La Belles on Wheels

We had an absolutely wonderful time of fellowship with Pastor Jeb Brown and his lovely family in Ordway. The kids really hit it off and played well together. Jeb and his wife Gayla have 6 children and every one of them welcomed Forrest and Rocky into their family circle and between playing cards, outside games, shooting the 22, and setting off fireworks, they had a blast together. 

I woke up early so spend some time with the Lord and Jeb was already at his devotions with a cup of coffee ready for me. It was a nice quiet morning for the both of us and then we spent some time talking about the scriptures. Gayla was up just after us and made a mess of biscuits of gravy for the whole lot of us. It was plate licking good and there were no leftovers 🙂 Honestly, it was hard to leave their house. Jeb and I really connected as two pastors; but besides pasotring Jeb is a horse trainer and a cattle driver. The boys wanted so badly to stay for a couple of rest days so we could experience a little of his “ranching world.” But alas! as hard as it was to leave a place that felt like home we had to get back on the road. The destination? Eads. 63 miles. We didn’t know where we’d stay but Glenn, one of Jeb’s elders, gave me the name and number of a fellow believer there, Tom Davis. He was hoping we could stay at Tom’s church. Tom was the pharmacist in town so we were to go to the pharmacy and introduce ourselves. 

Before leaving Jeb’s house I got a text from Karolina. She’d stayed the night in Eads and wondered where we were heading for the day. I told her we were in Ordway and were heading for Eads. She replied that she’d stayed with a nice couple she met in town and could probably make arrangements for us to stay there as well. I thanked her but told her I had a contact with whom I wanted to follow up first. She never texted back… 

The ride to Eads was really easy. There are a few long hills here and there but we’re definitely in the plains states. We pulled into Eads by 3:30 and headed straight for the pharmacy. I walked back to the counter and greeted the elderly man. “Hi, are you Tom Davis? I’m James La Belle” “Yes! Hi. Let me tell you a story.” He came around to the front of the counter and sat down in a chair. I sat next to him while the boys stood before us. “I went to Bible study this morning,” he began, “and my friend Larry told me the story of how he and his wife hosted a female cyclist last night. All she could talk about was her friend James and the book he’d recommended to her.” “You’re kidding me!?” I said. “That’s Karolina! She was hoping to arrange for us to stay with them. What wonderful providence!” “Well then let me call Larry,” Tom said. “I haven’t been able to get ahold of Pastor Russell.” He called Larry and couldn’t get through but then Larry called straight back and I could tell from the conversation that Larry was more than ready to have us stay with them tonight. He got off the phone and before he could tell me anything about the call Larry’s wife Carla walked down the aisle with the look of, “I’ve come to get my cyclists.” Tom looked up and said, “Larry is going to call you.” “Hi! You must be James,” she said. “I saw your bikes out front and knew it must be you. It’s all set Tom, we’re already expecting them. You boys come with me. I live just up the road a bit.” Why are we surprised when God goes ahead of us and prepares the way? How small our faith is sometimes! 

Carla led us to her house, immediately filled up our water bottles, and offered for us set up our tent in her backyard anywhere we wanted–only she wanted to mow the spot first. I told her the boys would be happy to mow it for her. In no time Forrest had the backyard mowed and he and Rocky also cleared the area under the apple tree of all the fallen–and now rotting–apples. Carla was so grateful–and we were grateful to help. The boys set up thier tent and I hung up my hammock. She showed us to the shower as well as the washer and dryer so we could get cleaned up and wash our clothes. 

As she was making arrangements for dinner we walked back into town to do some shopping for breakfast and to satisfy a few cravings. When we got back Larry had gotten home and we all sat around with glasses of iced tea talking about our bike trip and God’s wonderful providence in Karolina’s life. It’s clear that God is at work and we prayed that it would soon result in her conversion. They had an intense conversation with her the night before and even helped her download the Bible on her phone. They confirmed what Tom said, “All she talked about was her friend James the amazing book he recommended to her!” Please continue to pray for Karolina. 

We had a wonderul time with Larry and Carla. After a great dinner we cooked s’mores over a fire and were blessed by good Christian fellowship. As the night came to an end Larry prayed for us and our trip and I prayed for Zachary, thier prodigal son. 

Aug 1

Carla knew we’d rise and bike early so she got us all set up outside with a toaster and cold water so we could eat our breakfast and be on the road as early as we wanted. I was up by 5:00 and we were able to leave b y 6:30–which was good because we were heading for a warmshower in Scott City, 105 miles away. 

We were off to a good start at a steady pace. I was in the lead with Forrest and then Rocky behind me. At about 7:15 I heard Forrest take a big draft from his water bottle and then, “Scrape! Slide! Crash!” I looked back to see what had happened. When Forrest went to put his water bottle in its cage his front tire slipped off the raised pavement and down into the gravel/grassy area below. He reacted by trying to turn himself back onto the pavement–which we’ve already proven never works–and crashed. However, since Rocky was followsin so far behind him, he suddenly crashed into him. It was a 2-bike pileup. An ugly one. Forrest had scraped his chest on the road (he was shirtless, as he often is) and Rocky had scraped his right hand on the road. Small injuries, easy fixes. Now for the bikes. Rocky had managed to run directly into Forrest’s front crankset, bending the largest crank inward and thereby puncturing his front tire, ruining the tire itself, blowing the tube of course, and tweaking the rim. Forrest’s kickstand also twisted and came off and, somehow, his front axle had loosened–which we didn’t notice until much further down the road.

Now for the repairs. I’d bought Rocky a new tire in West Yellowstone–just in case–because both his tires are pretty worn. I was hoping they’d make it to the bike shop in Newton, KS. I’m so glad we had that spare; and of course we had a spare tube. I was able to install the new tube and put on the new tire, but the wheel is untrue and wobbly. I think he’ll need a new wheel in Newton. Forrest used his leatherman and carefully “straightened” the crankset but he was limited to keeping his chain on the smallest of his triple crankset–which meant he wouldn’t be able to travel as fast (Sorry Forrest!) without mimicking a hamster on a go-nowhere-wheel. Thank the Lord, within 45 mins we were back on the road, a little worse for the wear, but grateful the crash didn’t happen with any cars around. I took the lead again and we found a good pace that could work for all of us and set our sights on Scott City. 

I’d emailed the warmshower in Scott City several times (starting Sunday night) and never heard back but I figured he’d get back to us in time or the Lord would have another plan. We pulled into Scott City around 7:30 and headed for a gas station for water. I’d never heard back from the warmshower so I googled the churches in town and started calling. Nothing. It was too late. So we headed for the city park where cyclists are allowed to camp, passing a community church and a Catholic Church on the way. We pulled into the park near the pavilion and picnic tables to an ear-piercing symphony of cicadas. “This is crazy,” I thought. We can’t do this. “Boys, one of you head down to the Catholic Church to see if the doors are open. I’m going across the street to Dairy Queen to see if someone can help us.” 

