Bike Tour - Day 2

Bike Tour – Day 2

The plan for today was to ride approximately 42 miles to Jackson Lake Lodge. We got started bright and early and the weather was perfect for riding. It was crisp and cool. While the tour brochure says that it this tour is “mostly flat,” it does not say it is all flat. We figured that out right away as we started our first little climb. I’m not the best hill climber in San Diego. Add 6,000 feet of elevation and it’s even harder for me, but I’m happy to say I did it.

In fact the first 22 miles were an absolute breeze. I loved it, especially the National Elk Preserve. The road was so smooth! And then we hit this section with rolling hills where you get enough speed going down that it almost carries you up the next hill. We were having so much fun that I completely blew right past our turn. We figured it out soon enough…when the road became a dead end. Thankfully we’d only gone about one mile. Just as we were turning around, the Teton guides caught up with us. Ooops. I’m sure I should feel bad about going off track, but it was so much fun. And we got to see a bull Bison too.

Once we got back on track, we got stopped again by a herd of Bison. They were crossing the road. Apparently Bison are not all that friendly. Thankfully the Teton guides were there with the van and they helped lead us through. We waited for a break in the herd and then continued down the road. I was watching the approaching herd as we rode by and then I turned to look to my right and looked at the part that had already crossed and several of them had turned back and were paying a little too much attention to us little bike riders. I was more than happy to scurry along. I was able to take one picture while we were waiting to cross. Sadly I couldn’t capture the little baby that was on the other side of the road.
When we stopped at the visitors center, I was feeling good and flying high and so we continued along on the new bike path that goes to Jenny Lake. It was “mostly flat,” but you pretty much had to pedal the entire time. It was a long slow incline. Nothing too difficult…but suddenly I was struggling. My silly cold was moving into my chest so I was coughing. I had no energy and had to stop a couple of times once I hit about 30 miles. I was getting a little dizzy and it took everything I had to get to Jenny Lake.

Once I got to Jenny Lake, I sat down, snacked a bit, drank some Gatorade and hoped it would pass. Sadly, it didn’t. I was done. I had to face the reality that it would be irresponsible for me to continue on when I knew I was feeling so bad. I’ve ridden a lot and I have never felt so awful. It was such a hard decision to make!! I really wanted to ride every single mile available. It took another hour or so, and lunch and water and soda and Gatorade….before I started feeling better. Of course, by that point, I probably could’ve floated up the hill with all the fluids I drank!

We’re staying at the Jackson Lake Lodge and it is absolutely beautiful. We have adorable little cabins with the most amazingly comfortable beds! Tonight we were even treated to a little thunderstorm. It was so fun listening to the thunder and the rain.

Bike Tour Posts
Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6