Carrie Morgridge - The Spirit of the Trail: A Journey to Fulfillment Along the Continental Divide

The Spirit of the Trail: A Journey to Fulfillment Along the Continental Divide — read online for free the complete book (whole text) full work

Below is the text of the book, divided by pages. System saving the place of the last page read, allows you to conveniently read the book "The Spirit of the Trail: A Journey to Fulfillment Along the Continental Divide" online for free, without having to search again every time where you left off. Put a bookmark, and you can go to the page where you finished reading at any time.

Light

Font size:

↓

↑

Georgia Tahoma Arial Verdana

Reset

Interval:

↓

↑

Bookmark:

Make

1234567...36

Published by MFF Publishing

4242 East Amherst Avenue

Denver, CO 80222

Copyright 2018 by Morgridge Family Foundation

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic from without written permission from the copyright holder or a stated representative. Requests for permission should be sent to MFF@ FoundationSource.com.

Cover design by Sheila Parr

Book design by Alex Head

ISBN: 978-1-7322083-1-5

Printed in the United States of America.

This book is dedicated to the spirit of adventure within all of us.

Contents

Foreword

Youre going to do WHAT?! This was the first question we asked our son, John, and his wife, Carrie, when they announced that they were going to ride their bicycles along the Continental Divide from Banff in Alberta, Canada, to Antelope Wells, New Mexico, on the Mexican border during the summer of 2016. It is also the first question our children asked us when my husband, John, and I announced, at age 62, that we were planning to ride our bicycles from our home in California to our vacation home in New Hampshire during the summer of 1995.

John and Carrie rode their fully packed mountain bikes along forest roads and on single-track trails from north to south, crossing the Continental Divide 32 times. We, on the other hand, rode our lightly packed touring bikes along paved farm-to-market back roads and along semi-quiet highways from west to east over mountain ranges and through wide valleys. They often camped in remote areas, while we "camped" with Mastercard, staying in motels along the route.

The book you are going to read will tell you about John and Carries journey. This foreword will give you a glance into my husbands and my earlier bike adventure.

For both trips, research and planning came first. We read about others who had taken the ride and began our lists of what to pack, ordered our Adventure Cycling maps, researched what bikes were best for the trip, decoded how to get our bodies in shape, and perhaps most important of allwondered what it would be like to be together 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

It has been more than 20 years since our ride across the country, and rereading the log we wrote has been a lot of fun. We could imagine the places, hear the sounds, and inhale the smells one more time. Our goal had been to cross the United States, to experience the mountains, valleys, plains, hills, towns, and cities, to meet and talk with people along the way, andof courseto enjoy the ride. Our route took us across parts of 13 states, from California north across Oregon and Idaho and into Montana, and then eastward until we reached the Great Lakes, where we dipped south before heading northeast to New Hampshire. Thus began our 4400-mile, 10-week "Amble Across America."

The kindness of people turned out to be a highlight of our trip. Two young friends rode with us the first day as we nervously cycled away from our home in California. Another friend met us on his bike at the top of a hill at the end of our first day and escorted us to his house for the night. Other friends housed and fed us along the way. We were saved from riding up many steep hills or fending for ourselves on busy roads thanks to advice from people we met along the way. In North Dakota the drivers waved to us, and across the country FedEx drivers were friendly and always gave us good directions.

The kindest person by far was Johns brother, Dean. He thought we were crazy to ride our bikes across the country, so he offered to drive a sag wagon until the North Dakota border. In the American West, there are many miles between towns, food stops, and accommodations. In addition, we had cold, snow, and sleet. We could not have ridden there without Deans help. He went ahead to find motels, he came to pick us up when we were finished riding for the day, and he drove us back the next day to start riding where we had stopped. What a kindness!

As two not-so-young bicyclists dressed in padded biking shorts, we were greeted with silence in small cafes as the locals glanced at us. Soon one brave soul would say, So, where are you heading? All ears would be tuned for the answer and soon we were having a conversation with everyone in the caf. There is no better way to learn about places of interest, road conditions, and the best places to stay. We stopped at one caf, located at a crossroads in the middle of wheat-growing country. Local ranchers had pooled their resources to buy the caf so that they would have a place to gather. However, one thing surprised us, especially in the middle of the country. Many people do not stray far from home; information about a town only 30 miles away could be hard to find.

