August 25th: Springdale, UT to St. George, UT or … what a way to cross the finish line!

A bit of a restless night: I guess my subconscious knew I wanted an early start. As soon as daylight took over, I got up, showered, packed Sweet Machine and had breakfast. At 7.40 am I said goodbye to Zion and left. The first part of the ride is mostly downhill, surrounded by different mesa’s. 

Wonderfully I flew again – enjoying the wonderful tailwind coming from the east. I guess Irene may have something to do with this, ‘cause a normal wind blows from SW! But I did not mind and took advantage. Even the rolling uphill in the town of Virgin, along the fake cowboy town, was so easy!

In no time did I get to the screaming downhill into La Verkin and the neighbor city of Hurricane (yes – there is Irene again!). 

What a difference now: this is back into the mall areas again. Here I normally go slow on the rolling uphill again, but that tailwind really did it! The road has two lanes in each direction and a very broad shoulder (with lots of junk on it) meaning the Interstate is nearing! Another big downhill and then … the dying uphill. This thing is not so steep, but doing it in the blazing sun makes it a killer. But this year – my friend the wind helped me rolling uphill! I did not need a gas stop station at the top to cool down – even not with outside temperatures of 109°F! A sign along the road tells me I’m now in Washington City (not along the East Coast). 

I take Telegraph Road and immediately I’m cycling along a golf court. 

In the distance I notice the "D" of Dixie Flyers from the high school on the side of the red mesa next to Bluff Street! 

Soon I reach the commercial district : Walmart, Kohl’s, Office Max, Mc Donalds…. Welcome to civilization! As a tourist and not knowing the real rules, I just park my bicycle inside the shop I visit, keeping it cooler with a laptop in it. Nobody gives me any remark about that, so … In Kohl’s the cashier gives me a big discount and her address in Hurricane (sorry, I just came from there). She was so happy to give a European customer a Koh’s card and discount, it was getting funny! She almost hugged me! Back outside I decided to head to my new home: The Crystal Inn. Having stayed already many days in St. George, I know my way around. I was on my traditional route when I suddenly decided to take Bluff Street. Stoplights made me get off the seat and when the light turned green for me, I tried to get back in the pedals. Sweet Machine decided to attack me at that moment with the pedal against my shin. Not a good place. As I crossed the junction I checked my leg and yes … blood was streaming along my leg. Only half a mile to go… I kept cycling till I got to the hotel, threw Sweet Machine against the wall, opened the doors and asked the man behind the desk for ice and a clean cloth!  I did not dare to enter the hotel, but the only thing the man could offer me was the restrooms to clean up! This is how I crossed the finish line! Somewhat back in shape I checked in, got my room and headed for the ice machine. The rest of the afternoon I stayed in my room with ice on my leg. 

Welcome to St. George! I’ve made it….in one piece!

August 24th: Zion Mountain Ranch, UT to Springdale, UT or … they're making it brown-red again!

Knowing the temperature was not going to drop today, I wanted that early start. But it’s always so hard to get out of bed and it was 8.30 am when I said goodbye to the rancher. Excitement was building in my stomach … Zion here I come again! Three miles down the road I did visit the pizza place to buy some more water to carry on my bicycle.

One of the nicest things of today’s ride: it’s all downhill. After getting past the entrance booth I drank one more bottle of water… getting ready for the heat. I love this ride in between all those peaks and mesa’s. Just letting the bicycle roll – do not have to pedal! Many times I had a feeling of being all alone in the park. It was still so early! The road just zigzags around all the rocks. 

Suddenly a sign of road work showed up and yes: there was a line of cars waiting to get through. I think we waited for almost 10 minutes and only at the end did I think of looking for a shady place. My thermometer was now showing 44°C and I thought of what the weatherman had said on TV: “Remember the temperatures we give you are those in the shade. In the sun and with the black surface they can easily be much higher!” I knew what they were talking about: my cool water with ice was now good for boiling eggs! 

But … it was all for a good cause: they are making the road surface brown-red again. Trucks loaded with those colored rock chips passed me and indeed – when we got to ride again – they were working in the heat resurfacing again! This made my cycling slower – I’m not such a daredevil on loose gravel. One man in his car going the other direction yelled at me: “Maybe a mountain bike would work better!’. Next obstacle was the tunnel where no bicycles are allowed to cycle through. I had to wait about 15 minutes before a pick-up car took me along with bicycle in the back. It was a bit scary in the tunnel – it being very dark, there being no lights and the driver going a bit too fast in this situation (she had to brake a few times real hard). But, thanks for the ride! Once out of the tunnel I got back on my bicycle and worked my way down. 

Work is a big word – I just needed to concentrate and look for the places where there wasn’t too much gravel. But it surely was not a screaming downhill – this big chute down! At the junction down in the valley I took a right turn – heading towards the lodge. 

The thought of sitting there on the grass field in the shade of the huge tree seemed better than sitting inside in a motel room. At the lodge I parked Sweet Machine and even went for a small hike to the Lower Emerald Pools. The view of the small waterfall was just awesome. 

A lot of people were cooling in the Virgin River, which was now much lower than a month ago. 

Also, it looked as if there was more color in the river … The sky was now getting filled with fluffy white and black clouds and I thought it was a good idea to head out of the canyon to Springdale. An evening stroll along Watchman mountain will be a good way to finish the day. 

One more ride to go!

August 23rd: Mt. Carmel Jct, UT to Zion Mountain Ranch, UT or … getting baked!

Bye, bye good old US 89 and welcome to my last route UTAH 9, where some remnants of Cycle America's National Parks trips of 2009 survived the time. 

This one is going to take me all the way in to St. George – my final destination. If I needed to, I could get there in one day…but then not enjoying Zion National Park. Mt. Carmel Jct lays somewhat in between the three major parks and I keep thinking about being around here last month with my sister and her family. My goal today is to climb the 12 miles up to the East entrance of Zion National Park. Yes – climb! But just as yesterday, I left early enough to have no wind making this an easy one. After finishing the first steep climb I notice I wasn’t wearing my Kokopelli. I packed out and luckily it was in my toilet bag. I would not have found it very funny to return. Cycling or driving in the West is very easy – there are hardly any roads nor turn-offs. Somehow I wished I was playing the word games again, as we did in the car! But then again – the flowers along the road take my attention and soon I’m off the bicycle and hopping around along the road. 

As yesterday there is still no cloud to be seen in the sky. Back on Sweet Machine I roll over the new black road surface again and I remember having seen a sign in the beginning of the trip “America is putting your tax money to work”. With the sun out on the black road the heat is getting to a point where it’s almost not nice. My water bottles carry lukewarm water – not too tasty, but I need some water with the steady climbing. Having no headwinds makes my ride faster and I reach the ranch in no time. Nothing more to do now than relax and enjoy the view. A short ride in the afternoon doesn’t really look very appealing: it is now really too hot to be outside (105 F°). An evening walk when the sun is setting and a thunderstorm is hanging over the plateau of Bryce brings some relief, ‘cause even inside sweat is dripping from my body.!  

 It isn’t until later in the evening that I notice there is an AC in the room. That will help me cool off during the night, making it possible for me to sleep.