What a difference some sunshine can make! A day full of promise now that we were on the east side of the Cascade mountains and no rain. We had sunny but cool conditions. I say “we” as my two new friends from Belgium were riding with. At about lunch we diverted a couple miles to Smith Rock State Park. It’s an amazing piece of geology with a bunch of sheer rock faces. So there were lots of people climbing and repelling down. Check out the photo gallery for some images that I took there and other stuff along the way.

We had nice tail winds and drafted together so we made very good time to Prineville. Piers and Stefan stayed with a host in town and I planned on camping at a state park about 7 miles further down the route. I did some grocery shopping, had a second lunch and got to the park about 4:30 pm. I did have a growing concern however, At about mile 30 my right knee started to stiffen up and get a little sore. By the time I got to the hill right before the state park it was too painful to stand up and pedal. So I just had to stay seated and use low gear. I was assuming that I had just tweaked it a little bit at some point along the way and was hoping that a good nights rest would take care of that.

I checked in with the Campground Host, Brian, when I got to the camp sites and quickly learned that he is a fellow believer. We had a great time getting to know each other. I set up camp and then he brought me a bag of fresh strawberries and some chicken to grill with my supper. He and I even prayed together and he specifically prayed for the rest of my trip. I took a shower at probably the cleanest and best campground shower house I’ve ever seen. It was heated and the showers had all the hot water you could want. I bundled up and headed to bed. It was expected to be a cold night. Overall though it was a great day 4!

Yep, it was cold…  28°… water bottles were frozen, and frost all over my tent. Didn’t have the best sleep because it was a little windy too, but I was warm enough.  Brian then blessed me again, he brought over a pot of hot coffee. We had another nice long chat about faith and discipleship and we prayed together. It’s nice to have that kind of fellowship while traveling!

I got camp put away and headed out into another sunny day.  It was going to be a challenge though as I had at least one big climb to do, and maybe two depending on how far I went. I was hoping the knee wasn’t going to be a problem…

Things were good for the first mile but then the pain started again by mile 2. I tried shifting positions on my seat but nothing helped. So I made a quick call to Bryce at the bike shop back home. He did a bike fitting for me the year before.  He confirmed that the seat was in the same position I normally ride with, but suggested I make an adjustment to compensate for the climbing and weight I had on the bike.  The adjustment worked.  While the knee was still a little sore I could tell it wasn’t getting worse, which was another answered prayer.  

The next 21 miles were all up. Some gradual and some steep. However it was through Ochoco National Forest and was so beautiful. Hardly noticed the climbing because of the beauty! I slowed down and just took in the sights. I crossed the Ochoco mountain pass at 11:30 am and 4,720’. Then the fun began.. 7 miles of descent. Even with a headwind I was going 20-25 mph the whole way while riding the brakes. That was quite a rush! At first I was a bit tentative as my bike wasn’t what you would call…nimble… with all the loaded saddle bags, but I finally got more comfortable with the handling and just cruised on down.

However, I still had a big decision. Do I end the day at Mitchell, OR (a 40 mile day) and rest the knee or push on to the second climb and descent and have a 70 mile day and get to Dayville, OR. I was a bit behind on my planned miles so as I was in the last mile or so of the descent I prayed for wisdom on the decision. When I finished, my bike radar alerted me that there was a vehicle approaching from behind. I saw it was a motorcycle who pulled alongside me. He asked if I was going to Mitchell, I told him maybe, was considering Dayville depending on my knee. He then told me he was the owner of the Spoken Hostel in Mitchell (a bike hostel that specializes in supporting riders with beds, showers and food all very inexpensively) and they had a machine to ice sore knees. Prayer answered. I was going to Mitchell. When I got to the Hostel, his wife said, you the one with the sore knee? I have the machine ready for you and here is your bed. The owner is a pastor of a local church and he and his wife run this amazing bit of hospitality as a mission where they just want to serve weary travelers. Prayers answered again today – via motorcycle conversation while going 20mph down a mountain. We have an awesome and loving God!