It's All Downhill From Here

Today started out with Claudia driving us back to Seligman and the Roadkill Cafe to begin our journey. Since Claudia had done the drive twice and Thom and I once, we knew what was waiting for us. We had 17 miles on Route 66, followed by 23 miles on I-40 to Williams. Then if we decided to go on it would be another 40 miles to the east side of Flagstaff. 

The wind was not with us when we left Seligman, so we had a tough time on Route 66. We only average 8.9 MPH. When we turned onto I-40 we were greeted by a rough shoulder to go with the wind. About 3 miles in to an 11 mile long and over 2,000 foot climb, Thom decided to have Claudia pick him up. I managed to finish the climb and meet Thom and Claudia for lunch at Cruisers in Williams. It was a difficult but rewarding climb and the shoulder was smooth the whole way. 

I should point out that the climb was not only difficult because of it's length and ascent but also because we were starting at over 4,000 feet above sea level and finishing at over 6,000 feet above sea level. The view of snow capped Humphrey's Peak made for a scenic ride. Here are a few shots.

After leaving Thom and Claudia after lunch, I headed out for a "mostly flat" ride to Flagstaff. I ended up adding another 1,500 feet of climbing and spent most of the ride over 7,000 feet above sea level. There was a reward, I crossed the Continental Divide. So it really is all down hill from here.

 Here is my ride on Strava and a summary of the progress to date. 

 

Tomorrow is a rest dat.