- How many days did it take you?- 87
- Did you take any rest days? Yes, we took at least 3 single days, then 2 days in Missoula and 4 days in Eugene (not the whole group, however)
- What was the coolest sight? The crest and descent from Togwotee Pass, where I caught my first glimpses of the Tetons
- What was the coolest site (tent)? Hmmm. Probably the guerrilla campsite outside of Jeffery City, WY. Sun went down on one side and moon came up on the other- 360 degree panorama
- What were the coldest and warmest temperatures you experienced? Coldest- top of Ochoco Pass (probably about 40 in the middle of the night) and hottest- several days of 105 degrees in Western Kansas and Eastern Colorado
- Were you ever ready to quit? No.
- Did you need a day off? No. Once I thought I might need a health related day, but by the morning, with a little help from Bag Balm, I was fine. But we took several days off, sometimes because the town or area was so cool.
- As a vegetarian, what did you do for food? A lot of little bags of salted peanuts. A lot of iced tea. After a while, we discovered Arnold Palmers- tea and lemonade- free refills. Grocery stores supplied sometimes a couple of days' food. See the blog post where I show the food I was carrying one day.
- How did your Bike Friday folder perform? Fine. Small problem which required the headset to be tightened every 1,000 miles. Bike Friday put a lock nut on the headset when I stopped in in Eugene, the location of their factory.
- Trailer vs panniers? I like panniers, one of our group liked her trailer. My biased opinion: trailers create too much drag and a propensity to carry too much.
- Did you all carry stoves/tents? Yes, though I almost never used my stove and wouldn't bother again. I don't like to cook. My vegetarian counterpart did occasionally and made me share his food.
- Did you ever shower? Yes, almost every day. A few times we had to resort to sink sponge baths, hoses or, on one occasion, a cup bath (I'll leave that one to your imagination)
- How did you charge your phone? Restaurants are not opposed to seating you next to an outlet and I ate breakfast out when I could. Also, all RV camps have electric, though not necessarily in the tent sites. Laundry mats and park pavilions also often have outlets. Not really a problem.
- How much did it cost you? I tried to add it all up and it came to about $40 a day. This included 8 nights in hotels and the flight back East. Not as cheaply as I could, for we stayed almost always in campgrounds, not guerrilla camping.
- Is there anything you would have left behind, wish you had taken and anything you bought esp for this trip? Should have left behind: arm warmers, UnderArmor shirt (lousy), bear rope. Wish I had brought: a smartwool top (bought in Missoula, far superior to UnderArmor); Bought especially for trip: 20 degree sleeping bag, bike and Ortleib panniers; Most valued equip: Ortleib panniers
- How did you feel when you finished? Overwhelmed by the complexity of "real" life. Seriously. It was a real issue. Apparently this is extremely common. I wanted to throw out all my possessions.
- Did you ever get injured or saddle sore? I had chafing issues when I had been riding all day in the rain once. Can you say "Bag Balm"? Great stuff. It is used on cow udders.
- How did you work your blog? I bought a used iPhone, jailbroke it, put it on T-Mobile, added a data plan and then added the Blogger app to the phone. You can compose blog entries, add photos from the iphone and then post the entries when you have cell phone coverage. In hindsight, I should have composed in Notes, then copied/pasted; I lost some entries when I tried to post with a weak signal
- What did you do about your hair? Yes, I had long hair. I thought about snarls. I thought about hair in my eyes. I thought about it being a mess and the conditioner I would need to bring. Then I cut it off. Whatever.
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