Day 4, Halfway & Hells Canyon (layover day)

Typically Cycle Oregon has one "layover day" mid-way through the ride. This day has a ride that is either an out-and-back or loop starting and ending in the same place. In other words you don't have to pack up your tent and things, get them to the transfer trucks or even ride at all! The layover day is a good opportunity to do laundry, loaf, explore the area in non-bicycling ways or just take an easy spin around.

This year we had not one, but TWO layover days. The first layover day was in Halfway where we had the chance to ride down into Hells Canyon - the deepest in North America (even deeper than that famous gap down in the Southwest part of the country.) We decided on a pretty easy route, just going out to the canyon and back. A total of 35ish not-so-hard miles. This was partly due to the fact that we had a killer 84-mile ride the next day (see above!), partly due to the fact that we wanted to take it easy (it WAS our honeymoon after all) and partly due to the fact that my skin was burning with a sun rash. There are drawbacks to a week of sparkling sun, 80-degree temps and not a cloud in the sky. Nothing sun screen can do for allergies to the sun.

The Snake River in Hells Canyon - taken from Idaho, looking back at Oregon.

Back in Halfway Christopher and I tried to get a six-pack of beer from the local grocer, but 2,000 hungry & thirsty cyclists had burned through town like a pack of locusts. Almost every beer in the case was gone and the shelves were mighty sparse. Luckily there was our trusty traveling beer garden set up by Widmer Brewing at every camp site. A girl just likes a little variety.

The evening's entertainment was one of the highlights of the week - Karaoke From Hell. Essentially a cover band (but a cover band with a lot of spunk, funk and flair), Karaoke From Hell is every Cycle Oregon's rider's chance to sing in front of thousands of people with a live band. I have to say the low-spot was the drunk ladies doing provocative back-up dancing for their friend. The highlight was definitely the 9-year-old singing Joan Jett's I Love Rock and Roll. We didn't stay late, however, as the killer ride to Joseph was waiting for us the next morning.

And I nearly forgot T-Bone. I'm not sure what his actual name is, but one guy was zipping around the narrow winding road through Hells Canyon with a bit too much perk in his pedals. He rounded a corner to find a cow or cows on the road (actually somewhat common throughout our NE Oregon adventure.) Unable to slow in time the guy ran into the cow. Luckily the cow was fine and T-Bone will be okay after he heals up a bit (he was bandaged for the rest of the week and unable to ride.) I'm not sure about the status of his bicycle, but there is a rumor that while he was down on the ground, the cow's calf came along and kicked him. In any case, he was in pretty good spirits around camp the rest of the week and even had a little toy cow mounted onto his handlebars.