Big Ranches

I am now in Wyoming, the Cowboy (or Equality) State.  This place is massive, with a population of only half a million.  It is common here to have ranches of over 100 000 acres!  As we were taking photos of the state sign, two cowboys came over to talk with us as they were herding cattle.

The landscape has changed again to a high desert.  We are about 2000m high on the valley floor, but it is dry with no agriculture.  It is amazing how quickly the scenery changes in the USA.  You look down at your handlebars, next thing is, you are in a new environment.  It is amazing.  It is still hot, but the nights are very cold, and I have found out that my ancient sleeping bag has lost a lot of insulation!  Slept the other night in long johns and a down jacket.

Colorado was great and the views spectacular.  It was lovely riding through pine forest valleys winding next to rivers.  We spent one night in a place called Hot Sulphur Springs and relaxed in the hot baths (all in the name).  I also washed in the Colorado River, which I believe forged the Grand Canyon.

We have seen a number of cyclists and have spent a couple of days bumping into a group of about 10 who are supported.  But most impressive of all was a young lad called John who I met the day before yesterday.  He is from Kodiak, Alaska (Google if you do not know where that is), and had never left the island before!  He has just left high school and is cycling to his new college in Orlando, Florida.  Between Anchorage and Vancouver there is nothing and he went for 5 days sometimes without seeing a soul (except for a few Grizzlies).  All this on a racing bike and a homemade trailer.  Puts my trip into perspective and what an inspiration.  I wish him all the best.

Today we have made it to Rawlins.  We had to cycle along an interstate for a bit, which was interesting, particularly when Laura got a puncture!  Last night we camped by a lake at Saratoga, which except for the mozzies was great.  It was a refreshing end to the day.  There was also a short, but very strong, wind gust which nearly took out tents.  In Wyoming, the winds are described as 'variable' - in other words, they are constantly changing direction and strength - not fun for the cyclist.  This usually happens in the afternoon, so we are thinking about going back to early starts to avoid them.

I saw a bald eagle the other day, the symbol of America, so that was pretty cool.  We hope to by in the Tetons and Yellowstone in 4/5 days, so really looking forward to that.  May get to see some bison and bears finally!

So, all in all everything is going great.  As I have said before, everything here is just massive!