Rhyolite to the Inn at Death Valley - 26 Feb 2019

Today is the last ride of the trip. Michelle gathered everyone and let us know the options for the day. That sounded ominous...

Dan

Red, Sharon, Robin, Rachel, Anne, Bob

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We would van 40 miles away to the ghost town of Rhyolite where we’d start our ride. The first 6 miles would be relatively flat. Then we’d have a 4-mile climb that would involve a 2-5% grade to reach the summit of Daylight Pass. From there we’d descend for 6 straight miles while reaching speeds of 25 mph (me) to 40 mph (Mr. Perez). This would bring us to Hell’s Gate and lunch. From there its another 10-miles downhill to the junction of CA-190, where we can decide to finish the last 12 miles to the Inn or call it a day!

The ghost town of Rhyolite was neat. Abandoned / crumbling buildings at the base of impressive mountainside was dotted with artwork from local artisans. Skies were clear but it was chilly (40F). After taking a few pics of the area we grabbed the bikes and started the first leg of the trip.

Despite the flat first leg everyone seemed to be tired and struggling a bit. The winds may have played a role. We expected steep climbs but we didn’t expect strong head winds fighting forward progress. Thank God for e-bikes!

The 4-mile ascent gave some in our party the option of taking the van to the summit. I decided to give the e-bike a workout. It performed amazingly! I never had to go higher than level 3 of 4. Despite the nasty winds and grade the view was worth the effort. It was easily the loveliest scenery to date. That said, the ride kicked my ass, which made the efforts by my fellow regular bikers all the more admirable.

Once at the summit I had to put the bike at level -2, which helped slow the bike for the next 6 miles. Wanting to get some images of the spectacular scenery, and fellow riders, I attempted to control the bike with my left hand while wrestling with and truing to focus the camera with my right hand. At 25 mph downhill! Idiot! The wind was still blowing in our faces, and the road got progressively rougher, so I behaved myself until reaching our lunch spot.

Hell’s Gate gave us a panoramic view of Death Valley. Connor said it best when he mentioned how early prospectors came from the cooler elevations and were greeted by hot blasts from the valley below. Their horses refused to go any further. We were looking at temps that would reach 80F by the time we reached the valley floor.

The 10-mile descent to the the junction of CA-190 was more gradual but not without its adventure. I tried to get a video while riding down the hill one-handed again, and wanted to get pics of the Shaw family, but the road got rough again. So I behaved.

I was tired and hot when we reached the junction, but Robin was thinking that she wanted to finish the last 12 miles to the Inn, so we went for it.

Riding at level 4 on the e-bike we pushed it the remaining miles. Wind and rising elevation made the ride a challenge, and we were running out of steam. At the last mile of the ride my battery died, which meant pedaling the full weight of the bike uphill using old-fashion pedal power. Made it! Barely...

Everyone was collapsing at the end of the tour, but happy. BackRoads gave us all a wonderful tour. Robin and I could not have been more satisfied with our ride, and Michelle, Cara and Connor were absolutely the best guides and hosts we could’ve ever wished for. Our 19 fellow tour mates were the best and friendliest people we could have asked for, and made for great company during the 3 days here at the spectacular Inn at Death Valley.

So, after some Excedrin, and a Stella Artois, we pulled our exhausted carcasses out of our chairs and headed in for a shower and nap. We would awaken to an impressive afternoon wind storm that made us grateful for finishing a few hours earlier.

We decided to drive to Furnace Creek and check out the gift shop at the Visitor Center. When we came out we were greeted with a late afternoon view of the Sun-lit mountains and clouds. We decided to drive back toward Badwater and enjoy the golden-hour view of the mountains. Wow!

Time to head back for an evening reception and farewell dinner. Tomorrow morning the group will head back to Zabriske Point for an early hike before heading back to Vegas and a midnight flight home.