23. A plea for charity

Please sponsor me with a donation to OXFAM! Click here for: MY PLEA
The video is shot at the Great Divide's highest point.

My original fundraising target was £1000 which I'm getting close to but will need some more help to get there. If I surpass £1000 let's go for £2000! As you can see, most of your contributions go towards development work, followed by humanitarian work (responding to disasters) and, finally, towards campaigning. Soon I'll be entering Latin America where OXFAM does some of its main work; if I can I will try to visit some of the projects funded and run by the charity.

The day after I shot my plea I caught up with this cyclist, Koen from the Netherlands. He is creating a GPS track as he cycles and, for weeks, my father has been charting his progress and encouraging me to catch up with him. Like me, he is doing a charity ride; he is seeking to raise funds for research into MS. Please take a moment to look at his website: Koen - MS

He is undertaking a formidable challenge for an admirable cause, it would be wonderful if he received some donations from people looking at my blog.

22. The agony and the ecstasy

Tough days! I feel like a marathon runner running the last few miles. I've done the hard work getting through the Great Divide Trail but fear 'hitting the wall' - not quite having the energy nor the good fortune to get me through. Indeed, the trail maps say "In addition to to having stout lungs and strong legs, to do the entire Great Divide you will need to have a little luck... on your side." AGONY: After suffering just one puncture in nearly two months my luck ran out between Grants and Silver City. In four days I had to stop six times to repair punctures and, invariably, I seemed to stop in places with no shelter, the sun beating down on me as I desperately tried to find the hole(s) in my tubes. At one stop before Pie Town my inner tubes resembled sieves, with multiple puncture points caused by tiny goathead thorns. This induced 'puncture paranoia' - hypersensitive feeling for my tyres, nervously stopping to check pressure levels in the belief they were deflating. Sometimes they were, sometimes they weren't. Stressful, but if you can't fix a puncture you shouldn't really be on the Trail.

AGONY/ECSTASY: My worst day for punctures was on the approach to Pie Town. Yes, Pie Town. I made an extra early 6:30am start to ensure I made the 69 miles to to the restaurants before 4pm closing, giving myself some contingency time 'just in case'. I had a glorious morning's ride through the relatively flat semi-desert. Red earth and occasional stretches of lava fields evoked the Great Rift Valley of Africa. Then in the afternoon the inner tube sieve moment happened and an hour of repairs threatened to derail all my efforts to get there. But, I had to get my pie! Head down, ridiculous frenzied cycling got me to Pie Town by 3:10pm and I was able to have my pie (peach-cinammon). How did it taste? No idea, I shovelled it down barely tasting it, exhausted from the ride.

ECSTASY: Apart from much celebrated pie restaurants, Pie Town is also home to Toaster House. This is a cabin set up for bikers on the Great Divide Trail and hikers on the Continental Divide Trail. I had such a wonderful stay there and, even after the serving of pie (and burger and chips), I had space for a huge plate of pasta, vegetables and cheese. It was great to cook indoors in a kitchen rather than outside on a stove. If only I'd thought to drain the pasta with my inner tubes...

I had great conversations with Amaya (above) and Eric who have been on the road since 2006! This is their blog/website: Amaya and Eric and also with Scott, an American cyclist, about the forthcoming Presidential election. I can't repeat what he said about Trump...

ECSTASY: Getting to Pie Town, frenzied, but early at least gave me some downtime and I enjoyed listening to The Who on a tapedeck. The next day, feeling well rested and inspired by the tales of Amaya and Eric, I set off with the plan of just making good progress. All about mind management, I planned to ride in 15 mile segments taking 15 minute food/water breaks between each segment. No looking at the bigger picture and, for once, forcing myself to break, not ride on. By late afternoon I'd made 75 miles comfortably and, with half-decent roads and gentle descent ahead of me I challenged myself to make 100 miles. Though I had to ride on into the dark I made it!

ECSTASY: Here is my campsite I found in the dark - Beaverhead Work Centre for forest rangers. I shouldn't really camp here but it was Saturday night, no-one was around and forest rangers are pretty supportive of bicycle tourists. This may not look it at first glance, but this really was a luxury campsite. Flat ground, toilet block and, most importantly of all, a precious water pump. It is so dry out here that you have to plan your water stops carefully and sometimes drink sparingly; not great for the body in a hot and dry climate.

