It was a little chilly last night but I made it through okay. With socks as gloves and a shirt wrapped over my head I was able to wrap my sleeping bag over me and stay relatively warm. It must have dropped down to 20 degrees or so and with the wind blowing through the area it didn't help with the temperature at all. I was ready to ride around 5:30 but with it being so cold at the elevation I was at, I had to wait until 7:30 before it was tolerable. I started my ride for the first hour with a t-shirt still over my ears and socks on my hands to use for gloves. The largest pass of the day that I could see on my map was 9,945 feet. Seeing as how I was a little over 6,000 feet I knew that I was going to have quite a climb ahead for the day. The ride started with a fairly gradual climb and it didn't seem like it was too bad. Soon after, the climb dipped down about 500 feet and then things started to get interesting. It seemed that I was on the top of the mountains and I was continually rolling down hills and then back up. It was called Tioga Pass and it was about 47 miles to get through before I exited the park. It was full of sights that were unbelievable. From being on top of these mountains and being able to overlook everything. From glacier rocks to lakes in the middle of mountains at 9,000 feet, it made for an eventful day. After yesterdays climb up some 3,000-4,000 feet to end the day, I was glad I was able to get a good night of sleep. I definitely had to burn up some energy for the day ahead. I was relying on a few peanut butter sandwiches and an unlimited supply of Clif bars to get me over the pass and to the next stop, 57 miles away. I had my 5 water bottles filled up full and I was ready to venture forward. I didn't make it 20 miles into the ride before I had to take my first break and it was truly exhausting to have made it as far as I did. I couldn't believe the incredible views, but to see them required a couple hours of good pedalling. There were a lot of pull offs along the Tiago Pass to get to some signature spot. Trails to hike on, incredible views with some information, and even just turn-offs so that other cars passing by didn't have to wait on the slow person ahead. It wasn't very busy on the pass and I think that it was not only because it wasn't in season for viewing the area, but also because it had just snowed the previous week. It was a fairly narrow road so it seemed nice not to see so many rental RVs passing by and risking my life. Eventually I made it through the pass and was standing at the highest point of my trip. Just a hair beneath 10,000 feet and it felt great. Actually my legs were on fire from making it the distance that I had over the past couple of days, but being where I was felt great. I started to fly down the mountain and it didn't take me very long to realize that if I had come up the pass on the east side it would have been much more excruciating. In only a couple of minutes I had dropped from about 10,000 feet to 8,000 feet and I was going at about 40 mph. The road didn't wind around very much so I was able to just let go of the brakes and let myself fly straight down. The only problem that I had to deal with going down the mountain was the fact that it was now about 4 pm and it was starting to cool down outside. My hands felt numb after flying down at the speed that I had and there was nothing that could be done about it. I continued to ride on and although my legs felt tired, it seemed like it could only be down hill to where I was going. I was trying to make it another 40 miles for the day and with the sun going down at 7, I had to start riding a little harder. My food supply had gone extinct through the pass and so as soon as I saw a grocery store another 20 miles down, I pulled over for peanut butter and bread. I had been told by Siobhan, who I met in Santa Cruz, that she knew a couple of different families in Mammoth Lakes. I had wanted to contact them earlier, but there was no connection in the mountains, go figure. So while I was 25 miles outside of Mammoth Lakes I got a connection and tried to get a hold of Ann and Joe. Then I tried the other family's phone number that I had been given, Marco and Mike. I couldn't get a hold of either one of them and I was starting to look at plan B. Get close to Mammoth Lakes and then put up tent just outside of the town at around 8,000 feet. I didn't like the idea of it and it sounded fairly cold considering that last night I was at about 6,500 feet and I had trouble staying warm. I left the town and started to pray. For the next hour I was riding and just praying that I could get one of them to pick up. I made it to another town about 15 miles out of Mammoth Lakes and figured that this was my last shot. It was about 6 at this point and with the sun going down I didn't have too much else to look forward to ahead of me. I called both families and I think I made it to the last ring when I called Ann and Joe and was amazed to a hear a voice on the other side. I explained my situation to Ann over the phone and all that I could hear on the other side of the phone was excitement and it made the situation I was in feel great. It was amazing to hear later on that not only was this her last ring, but she hardly ever even used her cell phone. The fact that it was on and charged was only something that she had done a little earlier in the day. By random chance she had charged her phone and made it possible for me to get a hold of her, the power of prayer it seemed. I would probably make it to Mammoth Lakes by dark and then have a nice warm house to sleep in, I could only thank God at this point. I had been answered at the last moment and was now on my way. I crossed one last pass before going into Mammoth Lakes and just as the name of it was Dead Man's Pass, it was. If I didn't contact either of the families then this 700 feet last climb could have been the end of me. I made it to Mammoth Lakes and was able to meet Ann, Joe, and their 12 year old son Tristan. They had steaks and chicken with a wonderful salad all ready for dinner and I was put back in awe. They had the shower all ready for me to go in and it was great to have entered another truly hospitable home. Over dinner I was able to hear about both Ann and Joe's incredible adventures through life. Joe had been along the coast by bicycle and had also done some riding through France. Ann was also a cyclist and enjoyed mountain biking. She had currently gone on a backpacking trip just a couple of weeks earlier and was in the mood for adventure. Ann had two other kids, on being 28 and one being 23. Both of her kids seemed to have caught the adventure bug as well and it was nice to be able to enjoy the evening over some incredible steaks. Everything was perfect, but managed to get even better. I had showed up on a Saturday night so the family didn't have to work the following day. They wanted me to stay another day in Mammoth Lakes because apparently there was a lot of cool things to see in the area. I loved the invitation and took it, knowing full well that I was going to need a rest after the previous few days. It was an incredibly overwhelming feeling being able to sleep on a mattress and not having to worry about freezing for the night. I slept very well for the first time all week it seemed.
Daily mileage: 86.8 miles
Average Speed: 10.9 mph
Total mileage: 3,508.0 miles
Average Speed: 10.9 mph
Total mileage: 3,508.0 miles
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