"Have you tasted THAT special brand of freedom while pedaling your bicycle down the road? Of course! You roll into it as the sun rises in the east. You plow into it as headwinds challenge your sense of humor. You soar on the wings of joy with tailwinds. You drench yourself in adventure during a raging rainstorm. You slog through the miles of liquid misery. You grin from ear to ear when the sun comes out to shine on your path. You grind yourself up a 12,000-foot pass with the courage of Hercules. On that bike, you absorb life with your attitude and you spit into the wind with a vengeance few people understand.

"The one thing I've learned while pedaling a bicycle through the various challenges of the road: mountains, deserts, rain forests, snow, fog, hail, headwinds, forest fires, prairie fires, cracked pavement, gravel, sand, heat, cold—and any other shit Mother Nature can throw at you, is this!

"You need to take your genius with you as a lover not a friend. What constitutes a 'genius'? It's been said that different persons in history enjoyed the moniker of 'genius', such as Da Vinci, Newton, Einstein, Madam Curie, Sally Ride and many others. But what about your muse or inspiration; that genius that sits on your shoulder as a friend during a bicycle ride? He or she inspires you, contemplates with you, creates with you, enjoys with you and celebrates with you.

"While you're cycling, you're building thoughts, ideas and positive energy within your mind and spirit. That's why you feel so grand on a bike. As for this cyclist, I get higher than a kite on my bike. Just the thought of riding into a fresh new day with unlimited possibilities, excites me. How about you?

"Once, I rode through Spain while touring through Europe. On one very hot day, I passed a brick layer on a street. I asked him, "What are you doing?" He said, "I'm laying bricks." So, he traded his time for money doing a task.

"A few blocks down the street, I passed another brick layer. I asked, "What are you doing?" He said, "I'm laying bricks to build a house." So, he carried a thought of a finished product.

"Several blocks later, I passed a third brick layer. I asked, "What are you doing?" He said, "Look up to the sky, can't you see that I am creating a cathedral."
"And so, he did! What cathedrals will your genius build in your lifetime? Keep pedaling to find out." FHW

We ate breakfast and pulled out to ride along a peaceful Lewis Lake, named after Merriweather Lewis of the Lewis & Clark Expedition. As you can imagine, all explorers from those early years enjoyed mountains, streams and wilderness areas named after them. 

We passed by a raging whitewater falls along the river. It's great to ride through enormous greenery, and then, a raging waterfall turns white amongst the greens with a blue sky garnished with white clouds to set off the contrasts. Along the route multi-colored wildflowers rendered their mosaic of feast for our eyes and spirits. What's even better, we smelled the lavender flowers, and sometimes, the full scent of a field of wildflowers wafted into our nostrils. As David says, "It's great to be us."

Back on the road, the trees thickened, so much so, anyone driving over 45 mph. would kill a deer or bear or mountain lion that might pop out of the underbrush to cross the highway. It happens WAY too often in all our national parks.
We pressed up two passes of the Continental Divide at 8,100 and 8,262 feet. The third pass proved easier and on the way down. We crossed over the Snake River and out of Yellowstone on a seven mile stretch of the Rockefeller Memorial Highway. Of course, for any history buffs, J.D. Rockefeller proved himself a dirty bastard as one of the "Robber Barons" of the 1800's as to his cornering the market on oil and making every one of his employs a virtual slave and dirt poor. Those guys still exist today as they rake-in billions, but let the common worker struggle from pay check to pay check. Nothing has changed since Roman times.

After the last pass, we coasted three miles toward Jackson Lake in the Grand Tetons. From the wilderness, the road clears to allow fantastic views of the jagged peaks of the Tetons. 

History tells it that two French trappers walked into the valley on a cloudy day. As they drank from a stream, the mountains cleared. Those jagged peaks ripped into the blue sky with white, puffy clouds surrounding them across the lake. The first trapper exclaimed, "Mon ami, la Grand Tetons!" Which in French equates to "Large Breasts." And so, today, we worship those enormous mountain breasts by taking pictures and placing them on postcards and calendars.

We rolled along the lake with a long stretch of wildflowers bucking up against the lakeshore. Up ahead, Colter Bay, named after John Colter, a mountain man the Indian caught and stripped him necked. They gave him a chance to save his life if he could out run their braves and their arrows. They gave him a five-minute head start. Colter ran through the woods like a man possessed of demons. A man possessed to live. He tore through the underbrush, through the swamps, through the trees and through the rivers. He ran for his life. Amazingly, he gave all the Indians the slip and lived to tell about it. 

I suspect if given the same choices, I would run like the wind to save my rear-end, too. It's amazing what you can do with a little motivation, i.e., saving your life!
We bought food at the grocery store in Colter Bay before find a hiker/biker campsite in the park. The sun set over the Tetons with reflections in the lake. Truly a magical place.

In the morning, we met a Dutch couple, Lars and Maud, also riding down the Continental Divide. Great couple! Funny and fabulous. I invited them to stay at my house for their trip back to Holland out of Denver International Airport. They pedaled down the Divide in three two-week sections because that's all the time they accrued from work. They would finish up the following summer. 

We ate at an "all-you-can-eat" breakfast bar the next morning. I figured $12 to $13 for the meal. Man, when the bill arrived at $20.00 plus tip, I choked a bit, but then, what the heck, a full belly makes for the start of a good day.
We pedaled along the lake until we reached Oxbow Bend in the Snake River. From there, we pedaled out of the park on Route 89 toward Dubois, Wyoming.

About five miles ahead of us, Towogatee Pass, at 9,950 feet. From the bottom to the top, about 18 miles, 5 hours and a whole lot of cranking the pedals.

We met a guy named Tim on a recumbent who wanted to ride with us. He would only stay with us for a short time because he headed his bike toward the East Coast. Great guy, and he could pedal that recumbent and keep up with us.

We crossed over five miles of valley flatland, but then, the road began its climb. 

"Well," David said. "We ain't getting' any younger. Let's get up that pass."
"Roger that," I said.
Tim said, "You boys lead the way."

Frosty and David, Summer 2019, Continental Divide Ride, Canada to Mexico