Wednesday June 28, 2006 50 miles - Total so far: 1,139 miles

This was a killer day! We left Hite before sunrise knowing the temperature was going to be around 100 degrees again and we wanted to get to higher (cooler) ground. By the end of the day we had cycled 46 miles uphill, but at least we had cloud cover for the first few hours. The desert terrain differed from any we had previously cycled through in that there were spectacular mesas and rock canyons all along the way. Our mid-morning destination was Fry Canyon, where we had been told some snacks and beverages were available. This remote outpost is the only building in the 46 mile stretch from Lake Powell to Natural Bridges.

Greeting us at Fry along with her seven kittens was Gwendolyn. We enjoyed iced coffee and lively discussions of the history and prehistory of the area as well as current events. Gene was particularly interested in her comments regarding Native American sites in the area that she had reached by horseback. We set off from Fry Canyon refreshed and ready to tackle the remaining uphill to the National Monument and arrived there by mid aftenoon.

This Park Service site is unique in that it has some of the largest natural rock bridges in the world. Unfortunately, to view these bridges would have involved another long hilly ride, so we opted to watch the film at the visitors center then pitched camp and went to bed exhausted!