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Monday, December 19, 2011

Little Europe

Once I left Bloomfield, NM I made my way through the 4 corners (comparable to NY's Battery Park ticket office just bigger and more desolate) and then towards the Grand Canyon by way of Kayente and Tuba City.

The temps stayed well below freezing most of the time but the terrain wasn't all too bad. Most of my camping was done road side, several people stopped and asked me if I needed a ride.

The Grand Canyon was... a grand canyon. It was massive, intense and incredible, however I wasn't blown away by it like most people told me they were. The reason? I experience nature on a daily basis. I'm amazed by everything I see. The natural world makes sense to me & is equal in my eyes, hence I appreciate all parts of it (weather, mountains, canyons, beaches, animals) equally. That's not to say the Grand Canyon wasn't awesome, it was; it just felt a bit "untouchable" to me. Park here, walk here, see this. Move on. I like to experience things my way, alone and on a path that I found. If I can't it kind of takes away from the experienced. Nevertheless I saw it & I'm glad.

Actually, when I got to the Grand Canyon entrance It was around 4:30 PM and I still had 20 miles to go to get to the village. I bought about 100g worth of protein via ham (the climbing that day was intense and I realized it wont end all that easily), snapped a couple of pictures of the Canyon at Desert View and continued on my way. From there the Sun abandoned me and I was left to view the GC as a black slab of nothingness. I managed to avoid ice patches and got to the GC Village where I stayed with a British gentleman who got word of my trip via someone I met in North Carolina. The next day I went out and then actually saw the GC.

Leaving GC Village I encountered a snow storm and managed to slip twice on covered ice before I got a ride out of the park where the roads were clear due to salting. The ride down to Williams was "annoying". In my head I told myself "oh it'll just be 60 miles and mostly flat" (the biggest mistake you can make, always exaggerate the conditions in your head so you're better prepared mentally), and I ended up climbing more then descending. Add to the fact that most of that time I rode with snow freezing to my face and my spoke breaking I was sure glad when I got to Williams and stayed with another kind person who offered to take me in.

From Williams it was all down hill on Route 66 which I'm glad I took as opposed to just staying on I-40. A day or so was spent on a dirt road where I saw one or two cars. I really enjoyed the isolation (and my tires digging into the sand, I'd get stuck and stand there laughing to myself) and truly realized out there not only how much I love seeing desolate places like that but how unfit I will be for life in the big city now.

In the past week I met a Belgian guy bicycling from CA, a French couple on their way to Florida, heard of a German couple & Swiss couple, met a Swiss couple (all on bikes). Then I also met a couple of guys from Spain and a couple from Portugal, traveling the us. Arizona really out to be the little Europe of the US as far as bicycling/ long term travel goes. Who knew!

I made it to Las Vegas, some thoughts on it later ( I did enjoy it though as far as cities are concerned) and am now headed into Death Valley. Should cross into CA (the last state until March probably) today and start heading for the coast. My goal to be in SF by Christmas was never really a set goal and instead of rushing now I will take my time.

Happy Holidays!
-W

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