Today was a very, very hard day. We climbed almost all day riding Highway 58 to Willamette Pass. I rode three to four miles an hour nearly all day grinding up the hills. Then, when we got to the pass, it was 32 degrees and snowing, and the wind was blowing hard. I probably have been colder at some point in my life, but I can’t remember when. We entered a little grocery store attached to a gas station when we reached Crescent. They were kind enough to bring out some chairs, and we drank big cups of coffee and hot chocolate, sat, and warmed up. We still had 18 miles to go until our campsite sight, and the weather report was 18 degrees tonight. None of us were excited about sleeping in a tent at that temperature. Donna Cuputo wrote on my yesterday’s blog that we were welcome to stay in the cabin they owned near Crescent. I called, and they said sure. It was just two miles from where we were sitting, so here I sit in a comfortable house, writing this blog and watching the NBA finals on TV. So what started as a terrible day has ended nicely. The only problem is that we will have to pedal 97 miles tomorrow, but the weather is supposed to be warm, and the road is relatively flat, so there is no big deal about the extra miles after a day like today.

I am having to exert extra discipline to get my Bible reading, prayer, and scripture memory done each evening. I am so tired that I fall asleep while doing it. I think in a couple more days, I will get in shape.