Day 62: Rawlins, WY to Jeffery City, WY

Back to reality. Our hearts and trailers are heavy as we said goodbye to our friends Sara, Jess, Tracee and Carrie this morning. The good news is - we had a lot of fun these past few days!

Steamboat Springs rocked. We arrived on the scene about 1:00 on Saturday. I was the proud owner of a brand new pair of cowboy boots at 1:05. We'd seen signs for a store called F.M. Light for the last 100 miles of biking and the advertising really worked! To top it off all eight of us bought tickets to the rodeo that night. Can't pass that up!

We shopped for a while in Steamboat Springs, something the Buys on Bikes don't do very often. We also stretched out in the sun on the grass in front of the County Courthouse, something we do all too often. We tried to get a ride in on the Alpine Howler, a downhill bobsled course on wheels instead of snow, but lightning closed it down two minutes before we got there. It just wasn't meant to be. Mexican food WAS meant to be, however - we beelined straight for Rio Grande in the face of the oncoming storm and ate at least 10 bowls of chips and salsa. A proud moment. As an exercise in self control I won't describe our lunch any further.

The rodeo was just back across the street, and it rained very solidly for a half hour before it started. The clouds parted, the sun set spectacularly, and the rodeo began. Only 58% of us had ever seen a rodeo before! We followed along in the program as best we could and were very concerned about the intermission when the children chased a calf and a lamb trying to get the ribbon off its tail for a prize. Maybe those of you originally from the West think this is funny, but we were all worried about the lamb and calf and the three year old kids almost getting trampled. It's different out here.

We left the rodeo for the only thing that could possibly make us leave something like that early - HOT SPRINGS! We had heard the springs were a little bit shady, but they were really great. The stars were out and the spring were incredibly relaxing, especially after biking for 2 months. It was fantastic to lounge in the pools staring up at the sky.

It certainly made camping out in Walden when we got back SUPER COLD. We were still somewhere around 8000 feet and it doesn't feel like August out here.

Next morning in Walden we went back to the same restaurant for the fourth time and ordered the "usual". Then we sped off to Encampment and had a wonderful ride in the sunshine with two pace cars following. Those were pretty much the only cars we saw on the ride. We'd heard southern Wyoming was boring and ugly, but it was just the opposite - rolling expanses, beautiful fields... maybe it was the company.

We reached Riverside before Encampment and got tangled up in the local politics. They had the nicest city park we'd ever seen, but the previous Mayor owned the campground, so a giant "NO CAMPING" sign was erected. The promising news was that the Mayor quit two days before we arrived, so I called the current-Mayor-in-charge at her home. On Sunday. Apparently this was OK in Wyoming, as the shop owner wrote down her number and handed me the phone. It wasn't meant to be - no camping in Riverside.

We moved on to Encampment, which I still don't understand as a separate entity from Riverside. They are about 100 feet apart. Encampment DID allow camping, however - one VERY important difference. They also had the MOUNTAINMAN RENDEZVOUS, which ranks up there as one of our top favorite things we've done on this adventure. Imagine a hundred people or so gathered together in a big meadow and living life as though it were 1830. Incredible. Teepees, 'hawk throwing (that's tomahawk for the uninitiated), cooking contests, black powder rifles... they had it all. The best part was that they welcomed us as lost children from another century. We competed, we were fed, and we had a blast. Our own Jess won the Women's Hawk (this was an amateur competition not to be confused with the current Olympics). Apparently she grew up with a 'hawk range in her backyard, explaining her prowess. Carrie and Tracee also placed very high in the Frying Pan Toss.

We headed over to a lesser yet still relaxing hot springs in Saratoga, which was more like a hot pool with some people yelling across it, and returned to Encampment for 'Smores. We almost lost Johnny to the 1800s, but he came to his senses at the last possible moment. A nice dude with a lantern guided him back to our campsite.

Thank you so much to Danny, Mike, Branden, Trenton and Patty and all the other folks at the Rendezvous who made us feel so welcome and a part of the festivities. It was a highlight of our trip!

We left Encampment yesterday morning headed for Rawlins. The ride was downhill with a tailwind and we wore our uniforms and the sun was shining... all was right with the world. Lots of video and pictures later, we faced Interstate 80, a headwind and an oncoming storm. It didn't dampen our spirits and we finished strong at the Rawlins KOA. We worked out a deal with the woman there, snagged two campsites and took some of the best showers we've had in ... 5 days.

Praise and Forest lived on in Rawlins - if you haven't heard, the Guys on Bikes had a time of worship on Thursday nights back at the White House at home in Virginia (the OTHER White House, if you were wondering). We continued the tradition in Rawlins last night with some singing and prayer. Until the storm hit, of course. Then we all piled under the pavilion and threw all our stuff all over the place. Seems to happen a lot, actually.

We said goodbye to our friends this morning as they headed back home, and now we're back on the road - four guys on bikes headed west. The Tetons are coming up, and some more down time to reflect on why we've been blessed with such good friends and wonderful experiences.

P.S. New Mail Drop Coming Soon!