Hills, hills, hills

Hello Everyone!
We have decided to stay in Baker City, Oregon for the night. We had a short day with strong head wind so after consuming an incredible amount of Chinese food and listening to the couple beside us bicker we decided it was time for a rest. Plus there is a museum here I want to check out.

We have been climbing a lot of hills. In fact, everyday for the past 5 days we've summited over 4,000 feet. Yesterday, we did it twice. We've biked over Mt. Jefferson, crept over the Santiam Pass, Ochoco Pass I really enjoyed--my kind of hill, gradual and scenic. Keyes Pass was pretty brutal. Yesterday we went over the Dixie Pass and then the Tipton Pass in the Strawberry Mountains (I think) and this morning we woke up and struggled over Sumpter Pass. Reading over what I just wrote, I am feeling really tired and sort of amazed. This first week has been crazy. This is going to sound ridiculous, but this trip is actually a lot harder than I thought it was going to be.

Here are some things I have learned about biking over hills:
1. Hills look a lot bigger when you are looking at them compared to when you're actually biking up them.
2. Eventually, uphills become downhills and downhills are totally incredible and usually worth the climb.
3. Sometimes with hills you just have to put your head down and climb.
4. It is fine if you have to stop every 1/4 of a mile. There's nothing wrong with that. Sometimes when stopping, you notice how far you've come and what an amazing view you can see from 4,000 ft.

We've been biking down a Historical Tour Route that tells the history of this part of Oregon. Maybe it's my love of pioneers resurfacing from the depths of my childhood, or perhaps just because these historical markers are generally frequent and provide a good excuse to stop pedaling uphill ("Dave--I REALLY want to keep inching up this gigantic hill at 4 miles an hour, but look! A historical marker--we have to stop." ) Anyways, I am finding all this Oregon history very interesting. I'm really looking forward to biking through the Nez Perce reservation.

I have the most awkward tan but I am sort of proud of it because anyone who likes riding bikes will be able to identify that I am a cyclist which is why my hands and feet are 10 shades lighter than my arms and legs and other people probably just don't notice (hopefully).

Well, I have to get to the museum before it closes. Dave will probably post something soon.

Love to you all!
-Catie

NICK--to answer your questions, we update our blog at local libraries or churches. We uploaded the photos at the church in Dayville. We charge our cell phones at restuarants and some campsites that have electricity. Thanks for asking :)