Day 9--Finishing the Day in Time for a Swim, and a Nap!

Although it was somewhat cloudy this morning (and cold...but that's the mountains in September), there was no rain--Yay! For the first time, we still had a significant amount of downhill to go. I kept my puffy coat on. We had great views of Glacier.

Going down!

We turned onto a road called North Fork after about 9 miles of downward trending riding. We had more spectacular views of Glacier.

At about 19 miles, we made the final turn for the day onto Red Meadow Rd. It was about 11:30. We haven't done that many miles before noon. However, now we would be trending up, and just flat out climbing until we reached Red Meadow Lake. We had originally planned to stay at the campground there, but decided, instead, to go on to Upper Whitefish Lake.

The guys stopped at a bridge for lunch. Derik had left his helmet at the side of the road so I would know they were there. They probably could have had their lunch completely eaten, except for the fact that I had most of it. Actually, it works out great because I don't need to take a super long break. I don't know if they do, but they get one anyway!

After lunch, the climbing began in earnest. It was super granny gear for me most of the way. Finally I started seeing parts of Red Meadow Lake. 

It's a pretty little lake. There were a number of people fishing and kayaking. The wind was pretty stiff and rather chilly, so I was glad we weren't staying. We had just another short amount of clothes climbing before the downhill to Upper Whitefish. The downhill was pretty rutted in places. At one point the hooks on Derik's panniers came undone. That had been happening to my panniers, but not this time, as I was much more cautious. Still, as usual, it was a fun descent. 

There was a little bit of uphill.

We got to Upper Whitefish at 3:30, our earliest arrival. The sun was shining, and it was quite warm out. So much that Derik and I decided to go for a swim. Derik actually did, but all I did as wade up to my knees. That water was freezing cold. No amount of hot sun could make me get in that lake! It's unfortunate, really, that the parts of me that stink the most are not below the knees! I filtered a bunch of water while I could still wade into the lake in my crocs.

Connor and Derik both took naps. 

What you have time for when you get in early!

Tomorrow we have a short day into Whitefish. Derik has hooked us up with the Hammer Nutrition guys, and we will be camping on the grounds. Monday, we will be able to take showers when the shop opens. The guy has told Derik that he has lots of fuel for him. We'll also take care of various housekeeping chores on our much deserved day off.

For tonight, we're really enjoying Upper Whitefish Lake, and the warm sun!