GUARDIAN ANGEL

ANN, OUR GUARDIAN ANGEL

DATE:  Fri, Sept. 9,  2011
HOME:  Freestone Inn, Mazama, Wa.
DISTANCE:  58 miles
ALTITUDE:  6130 ft.
HOURS ON THE ROAD:  11
NARRATIVE:
If Ann had not come to our rescue on the road today we would most likely be camped on the side of the road at a trailhead.  We began early enough - knew there was lots of climbing - but thought we could do it.  We immediately ran into difficulty:  not enough water and HEAT AND SUN!  I was on the side of the road sitting on a log looking at the map for the next trailhead - we had emergency food and a stove in which to boil water - when along came this woman in a SUV towing a cute little trailer.  She hopped out of the car asking, "Would you like some water and watermelon?"  She refueled us and we were then "good to go" sort of - it was still HOT (record breaking heat (97) and SUN, with the occasional bit of shade to cool our bodies down.

Finally, after a 36 mile 5% grade slog up the mountainside we came to our first pass, Rainy Pass - no view, no welcome party, no restaurant, and no sign (actually we did find a small one for traffic going the other direction).  All we had to look forward to was a slight downhill and the final uphill at 8% to Washington Pass - in the SUN and HEAT!  We did make it, there was a trailhead there, and if there would have been a place to pitch a tent I would have because we still had 20 miles to go.  Even though it was downhill!
But, we did make it, and even found a wonderful country inn, The Freestone Inn, with a fabulous restaurant.  When we made our entrance at dinner we were greeted with cheers from non other than our GUARDIAN ANGEL and her friends that she was sagging for.

NOTE ON THE RIDE:  This ride, even under the best weather conditions, would not be one of our favorites.  The road was good, but the traffic, beginning about 11am, was heavy with RV's and motorcycles.  Good shoulder, and only 5% grade, but it was a 40 mile uphill slog with only an occasional view of the mountains.

All's well that ends well - we had a great evening - and after a glass of wine the trials of the day were beginning to fade.  Tomorrow is almost ALL DOWNHILL!