We sleep in and are on the road in a foggy 52°F this morning, which is better with all this gear on than the 82°F yesterday afternoon. We stop for brunch at Oak Tree NW in Ashland, OR, before getting on the smaller and windier roads that will take us through parts of southern Oregon, the eastern side of northern California, and into a corner of Nevada. We stop in Merrill, and I take off my hoodie and coat liner and open my jacket and pant vents. When we stop in Alturas around 3pm, I’ll take my pants off from under my padded pair at the gas pump.

I told Caleb we need to water down our drinks as we’re all dehydrated. I’m not used to spending this much time just sitting in the sun, but at least I’m not getting burned. The views we pass are amazing, and I understand that’s the point of being on a bike and appreciating the slower travel than being on the highway, but if it were up to me, I would double our travel time (or get a better motion camera) so that I could stop and take in the silence, and the noises, that only come once you escape the chaos that is the civilized city.

Our road snacks are usually healthier, either durable so we have energy, or sunflower seeds so we get salt and can have snack time without filling up (or out). I can’t seem to stay away from candy, even though Aunt Lorraine gave us a month’s supply of granola bars that aren’t too messy, as I do all my snacking in the wind. It’s amazing the difference standing makes after sitting for so long, but also being able to take the helmet off and remove the pressure from the liner and my forehead. We get to our room in Carson City at sunset and walk to dinner.