotted and could have caused problems... whew! Besides that they made a few adjustments to Erik's bike and we should be good to go for a while. Jim is on his way and should arrive in Telluride late and tomorrow we should be off into the Rockies!

T

State # 4

Well I'm re-hydrated and back on the road. Yesterday we rode into Colorado and for a moment I shed a few tears for Utah. I figured I had left some blood and lots of sweat... maybe she needed some tears to make her whole? Well To re-cap Utah.

What a beautiful state. We saw it in a very intimate way. I would recommend Utah to anyone who wants to see natural beauty at it's best. I bet every season is unique and wonderful... but... do it via something motorized! Or at least have someone follow you with a cooler of Dr. Pepper and spicy pork rinds.

Colorado... What can I say. We have been watching the snow capped mountains grow each mile we pedal. Colorado is greener than Utah and a little cooler. The roads are a series of ups and downs. Rolling hills so far. Yesterday I got my second flat tire. I had a wire, that looked like it came from a truck tire, embedded in my back tire. I have worn the tread down to nothing, so I was convinced that it was a tire related flat, not a puncture. Thank goodness it was a simple wire. Well we stayed in Dove Creek in a hotel owned by a fiber artist. I was able to fix the flat and patch the two inner tubes for later use. (the second tube was from my flat into Blanding)I am going to replace my tires in Telluride.

Today we got to ride right in the middle of a cattle drive. They were pushing the "doggies" right up the middle of the road. I loved watching the expressions of the horses and the cows. They seemed to be spooked by these, funny new creatures. At one point I was put in between a calf and it's mother... Thank goodness I was able to scoot out of the way in time. I am not sure the mother was going to stop.

We have made it to Dolores. This was supposed to be our destination, but I think we may eat and then push on to camp out somewhere past town. We have a few big climbs before we reach the pass at Monarch... so send us your energy... We will need it.

Much love all and thank you for all of your e-mails and comments. They really do help and keep the home sickness at bay.

Much love
T&E

PS... for those of you who are counting... 1219.5 miles and counting

Blanding... Gateway to adventure

So hello everyone from Blanding Utah! I will be so glad to get out of Utah... Well except for what's waiting for us next! The Rockies...

Utah has been so amazing. It has to be the most diverse terrain in the world. We have been in alpine and aspens... to lunar surfaces.

We camped in Boulder Utah a few days ago out of Bryce. It had been a long day and all of the motels were way to expensive so we hunkered down in a camp that was right out of a horror movie. We actually did a smudge to clear all of the bad vibes there. There were animal skeletons and all sorts of weird remnants of previous campers. I think if I ever get back this way I will skip Boulder!

Then we went on to Luna Mesa... (I think the town has a different name) The luna was right out of the Capital Reef National park. The luna was a quirky place, where the owner mentioned that it was common to see UFO's there all the time.

Capital Reef.....GO THERE! yes GO THERE and fast... it was amazing. We were on Bicycles and I felt like we were rushed. 50 million years of earth history there. The rest of that days ride was nice too.

We travelled to Hite on lake powell next. Hite was listed as a resort, restaurant, etc... on our map, but instead it was a ranger station with a closed down gas station. I've been to lake powell... dont go to Hite. That days ride was filled with at least four different kinds of landscape. The desert flowers we in total bloom and were very colorful.

Yesterday we rode into the rest of glen canyon and the whites. I got severely dehydrated and had to call for help to get me into town. A nice couple from Colorado drove me into Blanding and I started drinking fluids... Erik made the impressive, aw-inspiring ride in the dark and met me there around eleven last night. What an animal! Today I am still pretty sick, so I apologize for the brevity and lack of passion for Utah. I may edit this later.

We both needed a zero day and hopefully I'll be ready to ride tomorrow.

Well keep the comments coming... We appreciate the love.

T

Escalante Dreaming

Yesterday, We mosied into Ruby's inn around 1:00... We knew it was going to be cold so we got a room at the inn and Erik un-loaded to BOB and rode off to Bryce for a little. I hunkered down for a nap. Red canyon was amazing as well as all of the wash land. The whole ride was nice as much of it was on bike trails

Well we woke up this morning... We knew it was going to be cold, but we didn't know it was supposed to snow! Yes it was a blizzard, almost white out conditions... well it seemed that way. We stayed indoors until 11:00 and then headed out for Escalante.

About ten or so Miles we met a fellow Cross Country Trekker. He had started a few day before us, but has taken several small trips with friends and his family. Len was welcomed company today and he is camping with us tonight.

As far as some of the questions... BROOKSIE!!!!! My Saddle is well broken in now, so some days I am a little more sore than others, but for the most part... Things there are fine.

The weather is going to start getting warmer, so I am looking forward to shedding the leggings and the parka. Brrrrrrrrrr.

Keep the comments coming and Don't forget to keep us in your prayers.

Much love
T