Today started with 11 glorious, pedal free miles of downhill. No traffic, no cliffs, just effortless 40 kph. Which of course we earned.
Then we spent some time on a side road parallel to highway 97. This was also quite pleasant.
Then shit went a bit hairy. 97 had narrow shoulders and many big trucks. There were 4 miles along a lake where we were pretty much swimming in gnats. Think teeth as car grill. It was 90 degrees.
And all day I had been racing a slow leak in my rear tire. Well damned if it didn’t give up less than 5 miles away from Calamity Falls. I mean Klamath Falls. I like Calamity better.
So I replaced my tube roadside while Jeremy sipped lattes or something somewhere up ahead. Once in town a bike store took care of it properly.
Calamity Falls is not really somewhere you choose to be I don’t think. We walked the downtown this fine Saturday afternoon and saw about 3 people. One of whom did not seemed frightened or put off by the site of fellow humans. I’m not actually joking on this point.
Turns out the whole town, or at least the passers-through, hang out at the Klamath Basin Brewery which is conveniently located 30 paces from our hotel room. We had a great meal there and Jeremy enjoyed some beverages for both of us.
And so this leg is complete. 446 miles and probably a bit over 20,000 feet of elevation gain. At 8:15 Jeremy gets a train home and at 10 I get a bus to Crescent City, CA to do the whole damn thing over again.
Wow. It has been awesome.
Not many pictures today, but a good shot of us at our excellent Mazama campground spot from the morning.
