Day 33 was dominated by mountains and urban bicycling conditions. Above is a long distance view of Hwy 60. I screamed down that hill going 45mph. The mountain behind it...I climbed up and over it before 7am. The conditions were cloudy and cold....the coldest morning yet. As my fingers, legs and toes became numb I thought back and counted all of the mountain passes that I've conquered on a bicycle. Including this one, Signal Mountain Pass, I counted 15. All 15 have something in common...I thought I was going to freeze to death before I reached the bottom of the other side of the pass. In all 15 situations climbing wasn't the problem...the decent is where the cold rips through my sweaty clothing. I couldn't wait to get to the next town, Superior, AZ., so I could load up on some hot chocolate.
Queen Creek Tunnel
Decent from Signal Mountain PassPicketpost Mountain...West of Superior, AZ.
After the mountains it was literally all down hill to the Phoenix metropolitan area. I wasn't looking forward to this day as Adventure Cycling maps weakest attribute is getting bicyclists through large cities. However, on this day I was pleasantly surprised. The Adventure Cycling map followed a city bicycle route through Apache Junction, Mesa, Tempe, and into Phoenix. After pedaling 89.44 miles I checked into a hotel. I will wait to give my final verdict of Adventure Cycling's route through the Phoenix metropolitan area until tomorrow when I pedal through the remainder of Phoenix and then Glendale, Peoria, and Surprise. Trip Stats
Total miles pedaled: 2566.87
Route miles pedaled: 2601
Saddle time: 185:14'53
Miles ahead of schedule: 60
In 2006, on day 33 of my cross country trip I ended the day with 2557.14 miles. I spent the night in Minot, ND.
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