Day 16: Baker City, Oregon to Halfway, Oregon

56.62 more hot miles today, for 571.52 miles total. There was a very optimistic bicycle store sign leaving Baker City, for a store in Kansas. Only 1510 miles (2430 km) ahead.

It was super hot out there. It was so hot that I stopped at Richland, 13 miles from my destination and slept in the shade for a few hours.

The Grange organization in Richland has a really nice park with a pavilion, so I went in and napped on the stage.

There was nobody around. The woman at the cafe in town suggested I go there, she said nobody would bother me and she was correct. I didn’t check the thermometer, but I suspect 100+ F. I can’t imagine what it was like for those settlers coming across on the Oregon Trail. I’ve made several attempts to put a photo of an Oregon Trail memorial in here, but WordPress keeps insisting on putting it in upside-down. Why? I have no idea.

The cafe was interesting. It was all old cowboy types and tall tales. Off in the corner was a big screen TV playing some hunting channel. What caught my eye was that the whole time I was there they were doing a show on the AR-15 and then went to a show about some machine gun. Hunting? I couldn’t make the connection.

I stopped at Richland because the profile map showed a huge climb going to Halfway. It was just too hot for a climb where there is no shade. I wisely waited and made it to Halfway just as it was getting dark. Tired, I opted for the first place I found to stay—a motel.

Of course, the town restaurant and convenience store closed at 8 pm, and I was about five minutes late. With all the heat I wasn’t hungry anyway, so I grabbed a few cans of soft drink, a bunch of water and some trail mix I was carrying on the bike, and nibbled before going to sleep.

Timing is everything.

Author: Dennis Blanchard

Dennis Blanchard was born in Bristol, Connecticut. He and his wife Jane moved to New Hampshire in 1980 where he has climbed thirty 4000-foot mountains, biked the trails and enjoyed the wilderness. Never living very far from the Appalachian Trail, Dennis was always aware of the seductive siren’s call to hike it. Dennis is an electronics engineer who has freelanced for amateur radio, technical and motorcycle adventure magazines. He now lives in Sarasota, Florida. View all posts by Dennis Blanchard