Sunday, July 4, 2010

AAN Day 14 - Pocatello to Idaho Falls, ID

Daily Statistics:
Mileage: 65.9 miles Average Speed: 15.6 mph
Vertical: 1025 feet Depart: 8:02 AM Arrive: 12:30 PM
Calories: 4166

Today's ride into Idaho Falls was characterized by similar scenes from the previous days. We went through miles of potato fields (and other agriculture), similar to what I show here. You will note the exotic irrigation apparatus in the background. I will say we spent 10 miles on a road called Philbin Road that has my award for the worst road yet. It was filled with deep depressions that you just could not avoid, and that jolted you badly.

While much of it was large fields, we also came across numerous small farms similar to what you see here, with a horse or several, some hay on the wagon, a small barn, etc. Rural living at its best.
I thought I would include the SAG at Blackfoot (our only one of the day). You can see the riders grouped around the food table, and the water jug on the left. This is the standard SAG setup, although they are often in much more picturesque locations.

Upon my arrival in Idaho Falls, I was honored by a visit from my old and good friend Dave Daniel, pictured with me here. He lives just south of town on 6+ acres. He took me down to check his spread, and also showed me around the area. I also made him sit through route rap and dinner, to get the feel of the daily routine. It is always such a pleasure to see old pals.

I took a number of photos trying to capture the appearance of Idaho Falls, and settled on this one, although it does not do full justice. As Dave said, we would have called the falls rapids, before man transformed them with a barricade to route the water through a hydro plant and spill nicely over the rocks. It runs for a good distance along the downtown, and makes a great city center.
Check with me tomorrow, after we have conquered Teton Pass!

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Is there a map of the planned route this year somewhere?

rickolafson said...

Go to the AbB web site, and look up Across America North. It has a detailed itinerary and map. abbike.com