Day 3 - Redemption

My alarm went off at 07:20.  I know when I'm really tired because it takes a while for me to figure out what that sound is.  The more tired I am, the longer it takes.  Today took a LONG time.  I turned it off and rolled over - I could hear the rain driving against the window and was in no hurry to get up and face the day.  Finally at 08:30 I sat up and figured I'd better get moving.  They had given me a coupon for $10 off breakfast, so I wandered across the parking lot to the restaurant.  It was still raining, though not super hard.  That changed quickly after I ordered, and I watched the rain come down in buckets.  A tour bus pulled up and I looked at it.  It read: International Tours - Vancouver Island/Vancouver/Okanagan.  "I'm headed for the Okanagan" I thought, and wondered if there was room in the cargo hold for my bike.  "If I'm sitting on a bus I'm technically still riding..."  If the driver had wandered into the restaurant and offerred me a ride, I'd have considered it.  I thought about staying another day "to rest", but there's no internet access at Manning Park - not even cell coverage.  That killed that idea rather quickly and I went back to my room (through the pouring rain) to get ready to ride.  "At least I'll make it to Princeton".  With a (very) modest goal in mind, I set off.  It had stopped raining by then (11:24) but it looked like the skies were going to open up again at any minute.  Off I went.  The road East from Manning Resort starts downhill, which was nice. 

There are a few climbs and one pass worth noting, but I wasn't worried about them just yet.  All I wanted to do was get my legs moving.  The first climb hit and I was roasting in my rain gear.  Well this is dumb...  I had already opened up the vents on both my jacket and pants, but that wasn't cutting it.  I took off my rain pants and put on my knee warmers.  The pants went away.  The jacket came off as well, but stayed out - close at hand.  I still didn't trust the weather.  Slogged my way up the pass with nothing in my legs, but I wasn't deathmarching - I was just really tired and unmotivated.  This was not where I wanted to be.  I called a bunch of people in my head on the way up to Sunday Summit.  Mostly people with large vehicles, so that they could come and get me.  :p  Jen and Julian were both out the door on my word.  But Simon would have none of it.  He wouldn't even listen to me kvetch.  "I don't want to hear it, brother - just keep going and call me from Princeton.  You have to get there anyway."  Bugger.  I kept climbing.  Sunday Pass is a little lower than Alison Pass (maybe by 100m or so) and I remembered that after cresting the summit it descends but you still have to climb a couple more times before the long downhill into Princeton.  I stopped at the summit for some Coke and a Snickers bar.  Gotta keep the fuel stores high. 

My legs seemed to come back to "life" after that first climb.  They certainly didn't have any snap in them, but they felt less dead than when  started the day.  As I crossed the border into the Similkameen Valley, the skies suddeny turned blue, white puffy clouds appeared, it got warmer, and my mood changed from "survival" to enjoyment.  I was having FUN again.  That bloody Simon's always right...  The final few climbs into Princeton went by pretty well, and soon I was in town looking for food.  After putting up my mini-update I hit the road again with a goal of Keremeos in mind.  I thought about pushing it to Osoyoos, but with the seven rollers and then Richter Pass I was worried about digging a hole deeper than I'd be able to crawl back out.  I figured I'd see how the legs felt.  Hedley came and went, and I stopped for another Coke and a Mars bar.  The wind was at my back, and I was feeling good.  The road got lumpy after that and I was starting to tire out.  My butt wasn't happy anymore, so I called it when I finally got to Keremeos.  I cruised around and found a park with a water spigot but there were "NO overnight camping" signs posted and a squad car cruising by.  (really?)  I rolled a little further down the path and found a suitable campsite amongst a stand of trees.  I cooked dinner, set up my hammock, got eaten alive by mosquitos, and called it a night.  A crazy, WINDY night.  By the time this trip is done I anticipate that I'll be completely ambivalent towards mosquitos.  Or insane.  One or the other...

Final Day3 Stats:

Total Ride Time 5:28
Total Elapsed Time: 7:15
Total Mileage: 137.46
Avg Speed: 25.1
Max Speed: 73.1

The full complement of wet weather gear

The climb to Sunday Summit

Summit Achieved!

Beautiful sunny skies on the way to Princeton

The beautiful Similkameen River

Fuel stop in Hedley

After Day 2's self-portrait I figured that I'd better take another...

Such beautiful countryside...

Camp

Dinner