After arriving in Hanksville early Chris and I had most if the day to relax and recover. He went to put his tent up and I looked around for a cheap motel room.
Raechel and Owen, the 2 we left in Cedar City caught us up in the evening after putting in a 119 mile day! So again, we planned to set off together in the morning.
It ended up being one of the hardest days so far. Mentally and physically it took all I had. Yesterday 50 miles was done comfortably in 3.5 hours with time for stopping, eating and exploring. Today it took over 8 hours!!
The wind was back and it was pushing directly against us. I knew it was going to be stronger today but kept my fingers crossed it wouldn't be too bad.
As soon as we got on the Road it was tough.
For the first 10 miles or so we drafted in behind each other taking turns to go at the front. Those behind made the most of the slightly sheltered riding before stepping up and getting blasted.
After that organised start we all ended up splintering apart. We all had very different paces so it reduced to each fighting his and her own battle. Every 6-10 miles we might re group to moan and eat some food. Actually it took the others a while longer than me to start moaning. They were all surprisingly chirpy to begin with. That changed though. They became more English/British.
The wind combined with the arid and sandy environment to create a kind of torture.
It was an assault on all the senses. You couldn't look to the horizon because sand would hit your eyes even more than necessary.
You couldn't hear anyone or make conversation over the rushing air whistling part your ears.
The sand that was whipped up actually stung your arms and legs. Finally the strength of the wind meant you were always being knocked backwards, into the road or into a ditch which was a general physical strain.
It all contributed to wear you down in every way. It was probably more of a mental struggle than a physical but very tough either way.
The only consolation I thought to myself was that the scenery wasn't up to much today so I wasn't missing much by staring the 2ft of Tarmac in front of me the whole time.
That changed after the 30 mile mark when we entered Glen Canyon.
The landscape just grew around us as the road slowly dropped and zig zagged left and right and approached Hite and lake Powell. The views were quite amazing.
As we approached Lake Powell the weather created a bit of a mystical feel. The lake is a lot lower than normal and there was a lot of excess sand around. This was being whipped up to create a violent swirling mist. Great to look at from a distance but awful to be in the middle of.
We arrived in Hite 30 minutes before the only shop was meant to shut. Unfortunately their opening hours had changed so they were already closed. There was somewhere to fill up with water though and between us we hopefully have enough food to make it the 76 miles to the next town tomorrow.
Oh yeah, there was no accommodation here either so its camping under the stars tonight! I thought this may happen so lucky I bought a sleeping bag in Hankesville.
Raechel and Owen, the 2 we left in Cedar City caught us up in the evening after putting in a 119 mile day! So again, we planned to set off together in the morning.
It ended up being one of the hardest days so far. Mentally and physically it took all I had. Yesterday 50 miles was done comfortably in 3.5 hours with time for stopping, eating and exploring. Today it took over 8 hours!!
The wind was back and it was pushing directly against us. I knew it was going to be stronger today but kept my fingers crossed it wouldn't be too bad.
As soon as we got on the Road it was tough.
For the first 10 miles or so we drafted in behind each other taking turns to go at the front. Those behind made the most of the slightly sheltered riding before stepping up and getting blasted.
After that organised start we all ended up splintering apart. We all had very different paces so it reduced to each fighting his and her own battle. Every 6-10 miles we might re group to moan and eat some food. Actually it took the others a while longer than me to start moaning. They were all surprisingly chirpy to begin with. That changed though. They became more English/British.
The wind combined with the arid and sandy environment to create a kind of torture.
It was an assault on all the senses. You couldn't look to the horizon because sand would hit your eyes even more than necessary.
You couldn't hear anyone or make conversation over the rushing air whistling part your ears.
The sand that was whipped up actually stung your arms and legs. Finally the strength of the wind meant you were always being knocked backwards, into the road or into a ditch which was a general physical strain.
It all contributed to wear you down in every way. It was probably more of a mental struggle than a physical but very tough either way.
The only consolation I thought to myself was that the scenery wasn't up to much today so I wasn't missing much by staring the 2ft of Tarmac in front of me the whole time.
That changed after the 30 mile mark when we entered Glen Canyon.
The landscape just grew around us as the road slowly dropped and zig zagged left and right and approached Hite and lake Powell. The views were quite amazing.
As we approached Lake Powell the weather created a bit of a mystical feel. The lake is a lot lower than normal and there was a lot of excess sand around. This was being whipped up to create a violent swirling mist. Great to look at from a distance but awful to be in the middle of.
We arrived in Hite 30 minutes before the only shop was meant to shut. Unfortunately their opening hours had changed so they were already closed. There was somewhere to fill up with water though and between us we hopefully have enough food to make it the 76 miles to the next town tomorrow.
Oh yeah, there was no accommodation here either so its camping under the stars tonight! I thought this may happen so lucky I bought a sleeping bag in Hankesville.
Dried up Lake Powell
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