Day Fifty-one

Not a bad night. The purple martins did a good job of keeping the mosquitos away (that’s martins, not martinis). The campground had a small café and they opened for breakfast at 6:30. We were there, ready to eat, at exactly 6:30. The woman at the shop said people weren’t usually there that early, so things weren’t quite ready, but she did her best to scurry around and make us some pancakes and a couple of eggs. I enjoy these breakfasts, but it doesn’t do much for my riding. I do a lot better when I have a Clif bar or a Fiber One bar, get on the road for a while, and then have a big breakfast later on.

I started down the road and had to ride for quite a while to get back on the main road. That was Route 290 and it was a little bumpy, but not bad. I headed west towards Spokane Valley. I was looking forward to riding the bike path there. I tried to stick to my directions to find the bike path, but a road was closed and it was not clear which way I was supposed to go. I ended up wandering around the neighborhood, trying to keep heading west and hoping I would stumble across the bike path. Eventually, I did. I’m always thrilled to ride on a bike path, especially after getting lost and riding on poorly maintained main roads. This one was lovely and followed the Spokane River. Lots of people on boats, enjoying the beautiful weather. It was one of those times I really wished Chuck was with me to enjoy it.

I rode into Spokane, and it was a very nice city that I would love to explore someday. Perhaps our new friend, Eric, would be willing to give us a tour. Chuck met up with me in the city for a moment and I tried to persuade him to stop at a piano bar, but he wanted to head west. We tried to find the entrance to another portion of the bike path, but after driving back and forth several times, we gave up, and I stuck to riding the roads.

I rode into Cheney, our lunch stop. We found a place that looked promising, called Immix. They called themselves a fusion restaurant. We were a little too early for lunch, so we found a coffee shop with wifi and hung out there for a bit. We headed back to the restaurant, which was just across the street, and sat at the bar. The bartender was nice enough, but I got a really weird vibe from the place. We ordered the fish tacos, my first ever. They were OK, but didn’t knock my socks off. The bartender told us that his dad had a bike shop down the street, and I was hoping to find some more Shot Bloks. They’re my new favorite way to get electrolytes while I’m riding. They’re like candy, and I guess they’re good for you!

We walked down to the bike shop and there was a closed sign on the door, but he opened up when he saw us in the driveway. He was an interesting guy. The shop was actually a combination bike shop/guitar shop. He had a few animals there, too! A dilapidated crow that he had rescued, a parrot, two cats and an overprotective dog. Unfortunately, he did not sell the Shot Bloks, so we moved on.

I rode out of Cheney, but the wind was very strong. I was heading toward Sprague and the sky looked ominous. Kind of the yellowish, brown color it gets before a hurricane hits. Turns out it was dust, and it would not have been safe for me to ride in it. Apparently the dust was stirred up by the farmers harvesting their wheat (or just turning the soil over – we’re not sure). We tried to find a place to stay in Sprague, but the pickings were pretty slim, so we went on to Ritzville. We found a clean, cheap motel and the owner gave us a discount. He also recommended a Mexican restaurant, which I’ll have to tell you about tomorrow, since I’m exhausted. Good night, Ritzville!