DOUBLE AGONY: after the high of making 100 miles the next day was so tough! No doubt the fatigue of the previous day had an effect but mostly it was the hard the trail conditions; constantly undulating, terrible surfaces - washboarded, soft gravel, protruding rocks, loose rocks. The day didn't start well as I had to fix yet another puncture which meant that, by the time I got started, it was already seriously warming up. I was trying really hard but by 4pm had only covered just over 30 miles. I felt genuinely dejected and when I began to have issues with my rear derailleur and yet another puncture, I began to feel a little helpless. Nevertheless, I managed to, because I had to, fix each problem and in the end made 66 miles by the end of the day. I camped at 7:30, no cooking, just peanut butter sandwiches and energy bars and a good glug of water and straight to bed.

AGONY: I had some close, potentially hazardous, encounters with animals on this day. In the setting sun I couldn't see the road that well and was inches from running over a large rattlesnake (not this little one, I didn't dare go back to take a photo of the one I nearly squashed). Then, minutes later two unleashed dogs set upon me and I only just warded them off with the threat of stones before their owner came and took responsibility for his violent beasts.

You may ask why I'm pushing so hard, making the trail so tough. I can't help it, it's in my DNA to face a challenge head on. Some bikers are doing 20-40 miles a day but it's not how I want to regularly ride. Having said that, the reward for a string of long days through the desert and forests is that I could coast 20 miles down to Silver City this morning, put my bike into the bike shop for some much needed TLC and give me valuable rest time hanging out in cafes and the library. Civilisation, never underrate it! 

The Mexican border is now just two days ride away. If I do it in two days I'll have completed the whole Divide in 50 days. However, I am tempted to linger in Silver City an extra day, it seems to be a lovely place. I'll see how I get on with my Warm Showers host tonight...

21. Desert Storm

I was elated to ride in the desert, an environment I've never experienced before: Desert video

 The wide open vistas gave a feel that was quite unlike being surrounded by forest or hemmed in by mountain valleys. A number of Europeans have said that this desert stretch of the Great Divide between Cuba and Grants is their favourite. I guess much of the appeal is that it is something new. A further draw is that this felt like a real wilderness; I hardly saw anybody in the two days I crossed the desert. This is a wild, unforgiving environment not suited to human habitation.

 This sign is not joking, if there is intense, prolonged rainfall the track turns into a sludgy soup of sand and mud that soon clogs up your mudguards. As I found when I tried to ride through a couple of spots! You have to get off your bike and wheel it round off track where you face the menace of spikes from the drought-adapted plants like the cacti below.

 With this in mind, I was a little worried when I saw and heard a thunderous storm during the night from the direction in which I intended to travel. These cyclists were right under it and said it was terrifying but without a tremendous volume of water. I cycled on ahead of them and had no problems, the hot sun had baked the surface hard and dry so it was rideable. Nevertheless, other problems included having to drop through deep, sandy arroyos and, from just before midday, ferocious headwinds. By the law of averages I deserve them for I had wonderful tailwinds in Wyoming. But give me a hard mountain climb over wind any day, at least then you can see your adversary!

 The main day crossing the desert was really tough for the aforementioned reasons and, because of the incredible views, I had to keep stopping to take photos. Fatigue was yet another issue. On this day I completed 64 miles, the previous day 84 miles. Why do I do it to myself?!? Still, riding is a personal thing and I know that covering the ground is one of my key motivators.

If I was a plant living in the desert I'd keep low to the ground (to avoid wind) and have spikes (to avoid moisture loss) too. By the morning of my ride out of the desert I had about three gulps of water left in my bottle. All rivers and creeks, even up in the pine mountains, are bone dry right now. Careful water management is so important.

A selfie, for there were few other folk around to take my photo. I did pass a few hunters looking out for elk ad the bow hunting (not gun) season starts today. The elk are hunted both for sport and for their meat.

20. New Mexico

I crossed into New Mexico on Saturday, just a few photos to show the changing nature of the landscape.

This was the first marker of New Mexico, the final state of my USA visit.

Panorama at the start of Brazos Ridge. Brutal track conditions - uneven, rocky road. The other, unbroken, side of my front pannier rack succumbed to the trail. It is a mangled, disfigured mess yet still completely serviceable! Just remember to bring cable ties and in the road repairs are a doddle.

Food is a huge motivation when I need to put miles in. I'd heard this splendid Mexican restaurant was closed on Mondays so made sure I made it there by Sunday lunchtime. It's Mexican food all the way for me now, I really like it. I'd heard that American portions would be huge in restaurants right across the States; I can't say I've had any problems clearing my plate.

New Mexico, so far, seems significantly drier, poorer and more religious than other states. Spanish style churches and religious figurines litter the countryside.

19. Indiana Pass

I had hoped to post a couple of videos I shot, before and after, making the pass but can't find anywhere with Wifi fast enough to upload the videos. So you'll have to trust that I actually made it!

