June 5, 2023
Drifting along with the tumbling tumbleweeds
Quote of the day:Cares of the past are behindNowhere to go, but I'll findJust where the trail will windDrifting along with the tumblin' tumbleweeds. Roy Rogers and The Sons Of the Pioneers.
Some tumbleweed facts as I have witnessed: 1) They do not just tumble, they fly too. I saw one soaring about for the longest time. This way and that. At first I thought it was a flock of small birds. You know how birds and fish can move around in a group? I used to know the name for that behavior. It essentially makes it difficult for predators to pick off too many at once. But alas it was a small tumbleweed twittering about. 2) They chase each other about. No, really! I saw it with my own eyes. Almost ran them over but they saw me at the last minute and moved off the road. I thought they just tumbled to spread their seeds. That what they told us in biology 101. Now I’m not so sure. Maybe they have to mate before they can spread their seed. Or maybe they are like fish and their eggs get fertilized as they tumble. I don’t know. I am not an expert in tumbleweed reproduction.
Anyhow, just like those guys I relinquished myself to the wind today. I changed my route and instead of riding the trail or the nearby Crab Creek Road (wait, they got crabs here?) I decided to take a semi busy highway ( 253) along the river (think flat) and then turn east at Mattawa and take 24 to Othello. Up until 24 takes a left turn south of Othello, there is a nice shoulder. Gets a little tricky at the start as the road squeezes between the river and cliffs, but traffic was kind. Lots of farm equipment out there so I think folks are used to slow moving vehicles crawling along.
Going across the Beverly Bridge was fun. The wind was blowing through the river valley at about 30-40. I had to walk the bridge and could barely stand up. The trail before and after the bridge it what we used to call cinders. You know the small black gravel they sometimes spread over hot tar on roads, called chip seal. Only here there is no tar and the stone is 6 inches deep. Not fun to ride even with my 2 1/2 inch 29ers.
Just about from Ellensburg to Mattawa the landscape is pretty desolate. Volcanic rocks, cliffs, Sage brush, sand dunes (from some long forgotten inland sea?). But once past Mattawa the area blossoms with farms (ranches) and is green thanks to a complicated irrigation system. This area lies in a valley between what looks to me like old sand dunes, kinda like the Loess Hills in Iowa that where formed during the ice ages. They grow everything here. Potatoes, apples,cherries,onions, wheat, hay, you name it. Oh, and pot.
Boy, was I ever temped to steal some cherries! But two things stopped me. One was the guys wearing hazmat suits spraying trees. And the other was the sound of gun fire. I just knew I was gonna find another cyclist lying in a pool of blood as they tried to get to those cherries. But no, it was just propane cannons to scare off the hungry birds. Probably a good thing, I didn’t see any two headed birds from all that spraying.
Google was wrong again. Said my ride would be 50 miles and not 58. That sort of discrepancy is tough on you when you are expecting rest soon. Before Othello I climbed from about 650 ft to 1150. Slow gradual uphills are killers but the tail wind helped. When I reached the crest I descended to a stream and 850 ft. An hour and a half up, 5 minutes down. And then of course back up again. Against the wind by now.
Anyway, time for a couple pictures which I am sure will appear someplace besides where I want them.
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PS: since I cowboy camped last night (too windy for a tent) and I was in big sky country (they really should just call it no trees country) I thought I would see a plethora of stars like I had never seen before. But nooooooo. The none-functional bath rooms they put me next to had the lights on all night. That’s kinda a tease don’t you think? You gotta go, lights are on, but no, doors are locked. Sounds like a familiar Beatles song. Can you guess which one?
PPS I finally caught up with BOB this morning. He’s an early riser. I’ll get a pic if I can catch him again.
Today's ride: 58 miles (93 km)
Total: 233 miles (375 km)
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