Great People in small places

Wow Atlantic City is such a great wee place, a real gem! Laural and Drew at the local pub were great, super friendly with great sense of humour! we had lunch there when we rolled into town and then we went back for dinner ! 

And our hosts at Wild Bills B&B- Bill and Camille were amazing - we couldn’t have asked for better people. It was such a treat to be able to relax on their deck and talk away the afternoon with them !

Camille served us up some homemade strawberry pie and coconut cream pie- they were delish! The following morning was a very early start - the alarm rung at 3.15am and Bill our amazing host got up and cooked us a great breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon and hot cakes as he insisted we couldn’t go into the basin without eating something hearty! We were so grateful as it really did help us get a great start to the day. We rode off into the dark and watched the morning unfold around us it was quite magical. As the sun rose we got to glimpse for the first time of the real magnitude of such a huge open space- it is so varst and in strict contrast to anything we have ever seen in NZ! 

We were making really good time with rolling country and reasonably good tracks most the way,  we hit 100kms at about 6hrs and stopped for a quick bite to eat at 110kms around 12pm. We could feel the wind picking up around us and were hopeful that it would stay a tail/side wind but alas it did not and the next 10kms were brutal, so brutal we hid in the shade/ shelter of a oil silo for the next 4 hrs! 

We were a bit disappointed as it was only another 33kms to Wamsutter and food ! 

We were joined for a while by another rider Phil from Missoula, Montana.  We had meet him briefly the day before in Atlantic City, before he decided to try and push on. At 5pm we decided our time had come too and so we headed out into the wind. We broke down the sections into 10km lots and basically just ground into the head wind! Not the most fun but the only way to get there!! I did harbour a few fantasies of chucking my bike on the back of one of the intermittent passing utes but I guess they had seen it all before and just waved hello as they flew by. 

We finally made it to Wamsutter about 7.30/8pm. I can’t really remember I was a bit dazed by this point, But make it we did ! We fuelled up at the truck stop with subway sandwiches and coke, which is definitely not something I would normally drink but I had used all my energy for the day! We headed to a local motel, showered and fell into bed exhausted and with the alarm set for a repeat of 3am the next morning!

The following morning we had much the same to look forward to for the first 80-90kms as well as a smallish pass to go over to get to the town of Savory.  We wanted to try and beat some of the wind and sun again. The day started out well, little wind that there was soon dropped away and we covered the first 50kms quickly then started to climb a bit more steadily. We met up with Phil again and spent the rest of the day riding together. Over the pass and we dropped down into Savory and stopped at the local museum which had put on some food for divide riders - the small communities have really embraced this race its really encouraging when you need that little something to keep you going. 

After lunching here we had the final 36 kms to go to the Brush Mountain Lodge the sun was hot hot hot - 34 deg and we baked as we cycled up the valley slowly climbing as we went. It was a great feeling to finally cycle round the corner and arrive! 

Lots of water, pizza and a shower later and life felt a bit more normal again. Kristen has set up at great place here for riders to stop at for a moment or a night- another special place on the divide route! 

And we had crossed into Colorado! Another state down! Two to go!!!

The following morning we had a later start and were up and eating breakfast at 7am. After filling up on yummy blueberry pancakes we set off up the road to continue over the pass. It was a great days ride with beautiful meadows filled with flowers leading up into the hills and over the pass. We then had a great ride bs k down the other side and into Clark where there was a store we could get some lunch at. It was a bit cooler today so perfect riding weather. After our lunch stop it was a quick 30kms into Steamboat and we had a very fast ride with the wind at our back and a sealed road for most the way we were into steamboat Springs before we knew it! Off to the bike shop as we all had some things to sort.  Mckayla and I both got new chains and I got new front brake pads too. The boys had a few most serious issues so we left them to it and headed to the motel to check ourselves in and shower. We then had to get some jandles for Mckayla as she had left hers in Ovando about 10 days earlier ! 

Off to Walmart we went . 

That evening we also had the pleasure of soaking in the hot springs which was nice for the tired bodies.

The next day rolled around as they always do and we set off just before 7am with a goal of getting to Radium or Kremmling we weren’t too sure how far we would get as there was a bit of climbing today so extra food was packed in case we only made it as far as Radium which has no services. It was a day of climbing alright and after rolling over the first 20kms out of town we started to climb and we didn’t stop until we hit 85kms.

Needless to say the legs were feeling a tad weary. We stopped at about 2.30pm by a creek in some shade and rested for a few hrs. We were at 91kms and had just rode back down to near the Colorado River and were just out of Radium. We decided we would carry on once the sun had dropped a bit and the temperature cooled. We still had 30kms to get through to Kremmling and a climb back up from the river ! 




After a 2 hr rest we were back on the bikes and headed over the Colorado River and started our final climb over to Kremmling. It didn’t let us down! Was an epic last climb back up and over the ranges and we could see where we had biked down the other side. 1900m of climbing for the day and we were done! Colorado is definitely testing us ! 

We rolled out of Kremmling the next morning just after 7am having had breakfast at the motel. We rode over undulating ground out to a lake that had some great camping spots before starting our real climb of the day. We were heading over Ute Pass at 2905m. The climb itself wasn’t too bad but the legs were suffering a bit from the previous days climbing. Once at the top of the pass we had some great views across to the mountains and down the valley. 

Then we had an awesome down hill section- 10kms that raced away in about 10mins ! 

Then we had to join the main highway which was pretty busy with traffic. We had been told that that would be the case but it’s definitely not what we have become used too! We arrived into Silverthorn just after 1pm and the sun was starting to beat down on us pretty intensely. It was good to stop and refresh ourselves and get out of the heat of the day for a bit. Mckayla and I then found a post office and downsized our gear so we can load the bikes with more water and food as we head further south and into the heat and more isolated areas. 

We then hit an awesome bike track that lead us through Frisco and into Breckenridge for the night. It was a great track and a fantastic way to end the days ride. 

So 110kms for the day and the body is feeling a bit more recovered from yesterday. Tomorrow we have a big day planned -150kms through to Salida. 

We are now 2740kms through with 1760kms to go! 

Starting to plan on how we are going to deal with the heat of New Mexico and looking forward to a few luxuries at the end 😊 

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