R16 20 A Big Time at the Big Grove Country Inn

The ride to the Big Grove Country Inn was amazing--with the bikes in the back we flew down Highway 6 (hilly as fuck) and over the gravel to the BGCI (hilly as fuuucccckkkk and freshly graveled).

Enjoy the ride ladies! 

We unloaded the bikes and got a tour. The BGCI has many buildings (a house, a chapel, etc) but also a pole barn, which is both a garage, but also sort of a hunting lodge/family retreat kind of place. Pole barn on the outside, but cozy log cabiny feel on the inside. We got the king room and had access to the kitchen. 

We'll agree with the friendliest! Thanks for the ride! 

No need for a fire pit. The whole world was on fire. 

After we settled in and showered, we went up to the house to talk payment and breakfast. Somehow, we convinced the host to drive us back into town. Not sure what we would have done otherwise, but because his work van was packed full, he'd have to take us into town in the truck, then drive back and get his work van. Which would mean we'd need to leave at 5:00, and he would have breakfast for us at 4:45--just something light. 

Original Mormon fireplace. 

Happy Honeymoon, Oh Pioneers!

That taken care of, I asked if we could see the log cabin. I knew that the house had been built around a  log cabin, but I had never seen it myself. He took us into a room off the kitchen and we were in the 1840s--stone fireplace, rope bed, skins on the walls--but a modern bathroom. It was pretty cool. Apparently, lots of folks have weddings and family reunions here, but I can't imagine what they do. The b&b was in the middle of a soy field down 5 miles of gravel. You'd have to really like your family...

Steven tucks into dinner. 

After we settled up and settled in we had "dinner," i.e. cold, clammy bar food and Coors Light from the country club in town. After that was consumed, Steven filched around until she found a washing machine and surreptitiously did a load of our clothes. We may have used fabric softener for detergent, but who cares? 

Of course, we had interneting and mapping to do. We had some decisions to make for tomorrow, and one issue weighed heavily on our minds. The Henderson Gap. 

We were thinking we could ride south out of Oakland until we got to H12. Then take that all the way to L55, and then bam, south into Silver City and then on to Glenwood. Right? Simple. 

But that gap--you see it? M16 and H12. Now imagine us with a paper map, that's been folded and refolded. Did the gap exist? Or was a misprint? If it existed, what was it? Did it just fall into nothing? Was it gravel? How far? If we went that far, and it was impassable, we'd have no choice but to make for H34 and ride the busy highway into Glenwood. What to do? 

Unfortunately, the internet was spotty. We really could only get reception on our phones if we went outside, but we could only get so-so internet in the room. And we needed information. While I was futzing about with Google Maps, Steven did the only logical thing and went and talked to our host. 

Turns out he was a motorcyclist, so we could kind of trust him. He'd ridden all over the area. He suggested we take 92 to Treynor and turn south from there. Yes, it was a busier road, but it wasn't too busy, he claimed, and on the hills there was a passing lane for slower traffic. We had a plan. 

After that was figured out, I did some phone calling. I got El Cap on the phone and confessed my melt down. He was with his family and they were all very sweet and supportive. It was nice to hear their voices, but it was too hot to sit outside for long, so I retreated to the cool dark of the room, where I found some reading material. 

The only place the phones worked. It's 98 degrees. 

I'd never read a James Patterson novel before, and if you ignore the first couple pages, I still haven't read a James Patterson novel. I picked this one up because it was called Sail, and sailing sounded so much more fun than this death ride, but it was ridiculous. Instead I lounged on the futon and read passages to Steven. She giggled. 

Two cyclists are lost, and then come back with a message....

'

This ride is fucked! Read the description.

And then at about 8:30 it was time for old cry face MaGee to hit the hay. I started brushing my teeth and tucking in and setting alarms, but Steven was not having it. Now that she was cool and clean and relaxed, she was ready to party! Or at least not be bored. Our day hadn't been enough to take the fun out of Steven. When her cajoling didn't get me back out of bed to do God knows what, she finally settled down on the other side of the bed, and then we had a nice, long air conditioned snooze. 

Trying to relax. Notice the blanket. 

When the alarm went off at 4:15, I knew I had to make some adjustments. I couldn't have another crymagedeon today. I needed to lock my shit up. 

Steven tries a bike with even less gears. 

When our host came out, we were waiting for him in the truck, like eager beavers. No way we were getting left behind. And soon we were zooming back towards Oakland and our last day of the ride out. 

Good morning sun! Try not to murder us today.