In preparation of the Trans America bike trail I plan to take, I thought it would be smart to get one last bike tour in before that. I did not feel like stealth camping for this trip, so I made sure to get some legit camp sites. This trip would be 3 days, returning on Easter. I brought 90% of the things I plan on bringing to the cross-country trip, to help me get used to the weight.
Day 1
I immediately rode 10 miles to get on the Jordan River Bike Trail. I thought I would only be on trail for about half the ride on this trip, which I later find out to not be the case. The route was very pretty, however nothing new to my eyes as I have done it before when I went around the Utah lake. Previously when I went, the parks had their water fountains on, making it really easy for me to refill on water. This time around, they were turned off as we were just finishing winter. I believe after 25 miles I finally got to a gas station. I grabbed some Pizza, Gatorade, & filled up water. While I was eating, a talked to a nice lady. She was from Arizona heading to Idaho falls. As I pushed further, I discoverd their is a trail called the Murdock Canal trailer, which eventually lines up with BYU and I essentially had bike trail for 90% of the route. It was truly a blessing. I finished the night at a KOA, I just barly missed their closing time, so I had to get an enevelope with the stuff. At first I setup my tent, and it wasn’t till a few hours later that I reread my stuff and realized I had it in the wrong spot. I literally picked up my tent and walked it down the right spot, it was so funny. I just snacked on food for dinner that night.
Day 2
I was looking forward to day 2 because it had shown on my gps that a lot of bike path would be used to get too my next location. However, I had different results when I started the ride. I blindly followed the gps for about 30 miles, before I thought the path I was taking was so strange, so I double checked. Turns out it was a different route I thought about planning, but due to weather I voted against it. I was so sad, because this was only supposed to be a 40 mile path, and would have allowed a much longer time on bike trails. Luckily I got to see some kids selling a service where people can pet their hamsters, I did not have cash, so I just had to wish them luck, but it made this detour all worth it. The next biggest hurdle on Day 2 was making sure I had enough water to get to the campsite, and enough to get back to the city the following day. I decided to go into a grocery store in Eagle mountain to fill my water pouch thing. I just found the nearest water fountain and filled it, it was kinda awkward bringing a fully loaded bike in. I do wish I got more water based off how the rest of this trip went. I continued blindly following my gps, and it takes me to a dirt road. I figure it shouldn’t be too much of an issue since it shouldn’t be too long. I couldn’t be more wrong. Pretty quickly I run into mud, and I figured it was just this mud and that was it. I walk through it, avoiding as much mud as I can (I ended up pretty muddy and my bike) and not much later run into some more. I regretted walking through this road so quickly after this, all the mud would get stuck in my fenders, I had to keep my pants rolled up, and my sandals were getting so muddy. If I would have just taken the main road, it was only a couple miles more and not a horrible road. I wished so badly I could go back and do that, but it was a good learning experience non the less. I eventually made it right before the sun really started getting dark, and ate some food. I also learned that night I shouldn’t be eating food in the tent, especially Tuna. Not sure if there was an animal outside or not, but I was so scared that night.
Day 3
The Easter Bunny had arrived to many people on Day 3, not me sadly. This was the easiest day by far, up until the last 10 miles or so. I got into town so much quicker than I could have imagined, and this was without taking the muddy route. I wish I would have filled my water bag with some more water, as I was super conservative until I got into town. The gps also tried to take a couple weird turns when I first got to some houses, it was frustrating, but not a big deal. The first gas station I got to, another biker got there at the same time, he was a really cool guy. I found out he is into gravel/offroad type cycling, I believe he was shooting for 80 miles that day. Everything ran smoothly for probably another 10 miles or so, eventually I missed a turn, and then the gps had a hard time since I did not want to do a uturn. It brought me to a construction site which would have been trespassing, and it kept rerouting me there till I eventually forced it to find a main road. Once I found the main road, I was able to hop on a trail again, but before that it just kept giving me problems. Once I got on the trail, I swear I was more tired. I slowed way down, and kept complaining about wind which did not even seem that bad. Luckily, I made it home, and got to enjoy Easter with my family.
Strava