As we end the second week, we look back and see the fun we’ve had, the hard work we’ve put in, and the victory of completing our first mountains. We enter the week on a ride we were not looking forward to: going over the Santiam pass. It was 2,500 ft of elevation in one go and while that doesn’t seem very daunting now having done it, we were nervous. Coming from Ohio, we never had the opportunity in our training to attempt anything that large. Going at a mighty 5 miles an hour, we crawled our way to the top. The environment was forested and beautiful as we ascended, and we felt so victorious when we finally saw the road shift from uphill to down. As we coasted down, grinning ear to ear and shouting to mark our achievement, we saw the forest become an arid desert. It was such a remarkable experience to see the environment change so clearly.

Going down this mountain pass was very exciting for another reason, too: Paula’s family friends were staying nearby in Sisters, OR and were taking us in! It was so nice to see friendly faces (and to stay in a real bed!) We are so thankful to such a wonderful family with such generous hearts.

Throughout the week, we climbed more mountains and stayed in some very charming towns. Mitchell, OR was maintained to show off the old west buildings that remained and was so quaint that Disney could use it as a movie set. When we were in Dayville, OR we stopped by a market that has been in place since the 1800s! Also in Dayville, we stayed in a friendly community church that welcomes cyclists and has free showers, a well stocked kitchen, and shady spots to pitch your tent.

We ended the week on such a drastically different point than where we started. Not only were we preparing to do 3 mountain passes in a day, we were looking at over 4,000 ft overall elevation gain — and we were pumped! Santiam Pass has kickstarted our systems and there’s no mountain that can scare us now.

A Funny Moment of the Week: Another week, another story of me (Chloe) being an airhead. If you ever need to feel better about your cooking skills, take this moment to really meditate on the fact that I turned a two ingredient meal — Kraft Mac and Cheese — into literal white mush. I, for some reason, thought it would be a real time saver to put the noodles in while the water was still heating up. TLDR: it wasn’t. We luckily were able to have a good laugh about it, but I doubt Paula will ever let me forget the time I ruined a food for toddlers.

What We Learned: Of course, such a great week doesn’t come without some bumps. One takeaway we really had to come to terms with was the heat. By the time we reached Dayville, the daily temperatures were going above the mid 90s and we felt completely wiped out by the end of the day. So, we learned that at least as we go through Hell’s Canyon our days will consist of waking up at 4:30 am and being done by noon. Another thing we learned is that we are pretty darn strong. Even though we went up those mountain passes slowly and out hearts were pounding out of our chests, we did it. We pushed through and made it happen. And the downhills were so worth the trouble.

Remember to check our website for weekly posts, and follow us on instagram at @chloeandpaulagoplaces for daily updates!

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