I forgot how early the sun rises in Utah. It's before 6am, and by the time I emerged from the tent, the sun was high in the sky.
Last night I thought about the route. The huge climb on highway 39 was suggested by the folks at the Shooting Star Saloon (Day 45, on the road again), a beautiful alternative to a more trafficked but also stunning road. Just two days into the ride after a week of vacation, I wasn't feeling too ambitious. So I headed the opposite direction, my original route to Logan, Utah.
Why is Utah so beautiful?
Stopping after a couple miles in Eden, I noticed a little building next to a market with Tibetan prayer flags lining the front. Inside was an eclectic coffee shop filled with a few patrons and their dogs.
I setup in my laptop the corner of Eden Coffee & Cocoa, grabbed a coffee and chatted with the locals. We covered everything, from Boston to cryptocurrency. Aaron, a local cyclist, asked if I needed any work done on the bike. I declined, but asked if he had any ideas to affix the 32 oz. hydroflask (found on the side of the road) to my forks. He came up with a great solution, utilizing some sort of tie strap lying in his truck. So far, it is still holding snug.
Aaron also convinced me to take Highway 39.
So, I will climb 4500 feet.
The barista, Allie (Cat) poured me a glass of some fresh juice to taste - absolutely phenomenal. Consisting of mostly avocados, wheat grass, spinach and dates (and some spices I noted for later), it tasted like a chai-infused power smoothie.
Allie (Cat)!
Upon leaving, she sent me on my way with a full mason jar of juice.
Thank you Allie!
I backtracked my way and started climbing. Just like Aaron claimed, the climb was pleasant - stretched out over several miles. I stopped a few times to snack on trail-mix and put the mason jar in the creek to cool it down. After all, the temperature was nearing 90 degrees.
Just some juice in the creek, I got some great looks from passing drivers.
By 5 o'clock, my legs were exhausted and I hadn't even reached the summit. There were plenty of places to camp; fire roads branching off every mile or so with markers designating camping areas. The first road I tried turned out to be too muddy, and the closest clearing was already occupied.
Downing a bag of caramel M&Ms, I climbed to the summit, found a fireroad and setup camp. With views from my tent of both sides of the valley, it was perfect. And I was in this grassy clearing, away from the snow.
My tent is about 50 yards to the left of those telephone poles
In fact, the spot was better than perfect - more like surreal. I was all alone at 9 thousand feet with breathtaking views.
With the sun over an hour from setting, I cooked up dinner and holed up for the night. I felt a bit relieved getting to bed early; glad I didn't have to setup in the dark and my legs needed rest.
Lying in my sleeping bag, watching the sunset.
The cover photo is a tent-less version, the sun falling behind the mountains.
Joe