“Hi, do you know how to get ahold of someone from the Catholic Church there? I’m cycling across America with my two sons and we’re supposed to sleep in the park but the cicadas are going to drive us crazy.” “No I’m sorry but I don’t know how to get ahold of anyone from the Catholic Church… But I do know how to get ahold of someone from the Baptist Church and I know they let cyclists stay there.” “That would be great!” I called the boys to come over and we decided to have dinner and ice cream at Dairy Queen. Amy made arrangements for someone to let us into Area 96, the Baptist Church’s youth center where we’d be staying. She meets there weekly for her Celebrate Recovery meeting and recalled last week seeing a bunch of cyclists there. So when I said I was a cyclist needing a place to stay, she was able to help 🙂 Do we have a great God or what!? Area 96 had a kitchen, a shower, and three so-cumfy-couches that it was hard to get up in the morning 🙂 

Aug 2

I woke up to my alarm at 5:00. I reset it for 6:00. At 6:00 I thought, “How far do we have to go today?” and reset it for 7:00. At 7:00 I got up, packed up my sleeping bag, and walked to the gas station for a cup of coffee, 3 breakfast sandwiches and 3 hash browns. 

“Rise and shine, shine and rise!” No response. “Time to get up. Breakfast is getting cold.” No response. “Don’t blame me when you’re eating cold breakfast.” Movement on the couches. “How far do we need to go today? I thought we weren’t leaving until 10:00,” said Forrest. “I could sleep here all day,” said Rocky. “I said we could leave as late as ten, but I never said we were. We have almost 80 miles to go today so you guys need to get up.” 

We left Area 96 by 8:30. Some cyclists stop in Ness City, 56 miles away, but we decided to head for Alexander, 76 miles away and the end of Map 7. Yay! Besides, we need to try to even out our ride between Scott City and Newton so that we can reach Newton by Friday. We need to drop the bikes off for a bumper to bumper tune-up and we want to spend Saturday and Sunday with Mark Davis (Johnny’s brother) in Wichita. 

The ride was really easy. We stopped at one of the few shade trees in the state for lunch. PBJ and chips and salsa. It was by an Historical Marker, a large plaque with a write-up about George Washington Carver who lived for a while in Ness Conty. We pulled into Ness City by 2:00. We decided to stop at the gas station for water and then head to the grocery store to grab some stuff for tomorrow’s breakfast and lunch. Alexander has a population of 60 so I knew I shouldn’t figure on shopping there. I thanked the lady at the gas station for the water and told her we were heading to Alexander. “There’s a rest area there we’re supposed to be able to use…?” “There ain’t nothing in Alexander but a rest area and an [grain] elevator.” “Oh,” I said. “Good thing we’re planning on shopping here in town.” 

… Hmmm. It’s 2:00. Alexander is 20 miles away. At this rate we’ll get there before 4 and have nothing to do but set up camp and go to bed. We need a place a hang out for a while. “Is there a coffee shop or library in town with wifi where  we can hang out before we go to our rest area?” “Yes, there’s a library a few blocks down and there’s also wifi at the Cuppa Joe.” Coffee?! “Great. Thanks.”

We rode down the street looking for Cuppa Joe. I found it and we parked our bikes. We walked into an empty restaurant (not the coffee shop I expected) and were met by the kind smile of a sweet ‘ol lady. “Hi! How can I help you?” “Do you have iced coffee?” “No, I’m not a fancy coffee shop. I just have hot coffee and iced tea. So you don’t want anything to eat?” “No we ate already. But we’ll take 3 iced teas please.” “Ok. It’s right over there and if you need more I can make more. Here’s the cups, I won’t charge you for it, just drink up.” “Thank you!” “How are you for food? Do you have dinner? Yes we have stuff for dinner but we need to go shopping for breakfast.” “How about some cinnamon rolls, would that be nice for breakfast? Here let me show them to you, theyr’e freshly baked.” “Yes! Those would be great!” “Ok, I’ll box up three of them then.” “Thank you so much.” 

We sat down to enjoy our iced tea as she swept the floor preparing to close up. She talked to us as she swept. Soon she sat down too. “So are you staying in town tonight?” “No, we’re heading to Alexander. But since it’s early and there’s nothing to do there but sleep we need a place in town to hang out. Do you know of any?” “Do you want to stay in my shed? There’s air conditioner and you can watch TV and you can take a shower.” Is this lady for real? That’s not my idea of a shed. “Sure! That’d be great!” “Ok. I’ll bring some water and ice with us. The water at my house is no good but the water here is reverse osmosis water. Here, don’t forget the cinnamon rolls.” “I still need to pay for those.” “No you don’t. A pastor with 7 kids, it’s on me…” 

Soon we were off to her shed. We followed her on our bikes. She lived just a few blocks away in town. We pulled up to a two car garage with a room attached to it. She let us in through the garage to the room, a large approximately 30×20 room with two fold out couches, a full kitchen (sans stove), a bathroom with a shower and washer and dryer. She turned on the AC and got us settled. “Do you have wifi?” “No. I do at this restaurant though. Do you want to go back there?” We left the bikes and headed back to Cuppa Joe so I could work on this blog (unfortunately I wasn’t able to finish in time to upload it). “I’ll bring up some more ice for you. Drink all the water you want.” “Thank you. We never actually introduced ourselves….” “I’m Forrest.” “I’m James.” “And I’m Rocky.” “Nice to meet you. I’m Connie.” 

She finished cleaning up and when she was done we headed back to the shed. She dropped us off and told me they won’t start playing poker until 8:00… Thank you Connie! 

So here we are, in Connie’s shed. We’ve all had a shower and I just put our cycling clothes into the dryer. I seriously thought about asking her if we could stay here tonight. I bet she’d let us. The only thing is that if stop here for the day it leaves us about 170 miles to get to Newton in 2 days, 170 miles which would have to be divided into 110 and 60. Not liking the 110. But if we stay in Alexander tonight then we’re looking at 90 and 60. So as nice as this shed is, I think we’ll eat our dinner here and leave around 7:00 so all we have to do in Alexander is set up camp and go to bed. 

Tomorrow we should stop in Sterling and then Friday we hope to get to Newton early enough so they can start on the bikes right away. I pray they’ll be ready by Monday morning… otherwise we might need an extra day at the Davis’. Although I’m sure that would be awesome 🙂 

Thanks for praying and thanks fore following. 

Until next time… 🙂 

It looks like I’ve got some catching up to do… 

The last I wrote we were bedding down in Hartsel, CO. Shawn, a lovely local lady, had offered for us to stay in a barn near where we’d set up camp since a storm was coming through. We were thrilled with the prospect of sleeping under cover. However, when we walked over to check it out we noticed that the roofing had weathered away leaving nothing more than slats. In other words, there wasn’t a dry spot in all the building. So we ended up sleeping in our tent after all. 

July 26

We woke up at 6:30 and I really wanted to stay in bed adn wait for the sun to dry off our rain fly and bikes. But as the sky gave no hope for such a plan the only option was to get out bed and get on the road. So by 7:15 we were packed up and on our bikes ready for a 58 mile ride to Canon City. Besides a few challenging hills we expected a pretty easy ride. 

We’d arranged to stay at Mark and Susan Helms, a warmshower host outside of Canon City, and to meet Chantry and the girls there as well. I had not yet located Susan’s house but figured she was outside of town since she had 36 acres. I figured on looking on my phone for her address when we got to the junction of Hwys 9 and 50 but about 2 miles north of that junction I felt a sudden prompting to stop and check now. What if she was this side of that junction? We’d have to turn around–which is never desirable. So I pulled over immediately and put her address into my phone. Would you believe it? We’d stopped directly across from her house! She was on the other side of the hill so we had to backtrack 1/4 mile back to the driveway. What wonderful providence. 

Since the ride was so easy we’d showed up 12 PM. Susan wasn’t expecting us until 3 or 4 so when I called her (she was in town) to say we’d arrived, she was caught unprepared. I assured her that she dind’t need to rush home on our account; we’d just eat our lunch and hang out in the yard. By 2 PM Susan and her mother pulled up and greeted us warmly and within 15 mins Chantry and the girls showed up. 

