Days 7-8: Peach Springs to Ash Fork

Posted by: Arin

As a cyclist you don't find yourself sitting discouraged on the side of the road after a 5 mile descent, but that's exactly where we found ourselves at 5pm Monday evening. We had planned on getting to Williams by the end of the day, but howling crosswinds throughout the day found us 5 miles from Ash Fork and 23 from Williams. We had only ridden 50 miles in 7 hours, with a couple of very disappointing burritos in the middle. 

One high point of the day had been at an A&W in Seligman. We stopped to get a root beer float as a little pick me up, and happened to meet a rep from Fulcrum wheels on his way back to Florida from the Sea Otter Classic, who hooked us up with a tube and pair of socks each!

On the side of I-40 we realized we weren't going to make it to Williams, so we rode 6 more brutal miles to a Family Dollar in Ash Fork to get some food. Outside the store we met a lady who just started telling us some jokes, the most memorable being: "What do you call a bicycle that can't stand up?"

"Two tired." Just how we felt. 

We thought we were going to sleep behind some trees, and spirits were still pretty low, so we decided to get some beer and refill Brad's fuel for his stove at the local gas station. Spending a long time deciding on the beers, we finally bought a couple 24oz Sierra Nevadas. As we were leaving the store, we met a couple guys and started talking to them about what we were doing. One of them actually offered for us to sleep on his property, so we loaded up our bikes in the back of the truck and sat in the flatbed for a 6 mile ride that included some bumpy dirt roads. It was out of our way a little bit, but he told us he had a jacuzzi and a sketchy skate ramp, so of course we were in.

We got there and had a few beers with the saviors of our day before getting into the jacuzzi.

We set up our tent and went to bed buzzed and happy. There was a lunar eclipse later that night, but we were too tired to stay up and watch. What followed was a freezing night, one that my sleeping bag was just able to handle. I had left all my warm clothes in my panniers and there was no way I was getting out of my bag. We also neglected to put on the rain fly. Despite the cold, it was a good night of sleep.

In the morning we woke up and our hosts made us omelettes with eggs from the 5 chickens they own and home made bread. It was amazing.

We started doing some laundry and packing up our stuff, but when the idea to stay another day arose we had to take the opportunity. We had been riding for a week straight and this seemed like the best possible place to take the day off. What followed was a day of goofing around with the guy that let us stay here.

We did some easy off-roading in his truck, played horseshoes, hit some golf balls, skated the ramp, and just chilled out all day Northern Arizona style. After a delicious dinner, we hung out a little more and once again went to bed. We wore more clothes and put on the rain fly, so the night was nice and warm, despite colder temperatures.

This morning we woke up to more fresh eggs, this time in a burrito with bell peppers and onions. I really have to get some chickens at some point in my life. We're about to leave in a few minutes, and I really can't express enough how amazing this day and a half has been. Our hosts are the most generous and welcoming strangers I have ever met in my life.

Thank you so much for having us! I know we'll be back here again.