My Thanksgiving Treat to Myself

Well, I found a few photos this afternoon on my camera that were in the internal memory that I forgot to pull onto my SD card from days and weeks that have passed.

Beautiful flower amongst really sharp barbs of  a nasty desert plant.

In Safford, AZ. I found this a bit unusual. Insurance & Cotton Company. It just caught my eye.

Bales of cotton in AZ.

Looking up the mountain that I descended going to my three day stopover in Three Way.

I was sure I took a photo of the guy chomping my hand! I did. It was at the Three Way, AZ Ranger station.

On the ascent toward Emory Pass.

Love the clouds!

I was along side the road, taking a break, when a woman with MD license plates stopped to see if I was OK. She had an enormous lab, named Sherman. We spoke a bit, she took my photo for me and gave me a bottle of water, at my request, because I was unsure how much further I had to go. We hugged.  It was just a few miles to the spot I decided to camp. I was then able to fill all of my water containers with fresh stream water (purified by my really cool purifier I got at REI). Holy smokes, the water tasted amazingly good.

Although I didn't take any photos of my campsite, I assure you it was wonderful. I was incredibly chilly as I got my water bottles filled by one of the few streams I have seen since San Diego (no kidding), and made my dinner. But as misfortune would have it, as I bent over into my tent, I had a really nasty pop occur in my lower back. So very sad. For those of you who know me, this is the one that makes me grunt when I walk, beg for mercy when I sit up, and cry when I bend to tie my shoes. I had a terrible feeling I would be stuck in the tent for two days.

As I lay there contemplating my next day of travel or not, I did everything I could think of to put that vertebrae back in place. Stretching, twisting, putting a large roll under my knees to take pressure off my back, took some ibuprophen and I did a little voodoo too just for good measure. I nuzzled in my tent and sleeping bag and did my best to relax, including listening to a meditation podcast. After the podcast, I thought of a recent massage I had and placed my fist under my back, at the point of pain. I moved the fist around slowly, pressing on the muscles, tendons and nerves in an effort to relieve the excruciating pain. I tried to read while doing this but was only mildly successful. I turned out my headlamp and listened to hours of meditation podcasts, trying to relax and ease the pain. 

In the AM, I woke up and was very much aware of what I had in store for myself today. Climbing to the apex of the entire southern tier, Emory Pass. Very fortunately, my hip / back popped back into place when I climbed out of the tent! Although not perfect, it worked wonders compared to hobbling around like a troll.

After a breakfast of 4 oatmeals (because I put in too much water), I headed out on the road for the last few miles of climbing to the pinnacle of the ride. Below are some photos I took on the ascent. 

Love the clouds in this one!

This my friends, is the sign for a switchback.

Looking back down from the Emory Pass

Ta da! I did it! 8,828 feet! Also, I have too much stuff!

F.G. Superman overlooking the valley we later descended. 

The overlook of Emory Pass with the both of us. 

Sign at Emory Pass Overlook

One of the greatest signs to see as a bicyclist! This preceded a sign that said  something like "8 miles of steep descent." I had to stop twice on the ride down the mountain. First to put on a second pair of gloves and second to put on a balaclava to keep my chin and nose from freezing.

View from the overlook.

Don't know why, but I just love this view. It was right about here that I saw my first snowflake.

This is the tiny town where I stayed at a quaint B&B.

For those UD rugby players who recall the good old days, I believe I found the bear from the Swiss Inn at an antique shop in Hillsboro!

I found my way inside the B&B and took a long hot bath to ease my back pains that were still nagging. I then found my way to the glorious bed. And there I stayed and shall stay until breakfast calls. I'm looking forward to heading to Las Cruces tomorrow. That ride is approximately 75 miles of downhill or flatness! Hooray. Please pray for a tailwind to push me along my ride. 

To everyone I love - you know who you are - thank you for your support, your guidance and words of wisdom and encouragement. This has been an amazing journey and I'm truly thankful to be continuing this ride that I wanted to do about 20 years ago, but didn't have the courage to complete at the time. So here I am, having the ride of my life. Two people have been constantly with me on this trip in my heart and soul. I love you Gretel, I love you Bauer with every hint, nuance, ounce, and essence of my being. You need to know that. All of my love.

Dad.