Day 18 Riverton To Casper, Wyoming. 121 Miles with 2763' of climbing

Today started out on the cool side once again, 48 Degrees at the start of the ride which was at 0600.  We ate breakfast at the Hotel and loaded the luggage at 0545 and then got started at about 5 minutes to 6AM.  We were in for a long day, and as the case on these days the start is early.

A group of us had decided on Wed. evening that we would ride together and take turn up front in a small pace line to help everyone get to the end feeling OK.  Margo, Rick, Beth, Bob and myself started out and we picked up Michael and Matt on the tandem after about 25 miles and they fell in the line with us.  We left River ton and started out riding at about 17 MPH as there was very little wind and each us us took a turn up front for 3 miles each and then the next person in line took over and the front person fell to the back.  The road we were on had a rumble strip and we were told to ride to the right of this in the median.  This section that we had to ride was very narrow and we had to ride single file.  The 1st 20 miles flew by and before we knew it we were in Shoshoni and we stopped at the Krazy cup gas station and used their facilities.  We were then off again and we started to get a slight North east wind about 5-8 MPH which was not all that bad for this area.  We were off once again and the miles were flying by and about 2 miles before the 1st rest stop which was at mile 35 miles we saw an antelope running beside us between the road and the fence.  This Antelope was winning the race and it turned toward the fence and I told the group to watch him either go through the fence or under it, as this is usually the way they do it.  But this one made a liar out of me and proceeded to jump over the fence.  I told the group to remember this as I have only seen one other one jump the fence in all the years when I used to hunt them.  The other one was last Thanksgiving in Thermopolis while riding in a truck with my Brother-in law.

After stopping at the 1st rest stop and getting a snack and filling the bottles we were off once again.  There was really not anything different for the next 30 miles and before we knew it we were at mile 62.2 and half done for the day.  Once again the same routine, snack and fill the bottles and on the road again.  We were looking forward to the next stop which was at mile 76.7 which is Hells Half Acre. Michael who is the front rider on the tandem along with his son Matt had his brother David from Casper meeting us there to ride the rest of the way into Casper with him. When we got there Dave was waiting for us and said that he was at the rest area about 2 or 3 miles back and had seen us go by. 

Hells half Acre is really neat to see.  It is actually 320 Acres and there is a 150' deep Gorge there.  This used to be a Buffalo Jump used by the Indians long ago.  Also the movie Starship Trooper was filmed there in 1997.  Really quite a neat place.  There used to be a Motel and Restaurant there, but everything is torn down and just a scenic stop for the people passing by, and a must see in this part of Wyoming if you go by.

Once again we were off and on the the 3rd rest stop of the day.  And while were were on this stretch of the road a Mule Deer came running across the road right in front of our group and jumped the fence and disappeared in to the sagebrush prairie.  At mile 91 the last stop of the days was here and we  snacked and fueled up to the last stretch and home for the day.  The wind was still lite at about 8 MPH and we cruised in and the 2 Swiss Police Officers, Daniel and Bruno joined the group.  Daniel went to the front and pulled the group  on in for the last 15 miles..  Both of them are a treat to be around.  They have a wonderful sense of humour and I call  them the Swiss Connection.  They are strong riders and fit in well with all of the group.

When we got close to Casper we were supposed to get on the bike path and follow it to our motel.  We saw one of our vans and they were telling us to stop and we did.  Jim said that part of the bike path was under water and that we had to use an alternate route in.  Dave who lives there said I know how to go, so he took the lead and we had our own tour guide and did not have to look at our cue sheets for this last section.  We all arrived at the motel the Ramada Inn next to the River.  This used to be the Holiday Inn and I stayed here a few years back while on company business and ran on the trail that is right next to the Hotel and following the river.

Today was a long ride and we were glad to see the end of today.  We rode for 7' and 34 minutes and the shower was really refreshing.  We had dinner last night at 6PM and we had to say goodbye to Bob.  He was only doing the 1st 2 legs of our journey and he is flying out at 9am Friday and going home.  We will miss him and he had great stories and was pleasure to ride with.

We now have a rest day in Casper and I am going to finally take a day off from the bike after riding for 16 days straight.  I will wash the bike, lube the chain and just rest up for Saturday which is 106 Miles from Casper to Lusk, Wyoming.

That's it for now.