Day Forty-six: (46.6 miles, 2197.7) Who Will Stop The Rain.... And The Talking?

6:30 AM. Ella is licking my face, so I quietly slip through the door to let her out. After letting the little furball run around, I tiptoe into the room and lay back down. I fall right back to sleep until an alarm goes off at 7:00AM. We are all groggy and slowly start getting ready for the day. We are in no rush, Jackson is all downhill so we should make good time. I take my bike down the stairs and make a few trips to grab all my gear. Bill and Bob are making trip after trip for their panniers as well. With the bike finally loaded, I tuck Ella into her basket and put the rain cover on to keep her warm. It is a cold grey morning out and I put on all of my layers. We head to the desk to split the bill and grab some coffee.

Looking like Inuits, we all hop on our bikes and push off into the frosty morning. With no full finger gloves, my hands almost immediately turn numb. Riding down the slopes of the mountain, we only get a glimpse of the Tetons cast in a veil of clouds. Thankfully, it isn't raining on us and we make it down the mountain in no time. The terrain levels out and we are coasting through Wyoming ranch lands once again. With no rain to hold us back, we are stopping for pictures at every turn. At last, we reach the Grand Tetons National Park sign and stop to take pictures of the milestone.

Just a few more miles down the road, we arrive at Moran Junction, where you can turn to Yellowstone or keep going towards the Tetons. A cyclist is standing by the side of the road, so we stop to see if he is alright. A truck had purposefully run him off the road and jacked his bike all up. Fortunately for him, he was not hurt in anyway, just his bike. He heads off to hitch a ride into Jackson and we continue on our journey.

As we enter the roads leading to Jackson, we ride along the Snake River and see signs that warn people not to approach the wildlife. We start to get excited and keep our heads on a swivel to spot any   animals. We only see two more antelope playing chicken with traffic. As we work our way toward Jackson, we climb a few hills to reach the top of a plateau above the Snake River. No sooner had we reached the top, the sky began to darken. Grey clouds turned into black sheets and the wind began to howl across the plateau. I zipped up my jacket as far as it would go just as the rain came pouring down.

It comes down hard and hurts my bare knuckles as I brace myself against the waves. Freezing and soaked, Bob and I pedal as fast as our legs can possibly take us to escape the monsoon. The storm continued to bellow and we cursed and yelled as we fought on. Angry screaming kept our adrenaline up as we charged through the icy wall. The weather was getting too dangerous now and we had to get off the roads quick. After about ten more minutes of pedaling our asses off, we reach a turn off for Moose.

Standing in the blustering winds and frigid rain, we wait for Bill to make sure he can safely find the exit. No man left behind. In one last charge of furious pedaling, we fly into the shelter of Dornan's and run into the bakery to get warm. Soaked and shivering, we quickly grab hot coffee and sandwiches before finding a table to rest. Moose is absolutely mobbed with tourists flying in to take shelter from the storm. Sitting in the deli, we watch as the storm rages on. Escaping to the confines of the building is all we can do to keep warm. We sit there, drenched and shaking, hoping the coffee will take the chill off. Service is spotty, but we are finally able to get a weather report in and we still have awhile until the storm passes. Bob is able to contact someone from Warm Showers and score us a place to stay in Jackson for the night.

We wait and wait, until finally the storm lets up three hours later. The crowds in Moose head out the doors and hop back in their cars, wheeling out of the parking lot. Another 30 minutes and the skies are blue and the sun is shining upon us. We bask in the warmth as we shed layers for the first time in a few days. It was a glorious moment for our little band of misfits. Invigorated by the rays of the sun, the three musketeers head off for Jackson. Bob and I race back and forth along the bike path from Moose. After battling winds and rain, we were delighted to have clear skies and a downhill into Jackson. It was a beautiful ride and we stopped every few miles to take pictures.

When we finally reached our destination, Bill and Bob headed off to meet our host and I raced off to the Post Office. It was great to be riding through such a bike friendly town. I picked up my packages from the Post Office and pedaled through town to meet the guys. My GPS goofed and I was left standing between an extremely nice modern-esque style home and a run down house filled with shacks and broken cars. I call Bob and he walks out of the detached garage of the deteriorating home.  The first thing that hit me was the smell coming from the yard. I couldn't quiet place my finger on it, but it made me gag. I follow Bob into the garage to meet our host, who also lives in the garage. The place is a wreck and immediately looking to Bill, I can tell something is off with this guy. Now don't get me wrong, our host was as nice as can be and had a lot to talk about. Let me state that again; he had a lot to talk about. Bill and I discussed leaving but every motel, hostel, hotel, and B&B was booked for twenty miles. Then on top of that, the sky turned dark again and the rain came thundering down. We were stuck.

Once the rain partially passed, our host took us to a laundry mat so we could get all of our gear washed. The entire time he was talking, I don't think he paused to breathe. We went to dinner, we were silent, but he continued on like it was his mission. We left to get our laundry, he kept without missing a beat. Bill walked out and the guy continues his speech. Bob and I are busy with other things and our host continues to ramble on. We aren't quite sure if he realizes no one is listening, as he frequently stares into space as he speaks. Finally we head back to the shack and get our gear ready to leave as fast as possible in the morning. I finally get annoyed and walk out of the shack to call my parents for a little while. This keeps me distracted from my situation for a moment. Eventually, I face the fact I have to walk back in. Bill is obviously fed up now and Bob is buried in his phone.

Around 10:30PM Bill says we need to get some sleep and shuts off the light. Our host finally quits talking and I silently do a little victory dance for the peace and quiet. Needless to say, despite the silence, I wasn't going to get much sleep tonight. Thankfully, I was able to contact a close friend and have a place to stay tomorrow night! We hope you are enjoying our adventures and continue to follow us on our journey to the West Coast!