As a humorous side note… Susan’s mother know from my warmshowers profile that I was a Presbyterian pastor. She commented that like my kids, she was also a PK (a pastor’s kid). She told me that her father was a Pentecostal pastor. I replied that I was familiar with pentecostalism and used to be a Pentecostal. What!? she said. (I wish I could’ve captured the look on her face). “And you left Pentecostal for Presbyterianism!?” For the remainder of her visit she never used my name again. Instead she called me “Presby.” I just smiled. I didn’t mind the label. 

Mark and Susan were wonderful hosts, feeding us all dinner and then taking us to Royal Gorge Park so we could get an amazing view of the gorge and the suspension bridge stretching across it. We got some amazing pictures of the clouding sky with the sun struggling to shine through whatever gaps it could find. Thank you Mark and Susan! Mark even took a couple of nice family shots. 

Mark and Susan are in the middle of building their house while living in a camper trailer. The house is rough framed as they work to complete the siding and roofing. So they decided to put us all in the large master bedroom spread out all over the floor on mattresses, air mattresses, and cots. The roofing was probably 3 feet shy of being finished on what was essentially a shed roof running the entire length of the house. The rafters ran from the back wall across the house up to the front wall. Got the picture? 

You might remember that we had to dig our rain gear out of our bags as soon as we crossed over into CO. Apparently they’ve had more rain and storms in these last two weeks than they’ve had in many years at this time. So as the rain clouds brewed over the Helms’ home and a few drops fell from the sky Susan suggested that it would likely blow over. Nevertheless, should it rain Susan was pretty confident that we’d stay dry in the house. We turned the lights off at around 10 PM. Forrest and Chantry decided to sleep under the large porch overhang. I was sure they’d get wet from the blowing rain and suggested they come inside with the rest of us but they were determined otherwise so I let them be. The storm outside really started to build. The rain was falling hard and the lightning show was spectacular. 

It all started at 11:45 when I awoke from a half-sleep to the sound of “drip, drip, drip” and Schylie calling out, “Terra! Wake up! I’m getting wet!” Rain was coming in through the roof and dripping down the rafter onto their air mattress. I got up and moved their bed away from that rafter and went back to bed. Thirty minutes later I was called to Sandy’s bed where she was getting dripped on. Stil awake, I moved Sandy to a drier spot in the room. Rocky smiled that he was still dry. All this while the largest leak was from one of the rafters which ran over my and Chantry’s mattress. It seemed determined to drip only in that spot, but as it grew I looked at it and said to Chantry, “It’s coming for us dear.” “I don’t care,” she said. “Come to bed.” You guessed it. Thirty minutes later I awoke from another half sleep to a soaking wet ankle. Where in the world am I to move a queen sized mattress in this leaking house!? I squeezed it into the living room in front of the water tank. Ah… maybe now we can get some sleep. But a few minutes later I got up to go to the bathroom and was called back to the room where the kids were. Terra was getting dripped on. Schylie was getting dripped on. Sandy was getting dripped on. And yes, Rocky was finally soaked. You’d think we’d all wet our beds. Our beds were wet. Our blankets were wet. We were wet. ––And all the while Forrest and Chantry, the two I was sure we’re going to get wet were not only dry but sound asleep. In all our shuffling, in all our talking and I can’t believe they never woke up. Furthermore, I was trying not to wake up Susan and Mark adn their two Great Danes sleeping in the trailer next door.–– I was out of options now. The only dry place left was the porch. I cleared the porch area as best as I could and moved Schylie, Terra, and Sandy onto it. There were no dry rafters left in the house so I angled Rocky’s cot on a 45 degree angle between drips and went to bed. When I finally crawled back into bed it was 2PM and Chantry and I just laughed. What else could we do? We were living the dream! We laughed so much. Then I turned towards her and said happy birthday dear and proceeded to sing 😀 

July 27

We woke up to clear skies at 6:45 and decided that despite the adventure we’d better find a hotel for the next two nights. We cleaned up, packed up, and drove into town for breakfast. We had a great meal at the Village Inn restaurant and then drove over to the Quality Inn to secure 2 adjoining rooms for the next 2 nights. With that in place we headed to Rye, CO to see the legendary Bishop Castle, a castle still being built, single-handedly, by Jim Bishop. It was a truly amazing spectacle. The kids really enjoyed touring it while I had a memorable conversation with Jim himself. Several people/tourists crowded him to ask questions and take photos but I felt drawn to just talk with him. I left when the crowds encroached but came back later when he was alone. I sat down unobtrusively and he looked up and said, “There you are James.” I sat closer and watched him add rocks to the wall of his castle. I asked about his wife, Phoebe. He told me she was battling cancer for the 2d time but he was continuing to pray for God to heal her. We talked about Jesus as our only hope and as our all in all. As I was getting ready to leave I asked him how long he’d be working today. He said he’d work until about 6 PM and then go home to see Phoebe. “I’ve never cooked in all my life,” he said. “But now I make dinner for her because she can’t do it anymore.” “That’s good Jim,” I said. “You’re keeping you’re vows.” At those words Jim stopped cold on his scaffolding, his eyes filled with water. “You promised to love her as Christ loved the church and that’s just what you’re doing. You’re showing her the love of Jesus and that pleases God.” I so badly wanted to keep talking but I knew my work was done. “I’ve got to go Jim. But maybe I’ll see you again one day.” “You do that James. You’re welcome back any time.” “Well Jim, it’s like they say, I’ll see you here, there, or in the air.” With that Jim smiled real big and I turned and left. God had blessed us both. Jim’s well known for his eccentricity, for his anti-government attitude, and for his extravagant one man project. But all that aside, I felt as though I’d met a man who truly loved Jesus. I pray that under that thick skin he does indeed belong to the Lord and I’ll see him again. If he doesn’t yet know the Lord then maybe my time with him will be the instrument to bring him into the fold. 

The ride up to Rye and back was truly goregeous. When we got back to town we headed to Subway for lunch and then over to the hotel to check in. We dropped off the girls’ stuff and headed to Susan’s to pick up our bikes and gear. We expected to see Susan so we could tell her how our night and share a few laughs over it all but she wasn’t yet home. She’d left with Mark at 6:30 AM and was still away. So we left her a thank you note and signed the cyclists’ “guest post.” 

On the way back into Canon City we took Skyline Drive, a one way drive across the ridge line of a range which runs parallel to Hwy 50 leading from Royal Gorge Park into Canon City. The drive was laid by prisoners in 1932 and boasts some amazing views overlooking the valley and Canon City. It was an extremely narrow road for our wide Suburban and I had fun teasing Chantry and the kids by riding closer to the edge than their comfort zone allowed 🙂 Once back at the hotel the kids went swimming until dinner and we settled down for the night under another dark, lightning-filled sky––this time with a bit more assurance that we’d wake up dry. 

