Tuesday, July 14th, 2015
Start/End: Pocatello/Rupert, UT
Mileage: 74.9
Weather: Morning sprinkles, with a hot, sunny afternoon
Today I have to tell you about some amazing hosts that we have had, 2 days in a row! This morning we woke up to a wonderful breakfast prepared from some of the members of the Good Shepard Lutheran Church in Pocatello. Not only did we have egg casserole dishes, muffins, coffee cake, freshly cut fruit, juice, coffee and sausage links. It is a rare occasion when we cannot finish the food, but there were definitely some leftovers here. It was an amazing breakfast that we cannot thank those who assisted with our entire stay in Pocatello enough for their generosity.
In honor of our stay, we wanted to dedicate today’s ride to Nancy, who we had met during our stay. Nancy is a cancer survivor whom we had interviewed for the portraits project a few years ago. Unfortunately she has been getting some tests done and was going to be receiving results back today. We want to be sending positive thoughts in her way and hope that the results are good.
We started our ride out with a little bit of rain as we left the town and some scary looking clouds, but they did not slow us down one bit. We got to a frontage road of a highway where we would stay for most of the day. We had mostly good roads, though they would occasionally be a little bit rough and we would be dodging patches or holes. Not long after our first break, we would ride on an interstate for the first time of the summer. Now, before folks from Chicago or another major city get too concerned, in the west, sometimes this is the only road in between two places and bikes are allowed on the shoulders. Additionally, there are hardly any cars that are on the interstate, especially when compared to I-90 or even I-57 between Champaign and Chicago. At our stayover this evening, some of the church members talked about how common it was for cyclists to be on the interstate. Anyhow, we only did that for a short while as we passed a canyon area with a beautiful river flowing through it.
As soon as we could, though, we returned to the frontage road where we would stop for lunch. We had a great view of the Snake River and even some swans on it. Before too long, we were off again, but this time be got further from the interstate and the river and entered into an open range area where we actually saw many cows! There were so many baby cows, who would get easily spooked by the bikes. The other cows would then follow- who knew cows were so quick on their feet? Sometimes we had to slow in order for the cows to cross the road, other times, just be sure to avoid their droppings on the road. It was all kind of fun.
As we arrived at our stayover for tonight, they had some wonderful cracker, cheese and meat snacks available with watermelon on the side. It was such a refreshing snack. Many of the riders then proceeded to take a nap, until dinner was called. They had prepared an amazing amount of lasagna, garlic bread and salad. Many went back for seconds and there was still enough to eat. Then they broke out the cake with icing and strawberries on top. This was so delicious and we are all, again, very happy and very full. Shortly we will be shuttled for showers, which is always appreciated!
It has been a good day for us, and we hope it has been a day of good news, love and support for Nancy. Thank you again for everyone who has made out trip so incredible. As the numbers of our days increase, we begin to realize how little time we have left on this journey. We cannot wait to meet more people and to continue to have positive experiences.
-LAH