Cycle Oregon

The week of Cycle Oregon finally arrived.  I had really been dreading this bike ride all summer.  I thought I would just die riding 50-80 miles a day on my bike!  I am pleased to report that I actually finished every day of riding.  I never took the "sag wagon" van designated for those that were too tired to finish...which was a shocker to me because I thought I would be in the van all day every day:)  I don't think I will ever do this again but I have to admit I am proud of myself for finishing each day.  As you ride into camp each night they give you a chocolate milk at the finish line...Oh, I looked forward to that chocolate milk every day!  The weather was absolutely gorgeous the entire week.  I don't think I could have done this in the rain.  There was one morning that was so cold our tent had ice on it but it never rained.  The food was pretty good, but I think anything would have tasted good after riding my bike all day!  The one thing I remember about this ride was the hills...hill, after hill.  You would reach the top of one hill only to observe there was another hill on the horizon.  It was crazy and I was so sore.  But I did it!

Day 1: Baker City to Halfway

And we are off!  You can't tell but the little yellow flag in the background says "Start"  I remember feeling so nervous at this point but also excited to get this thing started.  We had been training all summer and I was ready to get it over with.  Steve and Katrina Doxey also joined us on this journey, it was wonderful to spend time with them and Katrina and I could commiserate about the hills:)

At one the top of one of the many hills!

Cycle Oregon!

Day one: DONE

Day 2: Halfway to Wallowa Lake

I think what I'm trying to show here is the steep hill I just had to climb up but the picture does this NO justice!  This was a 20 mile climb...no down hill, just up.  Yeah, I was pretty dead!

Some of the pretty scenery.  Like I said, the weather was spectacular!

Katrina and I riding into Wallowa Lake together.  We barely made it to camp before the sun set!  It was a long, tough day with many hills!

Day 2: DONE

Day 3: Wallowa Lake to Elgin

Hyrum and I leaving Wallowa Lake in the morning.  The night before we had walked down to the lake from our campsite and enjoyed a beautiful starry sky.  It was a beautiful place to visit and I'd like to bring the boys back here some day and explore some more.

A typical lunch break meal.  They tried to provide lunch at about the halfway point each day.  It was such a welcome break to get off my bike, stretch my legs and relax for a bit.

Lovely scenery at one of the rest stops.  Hyrum and I didn't bike together much but he would always wait for me at each of the rest stops so we could chat for a bit and see each other.

Day 3: DONE

We got into the cute little town of Elgin with some evening left to walk around and see what was there.  It turns out...not much.  BUT, this cute little train was just the perfect place to take a photo.

Also, there was a community theater in town and they invited us to a little "preview" of the show they are rehearsing, Mary Poppins.  We weren't expecting much but they really blew us away with their dancing and singing and costumes.  What an unexpected gem in a small little town!

Day 4: Elgin to Pendleton

What our little "tent city" looked like.  There were 2,000 cyclists on this little journey, the logistics of getting everyone organized was crazy!

Up and over the Blue Mountains...little did I know I would be going back over them in just a few days time!

Beautiful day!

Day 4: DONE

Tired after dinner...so, so tired!

Day 5: Rest Day (Awesome!  No bike riding today!!!)

Our home away from home for the week.  I slept in until 9 AM!  After getting up at 5:30 AM four days in a row I was so happy to wake up when I wanted to.

The inside of our little home.  Instead of 2 sleeping bags Hyrum and I just brought a down comforter and it kept us toasty warm because we could snuggle up together:)

A little kitten wandered into our campsite.  I was so tempted to keep it and bring it home but I had no way to carry it on my bike!

I guess I can't complain about the tough ride...I did sign up for this!

We walked around Pendleton which was a pretty cute town.  The "Roundup" was going on so there were lots of street vendors and plenty to see and do.  The Pendleton Roundup is one of the largest rodeos in the Northwest and has been going on since 1910!

There was an "Indian Village" outside the rodeo grounds.

We spent about an hour watching the rodeo.  This was the Indian parade but we also saw the bucking bronco riders.

This animal looked super scary but was the sweetest thing.  He let me pet his nose and touch his giant horns!


The best part of my whole day...Indian fry bread with fresh huckleberry jam!

Each night at the campground they had live music to enjoy.  Most of the groups were pretty good and it was fun just to relax and enjoy being around other cyclists.

Day 6: Pendleton to La Grande

Back on the bike!  Heading out on another gorgeous morning.

Back up, up, up and over the Blue Mountains!

At the top of "Cabbage Hill"

Somebody make it stop...I'm so tired!  I can't do even one more day!!  I felt that all my photos had me smiling and looking happy, I just had to capture what my true feelings were about this bike ride!

Day 6: DONE

Day 7: La Grande to Baker City

Who is ready to start on the last day of this ride???  ME!!  

We had a rest stop scheduled in North Powder and my friend, Emily Bingham, who I knew from Germany lives there so she came out to wish us well and cheer us on.  It was super fun to see her!

Emily made us this sign and it was so cool to see it posted along the route.  I wondered how many people rode past this sign and wondered who "Durtschi" was:)

Day 7: DONE

This is a real smile!  I got my chocolate milk and I am DONE with cycle Oregon!  I was so happy!!!

Yay!  We made it!  Due to medical issues Steve Doxey had to drop out after just 2 days and Katrina only rode 4 days because she was with Steve in the hospital.  Luckily it was nothing serious and Katrina came back and finished the last 2 days with Hyrum and I.

Our little biker group!  We trained so much over the summer it was a bummer Steve couldn't finish the trip with us.  We did get a photo with us all in our cycle Oregon t-shirts and it was nice of Steve to meet us at the finish line:)

Goodbye Cycle Oregon, it was...fun?  No, but it was an adventure and I'm proud of myself for finishing!

6 days of biking, 380 miles, 25,000 feet total elevation gained...sore legs, happy to be done:)