Hello Ramona
We just rolled into White Salmon, along the Columbia River. We are going to have lunch. Covered 55 miles east from Camus, this morning; a good run. We will camp east of the Dalles tonight; then on past the Tri Cities tomorrow.
Things are going well. Thank Joe for getting up the Web site. E-mail out its address to everyone you can think of when you feel its ready. Be sure to mention the trip dates June 21 – August 4.
I’m off to join Bob at a Mexican Restaurant for lunch. 80o and I hope it doesn’t get much hotter.
Love
Pete
The 100 miles ride in 100 degrees
This fourth day on the road required a long ride. We are following the Columbia River toward the Tri-City area. We had to do 100 miles to reach the only town of any consequence: Umatilla, OR., where we planned to stay the night. We were up at 4:00 am and out of camp at 5:15 am. We knew it was going to be very hot and we needed to get as many miles under us as possible before it became unbearable. The early morning sun lit up the volcanic landscape, promising a hot day. The highway rose hundreds of feet and we were rewarded for the hard work by a magnificent view of the Columbia River and its broad sweeping movement from east to west. Mt. Hood stood out gloriously on the horizon, but this time far to the west. A light, following breeze sprang up and we made very good time, hitting 20 mph for stretches.
There are very few towns in south-central Washington. Even the traffic seemed to nearly cease. It was just us and the river. We peddled for hours, stopping briefly at a town for a refreshing drink. Bob's tire went flat and we had to fix that under the bare, blazing sun. By mid-morning it was clear that this was a race to beat the sun. The temperature reached 100 degrees before noon. It was a 33 mile run to the next town with only a few farm fields to break up the drab scenery. We staggered into Paderson and had lunch, which included very large drinks (thank God for free refills). Bob and I didn't say much. We were tired and still had 15 miles to go. Reluctantly, we got on our bikes and proceeded down the road. After just 7 miles, we had to take another break. My two quarts of water were half-gone on this short stretch, alone. It was with great relief that we finally came upon the I-82 bridge across the river to Umatilla.
Bob and I got separated because we took different spans to get across the river. We were soon reunited, with some help from the local Police. We decided to break down and spend our first night in a Motel in order to get some relief from the torrid heat. A shower and a cool pool swim did the trick and our spirits were refreshed. I felt proud that night. We had done a little over 100 miles, the last 25 in heat over 100 degrees. I have a new respect for the Camel Caravans of old. The temprature is supposed to cool by nearly 10 degrees today. With any luck, we won't face anything as daunting as yesterday again (I hope). Anyway, its on to Idaho.
