Death Valley Part II

Well, I hadn't quite anticipated the interest that my last post generated... Now I find that, not only are some of my fellow cyclists reading (so I can't big myself up by lying) an online magazine wants the posts (so I have to complete the job). The great news though is that more money has come in for my chosen charity as a result.

So, 6th November: I was fitted up with my Hog - a Trek 7.2 hybrid and, frankly, I was delighted that it wasn't an albeit lovely looking mountain bike, with a heavy frame and fat nobbly tires that some of the group were given. After some slight adjustments - clip-in pedals (which I later got stuck in and fell off at a fruit stop) and loads of layers of clothing, our journey began. 

It was a tough, gruelling, mentally exhausting first cycle out as we travelled the 500 metres from the film-set style Motel to Subway, for a sandwhich and a bowl of soup. (AxeMurderer Motel pic courtesy of Ali Davidson). 

I wonder if anyone else had the same feeling as I did when we were told that the first stretch of our ride would be 14 miles uphill. Not undulating. Uphill.

Thankfully, the hill wasn't that steep to start off with, but it was a hill nonetheless. I also got my first taste of being somewhere where it is almost impossible to judge distances. The place is so vast and so empty, the roads run straight and literally off the horizon. I have still not worked out if that's a good thing or not. On the one hand you get a beautiful view and you just get on with it and try to ignore the fact that it looks like you're getting nowhere. On the other hand, it looks like you're going nowhere. (road pic courtesy of Hamish).

The first cycle out was a great opportunity to get to know everyone else on the trip and I, like many others, spent some time trying to find a comfortable pace and have a bit of a chat as we went along. The first day was interesting in that respect - I think a lot of people set off fast because, at the first stop (about 7 miles uphill), it was pretty quiet as the enormity of the some of the hills and distances sunk in. 

The big news at the first fruit stop was the wildlife. Our first deadly animal! A tarantula (the only live one of the trip, as far as I know, although I saw a dead one another day). It was calmly wandering along the road and about the size of a hand. For those that aren't too squeamish, you can view Hamish's video of the little critter here.

Seven miles later and we reached Daylight pass (altitude 4,317 feet) after a 1,444 feet uphill ride. Our first view of Death Valley. Beautiful, vast and just able to see the salt lakes shimmering in the distance.  

After that, a lovely long downhill run for around 10 miles. We had our first road junction that day (once we were out of town) and one would have thought that that would not present a problem. Only, imagine bombing down the hill for ten miles, not noticing the junction and then applying the front brake instead of the rear. enter our first caualty - Ty. Pretty nasty as it happened - but cuts, burises and a ripped top was never going to stop the man who's doing a marathon in the Sahara next year. Hats off. On the brakes - it turns out that only the British have the brakes the 'wrong' way round. Useful information in hindsight...

Having crossed the state line from Nevada and into California, we trundled along at a decent speed to Stovepipe Wells. On the way we took in incredible scenery and sand dunes that seemed completely out of place. Throughout the trip, that was one of the things that really struck me about the Mojave Desert. After an hour's cycling, or so, something copmpletely out of place would appear - sand dunes, salt lakes, different vegetation. That, together with the effect of the changing sunlight on the landscape, gave us the most beautiful backdrop and something that we could have (and did) look at for hours on end.

Stovepipe Wells - Well, it had a good bar, with all sorts of bottled beer (it was obvious that we had slipped into California) and a good dinner. To be totally, honest, there's not much I remember about the evening, save missing my daughter, my first Skype call to Lucy, a lovely English couple doing a honeymoon roadtrip and that it was freeeezing at night. But that's jet lag for you... Lovely view across the valley though - the picture on the left is at sunrise (even colder!).

For those that knew how ill I was a few weeks before the trip, I'm pleased to report that with the help of Shadi Danin (see previous posts) I had no muscle tiredness, stiffness or cramp. Who would have guessed...!