July 28

We started the day off with a complimentary hot breakfast at the hotel. After a sweet time of family worship we headed off to Colorado Springs with 3 missions in mind: 1) something fun to do; 2) a visit to REI with hopes of finallly getting my stove fixed or replaced; 3) get some Kangen water. We had no idea what we’d do for fun but Susan had recommended we visit Cave of the Winds so Chantry looked it up online during our drive and we headed straight there. We had a great time at their outdoor “theme park” which included a rock climbing wall, a ropes course, and a seated–catapulting–zipline ride. We were there for about 3 hours and then headed to Chick-fil-A for lunch before filling up our bottles at a Kangen water store nearby. Our final stop was REI. I didn’t know what I needed, whether I was missing a seal or now, but one way or another I needed a new stove pump as mine stopped pressurizing. I explained my situation to one of the employees and about fell over when he took a new pump off the shelf walked up to the customer service desk and told them to exchange my defunct pump for a new one. I’d called REI from Dubois, WY and they refused to replace it so his doing so without a hitch was both a surprise and a blessing. My stove had been broken since Colter Bay Village, WY. Thank you Lord. 

We headed back to the hotel for a quick swim before going out to Chilis for a wonderful dinner. It was a great 2 1/2 days with the family and I was sad that it was coming to an end. 

July 29

Only July 27, after we’d picked up the bikes from Susan’s, we’d arranged to meet Karolina in Canon City. We wanted her and the girls to meet. So we met up for an hour or so at the public library. Chantry and Karolina hit it off and enjoyed a great talk. Before we parted Chantry prayed for her in a way that I think really blessed her. During our talk about where we’d be biking to next Karolina suggested that we aim for a warmshower host in Ordway, CO. She said it was only 80 miles away. So I looked it up and once we were back at the hotel booked our stay with Gillian Hoggard in Ordway. 

Waking up on Saturday July 29 was hard because I knew we wouldn’t see the girls again until we got home and we wouldn’t see Schylie again for over a year. Be that as it may, we ate breakfast together, called upon the Lord for His blessing upon us all, hugged and cried, and then put our heads down and pedaled on. I took the lead and headed out strong. It was already 8:00 and we had 80 miles to ride with an accumulated 1200 ft of elevation gain before heading down again. Rocky was trailing behind and seemed to be under a sad cloud though maybe he was just tired. In any case, I texted Schylie and suggested they do a drive-by on their way East. I was hoping this would cheer Rocky up and I knew it would be a blessing to us all. So soon after we passed Wetmore heading to Pueblo the girls came up behind us with plenty of cheers while waving the “I love you” sign. We smiled big, waved back, and rode on with a smile knowing that the next 6 weeks would go by as fast as the last and we’d soon see them again. 

The 48 mile ride into Pueblo was really nice but the coolest part was that it brought us to the end of our 6th map of 12 maps. That means it’s the halfway point (2061 out of 4228 miles). We stopped at the end of the map, gave high 5s around, cheered for ourselves, and took a selfie. The party ended as soon as it’d begun. I put map 7 in my waterproof sleeve and geared up for the rest of our trip to Ordway. That’s when reality hit. I quickly added up the miles from Pueblo to Ordway and the total came to 50. What!? 50? That means a total of 98 miles… But Karolina said it was only 80. Bummed at the new information the boys suggested we stay in Pueblo. No more happy about it than they were I decided we needed to press on. It should be mostly, if not all, flat. Besides, we had a warmshower in Ordway and there wasn’t much at all in between here and there. So we pressed on with determination and with as much speed as we could. I took the lead to set a good pace and break the wind.

Thirty miles shy of Ordway my left knee started hurting. Two thousand miles and tens of thousands of feet of climbing and now my knee hurts? What cha gonna do? I prayed for the strength to finish the ride and kept pealing, putting extra umph on my right leg to relieve the left. Fifteen miles later my right knee started hurting. I’d run out pinch hitters now. So I kept praying and pedaling, surrendering the lead to the boys and trailing behind instead. It was very painful and teeth clinching ride to Ordway. I was so glad when we finally pulled into town. 

We stopped by the store to buy food for dinner and breakfast and headed through town to Gillian’s warmshower. We arrived at 7:45 after 99.2 miles of cycling. We agreed that we’d round up and call it our first century. I’d called Gillian from the store and she greeted us as we came down the driveway directing us to the “cyclists trailer.” We parked our bikes, unloaded our gear, and headed into the house to make dinner and get a shower. Gillian was quiet at first but soon started up with questions and opinions that took our fruitful conversation well into the night. We did manage to get our dinner eaten and our showers taken but by the time we left the house it was pouring outside amidst lightning and thunder claps. We got to bed around 11 PM. 

Before the evening was over Gillian suggested we visit River of Life church in town and put me on the phone with Jeb Brown, the pastor. We enjoyed a warm conversation and I expressed to Jeb that since we weren’t biking on Sunday’s we’d need a place to stay Sunday night and asked if he might be able to help us. He said he’s work on it and look forward to meeting me in the morning. 

July 30

I woke up around 6:30 and headed to the house for a shower and some reading time before starting on breakfast and waking up the boys. Gillian’s m.o. is to have the cyclists she hosts do 15 mins of work on her farm in return for her hospitality. So after breakfast she took the boys out to do some work. I think they had more fun than work but at least it met the requirements. She showed them around the farm and introduced them to her goats, chickens, and horses. They even got a short ride on the horse. 

Church started at 10:45 and although we walked in a few minutes late they had yet to start. We got a quick drink of water and took our seats near the front. The contemporary worship began and we were led in the singing of praises to God. After a couple of songs we were directed to meet and greet those around us. That’s when Jeb Brown walked over and introduced himself to us. I immediately liked him. He bore a warm smile, spoke with a Texan accent, and was genuinely happy to meet us. He invited us to stay after the service for lunch so we could visit more. The VBS planning group was having a potluck before meeting together for final preparations. 

He was finishing up his preaching series on Jonah but preached his summary of Jonah from the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15. He likened God in Jonah to the father in Lk 15, Jonah himself with the older brother in lk 15, and the Ninevites in Jonah with the younger son in Lk 15. He made the point that God was pursuing Jonah with patient grace no less than He was the Ninevites and that God was pursuing the older brother in Lk 15 with patient grace no less than He was the younger brother. Why? Because the one was no better than the other. They were each in the wrong adn they each needed the same grace. I thoroughly enjoyed his powerful message. It reminded me of Sinclair Ferguson’s powerful book, “The Whole Christ” and hit on themes I’d covered in our study of “The Marrow” in our evening study. He ended by pointing out the interesting fact that both Jonah and Luke 15 stand open-ended in the Bible. It leaves us at a cliffhanger wondering what would be Jonah’s response if there were a Jonah 5 and what would be the older brother’s response if there were a Luke 15.33. He ended the sermon by asking, “What’s’ your Jonah 5? What’s your Lk 15.33? Are you going to stand on your own merits outside of what Gods’ doing or are you going to dive into the amazing grace of God that patiently and relentlessly pursues sinners?” 

Afgter the service Jeb and I had a great talk. He told me how the Lord had raised “dropped” him into this pastorate and that his only training was Grudem’s Systematic Theology and John Piper. He said he’s increasingly coming to the Reformed Faith and is hungry to learn more. I really enjoyed our conversation together and look forward to more. He’s been at the church all day in the midst of meetings for VBS, which begins tomorrow. But after lunch he led us over to his house so we could relax, do laundry, and I could work on this blog. Before he left he asked if we wouldn’t mind staying here tonight. I was very thankful for his offer and told him we’d love to. I look forward to good Christian fellowship and pray the Lord will use me to be a tall glass of cold water for his soul–as I trust he’ll be for mine. The bond of the Spirit is Oh! so sweet isn’t it? 

We’ll be traveling to Eads tomorrow and then on Tuesday to a warmshower in Scott City, KS. 

Thanks for praying and thanks for following. 

