Parker, AZ to Lake Havasau, AZ 43.4 miles
After taking a punishment the last couple of days, today's ride was a 44 mile recovery ride to Lake Havasau. Since the intense heat still existed, we were on our bikes heading out of Parker by 6:45. For the first 18 miles, we rode next to the Colorado River, working our way up to Parker Dam. Surprisingly, there was a lot of development on both sides, especially with RV parks and very ugly vacation home developments. It also surprised me how narrow the river was and how congested it must get with boaters on the weekends. The scenic rock formations got better with each mile. Parker Dam is a very small version of Hoover Dam, in which you are able to ride your bike across the top. The remaining 26 miles into Lake Havasau City were rolling hills and easy trekking by comparison to previous days. By arriving mid morning, gave plenty of time to do laundry, attend work issues and go check out the original London Bridge, which was brought over brick by brick and rebuilt. Today's temperature was 104 and when we were walking back from dinner at 8:30, the temperature was still 93.
Friday, Sept. 19th
Lake Havasau, AZ to Kingsman, AZ 87.9 miles
The first part of today's 88 mile ride was uneventful until we reached I-40, at which point, we had to ride on the shoulder for approximately 10 miles. Fortunately, we had a favorable tailwind and the terrain was flat with some occasional downhills, which enabled us to average 28 mph. It made me very uneasy having semis and cars flying by me at 75 mph, so I had a little extra incentive to put the hammer down. After existing, we turned onto the famous Route 66 and stayed on it until we reached our hotel in Kingman, AZ. Lunch was set-up in the old mining town of Oatman, which is known for wild burros that roam the streets. On previous Trek trips, they have been known to be very aggressive in trying to eat the food out of the support trailer, so extra precautions were taken. Right after lunch, we began our first major climb over Sitgreaves Pass 3500'. The scenery was spectacular and I had some great music going on my ipod, so it really was not that painful. Today's total climbing elevation was 8273'.