Moving Onward and... Upward

It was a cool morning but I knew it would be a long ride from Cornville To Payson, over 120 km.

Peter and Geni genuinely loved hosting, and it was lovely to feel so welcome.

 It was back to being fully loaded again, which I can't say I was particularly looking forward to. Having heard there wasn't much along the route I also carried about 3 1/2L of extra water in my Dromedary, something I didn't regret despite the extra weight sloshing behind me. There really was no place to stop along the way for miles.

I had no idea what the route would be like, which can be a good or bad thing depending how you look at it.

Just outside of Camp Verde, about an hour into my ride, I started climbing, gradual enough of a grade, but just steadily onward. I kept thinking, oh, around the next bend it'll be downhill, but it was not to be. Mentally it would'be been good to know how much elevation I would gain.

I stopped from time to time to remove the layers I was wearing, since climbing gets the heart rate up.

I was glad Geni had sent along a few scones that Peter had made. I had heard the story of when they'd been in New Zealand on one of their trips and how Peter had gotten the recipe in a sealed envelope, which he was told not to open till he was out of the country because it was a prized recipe. They really tasted amazing, spiced and fruity, although, I had worked up a good appetite and wasn't in the mood for Clif, Builder or Nature Valley bars.

It was a hard day in that it really was a long ride (I was on the road for over 6 hrs).

I actually stuck earbuds in and, with my mini iPad in my back pocket in a plastic bag, listened to all my favorite songs as I rode, making sure I could also hear traffic, which there fortunately wasn't much of (since there also weren't the greatest shoulders to ride on).

That helped the time pass and kept me persevering when my body started aching (shoulders and right knee in particularly).

It was lovely and sunny and with all the elevation I felt, once again, like I was in more familiar territory.

I was glad for each downhill after the grinding climbs.

My host in Payson, Devon and his lovely wife, had a real quirky house.

Met the gal I had met earlier, Maddy (sp?) she was also being hosted the night, so I had a lovely chat with her. Tomorrow we go our separate bike routes again.