A late start today as I wanted to rest my toe. It still hurt by the morning and I still can't bend it, but the swelling and blackness is getting better. I spent some.time in the morning getting my bike properly fixed up. A few bits had come loose in the crash and I had to make a makeshift washer for my rack out of a paper plate from last nights takeaway (a Pizza Hut chicken alfredo pasta tray meant for a family of four, I ate the lot and still had room for tea and hot chocolate!).
Whilst getting ready, the maid let herself into my room at around 9:30, moments after I had put my shorts on! Latest checkout wasn't until 11!
I finally got on the road just after 10:30 and decided to take it easy today as much as I could. Not long after leaving the motel, I ran into some roadworks which had torn up the road surface. No matter, I thought and carried on, where eventually the road disappeared completely and became thick uncompacted gravel. A bit of poor planning I think.
I persisted for a while, but eventually had to hop a barbed wire fence and join the wretched interstate again. I left at the next junction, 'Wahsatch' (nothing but a label on the map) and doubled back on myself to find the start of what I hoped would be a nice mountain trail. Unfortunately, this was also a gravel road and was also blocked off by a heavy iron gate marked with the words 'No Trespassing'. To make matters more annoying, when I turned around to head back to the interstate, a long slow train was crossing the railroad and I was forced to wait!
Back on the interstate and another few junctions down, I took the exit to 'Emory' where the tarmac started again. This road was rough, seemingly made up of whatever bits of asphalt Utah had going spare, but at least it was quiet. I saw only a dozen cars (and one tandem cyclist pair pass me as the road snaked its way downhill through 'Echo Canyon', with large rock cliff faces to my right and the interstate in the distance to my left.
The descent leveled out at 'Henefer' and soon I found myself climbing up into the 'East Canyon Resort', a beautiful reservoir up in the mountains where there were numerous families out on their boats and jet skis. On the climb I met a 53 year old cyclist from north Salt Lake who was out on a 100 miler for the day. We chatted for a bit and he was impressed by my ride. I was impressed at his! He warned me though of a steep climb still to come and said to "make sure I had something left in the tank".
He was not wrong. Shortly after leaving the lake behind the climb started. It was steep and twisted through the mountain, with pine and silver birch trees providing shade and shelter from the wind. Proper Rockies! I eventually reached the summit and was taken aback by the view. Just as steep a descent and just as long, with Salt Lake City peering out from between the mountains on the horizon.
The descent down was incredible! With the exception of one small climb into 'Emigration Canyon', it was downhill for a good hour. Salt Lake City is very hidden from this way in, and you don't.realise you're on the edge of a massive city until you see two apartment buildings perched atop one of the foothills.
I reached my host, Mark's house and he greeted me with some cool water and half a watermelon! It was very refreshing, especially as the temperature in the city was considerably higher than in the mountains. After cleaning up, Mark's daughter Katy drove us to a Mexican restaurant in a converted railway station from the old 'Rio Grande' railway line. The food was fantastic and afterwards we went for gelato as well.
Its been a much better day today, and with a shorter ride tomorrow I'll hopefully this toe will continue to heal and I'll be all set for tackling the salt flats!
Miles today: 77.3
Total miles: 2450.2
Whilst getting ready, the maid let herself into my room at around 9:30, moments after I had put my shorts on! Latest checkout wasn't until 11!
I finally got on the road just after 10:30 and decided to take it easy today as much as I could. Not long after leaving the motel, I ran into some roadworks which had torn up the road surface. No matter, I thought and carried on, where eventually the road disappeared completely and became thick uncompacted gravel. A bit of poor planning I think.
I persisted for a while, but eventually had to hop a barbed wire fence and join the wretched interstate again. I left at the next junction, 'Wahsatch' (nothing but a label on the map) and doubled back on myself to find the start of what I hoped would be a nice mountain trail. Unfortunately, this was also a gravel road and was also blocked off by a heavy iron gate marked with the words 'No Trespassing'. To make matters more annoying, when I turned around to head back to the interstate, a long slow train was crossing the railroad and I was forced to wait!
Back on the interstate and another few junctions down, I took the exit to 'Emory' where the tarmac started again. This road was rough, seemingly made up of whatever bits of asphalt Utah had going spare, but at least it was quiet. I saw only a dozen cars (and one tandem cyclist pair pass me as the road snaked its way downhill through 'Echo Canyon', with large rock cliff faces to my right and the interstate in the distance to my left.
The descent leveled out at 'Henefer' and soon I found myself climbing up into the 'East Canyon Resort', a beautiful reservoir up in the mountains where there were numerous families out on their boats and jet skis. On the climb I met a 53 year old cyclist from north Salt Lake who was out on a 100 miler for the day. We chatted for a bit and he was impressed by my ride. I was impressed at his! He warned me though of a steep climb still to come and said to "make sure I had something left in the tank".
He was not wrong. Shortly after leaving the lake behind the climb started. It was steep and twisted through the mountain, with pine and silver birch trees providing shade and shelter from the wind. Proper Rockies! I eventually reached the summit and was taken aback by the view. Just as steep a descent and just as long, with Salt Lake City peering out from between the mountains on the horizon.
The descent down was incredible! With the exception of one small climb into 'Emigration Canyon', it was downhill for a good hour. Salt Lake City is very hidden from this way in, and you don't.realise you're on the edge of a massive city until you see two apartment buildings perched atop one of the foothills.
I reached my host, Mark's house and he greeted me with some cool water and half a watermelon! It was very refreshing, especially as the temperature in the city was considerably higher than in the mountains. After cleaning up, Mark's daughter Katy drove us to a Mexican restaurant in a converted railway station from the old 'Rio Grande' railway line. The food was fantastic and afterwards we went for gelato as well.
Its been a much better day today, and with a shorter ride tomorrow I'll hopefully this toe will continue to heal and I'll be all set for tackling the salt flats!
Miles today: 77.3
Total miles: 2450.2
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