Today’s ride was beautiful, downhill and largely unventful. Or rather, it would have been, if I hadn’t gotten FOUR FLAT TIRES! *&^!&^. Anyway, I’ll get over it. We rode for a while on the shoulder of Interstate 15, which probably sounds scary, but actually feels very safe - there’s a huge wide shoulder and you’re very far from the cars. But unfortunately the side of the Interstate is littered with blown tires from tractor trailers, and when they blow a tire, they leave behind these metal “whiskers” that are used to give the tire structure, and those little bits easily end up in the tire and blow the tube. That said, I’ve never had 3 or more of them in the same day - but today I did. It was exhausting, and with every tire change, I got more and more tired, to the point where by the end, I kept making the problem worse. Changing a flat tube isn’t super hard but it is a very detailed exercise and your brain has to be sharp, and in this heat, my brain definitely was not.
Zion - at least this little entrance/campground/town area where we find ourselves - is very neat, and quaint. There’s a whole town of services available, and I had a tasty chicken club and fries, and even got a shower It feels very touristy but it’s still really pretty. The park ranger I talked to said it’s the second busiest park in the country.
Other than the flats, the riding was easy - tailwinds, smooth roads, few turns. We started in a town and went through a few more towns before finally turning left and heading out about 20 miles to the park; but even here, it doesn’t feel that remote because there’s so many services.
Tomorrow I’m going to wake up very early and take a shuttle in to do a couple of hikes. I’m thinking the Emerald Pools trail and the Weeping Rock Trail at least, and maybe the Narrows or the Kayenta area. The Narrows sounds amazing but the ranger said it’s a) extremely busy and b) a little sketchy, with waist deep water wading, which doesn’t sound super great in the middle of a bike ride when you’re not prepared.
Oh, we also went through a town called Toquerville, where - because it’s Utah - you can’t buy or use cannabis. This feels like a missed opportunity.