Until next time… 🙂 

Last Thursday, we visited Daddy’s Uncle Lon, in Thompson Falls, Montana. We stayed the night with him there and visited Daddy’s cousins, Chelsea and Leanna and a few of their children on Friday. We enjoyed our relaxing day with them. It was great to see them again.

Later that day, we drove to Conner, Montana, to stay with Linda & Phil Teakell, the warmshowers hosts Daddy and the boys stayed with a few weeks ago. What a wonderful time! Their hospitality was tremendous–we felt right at home. They took us raspberry picking, taught us how to milk their goats, gave us a ride on their 4-wheelers, let us enjoy their hot tub, made us delicious food, and completely took care of us. The creek provided us some relief with the 100 degree weather. Thank God for that! We enjoyed the Christian conversations we had with them. We also were invited by some neighbors, Becky & Scott, to a campfire Saturday evening. Sunday morning, we joined them for their church service. We were warmly welcomed and greeted, and were blessed by the pastor’s sermon on how God is light. We had such a wonderful time and hope God will cause our paths to cross again. Thank you Linda & Phil!

We left just after church to start our almost 11 hour drive to Torrington, Wyoming. It was long, but we enjoyed the beautiful drive. That evening, we had a close encounter with a potentially tragic situation. Driving on the highway at 85 mph, with no other cars in view, in the pitch black, Mama looked up from the wheel to see a deer in the roadway–just standing left of the dotted white line. In a split second, she gasped, and realized that she had just changed lanes from the left to the right. As we flew past the deer on our left, Mama noticed another deer off the road on our right. She braced herself for the possibility of that deer running in front of us. This all happening in a split second, and then we were past them. The girls looked up and Mama explained what had happened. We all were a bit shaken. Thank you Lord for keeping us safe! And thank you everyone for praying for our safety.

We arrived in Torrington after 10pm at Daddy’s Aunt’s house, Aunt Betty Sue & Uncle Cliff. Despite their small house, they gladly opened their home to us and made us quite comfortable. After a night’s rest, we spent Monday driving around with Aunt Betty Sue. We went to Fort Laramie, an old, preserved military fort. We also visited the old Oregon Trail wagon ruts that were cut into the sandstone. Finally, we stopped by Register Cliff, where hundreds of people passed on the Oregon Trail. As they passed this cliff, many would carve in their name and the year. We found some pretty fascinating inscriptions. We spent the afternoon cleaning out the sub and hanging out with our aunt and uncle. We enjoyed some wonderful conversation with them. We left the following morning, heading to Fountain, Colorado for the night.

We ended up making several stops and were waylaid a bit (one stop in Mitchell, Nebraska to fill up our bottles with Kangen Water, thank you Brad and Susan!) but finally we made it to Colorado Springs. We stopped first at Chick-fil-A for dinner, since it was after 7 and we were definitely hungry. Mama used her Chick-fil-A gift card that she received from her secret pal. She sends her hearty thanks! Thank you also to Christie, who helped us locate the restaurant. After eating, we went to a nearby Apple store. For the past week or so, Mama’s phone had been out of order. We dropped in and were helped by one of the employees. It only took a few minutes for him to diagnose the problem and fix it–for free. Thanks so much, Apple man! By this time, we were ready for bed. We drove about a half hour to Fountain, CO, to our Airbnb for the night. We were greeted at the door and showed to our rooms. The accommodations were perfect and we rested comfortably. 

We are now packing up, showering, and getting ready to head out. We are going to see Garden of the Gods, a natural and amazing attraction in the area. Tonight, we’ll meet up with the guys and spend time with them for the next few days. Mama is especially delighted to spend her birthday with them.

I wanted to post pictures, but due to the time constraints, I won’t be able. Hopefully soon.

Signing off…

We got out Kremmling by 8:30 Monday morning. As usual, it was later than I wanted but we had a pretty easy day ahead of us so there was no reason to be out of shape about it. The goal was Frisco, 45 miles away. Paul Mattson, a warmshowers host, had agreed to host us for the night so we decided to stop there. Also Karolina was staying over at Paul’s for an extra night so we’d have the providence of hooking up with her yet again 🙂 

Kremmling was in the heart of the valley leading up to Hoosier Pass so the ride to Frisco was technically uphill all the way and it was situated about 2500 ft below the summit of Hoosier Pass. Despite the uphill ride (we gained an accumulated 2795 ft in elevation) the ride was really pretty easy and we had some great views. Our path led us on a beautiful ride around the Green Mountain Reservoir. And from Silverthorne we were able to get on a bike path which led all the way to Frisco (and even continued on to Breckinridge). 

Having recommended Karolina listen to The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert, I’d started to listen to it myself on Sunday. I made it into Chp. 2 and decided to listen to the remainder of the chapter during the first part of our ride. It’s hard to focus very deeply when trying to navigate a narrow shoulder, avoid stuff in the road, and get yourself up hills… but I managed to very much enjoy what I heard and felt prepared if Karolina and I had a chance to talk about it. I texted her that morning and asked if she’d listened to any of it and she responded with, “Yes, I am on chapter 2 and this woman is FREAKING AMAZING!!!! I have goose bumps listening to it so I have to take one chapter at a time to have the time to think about it and digest. It is a LOVELY reading!!!” By the way… I told Karolina that many of you were praying for her and she wanted me to pass on a hearty thank you. 

We pulled into Frisco just before 2 PM and I called Karolina to ask for directions. She happened to be downtown at the Marina, on the bike bath, so we met her there and she lead us to Paul’s place. Paul greeted us kindly and told me when we were ready he’d show me how to use the washer so we could do our laundry. We got cleaned up, did our laundry, and decided to walk into town to look for new sunglasses. I was looking for a pair of Native Patrollers. Forrest had rode over mine in Idaho and I’d bought a cheap pair of replacements in Missoula–a pair that hurt my head after anything prolonged wearing. I’d been hoping that I could find a pair of Natives in Frisco–and I did 🙂 

While walking downtown we stopped in at Abbey Coffee for a milkshake and a coffee. As we sat there enjoying our drinks a family walked in in cycling clothes and put in an order. They sat next to us and we began talking together. They were so excited to hear about our coast to coast trip! It was a pleasant conversation about family, church, etc. (She also had 7 kids, 3 of them from Ethiopia). We gave them our blog, so maybe they’ll chime in. I think they live in Kansas City. Who knows, maybe we’ll see them again someday! 

We got back to Paul’s house at around 5:00. Dinner was scheduled for 6-6:30 so the boys got on their devices and I went upstairs to visit with Paul. We enjoyed some great conversation about pastoring, preaching, church, the Bible, and everything in between. When dinner was ready and we were all seated he kindly allowed me to say a blessing over the meal. Around the table were the three of us, Karolina, Paul, and his son Anders. We stuffed ourselves with yummy pot roast, potatoes, brocolli, and some of the best gravy I’ve ever had. And for dessert we had Tillamook ice cream. We laughed over stories and had a great time together. What an awesome warmshower host! I’d highly recommend Paul’s place for any cyclist passing through. 

