Ordered to stay off the bicycle for 10 days in early August by my doctor, I returned to cycling with an easy ride around a town that bills itself as the most remote in the lower 48 states.
That “most remote” claim can be challenged, I suppose, but it's one that certainly held up on our visit there.
Stehekin (pop. 80) sits at the northern end of Lake Chelan in central Washington state. There are no roads in or out of this town. As a matter of fact, the only way in is to hike over the Cascades or take a boat from the town of Chelan some 50 miles away at the opposite side of the lake.
Rent bikes
As this was a family vacation, we opted for the second choice. A 2-hour boat ride on the Lady of the Lake (the return on a different boat was 4 hours) dropped us off at a dock at the head of the lake. We walked over to the lakeside Discovery Bikes business and picked three bikes from their selection of Raleigh mountain and comfort models.
Although there are no roads into the town, there are a few roads around the town. We took one that passed the Stehekin Pastry Company (we stopped each time we passed) and led to Harlequin Falls and a bridge over the river.
This was my first ride in over a week, the biopsy had left me a little tender, but it was fun nonetheless. We clocked about 8 miles on and off-road before returning the bikes and embarking on the ferry trip home.
August stats
PSA tests, a biopsy and upcoming surgery have thrown me way off pace for hitting 4,000 miles for the year, the goal I set for the beginning of 2007. One small success, however: I have already surpassed my 2006 mileage.
August
Total: 291.0 miles
Needed for goal: 333.3 miles
Off pace: 42.3 miles
2007 goal
Total : 2,308.1 miles
Needed so far for goal: 2,666.4 miles
Off pace: 358.3 miles
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