Friday September 21

We’re still in pretty sparsely populated territory, so our distance today was (I suspect) dictated by where there was a place to accommodate all of us.  So - just under 40 miles today.

Another beautiful day!  We started out on rolling prairie roads.  Any of the uphills were short and steep - reminiscent of the east.  Lots of farmland & fields.  Interesting to see how many of the fields had been burned over and plowed under.  Also, interesting to see some fields where the crops appeared to be just starting to grow.  Seems a bit late in the season?

The road was fun to ride, little traffic, the scenery was terrific and there were so many twists and turns that it was fun to see our riders strung out in front of me.

At 15 miles we dropped off the prairie!  We lost about 1500 feet in 3 miles.  The brakes sure got a workout!  Hard to believe they actually built a road down here.  Some of the women were a bit spooked by the steepness and walked their bikes down much of it.  There was very little traffic and endless switchbacks.  Great views too.

Once we were down we were once again in an ancient river valley - the Clearwater River this time.  Very pretty, and very much like both the Salmon and Snake River valleys.

We were back onto a bit of a busier road, US12.  Narrow shoulder and some big trucks.  Not great , but not too bad either.

Lewis and Clark came through here on their explorations in 1805.  Not sure how far we follow their footsteps, but at least for a few more days.

Although we were following the river upstream since falling off the prairie, the road seems pretty flat which made for easy cycling.

We’re staying at the River Dance Lodge tonight; pretty much in the middle of nowhere.  We’re all staying in cabins tonight, except for our guides who are being housed in a “glamping” tent.  Here’s a picture of their tent and our cabin.

Janine, Joyce and Sue hosted a wine & cheese for us before dinner.  Thanks ladies!  Sundown comes pretty early these days.  By the time dinner is done it’s pretty dark.  The dishwashing crew were working by the light provided by the SAGs headlights.  Before the “party”, a few of us went out for a walk.  A bit of an old truck collection down the street.

A river access point just beyond that.

A little bunny on the way back.

No internet tonight so this is being posted a few days late.

Stats for the day:
63 km / 39 miles from Grangeville ID to River Dance Lodge (Syringa, ID)
1114 feet up, 3091 feet down
Temps:  13C to 21C.  Another glorious day.