Basin to Ten Sleep
41miles / 1509ft climb
Combined, the heat, hills and headwinds of today led to a hellishly hard ride. Quite possibly the most challenging so far and not one that we had anticipated would be nearly as challenging.
At ‘only’ 40 miles and with 1509 ft climb to do, we anticipated a hot but quick ride. We were wrong. Very wrong. It was searingly hot from the outset. There was not a single tree or building along the entire route under which we could obtain any shade so there was simply no way of escaping the searing heat. The wind was against us meaning that we had to pedal hard even on the downhill. Uphill was unbelievably hard. The air was dry and hot, our lips and mouths were bone dry. The ice in our water bottles, melted and the water warmed within minutes. They were finished some time before we were.
We arrived at the Ten Sleep Saloon, gasping for breath, reddened faces and sweating profusely. We were not a pretty sight but the bar staff welcomed us in and gave us jug after jug of iced water until we began to cool down.
There are some things that we would do differently next time to make the ride a little easier.
We all agreed that on a searing hot day an ‘early start‘ is not 8am. We really should have been on the road by 6am. We will also never miss an opportunity to fill up our water bottles.
We were all exhausted. Arriving at Ten Sleep all we wanted to do is sleep and we had the luxury of having an afternoon nap before heading back to the saloon for supper and a game of cards.
Tomorrow’s ride is a ridiculously easy sounding 21 miles but this will be 21 miles continual climb of over 4,250ft up the Bighorn Mountain range. Perhaps not so easy? We are reassured by locals that the mountain should be significantly cooler than the temperatures we experienced today and I could have cried with relief when our motel owners kindly offered us their phone number and offered to help transport us / our bikes / or our panniers up the mountain should we get into any difficulty. Having this backup plan, just in case, is hugely reassuring.
Another early start tomorrow so an early night for us.
Challenging Times 
That sounds like a journey from hell – here’s hoping that it has truly been the worst, and things only get better xx
Sounds torturous but you pulled through it and can write about it. Take care.
Alison, I gave you incorrect information when we visited at Meadowlark Lake Lodge. The website I told about is. Not impossible.com
Sorry about that…
Deb, thanks for this. I will look them up. X
That doesn’t look right..it’s:
Notimpossible.com
Loved meeting you all at Meadowlark Lake Lodge yesterday!! Hope you enjoyed the wine!! Cheering you on!!! Jim and Deb from Rapid City
Deb and Jim, it was a pleasure to meet you both, the wine was wonderful but it didn’t make me cycle any faster the following day! X
Well it’s ❄️ snowing outside Calgary to day so hopefully some cooler weather is headed your way.
We’re acclimating for Portugal with 5 days in Malta where it has been very hot.
Your drive and determination is amazing!
Wow team! Being in amazing shape is helping you all! Goodness Alison I can’t imagine myself making it through such a feat! I’m happy to hear about the kindness of people along the way! Amazing! On your shoulder cheering you on!! 😘
Can feel you on my shoulder cheering me on. X
That sounds horrific, glad you made it to the end without needing to be rescued. Early hours cycling in the heat sounds like a plan, good luck xx
Sounds like a tough day.. Kathy and Dave are big fans of an early start, so check with them, but I think sunrise is currently 0530, so you could start 0515 and get at least two or three hours of much cooler weather
Keep it up! Massive admiration from afar!
>
I’m exhausted reading this. I’m also impressed by your resilience and uplifted by the kindness of others. Well done!
Sounds brutal! Amazing effort as usual 😘