59.72 miles (Total: 2804.57) Avg Speed: 11.1mph Max Speed: 29mph
I woke a little disorientated in the clubhouse wondering if last night really happened, this place is surreal. We went back over to the cafe for breakfast and the women offered to fill our water bottles up, what’s wrong with Jeffrey city! We hit the road expecting undulating downhill towards Lander today. Services were extremely limited again so I had to rely on the last supplies for mid-ride snacks. The only problem was mosquito’s were terrible again, if you stopped for even a second you had 15-20 latch onto you. A nice drivers rest area gave some reprieve but they still managed to get indoors from the people coming in and out all the time.
After taking a breather some random storms started cropping up around us, they were isolated and didn’t look to threatening. We enjoyed a nice descent into the plateau below before the clouds started looking more serious. I really don’t enjoy getting caught in these things so the adrenalin pumps me to ride fast. We got hit by some rain towards the edge of Lander and each car would spray me as they drove by, my poor bike was covered in mud splats.
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After getting into Lander we went straight to the bike shop, I was considering investing in a Brooks saddle. The shop was great and gave us advice on places to stay in Lander. Its a cool town with lots going on, currently climbers are filling out the town running courses. We managed to get booked in at a hostel across the street my clothes and bike are filthy.
After cleaning up we headed into town first to a bar called The Forge and then for food where we were able to sit out on the deck in the nice evening. I ordered the chicken parmo which was very different to our home delicacy but still delicious. Ready for bed I crashed out after stealing a second pillow from a spare bed.
Chicken Parmo out on the deck.
I woke up a little disoriented in the clubhouse, half-wondering if the previous night had actually happened — the whole place has a surreal quality to it. We went back to the café for breakfast, and the same woman who’d fielded our questions the day before happily topped up our water bottles. So much, I thought, for what’s wrong with Jeffrey City. We set out expecting a mostly-downhill fifty-nine miles into Lander, though services stayed as sparse as ever, meaning I had to make do with whatever snacks I had left over from the day before. The mosquitoes, if anything, were worse — stop moving for even a second and fifteen or twenty of them would land on you at once. A drivers’ rest area gave a little relief, though even there they found their way in every time someone opened a door.
After a breather, isolated little storms started popping up around us — nothing that looked too threatening at first — and we enjoyed a nice descent down onto the plateau below before the clouds started taking themselves more seriously. I’ve never much enjoyed getting caught out in one of these, so the adrenaline kicked in and I rode hard. We got clipped by rain right at the edge of Lander, every passing car adding its own spray to the mix until my bike was thoroughly caked in mud.
Once properly into Lander we made straight for the bike shop — I’d been mulling over a Brooks saddle for a while now — and came away with not just good advice on where to stay but genuine enthusiasm for the town itself. It’s a lively little place, currently overrun with climbers running training courses through the streets. We booked into a hostel just across from the shop, both of us and our gear thoroughly filthy by that point.
Clean again, we headed into town, starting at a bar called The Forge before finding food and a table out on the deck for the evening. I ordered the chicken parmo, a world away from the one back home but delicious in its own right all the same. Ready for bed, I crashed out after quietly stealing a second pillow from a spare bed in the room.
Chicken Parmo out on the deck.
3 comments from 2010
See the Americans havent quite perfected the Parmo yet tho it looks nice all the same! Yarm tomorrow night for me so I may indulge in the real thing x
World wide parmo buzz. still looks good even if it ain't covered in garlic sauce.
Weeey, loving the last photo! Although not quite the type of establishment I have high hopes of owning in the future! Lol. Great reading buddy, you wouldn't believe the amount of people I have reading your blog now, it has become a talking point at work everyday! Take care x