Low Output, High Cadence: Travel days 2-3 recap; 8/5-8/6

Detours, kindness, and lots of traveling

Tuesday started as I awoke from a not very restful sleep aboard the train which was now at the Salt Lake City station. We were scheduled to stop for half an hour at 3:30 am. So I wasn't concerned until I realized it was after 5 and we were still not moving. I made my way downstairs onto the platform where a few passengers were milling about in the predawn light and was told that there had been a huge storm in eastern Utah and the tracks were flooded. A couple hours later, we were told that we were going to be detoured up through southern Wyoming and that we'd get moving soon. Eventually we did get moving and everything was fine. They said we actually wouldn't be delayed very much as the path through southern Wyoming was flat and fast so we would make up for the lost time and the extra distance because the road over the Rockies was slow anyway. Everything continued to be fine for a while and the huge landscapes of Wyoming made excellent viewing so I didn't feel cheated of the supposed stunning views of the Rockies that we were going to miss on our detour. Also I was seeing some of the regions Peter had cycled through, so I felt connected to the big picture of the trip in that way.

During the day, I experienced some of the random kindness I've heard about happening to people doing adventures such as these. I went to lunch in the dining car, and was seated with a middle-age woman and her older mother, and another guy. First, the guy offered to "buy" my lunch since it was included with his sleeper-car package but he didn't really feel like eating, so he let me order his entree for myself. The four of us had a nice time chatting, and I told them about my upcoming ride, and as everyone I've told has been, they were very supportive and enthusiastic. We finished lunch and said our goodbyes and have-a-good-trips. As the older lady shook my hand she pressed a folded bill into my palm (the standard subtle-tip maneuver) and mouthed a quiet "shhh" to show that she didn't want me to make a big deal of the gift. I was very surprised and touched by her generosity and her desire to keep it discreet (as most kindness should be done) and gave her as heartfelt but still low-key of a Thank You as I could. When I got to the next car I looked down at it, and saw she had given me $20. It really made my day.

The train continued on through the afternoon and the lovely vistas of southern Wyoming. After a while I realized we were going very slowly and not flying along as we'd been promised. Not long after that, the conductor announced over the speaker that we were indeed going slowly because we were stuck behind a freight train, but they would soon be turning off and we could pass. We did pass but I never felt like we accelerated too much and started to wonder about making my bus connection in Denver at midnight. Of course we were still many hours away so I didn't worry about it until later in the day when we were stopped several times out in the middle of nowhere for no apparent reason. Apparently there were electrical storms in the area and they were messing with functioning of the rail-switching equipment on the tracks. Time kept passing and the estimated arrival time (originally 6:30) became 7, 10, 10:30, 11, and we kept moving slowly, and night was falling, and it soon became evident that I wasn't going to make the bus I was planning to take from Denver to Wichita. I didn't actually have a ticket for that bus anyway, so it wasn't a huge deal and some quick work on my phone revealed some other alternate routes. We pulled into Denver after midnight and I disembarked to get my luggage (a rather large and awkward but not particularly heavy bike box, and a rather heavy but regular-box sized box) then shuttled my boxes outside one at a time to find a taxi to the Greyhound station.

Overall my time on the train was highly enjoyable and would recommend it to anyone that has a few days. It was a very chill way to travel. The scenery was excellent and supposedly we didn't even get to see the best part, the Rockies. And for $130 from Sacramento to Denver, you can't beat the price.

Day 3

After the taxi dropped me off at the Greyhound station, I was told by a local homeless man that the doors were actually locked on this side of the building. He then offered to help me carry my stuff, and not having much choice (I didn't want to leave a box just sitting there in front of the sketchy folks lurking outside the bus station at 1am) I accepted. I took the bike box (because the contents were worth five times that of the other box) and he took the other. He seemed like a decent guy so I wasn't really concerned he would run off or anything, and he was carrying a 45 pound box. He helped me around to the other side, so I gave him a couple bucks and we were homies after that. I made my way inside and into line for the ticket counter where I waited for a while only to get to the front and be told that they were closed for buying new tickets and all the people in line were just changing existing tickets. By now it was after 2 and so I found an out of the way spot to hole up in for a few hours until the ticket counter opened again. I texted with a friend who was up late for a while, but because of the frantic nature of the past few hours wasn't really too tired. I finally dozed off after four only to be awoken before six by the general coming to life of the station. I was able to get a ticket to take me from Denver to Newton, Kansas where I was to meet Peter. I saw my homeless friend again that morning, and he smiled said hi. He then offered to get me "a Folger cup", but used a "wanna buy some drugs?" kind of whisper, so I'm not actually sure what he was offering me, it didn't feel like coffee. I politely declined and he said "cool man" and went on his way with a smile. It never hurts to make friends with the locals.

The bus ride was mostly uneventful albeit a nice trip through eastern Colorado and western Kansas. Again I was basically following the route Peter had cycled and I'm glad I was able to see that part of the country.

Myself, my bike, and my box of gear were deposited at a gas station that apparently doubles as a bus stop, and Peter met me with KFC and Bud Light, because he's an amazing friend. It's not quite Pollo Campero and Gallo beer (very much the Guatemalan equivalents, and our traditional airport-greeting fare on our Habitat trips), but you do the best you can in central Kansas. We unpacked and reassembled my bike there in the parking lot, strapped all the gear on it and walked back to where we were staying the night, an awesome bike shop in which the owner had converted a room to a bedroom with bunkbeds for touring cyclists. It was totally awesome. So, shout out to the Newton Bike Shop for being amazing. Only $10 for the night and use of any tools you want.

In all a good, albeit long, travel adventure to get to the actual adventure. It would have been easier and faster but more expensive to fly, and this way I did get to see a good chunk of the country which has put me in a good traveling mind going forward. Total cost of the trip (Sacramento to Newton, KS) was $285 and 55 hours or my life. Also, it dawned on me that in the past week I've spent the night in an airport, a moving train, a bus station, and a bike shop, which I think is pretty sweet!

Picturesque Wyoming landscape