Lima to RedRocks Lakes National Wildlife Refuge 7/19 58 miles

We are excited to leave Lima and head out on our first overnight.  We got a very early start because we knew the sun was going to beat down on us all day.  The first 10 miles were gradual with easy dirt roads and climbing.  The next 38, some of the worst roads we've been on.  After yesterdays ride, I was, how should I say, emotional, and had to stop every five to ten miles just to regroup and gather good thoughts.  There was a lot of loose rock, sandy throw you off your bike stretches, and washboard.  You get the picture.  The scenery was wide open pastures and sagebrush.  Beautiful country, and we were trying very hard to appreciate it!  We saw several thousand cows(slight exaggeration) and cowboys herding them to different fields.  We even got to chat with an older husband and wife on horseback who were rounding up a stray cow.
Eventually we got closer to the Centennial Mountain range that we had been seeing in the distance the whole ride.  And our dreams of smother roads came on the last ten miles as we made our way through Lakeview, where the offices for the wildlife sanctuary we were heading to were located.


Finally, we made it to Red Rocks.  A beautiful refuge of 32,000 acres, set up in 1935 as a breeding ground for wild birds and animals the trumpeter swan being their main focus.  We had to wear DEET because of the man-eating mosquitos.  There was a gushing fresh water spring that replenished our water supply with.
We were so tired after two hard days that we were ready for bed by 6.  It was just too hot to crawl into the tent, so we braved the bugs and fell asleep in one of the only shady spots we could find.  Providing the shade was a small tree that had a robin's nest in it.  For the 3 hours we spent under that tree, we observed, when we happened to be awake, the mama and papa robin feeding their three babies.  Mouthfuls of grasshoppers and various bugs were constantly before delivered to there hungry mouths.  It was like watching a nature channel on tv.


While getting ready for a fabulous freeze dried dinner of shepards pie and beef stroganoff, a couple pulled into camp on BMW dirt bikes.  After a while we introduced ourselves.  We found that they were from the Seattle area(Preston), and were doing a modified Great Divide ride among other routes, ending in Colorado where they were meeting up with fellow riders(Harley's though).  We really enjoyed talking to Deby and Donn.
They were even so kind as to offer bug repellant wipes, whiskey, wine, all those basic needs!  We took them up on the wipes and headed off to our tent.  While laying there sweating to death in the hot tent, we noticed the sound of what seemed like distant chain saws.  Come to find out, it was the sound of a gazillion mosquitos in a tornado like spiral above the camp.  Deby and Donn told us the next morning that they were trying to find the source of the sound and saw this above the camp!



For more pics click here