Day 6 John Day to Baker City

Day 6. Today we left John Day bound for Baker City. We had to begin with a good climb again today, and I arrived slightly head of the Wolfpack, who had left later. We all posed for a photo op at a really large covered wagon at an overlook a couple miles from the top of the climb.
After our pictures were taken, I again sat in on the back of the pack, and was able to hang with them to the top. I absolutely flew down the other side, my top speed only hampered by having to stop at a stoplight controlling traffic through a one-lane construction zone. I still hit 45.7 mph, and was first the SAG stop. I stopped in to the restaurant whose lot we were using, and found that thy had a really good blackberry cobbler. While I was eating, my camera did its power-down routine. When I went to restart it, all I could get were the choices to power-off or format the card. Neither one of these were satisfactory choices, so I decided to not take pix until I could get a new card. I missed all the miles over the next two climbs, but at the second SAG, the staffer, Susan had the same camera as mine, and loaned me one of her spare cards. I was able to make the camera work until I could get a new card.


Other than that, it was a nice, but hot day. When we were at altitude, it was pleasantly cool, but dropping down into the valleys took us into a treeless oven. Fortunately it was a shorter day of 80 miles, and I again was in early to the motel.

Once we got into Baker City, I found a Bi-Mart, which is like a Wal-mart, and bought 2 camera cards, this time smaller ones, because someone told me that the 1Gb card I had been using was not designed for that camera. I thought the problem was solved, until I went out to take some sunset pictures, and the same message came through. Still a problem.

In Baker City there were bike races going on all day, and many other bikers were staying at the same motel. Most of us had problems getting online, although I was able to find one building where the wireless network actually worked, so I sat in a stairwell to write and send e-mail.