Day 31) Riverside to Walden
As we were leaving the campground at 11am (late as usual, but we had been using the internet trying to put some blog on!) a Belgian couple were just arriving from Walden (today’s destination). It was 11am and they had already done their day’s riding! How could that be?! They kindly informed us that that had enjoyed a tail-wind the whole way, which meant a head-wind for us!
We got the initial climb out of the way and stopped for lunch after 20 miles. As has become common place in Wyoming, we sat at the side of the road with no shade as there are very few trees. A decision was made that we should have just hired a U-Haul truck in Dubois and driven this section, as, with the exception of Lander, it’s been pretty dull and very hot.
We trudged on with no service stops, so we couldn’t even have a cool drink. Eric, a Canadian from Montreal, traveling the other way, stopped for a chat. He was covering 100 miles a day, but traveling very light as he was staying in motels. We stopped various times to refuel with energy bars and cakes, stopped at the Colorado sign for a photo and finally made it to Walden at about 5pm. Note: The “Welcome to Walden” sign claims this is the best place in Colorado to see moose. After calling at the Sheriffs office to ask permission, we camped on the lush and green city park. The park keeper came over as we had just set up the tent and kindly told us he would turn off the sprinkler system in our bit of the park, to stop us getting soaked. He also said that they occasionally get moose in the park. Our stove has not been used for a least four days and we decided to carry on with this tradition and go out for food. Our camping was free after all and we couldn’t be bothered with the washing up. We had two burgers in the Moose Creek Cafe , whilst watching Wheel of Fortune. Very pleasant. When we got back to the park another cyclist, Terry, had pitched up. He was nearly at the end of his journey to Denver. We had a good chat, Terry is an artist from Wisconsin, but unfortunately we won’t see him again as we take different routes tomorrow.
Total climb:
2516 feet
Animal Alert:
An Eagle eating on the ground that was so big we first thought it was a turkey and a vulture
Summed up:
No Moose today, let’s hope we see some tomorrow!
Some cowboys en route moving their cattle
Carly and the cowboys
HOORAY, a new state and we are leaving Wyoming!
We were surprised (and happy as we were really thirsty) to find this machine still working
A vulture eyeing up his dinner
Total Distance:
49.360 mi
Total Time Cycling:
5h 40m 56s
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