DAY 4--HOT HOT HOT

We said goodbye to Marge this morning. Aside from the unnerving traffic, her ankle was bothering her and it seemed apparent that doing more of the same would more likely make it worse instead of better. Happy trails to you, Marge!

We set off  climbing up a winding hilly road that led to a magnificent bike trail--built like a road but no cars allowed. We had awesome views over the Columbia River Gorge, followed by a thrilling downhill ride. The road was originally constructed to take advantage of the scenery, with no grade greater than 5%, and with few restrictions on cost. It was well worth it!

We crossed over to the Washington side on a bridge that was narrow with no shoulder and a small walkway with a 10" drop to the road, and what looked like not much of a railing. I (Paula) came that close to a panic attack for fear of falling into traffic or into the river, then walked the second half of the bridge. Once in Washington there was NO shade and the heat set in. At one point we jumped a fence into an orchard and stretched out on the damp, shady ground to cool off. The towns were few and far between. We finally stopped at a house and asked if they would be so kind as to provide us with water and ice. They very generously invited us in and we stayed about 2 hours. This gave us time to cool off and to think more clearly, coming to the conclusion that, with 10 miles to go, we should not get back out on the road. We had Steve pick us up. On the way to the campground, we stopped at the Mary Hill Art Museum. The concrete building this is housed in was created to be a home for Sam Hill and his wife, but she refused to move here from Minnesota.

After a quick team meeting, we decided that, since the forecast was similar for the next several days, we would take 3 days to ride to Walla Walla instead of 2, allowing for shorter, earlier days.