After dinner the others all left and Paul and I continued our friendly and meaningful conversation. I really enjoyed it. When I got up to go to bed he thanked me for the conversaton and gave me the hug of a friend. I was really blessed by that. Not sure how the Lord will use all the scattered topics we covered, but I pray He blesses Paul and draws him and his son to Jesus. 
We left Paul’s by 7:45 heading for Hoosier Pass. I had mixed emotions. I was a little fearful of tackling the Pass because, after all, it was Hoosier Pass, the tallest Pass we’d climb on the entire trip. We’d already gained almost 2000 ft in elevation since Kremmling but we still had 2500 ft left to go. Furthermore, though the climb out of Frisco and into Breckrenridge and Blue River is pretty gradual, I’d heard the last 4 miles of the pass were steep switchbacks. So there was an element of fear in it all. But along with the fear was a strong element of excitement. This was Hoosier Pass! The last serious climb out of the Rockies; the tallest summit of them all. It sent the clear message: after this, you’re done with the tallest mountain range; after this, you’re nearly halfway home; after this, you’re as good as in the plains. 

The last four miles of the climb were not easy. The air was thin, the road was steep, the shoulders were narrow. But, you know what… we did it!! We pulled out of Breckrenridge by 9:40 and were at the summit in 2 hours!! What an awesome moment. What a blessed accomplishment. We took the picture and then found a place to sit down and have lunch. 

The ride down was no less than awesome. It was nearly 5 miles of sweet downhill. We hit 39.8 mph 🙂 We stopped in Fairplay for a coffee and a milkshake and rode into Hartsel by 2 PM. There’s free camping in Hartsel across the street from the Cafe and not much else beyond Hartsel until Canon City (another 55 miles). So this was really the best option as far as a place to stay. It was raining as we came into town so we quickly got the tent set up and headed to the Cafe for a bite to eat. I had planned to cook something to save money but with the rain that wasn’t happening. So we opted for the Cafe. When we were done eating I was so tired that I wanted to go to bed. We headed to the tent and got inside. I did get a little nap but the noise of the Cafe–the loud music, the knocking of billiard balls, and the conversation of the customers–all combined with the early hour, made it impossible to go to bed for the night. So the boys took a bike ride and I headed back to the Cafe for a drink and free wifi. 

I was concerned about our camping situation. We’re in an open field of sorts, on gravel, next to the road, and squished up next to dilapidated cars and trucks. Nothing to complain about really… but it’s supposed to storm most of the night, which means wet bikes and a wet tent. I asked the waiter if there was any place in town where we could sleep under shelter. He said no and I gave up the idea. But then, as I was chilling in the Cafe Forrest and Rocky came back from biking and struck up a conversaton outside with one of the local ladies here, a young lady with a very kind and welcoming face named Shawn. In the midst of the conversation she offered the use of a barn across the street. Thank you Lord! I think we’ll take her up on that one. Later she came inside and walked over to meet me. She gave me a huge smile and a firm handshake and thanked me for taking my two sons on this great adventure. It was so touching–a great reminder of how blessed I am to be able to do this. 

We head to Canon City tomorrow. It’s about 50 miles with a bit of climbing–the last bit on our way down to Pueblo. We’ll be meeting Chantry and the girls there at a warmshower host’s home. We’d originally planned to spend 3 nights at this home but I think we’re just going to spend one night there and the other two at the KOA in the same town. We’re so looking forward to seeing them… it’ll be our last visit until we get back home–bittersweet to be sure. 

Thank you one and all for your prayers and for tagging along on this blog. 

Until next time… 🙂 
 

We left Walden at around 8:00. So much for an early start… I think it was hard to get out of those soft, cumfy beds. In any case, we headed out of town well rested and ready for a good ride. The morning would be a steady climb up to the summit/Continental Divide at Willow Creek Pass and the afternoon would be a steady descent to either Hot Sulphur Springs or 17 miles further to Kremmling, depending on the church situation. 

The first leg of the ride brought us to Rand by 10:00 where we stopped at the Rand Store for water and the use of the restroom. As we rested in the shade for a few minutes a car went driving by and then backed up and parked on the opposite side of the road. I looked more closely and Karolina was gettin out of the car and walking over to us with a smile. She’d stayed in Walden with a couchsurfing host named James, who was now giving her a ride to the bike shop up the road in Granby. I told her our plans for the night and we agreed that we would hook up in one place or the other. 

From Rand we started the more steep section of our climb up the pass. The map showed a gradual incline and the summit was 10.5 miles from Rand so we expected we’d have a pretty easy go of it. By 12:08 we reached the summit, took a selfie with the sign and headed down the other side glad to be on the downside of the day’s ride. The ride down ran for a good ways along the Denver Creek and we were awed by the beauty. We kept looking around and soaking it all in. It was absolutely beautiful. People were camping all over the place by the river, many were fishing, and the scenery was captivating. At one point we had a horse across the road running in pace with us. When we stopped to see if we could go over and pet him, he ran off. Guess he just wanted to run. It was near there that we also caught sight of a moose with her calf. What large animals they are! 

We arrived at Hot Sulphur Springs around 2:30 and stopped at the gas station to ask about the churches in town. The attendant was very little help so we rode on. Stopping at a Community Church we went to the hotel across the street and asked if he knew how to get ahold of the pastor. He lent me the phone book so I could look up the number and call it. The number was disconnected. He said the lady down the road at the motel went to church there and could help us. We went to see her and she said the guys name was Mark but couldn’t help us further. I thanked her and decided we’d better bike on another 17 miles to Kremmling, a much larger town with, I trust, more options for church. It was mostly downhill so we weren’t too bummed to have to ride further. Besides, it would be 17 miles we wouldn’t have to do on Monday and it would get us 17 miles closer to where we plan to meet the family on Wednesday night. 

But what a surprise the Lord had for us riding out of Hot Sulphur Springs! We suddenly found ourselves riding through a canyon with a river and railroad track down below us. It was 4-5 miles of stunning beauty. I could hardly keep my eyes on the winding downhill road. I looked left, then right, then left, then back behind me, then ahead of me. I grabbed my phone, held the handlebars with one hand and snapped shot after shot with the other (don’t worry, we’ve gotten pretty good at that 🙂 And as soon as we came out of it and looked back, all we could see were grassy foothills. The entire thing was hidden behind uncomely hills. What a privilege to ride through there. 

We rode into Kremmling at about 4:15 looking for churches as we rode down the main road through town. Seeing none for quite a while we decided to stop into a coffee shop to ask. Of course we had to give them our business so I ordered a coffee and the boys got some ice cream. The lady barista was very helpful. She told me there was a Baptist church in town (which we’d apparently already passed) as well as a Community church, among others. I figured I’d call the Baptist church first. She found the number in the directory and gave it to me. Turns out the pastor was on vacation until Aug 6. I explained to the lady that we were looking to find a place to worship on Sunday but were also hoping to find shelter at the church for 2 nights. She said she couldn’t authorize that and the deacon who could was on vacation as well. She suggested I call her back in 15 mins. While waiting I could see that there was a church two blocks from where we stood outside the coffee shop. So I decided to check it out. The church was locked but a building similarly painted stood next to it and a jeep was parked outside. Looks like someone’s here. I walked in and met a man named Marshall. The building served as a Food Pantry for the Community Church next door and Marshall was doing some bookkeeping for the church. I explained who I was and what our need was and Marshall immediately offered a cool room in the basement of the Food Bank and all the food in the kitchen. Wow! How many times does God exceed our imagination and requests!? Moreover, there was a shower downstairs for our use as well. And they had wifi! Could it get any better? 

