Today we rode from the dispersed campsite on the Navajo territory to another dispersed campsite near the Vermillion Cliffs. We had blue skies all day, and wind. The road surface was in the morning good gravel, mainly double-track. In the afternoon we had a paved road along the Vermillion Cliffs.
Riding statistics: on Wednesday May 22, 2024, the 14th day on the Western Wildlands Route route, it took 11:53h (08:28h moving time), between 06:42 and 18:35, to cover 126 km (79 miles), including 1167 m (3829 ft) elevation gain, with an average speed of 15 km/h (9 mph). During today's ride the average temperature was 26 °C (82 °F) with a minimum of 6 °C (42 °F) and a maximum of 39 °C (108 °F).
Totals: So far, it took 4 days, 10 hours, 38 minutes and 54 seconds of cycling time to cover 1458 km (906 miles), including 18190 m (59681 ft) elevation gain, with an average speed of 13.9 km/h (8.7 mph).
We woke up with the sound of cows, no coyotes this time. We had a peaceful and quiet night, and I had a good night of sleep, although it was cold again. When we left, it was again below 6 degrees Celsius. For the morning we had to cycle about 70km on gravel through the Navajo territory. We cycled along beautiful mountains and Cliffs, and hillsides that looked quite green, although it was all rocks below the vegetation. The cows did not mind, we saw a few groups. When you approach and pass them, they stare at us before they run away (most do). Probably they do not see many cyclists, or even people.
After a long ride we approached very high Cliffs, and started to see more human structures and even cars. Not much later we could see the paved road from a distance. All-of-a-sudden it was there. We had the follow that busy road for about 5km. It was scary. So many cars, so little-to-none shoulder. We were happy when we could take a turn of to a more quiet road. The busy road went up into the mountains, we could see it all the way up. Quite impressive how that has been constructed.
Our more quiet road brought us to the Colorado River and a gas station 25km later. We passed the Colorado River over a huge bridge. There was also a pedestrian bridge, we we also visited to take a better look at the canyon walls and river. At the gas station we could buy snacks and food for the rest of the day and tomorrow. We took a break while already eating some snacks. We then put all groceries and water on the bikes and left, no idea yet where to sleep. We would try to find a good spot somewhere off the road on public land.
When we approached Cliff Dwellers, a place where small houses where build around huge rocks, we visited another gas station for some more cold snacks. After that break we decided to go for a side road 16km ahead for a tent spot. The wind force had increased, the road had no shoulder, and it all became a bit challenging. After checking some options, we finally found a gate with a sufficient flat, and out of the wind area. We setup camp and enjoyed the evening before we went to bed. Just after dinner we discussed about snakes. And before going into the tent Fons spotted one which trying to get somewhere up on a rock, about 15m from his tent. Sleep well!!
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