• Helene Rimberg
Current
  • Helene Rimberg

The Grand Adventure

A bike trip with no end Read more
  • Currently in
    🇺🇸 Cadiz, United States

    Onto US Bike route 50

    June 22 in the United States ⋅ 🌧 22 °C

    Quite a stormy night but our tarping keeps us nice and dry. Quickly pack up and finish the drive to Columbus. Drop off car and load up bikes. Meander through nice neighborhoods and golf courses, trying to avoid the rain drops. Doug’s wheel is really falling apart so stop near Newark to try and get it fixed. End up in a hotel so he can McGiver it.Read more

  • And we are back

    June 21 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    Return to St Louis and our bikes are awaiting us. Get a ride to the car rental to pick up our car. Found that a car was way cheaper than the train. Get out quickly to stay ahead of the storm. Doug drives us outside of Dayton where we opt to stay the night. Manage to set up before the rain hits.Read more

  • Hitting the pause button

    June 9 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

    Managed to stay dry though morning skies look threatening. Move quickly to get the tent down and stuff under the pavilion. Fortunately the sun came out. Spend some time organizing for a pause in our journey. Today we head back to Portland to pack up my mom’s apartment. Short ride to Warmshowers host; first stopping for tasty bagels. Clean up our bikes and ourselves and relax a bit before heading to the airport.Read more

  • Continuing along the Katy Trail

    June 8 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Rainy morning but we are under cover in the pavilion. Wait out the rain and go to breakfast. Tad bit full as we rode along the trail. All the water makes for slower riding. Pick up some dinner supplies and ride to Defiance. Campground is a bit flooded but able to find a dry ish spot.Read more

  • A stormy day

    June 8 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

    While it didn’t rain overnight, it began in earnest as we were preparing to leave. Then the gods started bowling. Waited out the worst of it. First 10 miles were pretty wet with boomers in the near vicinity. Rest of the day was on and off showers. Path was slower due to the rain. We were also low on food as we had missed an opportunity to stock up the day before. Opted to not go into Jefferson City for supplies. Survived on snacks. Enjoyed the wildlife and changing scenery. Arrived in Hermann; first stop - frozen custard!! Find the city park and again set up under cover due to rain. Nice hot showers and a proper meal.Read more

  • Along the Missouri

    June 6 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    Early am blue skies give way to cloud cover. Back to the Katy Trail and the “hardest section”. 🤣. Cover Lard hill easily (there’s a story that involves a dead pig & greasing the tracks with lard). Quick stop at a farmers market (no produce yet) in Boonville. Cross the mighty Missouri and ride along it for the remainder of the day. Follow in the tracks of Louis & Clarke (though they were in boats). Arrive in Hartsburg. Set up in park, take sink showers and go to The Grand for dinner. Move our tent under the gazebo just in case. Watch fireflies come outRead more

  • Onto the Katy Trail

    June 5 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

    Winds are a blowing - but at least not in our face. In order to save 10 miles, opt to ride in HWY 50 to get to our trailhead. Bad shoulder and so much road kill. Everything from turtles to armadillos to deer. Finally get to Sedalia, get some good coffee and food and arrive at the entrance to the Katy trail; the longest rail trail in the country (200+ miles). Nice surface and we zoom along under the cover of trees. See few people and only live animals including a 4 foot black rat snake. Make it to Pilot Ridge and find the city park where we can camp for free. Take a quick swim in the nearby pool.Read more

  • Sleeping through Kansas … literally

    June 4 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    Our train took us all the way through Kansas and we disembarked in Kansas City Missouri. Nice route out of the city; even meandering among their stadiums before getting on the Rock Island Trail. Quite a nice one but opted to hop off and head due east. Though we stayed off HWY 50, we found ourselves on some very rough roads with little steep hills. As day went on got tired and hot. Made it to our destination of Warrensburg but with no viable campgrounds ended up in a hotel.Read more

  • La Junta town and an Amtrak train

    June 3 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    The day seems to be warm and pleasant. Take our time, even having pancakes, as we only have 28 miles to go. Turns out that the wind is particularly strong, blowing us either into the road or it’s in our face. Clouds roll in and rain begins in earnest. Not a very pleasant ride. Make it to La Junta but station is not open and we know our train is late. Finally check in and go get some tasty pizza. Finally board over 2 hours late. Kansas City here we come.Read more

  • Onto the plains

    June 2 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    The wind has died down, but thick clouds are all around. Get an early start as we are worried about more wind. Bit misty as we continue along our cycle path through the buttes of the park. Hit another path along the river into the city of
    Pueblo. Cross into town; and not a very nice part. But cycle through and back on Hwy 50. Mostly flat or down as we truly say goodbye to the mountains. Wide open flat land is in front of us. Stop at the tiny town of Fowler and find a very cheap RV park. A bit noisy but pleasant enough.
    Read more

  • The mountains are all behind us

    June 1 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    Wake to bike horn sheep wandering around our campground. They blend in with the rocks; except for their white butts. Continue down through the canyon until we leave the river and head up. Only 800 feet or so bit but takes us back over 6000 for awhile. Got a plateau and then go screaming down into Canon City; another cute little city. Stock up on food and make our way out of town on a lovely bike path. Wind hits hard as we pedal east. Lots of rollers but finally make it to Lake Pueblo State Park. Another nice cycle path to our campground. Set up and take a very quick dip in the reservoir (no showers). Wind is howling! Tod everything down, huddle behind tent and somehow manage to make and eat dinner.Read more