We settled in, got a shower, and began looking through the cupboards for dinner when I got a text from Karolina. She was in town at the local pizza place and had pizza for us. So we walked down to meet her. We ate the pizza and got caught up on how her day had been. But then the conversation turned to spiritual things. She was still thinking about some things I’d said to her last Sunday when we were staying at the Episcopal church in Dubois, WY. She’s very sensitive to the LGBTQ community and believes love is an overpowering feeling and not a choice. She also believes that if something exists (say, a loving relationship between people of the same sex) then it’s natural–because it exists. Besides, her moral compass tells her steps a good person and that same sex relationships aren’t wrong. I listened and then posed this question: What if your moral compass is wrong? What if it’s broken? And furthermore, how can you know for sure if it’s not broken? Does your feeling it’s right make it right? Does your friends agreeing with you–or even the whole world agreeing with you–make it right? Your feeling a thing is right doesn’t make it right. Your wanting a thing to be right doesn’t make it right. Right is what the Righteous Judge of all the earth says is right. You’re gambling your eternal condition–which is a matter of heaven or hell–on the biased judgment that your moral compass agrees with the moral compass of the Judge of all the earth. But what if you’re wrong? In the Bible God teaches us that we’re fallen creatures with a fallen moral compass and He tells us what’s right and what’s wrong. How do you know you’re not calling good evil and evil good? “Then how do you get your moral compass corrected?” she asked. By surrendering yourself to Jesus Christ and asking Him to change your heart. Your sinful actions aren’t the essence of your problem. Your fundamental problem is your sinful condition. ––It was an awesome conversation and she listened intently the whole time. She said, “You make a lot of sense. I’ve never been challenged in that way before. You’ve gotten right down to the foundation of all that I believe and questioned it. I need to think about this.” I told her that’s why God brought her on the TransAm, so she could meet us and I could share the gospel of God’s grace in Jesus Christ with her. She smiled and gave me a big hug. Last Sunday I’d reommended she read Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert by Rosaria Butterfield. So after our conversation I again reommended it. She downloaded it immediately on Audible and committed to give it a listen as she rides. Please pray for God to open her eyes and save her soul. We hope to see her again later this week but she biked on ahead of us today so only God knows if and when we’ll meet again. 

We walked over to the church at 9:00. I thought there would be Sunday school but the worship team was practicing and a few other people were standing around visiting. Marshall was there and introduced us to his brother Mike. We had a nice conversation and then took our seats and waited for the service to start at 10:00. The singing was very contemporary though more than half of the congregation were over the age of 60. At last one of the church elders came up to speak (the pastor was preaching at a church in Canon City). He’s involved in business management and spoke to us about stewardship from the passage in Mt 25.14-30 about the talents. His message hovered on the surface of the text and was often more business than text but it was good to be reminded that we are stewards before God. Everything we have and are is a gift from God and we are accountable to use it for His glory. It’s a good call to self-examination. After the service we spoke with a few people about our travels and they wished us Godspeed, which was a blessing. 

We’ll be hanging out at the Food Bank today catching up on things and doing some reading. Also, I’ve downloaded Rosaria Butterfield’s book and will begin listening to it today as well. I hope I can finish it before Karolina and I meet again. No, I’ve never read it. I’ve always wanted to and everyone I respect highly recommends it. So it looks like Providence has found me the time… 🙂 

I reached out to two warmshower hosts yesterday and secured some lodging ahead of us. We’ll be staying with Paul Mattson in Frisco, CO tomorrow night. Tuesday night we’ll be camping out in Hartsel. And then on Wednesday night we’ll be meeting up with Chantry and the kids at a warshower in Canon City. Yes, you heard that right. I asked Susan and Mark Helms in Canon City if they would not only host us but allow my family to crash the party–for 3 nights! Crazy request I know. But, thanks be to God, she said, “We have 36 acres. I’m sure squeeze you all in for a few days Bring the family!” Wow. What an answer to prayer. We really wanted to spend those days together before the family heads back to the Cape but we can’t afford a hotel in Pueblo for 3 days (which was Plan A). Please pray for God’s blessing on Mark and Susan Helms and that we’ll be a blessing to them. Note, they have two Great Danes and two horses 🙂 Not expecting anything…but it’ll be awesome just to pet them all! 

The stats: from Walden, CO to Kremmling, CO we cycled 78 miles in 6:19 with a total elevation gain of 2664 ft. 

That’s all for now. Thanks for praying and thanks for following. 

Until next time… 🙂 

Our time at the Rawlins Mennonite school was a great blessing. I arranged with John, Joann’s husband, to give us a lift from Rawlins to the Walcott exit on I-80. He was more than happy to have his son Jeffrey come by the school at 9 AM and pick us up. 

My main concern was avoiding the 13 mile stretch of I-80. So Jeffrey was to drop us off at the Walcott exit and we’d hop on Hwy 130 headed for Saratoga. It would cut a total of 18.5 miles off our trip. But that plan presented a problem. If we stopped at Riverside it would only be a 38 mile ride and we’d pull in at around 2 pm. That’s too early to stop and it’s not enough miles for one day. So it made sense to go on to the next town. The problem is that Walden is the next town and it’s 50 miles from Riverside–with absolutely nothing in between. That would mean biking 88 miles uphill with a 9:30ish departure… Not happening. We could of course stray in Riverside, but then that would hinder our getting close enough to Pueblo by Wednesday night to meet Chantry and the girls. So what to do? I figured the best option was to ask Jeffrey to take us as close to Saratoga as possible. That would cut off a few more miles and make reaching Walden possible. As it turned out, he took us all the way to Saratoga, leaving us 66 miles to cycle to Walden with a 10 AM start from Saratoga. How did the plan work? Well. We pulled into Walden at 6:30. 

The ride was really bleak. There was nothing but sagebrush and a few cows to look at the whole way. The foothills and rocks were nice to look at but other than that it was just a matter of putting in the miles. We stopped in Riverside for a quick lunch and a refill on our bottles and then made for the WY/CO border. The closer we got to the state line the more dark thunder clouds formed around us. We seemed to be surrounded by thunder storms on both sides and in front. If we put on the rain gear we wer too hot so we left it off and waited to see what would happen. When we crossed the CO state line, the happening happened: it started pouring–and it continued to pour for the next 2 1/2 hours all the way to town. And on top of that, we found a headwind the whole way… 

We rolled into town like three soaked rats. Before reaching town I’d decided that we weren’t going to be setting up any tents in the city park so we were looking for a motel. I didn’t really want to spring for the expense of a motel, but we were soaked and the clouds looked like they could dump all night long and then we’d have wet stuff in the morning to deal with. So a motel/hotel was the best option. As we came into town the first thing we saw was a Baptist church. Forrest suggested we try to find shelter there and save our money. I was up for the idea but there was no number on the sign. So we headed for a local store to see if we couldn’t find how to get ahold of the pastor. 

The store clerks were clueless so we asked a customer. She suggested we head to the sheriff’s office and ask them. I thought that was a good idea so we headed over there. The lady behind the glass greeted us with a smile and said, “I think you’d like to sleep in the city park tonight.” We were supposed to check in with the sheriff before setting up our tents in the park but I’d already called last night and got permission. Soaking wet and standing before her with my helmet still on I replied, “Not really…” “Well if there’s no one in the gazebo you can sleep in it.” “Is there a Plan B?” I asked. She looked up thoughtfully and I said, “Can we possibly get shelter at the Baptist church up the road? All we need is floor space. I would’ve called the pastor but I don’t have his number.” “Hold on a minute. I know him. I’ll call him and ask.” Wow! What providence! This may work out after all. It seemed like 15 mins before she returned. “I have good news!” she said as she returned to the window. “You can stay at the Roundup Hotel for free tonight.” “What? How’s that possible?” “I called the hotel and asked them if they had any room for a father and two sons who are biking across the nation and need a warm, dry place to stay the night. And they said to send you right over.” Wow! Praise God! We thanked her, blessed her, and headed down the road to the Roundup Hotel. It turns out the owners of the hotel are members of the Baptist church and the pastor called them asking them if they could put us up. They happily accomotaded us in a Victorian house they’re still renovating to be used as a hotel. They put us up in one of the rooms. It has 3 beds, a stove, a claw foot tub/shower, and plenty of space to hang up all our wet rain gear to dry. And we have wifi! Can you believe it!? The Lord is so good. We’re in Walden. We have a dry place to sleep. And we have a kitchen to prepare our meals. Thank you Lord for taking care of us. Please pray the Lord blesses Casandra and Brandon (the owners of the hotel) and the pastor of the Baptist church and the gospel ministry there. 