We learned how important wind and weather are to a biker. During one of our days in Oregon, we not only had high winds, but also cold temperatures and snow. Not great biking conditions, to say the least. We stopped at a rest area and found a place behind a sign where we could hide from the wind. A kind couple in an RV invited us in for coffee. They, too, were hiding out, waiting for the wind and weather to change. On days with a headwind we struggled to cover the miles, and on days with a tailwind we were able to do centuries100 miles in a day.

Side winds, however, were the worst. A strong side wind can blow your bike over. Trucks are challenging for bikers under any circumstances, but on windy days they are especially challenging. Wind builds up behind a truck and when the truck passes, a blast of wind hits youmaking it hard to keep the bike on the road.

Riding across the United States on a bicycle gave us an unusual opportunity to experience the vastness of the country: the varied topography, the beauty of the mountains and valleys, the isolation of small towns, and the density and tensions of the cities. Our gradual, one-pedal-stroke-at-a-time ride across the country also gave us a chance to experience the progression of the seasonsfrom spring in California, sprouting crops in the West, wheat harvest in the Plains, fresh sweet com in the Midwest, to beginning of fall in the East.

Riding a bike also heightened all of our senses. There was the sensation of burning in our legs when climbing hills or mountain passes, and the delightful fear as we raced down the other side. While most days were pleasant, we had some snow and freezing temperatures, some rain, some lightning, and some extreme heat. We learned that different weather not only feels different, but also smells and sounds different. The best days were clear and bright when the birds were singing, the deer and the antelope were out and about, the forests and fields were in full color, and we were easily seen by cars and trucks. On bad-weather days cars and trucks do not anticipate seeing two foolish bikers on the road; we were easily distracted by slick roads and giant puddles. Not the best.

Perhaps our favorite sound was the singing of the meadowlark. Perched on fenceposts along the roads, the meadowlarks enthusiastic, heads-back singing kept us pedaling. Quiet is not a sensation we often experience in our helter-skelter lives, but quiet is one of the luxuries of a bicycle ride along back roads and through the countryside. It allowed us to just experience the day and brought our attention to the small sounds of crickets and cicadas or the moo of a cow.

This country in so many ways is a real feast for the eyes. We saw pronghorn antelope in meadows, red-rock canyons gleaming in the sun, grasses moving in the wind, fields of grain as far as we could see, rushing streams that babbled as they rushed over rocks, forests, and mountainsoff in the distance like paintings or close at hand where we could see their rocks, trees, and fauna. At one point a butterfly landed on the shoulder of my yellow biking shirt and rode along for at least five miles before taking off.

Next page

1234567...36

Light

Font size:

↓

↑

Georgia Tahoma Arial Verdana

Reset

Interval:

↓

↑

Bookmark:

Make

Similar books «The Spirit of the Trail: A Journey to Fulfillment Along the Continental Divide»

Look at similar books to The Spirit of the Trail: A Journey to Fulfillment Along the Continental Divide. We have selected literature similar in name and meaning in the hope of providing readers with more options to find new, interesting, not yet read works.

Steve Johnson

Best Bike Rides Minneapolis and St. Paul: Great Recreational Rides in the Twin Cities Area

Paul Molenberg

Lets Mountain Bike!

Michael McCoy

Cycling the Great Divide: From Canada to Mexico on North Americas Premier Long-Distance Mountain Bike Route

Carrie Morgridge

Every Gift Matters: How Your Passion Can Change the World

Freddie Gillies

The Big Bike Trip

Robert Hurst

Best Easy Bike Rides Denver

Lynx

Hiking Canadas Great Divide Trail

Forth

The Great British Mountain Bike Trail Guide

Jill Homer

Be Brave, Be Strong: A Journey Across the Great Divide

Don Petterson

Old Man on a Bicycle: A Ride Across America and How to Realize a More Enjoyable Old Age

Paul Howard

Eat, Sleep, Ride: How I Braved Bears, Badlands, and Big Breakfasts in My Quest to Cycle the Tour Divide

Brian Lopes

Mastering Mountain Bike Skills - 2nd Edition

Discussion, reviews of the book The Spirit of the Trail: A Journey to Fulfillment Along the Continental Divide and just readers' own opinions. Leave your comments, write what you think about the work, its meaning or the main characters. Specify what exactly you liked and what you didn't like, and why you think so.