Tombstone was challenging, but not as debilitating as I remember from the first time when it took us six hours to cover the 11 miles. With some nice cloud cover, we rode that same stretch in maybe 2.5 hours. I could hardly believe I was actually climbing Tombstone Pass again! It was such a shock to me the first time that it was possible for a hill to last 11 miles.
Santiam Pass and the mostly downhill 20-mile ride into Sisters would have been a lot nicer if we hadn't have run out of water. We were both going a little loopy. Fortunately, sometime in the past 25 years a nice little shopping area was built on the western edge of town where we ate at McDonalds and I drank the equivalent of two super-sized cups of Powerade. We're staying in the city park in Sisters. It looks familiar.
We are now officially on the Adventure Cycling route and had a nice chat with Molly and Skip, a brother-sister duo who are also biking across the United States. They're staying in the park too. Somehow, when you meet other people riding the route, it seems like a perfectly reasonable thing to do.
Twenty-five years later I can now enjoy your reliving our trek up over that dreadful Tombstone Pass. I suppose I was the achiles heel of the group which resulted in a 6-hour water-depleting climb. This time I'm enjoying your ride from the comfort of my recliner. Love you both!
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