Wednesday, June 25, 2008 - Day 3

Start: Vantage, Washington
End: Odessa, Washington
Miles: 87.47 Total Miles: 260.51
Time: 6 hours 56 minutes (avg 12.6 MPH)

After finishing my writing yesterday, we had a great catered dinner by the local restaurant. They also served us breakfast this morning. Thanks Blustery’s!

After dinner, the wind that we were warned about started. As the hot day cools off, the wind comes down the river fast and strong. I think it must have been blowing 30-40 miles per hour and even harder gusts until about 1am. It wasn’t bad in my tent though. It is small and low profile so the wind rushes right past it. We were warned to stake our tents well so that we didn’t have to chase them. Now I understand why.

The ride started right after breakfast. We all stayed together to be escorted over the bridge that took us across the Columbia River. The support vehicles blocked one lane of traffic so that we could get across safely since there is no shoulder for bikes to ride on. Once we were across, the first of many hills took us out of the Columbia River Valley.

At the top, was the Wild Horses monument.

Rocky Road or Vanilla? One of our support stops this afternoon was a nice surprise. We were served ice cream cones. They were refreshing and delicious. Then, a little down the road, I saw several dust twisters. They were pretty big. I tried to catch one to take a picture, but it crossed the road and disappeared. They were neat to see as long as they were small and not tornadoes mixed with storms.

That was pretty much the exciting part of the day. There was a lot of rolling hills with a whole lot of farmland. The farmers grow wheat, corn, alfalfa, beans and a few fruit trees. Everything has to be irrigated constantly due to the dryness of the area. The only towns/cities we rode through were George, Washington (how appropriate) and Ephrata, Washington.

The day was a warm one. It is in the mid 80s and we were supposed to have a tailwind, but I never felt it. Most of the day seemed like I had a headwind right in my face. I spent most of the day riding alone. I needed some time to appreciate the surroundings. At one point, I even got off my bike and walked about 1 mile while I ate my PB&J sandwich. I wanted to keep going but also wanted to enjoy the peace and tranquility of the area. It was so quiet. The only thing that disrupted the ride today was the large trucks transporting either wheat or alfalfa. They were all going the opposite way, but when they passed, I was blasted with bits and pieces of whatever they were carrying. I even saw one bushel that had fallen off a truck and made its way across the road to my side. It was really big and left an impression in the ground where it came to a stop. I sure am glad that I wasn’t there when it came flying across.

We finished the ride for the day at the Odessa high school. We set up camp on the field out back. It is just like being back in high school. We took showers in the gym (no privacy whatsoever). My comment about public bathrooms...oh my. Right out in the open for all to enjoy. We will be eating in the cafeteria for dinner and breakfast tomorrow morning. Understand, I am in no way complaining. A warm shower and a meal is fantastic after a long day’s ride.