Saturday, July 27th, 2024
Escalante, UT -> Bryce Canyon National Park, UT
47.1 miles, 3753 ft elevation
Today was a chill day of biking. A few notable events:
Got into a race with some cows (pretty sure I won?)
Went through another town with my name - this time Henry instead of Hank
Accidentally made a water gun when I filled up my bottle with carbonated water. I was very excited to use this idea on other members of the team while biking (before drinking out of it of course) but that water bottle unfortunately broke a few days later.
I think I speak for the entire team when I say that the best part of the day started after the biking was over. After having lunch at the campground, we headed out to hike in Bryce Canyon. Before seeing Utah I somehow expected all the national parks to look the same, but I was quickly proven wrong. Arches was home to red rock formations stretching as far as the eye could see. Capitol Reef had more vegetation and varied rock types with canyon walls surrounding the road. Bryce had hoodoos, tall, wavy pillars of rock created by erosion.
This was the most beautiful hike I had done so far on Spokes (see the absolute tragedy that occurred a few days ago). Near the end of the hike we had the great idea of sprinting up the switchbacks out of the canyon, after which we were exhausted and ready to collapse. Thankfully it was time for dinner!
My uncle Paul had arrived in Bryce on the same day to visit the team and generously offered to take us to dinner at the Bryce Canyon Lodge! We rejoiced at the opportunity to eat some good food without having to cook for ourselves and had great conversations about everything from paragliding to what we've learned during Spokes.
Afterwards we went back to Paul’s campsite for s'mores and key lime pie. We had some more interesting conversations about developments in the biotech industry, personal projects we want to work on, and my uncle’s escapades in telescopes and star photography.
Inspired, we decided to return to the trailhead we had been at earlier to look at the stars. Our photos weren’t quite as good as my uncle's us so you’ll have to trust me when I say the milky way looked amazing in person.
As I looked up at the stars, I reflected on our conversations from the day, particularly about how Spokes has changed us. When answering that question at dinner, I began by saying that I consider myself to be a person who worries a lot in my normal life, which was a surprise to everyone. By contrast, I've learned to not be phased by things that happen on Spokes, from being stranded in the desert with no water while Chrissy was stuck, to having to hide in a ditch during a lightning storm, to taking a shower in a suspicious utility closet crawling with spiders. While I doubt that biking across the country can magically cure one of all anxiety, it has certainly made a difference in how I respond to it, and I hope to take that with me once I rejoin society on August 16th.
na cows won