Covid Cross Day #46 Hat Rock Campground, OR to North Roosevelt, WA
Covid Cross Day #46
July 20, 2020
Hat Rock Campground, OR to North Roosevelt, WA 62 Miles
Start 7:22 AM Finish 2:42 PM
Ride Time 4:46
Ascent 831 Feet
Descent 950 Feet
Tour Total Miles 3720
I slept so-so at site T3 in Hat Rock Campground. The girls camping in the neighboring site stayed up until the wee hours yackety-yakking and it was irritating. Additionally, the rat-tat-tat of a nearby sprinkler continued all night long. There were distant train horns throughout the night. Noise aside, the temperature was perfect, and it was a delight to have seen comet NEOWISE two nights in a row. I had run an extension cord into my tent and all of my devices were charged by morning. I was showered and wearing clean clothing. Team Spokane was keeping me at the top of my game. There was condensation in my tent this morning, despite the low humidity. A mouse had been scurrying about underneath Linda’s tent last night, and she found mouse TURDs on her ground cloth in the morning.
I spotted nearby Hat Rock on the way out of the campground. The area was filled with beautiful basalt formations, with scrub growing everywhere. It was a chilly start, with not a single cloud in the sky. I could tell that it was going to be a scorcher. US Highway 730 continued west through a cut in the basalt. The shoulder was wide and there wasn’t too much motor traffic. I passed two good-sized roadkill deers. One kill was recent and the animal was in rigamortis.
I was passed by semi-trucks carrying huge blocks of hay, and I then rode by Two Rivers Correctional Institute. There were red onion skins all along the side of the road. I entered Umatilla, population 6906. A sign said that the town billed itself as the home of the Vikings. I could see the nearby McNary dam spanning the river. We stopped at Raes Dayz for breakfast. I had to take a Zoom call for work, while ordering eggs over-easy, bacon, toast, orange juice, and coffee. We went over our options before leaving and discovered that the campground at our destination would be closed because of downed trees. We headed out of town on a bike lane that shared a bridge with I-84 over the Columbia River. The McNary Dam was just upstream.
I crossed back into Washington to the small town of Plymouth, population 268. I rode down Christy Road alongside the river, and I began spotting apple orchards. The trees were trained like Y's in profile for maximum exposure to the sun and easy picking access from below. They reminded me of topiaries. The apples were green, and not yet ripe. There were train tracks to the left, and a freight train passed me going east. I got the engineer to to blow the horn. I rode past corn and soybean fields, and then took a left on State Highway 14 headed west. A note on the map read that there were limited service for the next 85 miles.
Highway 14 had two lanes of traffic along with a six foot shoulder. There were cars, pick-up trucks, and semi trucks. I was now riding alongside three ginormous sets of high voltage lines leading from the hydroelectric plant. I passed a cornfield to the right, with barren scrub and power lines to the left. The corn cultivation then ended, and I was once again surrounded by barren scrub. It was hard to believe that I was in Missoula only a week ago.
As I approached Patterson I noticed a large orchard to my right that was completely enclosed within white netting. I assumed they were cultivating a type of fruit that attracted birds. From a mile away I could spot the small town, which was essentially just an intersection. It was hot, and my water bottles were boiling. I was hoping that I’d be able to purchase a cold Gatorade. There were more apple orchards to the right which were making me hungry for fruit. I stopped at Paterson Market, which was a popular lunch spot for migrant workers. I purchased and downed two red Gatorades. It was starting to really get hot and I had another thirty three miles to go. The forecast called for one hundred degree temperatures.
Back out on the highway, I began to spot large white dump trucks filled with onions. It was definitely harvest time, and they smelled good! I was also passed by a semi-truck filled with garlic. I knew the contents by the wonderful smell. I crossed over Glade Creek, which was completely dried up. I noticed a large vineyard on the right, and a mile-long stretch of railroad tank and box cars idled on the tracks to the left. I crossed Dead Canyon Creek, and then entered Klickitat County. There was a gigantic wind farm on the Oregon side of the river.
I crossed dried-up Alder Creek. It was blistering hot and we were searching for a place to go for a dip in the river. It was too rocky and steep here, so we kept going. We realized at this point, though, that we had a tailwind. A few more miles down the road we spotted Pine Creek fishing access spot, where we were able to coast down to the Columbia and swim in the cool water. It was absolutely refreshing! The concrete walkway was so hot that I could have fried eggs on it. Down the highway, as I neared the town of Roosevelt, I noticed a barge coming up river carrying huge piles of grain.
Chugging along the tracks to the left, I was passed by a convoy of railroad construction equipment, with some twenty different types of vehicles and apparatus. A few of the drivers gave me friendly honks. I was hot, hungry and pedaling furiously. At long last I spotted the grain elevator complex at North Roosevelt. I crossed over Wood Creek and came to the complex.
I finally viewed the Columbia River Country Store in Rosevelt, population 156. There were no mask or social distancing requirements, which was contrary to the state mandate. I ordered a mushroom bacon cheeseburger with french fries, two bottles of Modelo, and numerous cups of coke. Henry, Linda, and I social distance triangulated and took up most of the seating area. An older couple came in for lunch, and I overheard them complaining about the Democrats. More patrons entered into the cafe part of the store, and we felt obliged to free up our tables and leave the air conditioning.
We rode down the oven-hot hill to Roosevelt Park, which was closed because of a downed tree and an e coli outbreak in the drinking water. We snuck past the barriers and headed for the shade. It was too hot to continue any further. Extraordinary heat was radiating from the pavement. We vowed to camp here for the night regardless of the park being closed. I was feeling sick from the heat, and laid down on a picnic table to take a nap. Linda and Henry took a swim in the Columbia to cool themselves down. I eventually followed suit. The store closed at 7 PM so we rode back up the hill for provisions. I purchased three bottles of Gatorade, milk, two cups of Life cereal, an orange juice, a bag of Dot's pretzels, a six pack of Modelo, and a bag of ice.
Back down at the park we were spotted by Rich, the park caretaker, who told us that the park was closed and that we couldn't be here. When we explained our situation, he told us to camp right up behind the bathroom building so that we couldn't be spotted by the park ranger. He opened the bathrooms and said that we could shower. We dragged a picnic table up against the back of the building, where I edited this report.
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