Whooboy! Long day.
We left camp by 7am, and once again headed West. It was about 25 miles to Palo Verde, a small town which would be our last services for quite a while.
During the first 25 miles, we crossed paths with two more riders going East. One was an older gentlemen who was ultimately going to the Florida Keys. The second was a guy named Tim, who was riding for a cause. Tim was riding light and fast, just like us. Best wishes to them both!
In Palo Verde, we stopped at a gas station, then backtracked to eat some home-made breakfast burritos to make sure we were properly fueled for our ride. Pretty good stuff and worth the backtrack.
Unfortunately for us, the winds picked up earlier than we had hoped. It was a long slow ride starting about 30 miles in. Usually, we hope to reach the halfway point early enough in the day where the second half can be slower without too many problems. Not today.
At least the riding was still pretty.
At the half way point of our 'empty stretch' we hit a town called Glamis. This town is on the edge of the sand dunes. We've heard horror stories of crazy expensive food/drinks, but I can't say I blame them. They are out in the middle of nowhere, and don't have much of a season. They are only open from October to May, and we got lucky to arrive on the second to last weekend of the season. Yes, things were expensive ($3.50 for a 32oz Gatorade) but we gladly paid the money.
We met a number of riders who were enjoying the sand dunes on motorbikes and ATV's. They were all pretty impressed that we were riding all the way across the country. I was impressed that a 8 year old (+/-) was riding one of those ATV's.
Today was cooler than yesterday (90 instead of 100) but the sun is still a strong beast. We sat in the shade and drank our expensive liquids. The winds had really picked up by now and going 8mph was challenging. The next town, Brawley, was 27 miles away. On a great day that is 1.5 hours away, today we were figuring on three.
Just as we were about to get rolling again, a young lady cruised in on a bicycle heading Eastbound. Audrey was from Alaska and didn't really have a destination in mind. She left her truck in San Diego and started riding. She is going to the Grand Canyon and then wherever the winds take her. Best of luck to her, the trip is great.
These next 27 miles were as brutal as anything we've encountered. Super slow riding, and constantly getting pelted by sand from the dunes made for a very challenging afternoon. It was pretty though.
(note the windy shirt)
After we got out of the dunes, we entered the Imperial Valley. It's all below sea level, and has more water than most parts of California. There wasn't anything to block the winds, so we continued to get pummeled all the way into Brawley.
Brawley was 93 miles into our day of riding. We were wiped. The hotel options weren't so great in Brawley (as we were warned by the guys a day earlier), so it was frustrating. The Best Western wanted $100 for a room. We tried another place but they wanted $55 for a room with one bed that smelled awful. I was exhausted but didn't want to stay there. I also made the mistake of looking up Marriott's. There was a Fairfield Inn in El Centro, the next town down the road.
Now my mind was fixed on having a nice room for potentially free. I called my friend, Alan, and he did some searching for me. He had enough points to get us a room, all we had to do was get there.
I justified in my mind that we would be riding South instead of West and that the wind would be better. I told Jake I wanted to go for it unless he objected. Off we went, and within a mile I started regretting my decision. The crosswinds were just as aggravating as the headwinds. Instead of going 7mph, we were going 11mph but constantly getting pushed into traffic.
If you're going to be dumb, you gotta be tough.
It was another battle at the end of a long day. We pulled into El Centro just as the sun was setting. The Marriott was so glorious. Two beds, no smells, pool and hot tub.
We relaxed for a while, then ate a ton of food at Chili's.
What a day!
The winds are forecast to be even stronger tomorrow. We've made the decision to hang out in El Centro and rest.
Day 67 - 111.59 Miles
Trip to Date - 3886.28 miles
Coast to Coast - 2883.83 miles
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