Day 6 - September 15, 2017 - 70.5 miles, 1,910 feet ascent

Brawley, CA to Palo Verde, CA

I left Gateway Church this morning right after breakfast.  Pedals down at 0617.  I was on a mission, as I needed to get to the US Post Office in Palo Verde (pop 171) before it closed at 1300.  Dianne had mailed me some straps for my panniers, but we didn't know the post office would close so early.   I knew I had a 70 mile ride ahead of me, and I wasn't sure if I would make it on time.

After a few miles heading east, we witnessed a beautiful sunrise, and then experienced riding directly into the morning sun.  Drivers could not see us, so we had to use extreme caution.  (The cyclist behind me warned me, as he could not see me, even with my flashing red light in the rear.  Pretty much a fat ride for the first 30 miles, and I was hammering hard.  I was by myself, as I dropped Joe early on (I was on that mission!).  Passed through Glamis, which is not really a town, but a store near the California Sahara, great sand dunes famous for OHV enthusiasts,  The population after Halloween sweeps to upwards of 50,000, with no utilities, and only the one small convenience store.  There was a bit of climbing to get to Glamis, but it wasn't too bad.  The hard part was the passing semi trucks that created a sandstorm, with sand sticking to our sunscreen and getting in our teeth.

After Glamis, mild climbing up to the Chocolate Mountains, where the US Navy has a bombing range. Then there were rollers until about mile 60.  The rollers were quite fun, as I pedaled hard going downhill, and coasted most of the way up the next hill.  

By the time I was almost 10 miles out of Palm Verde, I was spent.  Couldn't hammer it like I had been for the first 60 miles.  My feet hurt, and I didn't eat enough (I was on that mission, remember?). I had lost one of my 3 liter water bladders on the road, but still had plenty of water.

Finally, after soft pedaling for the last 10 miles, I made it to the post office at noon, with an hour to spare before they closed.   After fetching my package, I went next door to a bait and tackle store, and downed an large bottle of Gatorade.  It was only 90 degrees, but it sure felt a lot warmer!  I then backtracked back another half mile to the Tamarisk RV Park, set up my tent by the water, and showered the grime and sand off of me.  Great dinner tonight hosted by Winnie, the bookkeeper of the park.  Her colleagues will also have breakfast ready for us at 0530!  Tomorrow, off to Quartzsite, AZ, where we will be accommodated at the Quartzsite Yacht Club.