We’re off to bed now and we hope to get an early start. Tomorrow we’ll be climbing Willow Creek Pass (9621 ft). Thankfully, with all the climbing we did today, we’re already at 8100 ft. So it shouldn’t be too bad. Hopefully the storm passes in the night. Coming down the other side of the pass we’ll either stop in Hot Sulphur Springs or Kremmling. If Hot Sulphur Springs has a good church we can attend on Sunday we’ll stop there; if not then we’ll head on 17 miles more to the larger town of Kremmling.

Thanks for praying. Thanks for following. 

Until next time… 🙂 

We wanted to get an early start from Jeffrey City and so I was up by 5:15. I got packed up and started on breakfast before waking up the boys. Paul had decided to take a rest day so I knew we’d be leaving him behind. I wasn’t sure about Karolina and how early she wanted to get on the road so I was prepared to start ahead of her and meet up with her later. We left the church by 7:00 and headed to the Split Rock Cafe so we could use the wifi for a few minutes before heading out. By 7:15 we were heading out of town for a 66 mile day to Rawlins. 

The sky was overcast, we had a slight breeze, and it was a pretty level road so it was easy to go at a pace of 15 mph for a good while. We came upon the famous Split Rock historical site and stopped to look around. The naturally “split” rock stood high in the sky and served as a navigational point for the early travelers crossing the West. They could see it for a mile before reaching it and for 2 miles after passing it. We took some pictures, used the restroom, and headed on. 

Continuing our good pace the next stop we made was Muddy Gap. We’d been fighting a sidewind for a good while before reaching it and it was a nice stop to grab a few snacks and refill our water bottles. From there we planned to stop at Lamont (10 miles) for another refill and then finally in Rawlins (33 miles further). Between Muddy Gap and Lamont we would cross the continental divide again (which meant we had some climbing to do) and between Lamont and Rawlins we had to cross it yet again, this time higher. 

After Muddy Gap the weather started getting hotter. We were really looking forward to stopping in Lamont. Rocky had the lead and suddenly pulled over for no apparent reason. As I rode by I said, “What’s up?” “I have a flat,” he said. Bummer! We pulled over and got started on it. Thankfully it was the front tire. I looked the tire over and found that a staple had punctured it. We got it repaired easily enough but were having trouble getting it aired up to capacity because our air pump was leaking. So we put about 55 psi in it and hoped we could top it off at Lamont. 

If I had checked my list of addenda I would have known that the restaurant and all services in Lamont had closed–but I had not. As we approached Lamont and looked across the road we saw a dilapidated restaurant and an otherwise overgrown area where life used to be. Our hearts sunk as we rode on by. No more air for Rocky’s tire. No bathroom. No more water. And there were no more services for the next 33 miles. It was over 90 degrees now and the clouds were dispersing. We still enjoyed a slight breeze, which kept us from dripping in sweat; but it was just plain hot. 

We were getting very low on water and we were getting overheated. There wasn’t a single tree in sight to provide a break in the shade. Finally Forrest said, “I’m getting way too hot. I’m about ready to wave down a car and ask for some cold water.” I encouraged him to press on and committed the matter to the Lord asking Him to send help. 

Heading slowly up the long hill towards the second crossing of the continental divide I looked up to see Rocky pull over to the opposite side of the road. We were still about 15 miles from Rawlins. As Forrest reached the spot he too pulled over to join Rocky. What were they doing? As I drew closer to them they waved me over and I could see that they were standing next to a cooler at the end of a driveway with the words “Free Water” written on the side of it. I came up to them and they handed me a bottle of water. There was a note taped across it which read, “He (Jesus) said to me, I am the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life,” Revelation 21.6. Dear traveler, we wish you Godspeed on your journey, but most of all, we wish for you eternal life, where we will never hunger or thirst again! Blessings, the Nisly family.” Tears came to my eyes as I drank deeply from the bottle. God had sent help. He knew our need and He heard our prayers. 

Wanting to leave some bottles for other cylists (like Karolina, who was still behind us), we drank only one each. But we decided to grab our empty water bottles and head up to the house at the end of the driveway to see if we could fill up and use the bathroom. A Mennonite lady named Karla Nisly kindly welcomed us in. I told her what an answer to prayer her water was and asked if we could have some more. She gladly let us drink up, fill up, and use the bathroom. As she told me about her “water ministry” and her husband’s work I shared that I was a pastor and that we were unsure of where we were staying in Rawlins. There were three campgrounds there but they were all off route. She then tentatively offered their Mennonite school as a place we could stay. It had a kitchen, a shower, and plenty of floor space. I expressed my gratitude for her kindness and said we’d love to stay there. So she gave me the directions and said she’d confirm it with her husband who was one of the Trustees. 

The remaining 15 miles to Rawlins seemed to go much more smoothly after our stop. We had water and we had a nice place to stay. I soon received a text from Karla that her husband Steve said we were most welcome to stay in the school. Knowing that we had a kitchen to work with we stopped by the grocery store in town and picked up stuff for dinner and breakfast. Coming out of the store I greeted another Mennonite lady (Joann, with her son Jared) asking her to confirm the directions to the school. What in the world would we obviously non-Mennonite cyclists want with the Mennonite school, she probably thought. She looked at me a little funny when I told her we were staying there tonight. I then explained that I’d met Karla and been in touch with Steven and that they’d offered the school to us for lodging. She then figured we were legit and gave me directions. 

Joann asked me if we were going onto the Interstate. I told her that unfortunately there is one section of the TransAm that puts us on the interstate and it’s the section leading out of Rawlins to Walcott and that we were not looking forward to it. I told her I hoped to find an alternate route or possibly hitch a ride to Walcott. She went on to tell me that her husband John would be glad to give us a lift since he travels to Walcott every day for work. Hmmm. I think I’ll be in touch with John. 

We pulled into the school just as a thunderstorm was beginning, thankful not to be setting up our tent tonight. We arrived very tired and most grateful for a dry, quiet respite. In fact, since this is such a nice place and since the bikes need some TLC and since we’ve got some sore spots that need attention and since we need haircuts–we decided that we take a rest day. I contacted Steven and he was more than happy to let us stay another night. 

It’s really amazing to see God provide for His people. Our faith often is so weak. I think it was John Newton who said, “Ask great things of a great God.” It’s so encouraging to know that He hears our prayers and that so many of you are joining your prayers to ours. Of what should we be afraid? If God is for us who can be against us? And if God is caring for us as a Father for his children then let us trust Him and ask of Him all that we need. For of this much we can sure: He is more ready to give than we are to ask. 

Thanks for praying. Thanks for following. 

Until next time… 🙂