When I woke up at 4:30 AM, I wondered if driving out of the terrible weather and scenery was the right decision. Jordan had decided (and I applauded) to maintain the goal of minimum daily miles (he should exceed that amount) for the trip, but he was looking for better weather and scenery. So, we drove to last night’s destination. This is where Lake Powell stands out as the leading local attraction. What caused that wonder at 4:30 AM? It was raining heavily!
I focused on being quiet so that Jordan could get the sleep he needed to recover from his body. On the other hand, I believe I had taken too much Magnesium Citrate, and I was experiencing severe diarrhea that was about to erupt! I left the car and walked four blocks to McDonald’s, as it was the only building open with a restroom. I managed to make it, but it was a bit of a mess as I sat down. I went to the other stall to finish, as it was already in disarray. It was unfortunate for the worker who had to clean up after me!
The first thing I noticed at 5:00 AM was that McDonald’s was occupied by what I assume were primarily migrant workers who were hanging around, waiting for work. Some of them were having breakfast, while others were having coffee. There were fewer than six cars in the lot (I assume most of them were employees), but over 20 people were inside. I think it was a migrant worker station.
At 6:45 AM, I returned to the car, only to find it covered in a tar-like substance. Even the bike rims were coated in this sticky substance. This was a concern because it could affect braking. Since Jordan was still asleep, I went to Walmart and used my phone to look for car washes. There was one just a few blocks away from where he slept. I read the news on my phone and waited until 8:30 AM to return to the car. Fortunately, the weather was clearing up!
While Jordan was still half asleep, I drove to the car wash. Removing the black substance from the bike and car was a lot of work. I used a brush while pushing hard, but some tar remained. I spent 15 minutes washing and managed to remove 95% of the gunk. I also brought a Brillo pad and scrubbed the rim brakes to ensure they were clean. When we get back to Denver, I’ll get tar and bug remover to remove the rest of this unknown substance.
After the car wash, we went to The Ranch House Grill, a local restaurant, to refuel for the day. It was a good start to the morning. As we were leaving, we met the mother and daughter from Florida, whom we had seen at the Four Corners Monument. Jordan and I had a pleasant conversation while I replaced the chain on his bike.
Our first plan was to drive on the road, which could have been better, toward Zion National Park. Jordan started his ride about 15 miles outside the park, and the weather was near perfect! He rode about 50 miles into, throughout, and out of the park. I spent a few hours organizing the car from the night before, hiking, and taking photos. The scenery was much better!
On the way into Zion, Jordan met another biker from Alaska. He was riding from Phoenix to Las Vegas. What was comical yet sad was that Jordan was riding strong, and this guy was trying to keep up. His cargo looked like it would fall off at any moment as he pedaled as hard as possible to stay up. I later found out that he only has one brake (the rear seizes), and he just used a bungee cord to hold the rear “cage.”
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Once we returned to the bustling road, we loaded up the bike and headed to Bryce Canyon, where he added another 25 miles to his day’s mileage.
Bryce Canyon is a captivating location, and I had some time to capture its beauty through photographs. It was 9:15 PM when we returned to the car, and the temperature had already dropped to a chilly 47 degrees. Since all the hotels were full, we found ourselves back on the road. We decided to dine at Ruby’s, a local full-service hotel. We both relished a pasta dish for the first time since embarking on our trip, and it was simply delicious.
Given the limited accommodation options, we were back on the road once again. We opted to sleep in Ruby’s parking lot, prepared to leave if we were disturbed. Jordan fell asleep by 10:30 PM, and I ventured inside the hotel to find power outlets to charge his headphones, the three Garmin devices, and the charging blocks we had brought. However, there was only one outlet in a discreet location, preventing me from charging my laptop or downloading photos.
At 11:45 PM, I returned to the car, hoping that the devices had sufficient charge to last us through the next day.
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