Day 11 – June 14 – Winchester, ID to Kamiah, ID – 46 Miles.

This was somewhat of an easy day.  We slept in a bit had cereal for breakfast and hit the road mid-morning.  Our trip took us through the Nez Perce Reservation and the Camas Prairie.

The remarkable aspect of the last few days was that we made this incredible climb to over 4200 feet and when we got there the terrain was generally flat, a prairie in every sense, with grasses, lakes, streams, marshes and wheat fields.  It was not unlike areas of the mid-west except in the distance, to the east, stood the mountains.  It is amazing how the scenery can change, sometimes subtly, other times almost instantaneously, even at a rather slow pace.

We met two other cyclists yesterday in Winchester. Kevin and Chris are both retired schoolteachers from California.  Kevin is riding to raise money for the Arthritis Foundation.  We had spied Kevin from below as we ascended the challenging grade yesterday.  We introduced ourselves to each other at a convenience store in Winchester.

We met Kevin and Chris again this afternoon when they pulled into the Riverside Park in Kamiah, which was also our stopping point for the day. We spent a while this evening getting acquainted and talking about riding strategies for the next couple days.  They were also headed to Missoula, MT on Route 12 over Lolo Pass.  This is a remote stretch of road that follows the Lochsa River through US Forest service land. It is winding and narrow and well traveled so we are going to have to be extremely careful.  We talked about negotiating this section as a group for better visibility.

The trip from Kamiah to Missoula will take about 3 days, putting us in on Sunday, perfect timing for a rest day.  Joe and I stocked up on some food supplies for the next couple days as services will be few and far between.  We also have to be mindful in camp that this is also bear country so proper precautions for storing food items is a must.

In all it was a good day.  Meeting people was one aspect of the trip I looked forward to.  Kevin and Chris seem to be on about the same pace as we are.  From Missoula, they will head south to Yellowstone, we will head north to Glacier Park.