July 26: Mitchell OR to Sisters OR

100 miles

Abby and Beth started out on the big climb of the day, which occurred early in the ride.  I lounged around the hotel for a while and then drove out.  I stopped at the Painted Rocks unit of the John Day Fossil Beds national monument, which is 6 miles off US 26 and has nothing there except a set of restrooms and some trails and a couple of signs.  It's a pretty spot, and the particular layers which are visible here are different than the ones near the visitor's center at Sheep Rock.

Jerry flagged me down as I went past. Jerry's another touring cyclist going east to west whom we've seen a few times since Baker City.  His squeaking noises had become grinding noises and so we piled his bags in the car and put his bike on the back and drove him into a bike shop in Redmond.  They said the problem was probably in the rear hub of his Bike Friday (the rear hub had 3 gears, eliminating the need for a front derailleur), but they were reluctant to try to fix it.  Luckily, Bike Friday is manufactured in Eugene, OR, so he's going to head there tomorrow.

Abby did 43 miles today, with some soreness, so she's on her way back.

Having done some rerouting, we ended the day in Sisters, OR and plan to cross the Cascades tomorrow at McKenzie Pass and head to Eugene, just over 100 miles.