Slow Start, Strong Finish

Refueled and ready to roll we rushed to pack our gear before the 10am check out in Kingman, AZ. In our usual bike maintenance overview I noticed a good amount of plant spines and a few goatheads in my tires. Removing the gruesome spikes rewarded me with my first flat of the journey. Finishing the repair job we hurriedly reorganized our gear and set out.

Our enthusiasm to ride hard after a few low mile days was soon checked by a shoulder quite wide but as rough as a gravel road. A few bumpy miles later, another flat on Laura's back wheel. Our misfortune turned to relaxment as we found a sun-drenched 55" TV box next to an especially friendly shrub. There Laura patched the tube and I sewed up the busted fingertips in my gloves. Feasting commenced. Lazily we wondered if we could even make it to the Hwy 93 turn off, 15 miles, before dark. If we just kept eating and basking in the sun would we even have to try?

At last the calories and radiation had sunk in and we roused ourselves to ride. The 55" palace had done us more good than we realized. The shoulder was not as rough as before.

A slow climb gave way to smooth descent, leading us into the turn off and onto a more maintained shoulder. We flew down the buttery asphalt to Wickiup in no time at all. The landscape had shifted again. Saguaro, ocotillo, and prickly pear poked out from between the rocks and shrubs.

Hunger setting in we rolled up to a place called Dazzo's. After the glaze of the road left my eyes I saw that the building was covered in signatures, messages, and dates. This was the famed yellow sandwich shop Dillion had told us to look out for!

After a quick nutrition stop and the obligatory blog address on the building we rode off into the sunset, headed for the Burro Creek Campground. The hills turned to a pastel painting as the sun dipped behind them. Soon we were covered by a blanket of stars along the winding highway.

Throwing our bikes on the side of a hill and climbing to the top we found our flattest campsite yet. The din of the traffic below was surprisingly heavy for New Years Eve. We watched the lights wind their way up the long, slow rolling hills we would tackle tomorrow. In the moonless sky the stars sparkled bright. We fell asleep early and left 2012 behind.

The Snow Returns

We had thought that sub freezing temperatures were behind us. This was not the case we found, awaking in the dump to frost on our bivvies and a brief hail storm. Driven to complete
our slow approach to Kingman, AZ by dwindling food stuffs we pressed on. Under heavy skies we rolled across the shoulderless expanse for another 20 miles.

A broken, grass-colonized shoulder appeared just in time for the crest before Kingman. The spinning ascent was met by fluffy flakes that followed us all the way into town. There we resupplied, feasted, and prepared for the final leg towards Phoenix.

Loss of a Dear Shoulder

Drenched with sunshine upon awakening and faced with a four mile climb back to the highway, we first prepared a big pot of chocolate tamarind rice. Following a digestive nap in the sunshine, we were ready to go. Spinning up the long, winding hill brought the first true brow sweat. Despite being a climb, the road was missed as the quiet and lack of car exhaust were broken as we rejoined the highway. Scooting along a wide, smooth shoulder we soaked in mile after mile. After a burger break at a flamboyantly alien rest stop, we continued.

Unfortunately the good times came to an end. The shoulder of the road, that special strip of pavement outside the white line, dwindled to a crumbling mess. At least there were two lanes in our direction, and motorists gave us a wide passing distance.

Discouraged by the road conditions, we retired early near a turquoise building advertising jerky and wild honey, in what must have been an old dump judging by the amount of rusty metal strewn about. The lights of the highway traffic looked strange through the branches of the creosote brush, but we soon fell asleep on the sandy ground.