The approach to Indiana Pass sends you through a town called Del Norte which is surrounded by upland desert. Unlike the vast plains of Wyoming covered in endless sage brush, the desert here is coloured with splashes of yellow, pink and purple wild flowers and spectacular outcrops of rock.

Patti and Gary kindly hosted me in Del Norte and ensured I was well fed and well rested before tackling the pass. They are consummate cycle tourists and were able to give me great advice and information about the route ahead. The incredible standards of American hospitality were maintained!

No picture of me at the pass, I only made a video, but this is the scene from 11,910ft. Like other passes in the area, it was manageable as the elevation grade was fairly steady and the track was of decent quality. I hoped that making this highest pass would mean the end of the hard work but, in the following days, the trail got rockier and steeper in places. 

Important to keep healthy on the trail. I have developed a minor addiction to Cliff bars, so much more nutritious than cookies, and Noosa yogurts with their wonderful array of fresh flavours. Other trail bars and yogurts are available...

18. The dizzying heights of Map 4

The Great Divide Trail is covered by 7 maps in total, the Canada map and a series of 6 maps to cover the States. Each map, alongside the trail route and directions, provides elevation profiles. I have been awaiting USA map 4 with a sense of trepidation as it has the highest passes and steepest climbs. Boreas Pass is my highest crossing of the Continental Divide and the second highest point on the trail. And it was easy! Honestly, I'm not bragging, the altitude gain was steady, the track was in fairly decent condition and I was in the zone. It sounds counter-intuitive but sometimes the best time to tackle passes is at the end of the day when, far from being tired, often I'm in a really good rhythm and feel strangely energised. I also used my secret motivational weapon, my speaker to play a bit of Rolling Stones as encouragement. A great ride.

 The cultural reference is somewhat lost on me but this is Como in South Park district of the eponymous TV show. According to the map I could camp here for free so I pitched up at dusk behind this building, out of sight of the prying eyes of village dwellers. It didn't feel terribly official or organised so I packed up camp early and sat on the steps reading for a while, warming my night-chilled bones in the early morning sun.

I really like eating in these kind of diners. They feel down to earth and friendly and you're guaranteed, if not haute cuisine, good portions and good service. As I move south the influence of Mexican cuisine in the menus is increasing and I'm hearing more and more Spanish. Not long before I'll need to start conversing in Spanish too, looking forward to breaking the rust off my long neglected linguistic skills. (skills used in the loosest sense of the term)

I came across this herd of buffalo, obviously farmed, while cycling against the wind between Hartsel and Salida. For a moment I had a glimpse of how the landscape must have looked before the pioneers - homesteaders and gold prospectors - settled and fenced off the land. In the local museums the stories of the hardships the early settlers faced are well documented but there is scant reference to the subjugation of the Native Americans. One display did show the area the Utes once roamed in Colorado and then the size of the reservations they were forced into. The reduction in territory was incredible, and incredibly saddening, to see.

 This final picture shows the scene I was presented with along my descent into Salida this morning. The majestic peaks are known as the fourteeners as many of them stand taller than 14,000ft. Fortunately, the trail will not force me quite so high!

17. Hiking Colorado

After a number of days camping I decided to take a bit of a breather with some down time in Steamboat Springs. It's a friendly little town in a beautiful location with some great services. I really enjoyed doing some non-cycling related activities here: hanging out in cafes, doing some travel research in the town's incredible library, visiting the local museum. Karen and Mike kindly hosted me; I was very grateful for a night out of the tent!

As you can faintly make out, the colours are starting to change on the hillsides and this promises to be a spectacular time to be riding through Colorado. The seasons are changing; the days are getting noticeably shorter with temperatures dropping too. While I'm not in any kind of time schedule it makes sense to keep heading south before it gets too cold.

Following my Warm Showers stay in Steamboat I was further treated with a stay at the home of Janice and Andy near Stagecoach Reservoir. Originally I had planned a one night pitstop before moving on in the morning. However, with grey skies and the threat of rain in the air Janice and Andy invited me to stay one more night and take some more time off the saddle. They are wonderful company and incredibly hospitable so I hardly needed my arm twisted!

It was a real pleasure to be taken up to the Flat Top mountain range; in the picture I am crossing the Devil's Causeway. While the scenery reminded me a little of the uplands of the Lake District and Snowdonia these are mountains on a very different scale - up to 3600m, I haven't been to such high land in years. I am really grateful to Janice and Andy for taking the time to guide me on this hike; riding a bike you just cannot get to such places and I have benefitted so much from their local knowledge.