642 miles
4,582 miles total
Impressions:
- Very strong winds, 25-30 mph with gusts up to 45 mph, coming from a storm off Mexico...
- Walked through the ghost town of Rhyolite, Nevada...
- Welcome to Death Valley National Park...
- Summit of Daylight Pass at 4,317'...
- Amazing 13 miles of very steep downhill, from 4,317' to minus 282' at Badwater, Death Valley...
- 56.5 mph, the fastest I have ever been on a bicycle, very nervous with over 100 pounds of gear and going that fast, couldn't brake...
- Badwater, Death Valley - the lowest point in the western hemisphere at -282' below sea level...
- Salt flats and Golden Canyon in Death Valley National Park...
- Uphill for 15 miles from -282' to 3,315', very steep, very hot, and no services...
- Rest day in the small town of Shoshone, California, visitor center, museum, and the Shoshone Ruins, plus the relaxing hotpool...
- Sand dunes, ATV's, and dune buggies everywhere...
- Town of Baker, California - home of the world's largest thermometer, at over 100' tall...
- Daylight savings time, not good for me camping, gets dark to early now...
- Mojave National Preserve (Mojave Desert), very desolate, few cars, few people, no buildings, no services, no shade, lots of sun...
- One, if not the worst road I've biked on this entire trip in the Mojave Desert (tie with the Alaska Hwy.), large rocks, stones, and even boulders protruding the surface of the pavement for miles and miles...
- Kelso Depot Visitor Center, an old train depot that had been rebuilt in the middle of the Mojave, no food but they had water...
- Camping behind one of the only buildings in the ghost town of Amboy, California (the post office), hard to believe they need a post office in this one man, one dog town...
- No sleep, trains going by all night, very close, very loud, and almost constant horns blowing...
- Amboy crater and small volcano...
- Joshua Tree National Park, one of my favorite places on this trip, beautiful trees, large rock formations, and a high plateau desert landscape...
- Excellent bike riding in Joshua Tree National Park, no traffic, good roads, and magnificent sites...
- Hiked to Barker Dam and Hidden Valley, in Joshua Tree...
- Biked along the Salton Sea, a length of35 miles, this body of water hosts more birdlife than almost anywhere in the world, including thousands of pelicans...
- Mexicans and the spanish language take over the southern section of California...
-
Mexicali, Mexico - "I did it" - after 4,440 miles and 102 days, I touched the Mexican Border...- A feeling of relief as I biked into the Mexican Border - Anchorage, Alaska to Mexicali, Mexico - July 25th to November 3rd, 2006...
- Now what? Do I continue into Mexico or fly home?...
- I decided a rest is needed, my body, my mind, and most important I wanted to see my family, friends, and girlfriend, all of who I missed incredibly...
- I biked back into California and towards San Diego, along the border towns, 2 more deserts, and a mountain range that made me quit my first cross country bicycle trip nine years ago, after suffering heat exhaustion, I have some unfinished business to take care of this time...
- Stayed in Ocotillo, California, the same place, the same room, as I did nine years ago after an ambulance ride to the hospital and 3 bags of IV's to rehydrate me, as I collasped on an elder's front porch just outside Ocotillo, CA...
- Very motivated to make the summit of Mountain Spring Pass at 3,241', which got the better of me nine years ago, not this time though...
- The deep south of California is not an easy way to finish this trip, mountain range after mountain range standing in my way...
- I met Ralph and Michelle as I was biking in the small town of Boulevard, California, they drove by me and had turned around to ask if they could talk to me a minute, next thing I knew I was at their house eating lunch (made by Michelle) and talking bike touring and racing with the two of them. Michelle has bike toured in Alaska and the USA and even wrote a book (which she gave me a copy) about her adventures, while Ralph designs bicycles for a company called Zipp (a high-end triathletes bike). I stayed a couple of enjoyable hours before saying goodbye to my new friends...
- My last day of riding, Pine Valley to San Diego, a sad day and a happy day all at once. I have been on this bicycle for three and a half months, mostly alone and now for the trip to end makes me think about what I have done, what I have saw, all the people I have met, the kindness of strangers, and of course what this has meant to me riding to raise money and awareness for Multiple Sclerosis...
- On November 5th, 2006 I finally see the shinny blue water of the Pacific Ocean in San Diego, California, 4,582 miles, no party, no balloons, no parade, and no fireworks - Just one big smile :)
