Good Friends and Green Fields

The ride from Salida to Westcliffe, CO was one of the most beautiful to date. We began riding through narrow canyons that gave way miles later to open, green fields. With the Rockies as a backdrop and on a cool, sunny day, we couldn't have asked for more. We passed many ranches and cattle farms as we pedaled through the countryside. Us girls left earlier than the boys, who decided to stay in the Super 8 motel room that was kindly donated the evening before in order to watch The Transporter 2. We arrived in Westcliffe in the early afternoon and promptly sought out the best restaurant in town. We took a seat at Wild Thyme and began to chat with our server, Kendra, and her mom/owner of the restaurant, Sharon. They were both wonderfully energetic and very funny, and we ended up sharing stories and laughing for hours. They invited us to spend the night at their house, and we graciously accepted their offer. The boys rolled into town with a storm in hot pursuit in the late afternoon.As the rain started to fall, we were able to seek shelter in Sharon's restaurant, where we spent the rest of the evening. After some great food, we helped close up shop for the evening and hopped back on our bikes for a quick 7 or 8 mile night ride back to the house. The trip was a blast as we plotted our way up the hill guided only by one headlamp and the moonlight.
As we headed up the driveway to their house, we were greeted by the unmistakable smell of a bonfire. Sharon showed us our rooms for the evening, and we quickly changed into warm clothes and headed outside to the fire. We spent hours petting their three golden retrievers, talking, and laughing with Sharon and Kendra underneath the stars. It was the best night of our trip. By 1:00, we decided to turn in, and bid our new friends goodnight. The following morning, we awoke and leisurely enjoyed our coffee, as we looked out at the Rockies looming in the distance. Hours later, we regrettably had to part ways, and we took to the road once again, this time headed for Pueblo. Another one of Sharon's lovely daughters, Kayla, kindly arranged to have us stay with the family whom she is spending the summer with in Pueblo West. Once again, a nasty storm was nipping at our heels as we pulled into the driveway. The family's son, Connor, and Kayla welcomed us to the house, gave us a tour and offered us some drinks. After showering, we were able to meet Connor's sister Alex and his parents, Shawn and Chuck. They were such a wonderful family, and we told them many stories from our trip over a delicious pizza dinner. We then headed to the basement for a ping pong, cribbage and billiards bonanza. Connor and Mike ruled the tables all night.
We awoke early the next morning and headed upstairs to find Shawn preparing a breakfast of bacon and eggs for us. We were glad to have good food before beginning our longest ride to date: 125 miles to Eads, CO. We said goodbye to our new friends and pedaled towards downtown Pueblo. We rode through the city's park, waving at the zebras in the Pueblo zoo on our way by, and made our way to Interstate 96, our yellow brick road for the next week. As the majestic mountains faded into the distance, we found ourselves in the Great Plains, which are deserving of their name. As far as the eye can see, there really is nothing but grassy plains. It is beautiful in a very lonely, solemn way. Thankfully, the skies were cloudy and the air cool, making our marathon ride through the grasslands bearable. We arrived in Eads tired and hungry, but our spirits were soon lifted when we saw our friends, the Swedes! We grabbed a quick bite to eat and then began to set up camp in the town park, next to Daniel and Nisse. All was calm as Chey headed to the gas station to grab ice and Mike, Josh and I began to put up tents. Then, out of nowhere, wild winds beared down on Eads and the sky became black, lit up only by the incessant lightning that we could see in all directions. Our tents were no match for the winds, and our camping gear was quickly blown all over the park and the feed mill next door. Chasing the tents, we ran towards the mill, and asked the men working there if we would be safe in the park (typical easterners). After telling us about the softball-sized hail that had fallen in the next town over the night before, they checked their radar and screamed to us through the howling winds that we "probably" wouldn't see any tornados that night. Great! To boot, they pointed to the train that was parked on the tracks near the park and suggested that if there were a tornado or hail, that might be a good place to seek asylum. "Unless the train blows away!" one of the men joked. Very funny!
After securing our tents with a dozen tent pegs, we donned our raingear and headed out to enjoy the storm with the Swedes. It was amazing. There was never a moment without lightning - just one bolt after another lighting up the sky. Thanfully, the rain skirted around Eads, and we somehow managed to stay dry. We watched in awe for hours as the storm moved to the east. We ran into a rider today (the next day) who had spent the night 50 miles of east of where we were, and he said they had winds of 150 mph and hail for hours. I suppose we got quite lucky!
This morning we grabbed a quick breakfast and rode towards Kansas. 42 miles later, I made some bad Wizard of Oz jokes (also see blog, above) as we crossed into the 5th state of our ride. Thus far, Kansas seems pretty similar to eastern Colorado: flat plains that stretch on as far as the eye can see. We are glad to be here!