COVID CROSS

Covid Cross Day #45 July 19, 2020 Lewis & Clark Trail State Park, WA to Hat Rock Campground, OR 74 Miles Start 7:10 AM Finish 8:25 PM Ride Time 6:19 Ascent 1230 Feet Descent 2235 Feet Tour Total Miles 3658 Details at:  https://cyclemeter.com/3f1ef27914a4c684/Cycle-20200719-0710-25032 I slept great last night in my tent in the primitive camp site at Lewis & Clark Trail State Park. It was perfect cool sleeping weather. The road traffic hum was muffled by the distance, and the rushing sounds of the nearby Touche River were pleasant. I was up before 6 AM and was on the road with Henry and Linda by seven. There wasn't a single cloud in the sky, and the air was cool. I was wearing my jersey and shorts. A small yellow single-engine plane was dipping in and out of the fields to dust them. I would love to have that job. I crossed the Walla Walla County line.  It was a quick ride to Waitsburg where I went to Sam’s Corner Store, a gas station and mini mar...

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 Details at:  https://cyclemeter.com/3f1ef27914a4c684/Cycle-20200720-0722-40410 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 ...

Covid Cross Day #47 July 21, 2020 Roosevelt, WA to The Dalles, OR 59 Miles Start 6:16 AM Finish 6:09 PM Ride Time 6:25 Ascent 2595 Feet Descent 2076 Feet Tour Total Miles 3781 Details at:  https://cyclemeter.com/3f1ef27914a4c684/Cycle-20200721-0616-18836 There were numerous worries last night. The ranger could show up at any time, fine us, and make us ride thirty miles in the dark to the next town. My biggest concern though, were the sprinklers. They were definitely in the park, and Rich had warned us. We needed to camp as close as possible, up against the bathroom building, so as not to be seen from the road. We set up our tents in the dark to avoid detection. Hopefully there were no nearby sprinkler heads. Linda’s tent pole snapped in the center of the spine, and she had to fix it with duct tape. There were millions of bugs and I gave up editing my report at the picnic table. I used the bathroom to shower and do laundry. The hand drier was useful to begin...

Covid Cross Day #48 July 22, 2020 The Dalles, OR to Ainsworth State Park, OR 60 Miles Start 7:12 AM Finish 6:00 PM Ride Time 7:36 Ascent 3139 Feet Descent 3130 Feet Tour Total Miles 3842 Details at:  https://cyclemeter.com/3f1ef27914a4c684/Cycle-20200722-0712-73740 I slept great last night in room 224 at The Dalles Hotel. It was a nice reset after the previous night. I got caught up on my sleep, showered, recharged, and laundered. I tried to stay up late to complete a nine hour remote training course for the New School. I was exhausted and could only bear a few hours. I scrambled to just get it done. One of the test questions was, "What is a browser?". A second task was to attach a document. Seriously? After a crazy intense laborious spring semester, instructors were now being asked to complete an uncompensated training course in the middle of their summer vacations? For shame New School! I was infuriated.  This morning I brewed coffee in my room. The ...