Day 9 Update

Clearwater River

I just pulled into Nampa, Idaho, for the evening, after riding over 13 hours and 750+ miles for the day. That puts my mileage around 3,500+ for the trip so far.

The chilly morning warmed to a pleasant day and then became almost unbearable once I got to the high plains of Idaho. The thermometer on the bike pegged over 110+ degrees. It sure made me long for the 37 degree temps from yesterday morning as I rolled through the Tetons.

Scenery today was fabulous, even with the road construction delays on highway 12 in Idaho. As I rode over Lolo Pass and along Clearwater river, I saw several deer, most of which were grazing in towns on irrigated grass (they are pretty smart deer) and some wild turkey. A highlight of my ride today was watching a bald eagle as he swooped down to the river and caught a fish in his talons. It was  pretty incredible sight. There was a lot more haze and smoke from California and Idaho wildfires. 

I have a little shorter day tomorrow as I will ride to Reno NV where I have scheduled 45,000 mile oil change.