The above does not tell you about the wind. The 34 miles of head wind. The 34 miles of up hill with a head wind. The ride was hard.

We headed west out of Borrego Springs toward the Salton Sea. The wind was behind us and we flew down the road. I knew that we would have a head wind on the way back, but such things did now worry me. It should have.

Along the way, we saw many RVs camping (for free) off the side of the road. No hookups, but then no rent either.

Soon we arrived at Salton Sea, or at least CA Hwy 86 where we turned south and rode the wide shoulder avoiding truck tire remnants along the way. 86 is a divided highway, not quite a freeway but with all of the truck traffic one would expect on a freeway. I was very impressed with the courtesy given to us; almost all of the trucks changed lanes to give us as much room as possible. Very cool.

After 9 miles on the (almost) freeway, we turned westward on Ca 78, and into the wind. Our speed dropped from 18 mph down to 12 mph and we were lucky to hold that! We took turns in the front, but soon my stomach decided it did not like something I ate that morning (a Latte?) and I needed to stop. The rest soft peddled onward while I relieved myself. I was off the bike for quite some time and I appreciate Mick who came back to tow me back up to the group.

At 64 miles into the ride, I could have taken Borrego Springs Road back, but I continued on CA 78 for another nine miles into the wind so I could climb Yaqui Pass from the north (I did the south side yesterday). The wind pushed me up the hill in a very short time. The descent down to Borrego Springs Road was quick and a bit windy. Then I turned back into the wind, with absolutely nothing left in my legs and limped back to our motel.