{"id":19212,"date":"2016-04-27T22:41:22","date_gmt":"2016-04-28T02:41:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tourdebocrie.com\/?p=19212"},"modified":"2016-04-27T22:45:31","modified_gmt":"2016-04-28T02:45:31","slug":"day-4-tuesday-april-26-brawley-to-blythe-california-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tourdebocrie.com\/?p=19212","title":{"rendered":"Day 4. Tuesday, April 26 – Brawley to Blythe, California"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s Cold – 46\u00b0<\/p>\n

Thanks to our hotel’s early morning breakfast, we were able to start pedaling\u00a0by 6:00, just as the sun was rising. \"DSCN9991\"<\/a>\u00a0There was not even a hint of breeze, which we could have used (to our back, of course) as we had a very slight, but always noticeable continuous incline. \u00a0Still in agriculture country we passed beautiful fields of green\"DSCN9998\"<\/a> and sunflowers.\"DSCN0002\"<\/a>We crossed a canal and all civilization stopped, \"DSCN0026\"<\/a>even the power lines ceased to exist. \"DSCN0043\"<\/a>\u00a0Next up, the Imperial Sand Dune Recreational Area, \"DSCN0040\"<\/a>not our idea of a great vacation spot. \u00a0The dunes however, were beautiful\"DSCN0062\"<\/a> and stretched for miles;\"IMG_1868\"<\/a> the Chocolate Mountains on the horizon.\"IMG_1865\"<\/a> \u00a0Twenty miles out, we stopped at the last refreshment outpost for the next 50 miles. \u00a0A nice rest in the shade and chat with the locals \"DSCN0074\"<\/a>and we were on our way. \u00a0Once past the sand dunes, we were left with blooming brush and\"DSCN0071\"<\/a>interesting cactus,\"DSCN0106\"<\/a> the one below is an Ocotillo.\"DSCN0105\"<\/a>A\u00a0huge (operating) gold mine stretched for miles;\"DSCN0089\"<\/a>\u00a0 no chance of finding a nugget here, the place was surrounded by some very serious barbed wire. \u00a0Finally our long desert road\"DSCN0108\"<\/a> took us close to the Chocolate Mountains,\"DSCN0092\"<\/a> quite impressive,\"DSCN0097\"<\/a> even without Willie Wonka.<\/p>\n

Reached the top of our climb shortly after 11:00 and 45 miles complete, we stopped at a border inspection station and borrowed their shade to have a quick lunch.\"DSCN0112\"<\/a> \u00a0A grocery store stop last night had us prepared for this long (no food outpost) ride. \u00a0Equipped with a power bagel, fruit and still ample water, we replenished and hit the road. \u00a0We were looking forward to the coast down hill,\"DSCN0115\"<\/a>but the wind, that hit us in the face as we rounded the corner, was not going to let that happen. \u00a0The day was still quite cool (70’s), which was a Godsend for our long trek in the desert wilderness. \u00a0The landscape continued to change, offering welcome variety. \"DSCN0121\"<\/a>\u00a0Then once again, we were surrounded by green \"DSCN0123\"<\/a>as farmland \"DSCN0128\"<\/a>appeared from the previous sandy scrub. \u00a0We were beginning to fade, actually just dog tired<\/em>, so our 68 mile stop at 2:00 came none too soon. \u00a0It also gave us the opportunity to meet Bernd und Mario from Munich,\"DSCN0130\"<\/a>\u00a0 doing our\u00a0same course, only faster<\/em>. \u00a0A nice chat and rest helped as we were sent on our way.\"DSCN0131\"<\/a> \u00a0But we were tired and the wind was becoming an exhausting nuisance. \u00a0Though the afternoon was still cool \"IMG_1881\"<\/a>and an evening under the stars\u00a0would be comfortable, we were not ready to pitch a tent yet, so we had to continue on. \u00a0On the edge of town, we grabbed the first hotel we came to, checked in and collapsed. \u00a0A refreshing\u00a0shower and then dinner at the Sizzler a block away. \u00a0Steak was good, ice cream fixin’ bar was better. \u00a0Almost nine hours in the saddle and 88 miles survived, it was time to rest.<\/p>\n\n\t\t