  • Arkansas Headwaters

    May 31 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Make our way to the tony town of Salida. Quite the hub for all sorts of outdoor activities. Doug rolls into a bike store to get gears fixed. Walk around town a bit. Bike mechanics do what they can, and off we go. Follow the Arkansas River as it cuts its way to form canyons. Nice rolling 40 miles and stop at Five Points campground. Finally put on a bathing suit and get wet! Back to campsite with our filtered water. Make dinner and in the tent before dark.Read more

  • Crossing the Continental Divide

    May 30 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    Wake to frost on the tent. The Sky is clear and the wind has yet to pick up. We have 10 miles to climb to Monarch Pass at 11,300 feet. Wind picks up as we head up but it is generally behind us. Have an easy mile or so and then the climbing starts. Grade isn’t too bad but the altitude is tough. The road hugs the side of the mountain as we slowly ascend. Lots of breaks helps to keep us breathing. Make it to the windy top. Bundle up and relax a bit before plunging 4000 feet to Salida. Terrain gets noticeably drier as we go. Stop for ice cream and then pull into our campsite. Good but challenging day!Read more

  • Sargents - a perfectly placed oasis

    May 29 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    Another short day; our version of a rest day. Day starts out cloudy but does clear. Visit the campground animals before hitting the road. 34 miles along HWY 50 - much of the time into the wind. Yet the gradient is mild and scenery nice. Arrive at the base of tomorrow’s climb where there is a little campground, store and restaurant - Tomichi Creek Trading Post. Still quite windy. Have a nice hot shower and dine in the restaurant.Read more

  • Gunnison

    May 28 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    Only 24 miles today to town of Gunnison. Beautiful ride along the water and amongst the rocks. We have transitioned back to Hwy 50 and it is much busier but we have a good shoulder. Arrive at the KOA outside of town. Set up and go check out Gunnison. Been here 50+ years ago but don’t remember much. Get food and ice cream! Back to campsite to do laundry and make dinner.Read more

  • Black Canyon of the Gunnison

    May 27 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    A monster day awaits us: over 4000 ft of climbing to 9100 feet. Nice morning as sun is out and seems to be little wind. Roll along on as we gradually climb. Some bits get steeper but not too bad. At times lose quite a bit of elevation which is a bit disheartening. The prairie dogs sit up and take notice as we pedal along. Do notice the altitude after 8000 feet or so. Hit the summit and do a bit more rolling until we stop for lunch with a great view of the canyon. Enjoy the views as we make our way down to the reservoir. A few raindrops fall from out of nowhere. Cross the reservoir and find our quiet campground. Long day but worth the climbing.Read more

  • We are headed up

    May 26 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    A short day planned, only 35 miles but we are climbing up to the North Rim of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. SR 92 is relatively quiet as we ride towards Hotchkiss. Get last supplies and continue upward. Clouds get darker but not too windy or threatening. Arrive in the town of Crawford and a few miles later the state park. Nice lake but too chilly to swim.Read more

  • A blustery day

    May 25 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    Slow start as we utilize good internet to do some planning. Finally head out and return to lovely cycle path which leads us out of Grand Junction. Dark clouds all around and it does appear to be raining nearby. Pedal along through barren landscape; rolling up and down the hills. Finally get to the top and almost get knocked over. Thunder is rumbling and rain threatens. After waiting a moment head downward. Skies open for about a minute. And then the rain stops but wind persists. Quick lunch stop and finish ride to Delta. Set up, food shop and eat.Read more

  • State #4: Colorado

    May 24 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Survive our night in the vast high prairie. Pack up and conserve as much water as possible. Cross into Colorado and still no services. Turn off into Mack and a nice woman gives us Gatorade and water. Make it to next town and have lunch. Pick up cycle trail in Fruta. With limited options, check into spendy hotel.Read more

  • Moab and through the canyons

    May 23 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    Opt to go south to go north and detour to Moab. Pleasantly surprised by an amazing bike path almost all the way to Moab. Pick up some food and head into Colorado canyons. So pretty. Road is relatively quiet and we make our way through the towering rocks. Stop for water and ice cream. Climb back out of the canyon and pass through Cisco, a ghost town with no services. Find a place to camp and conserve the water we have. Fall asleep listening to prairie dog chattRead more

  • Exploring Arches NP

    May 22 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Wind is still blowing and it’s a tad cloudy. Though rain is forecasted, none materializes. Ride out on a sandy and rocky road toward Arches NP. Do a bit of biking and then walking. Finally ditch the bikes and just walk into the desert. Beautiful vistas, especially as it clears up. Return the way we came back to our campsite. Long walk to modern campground to get a shower. Less wind means little biting bugs ☹️Read more

  • Utahraptor State Park

    May 21 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    A nice warmish morning - at least in the sun. Head to the grocery store to get food for the next few days. Ride out on the old highway road: great scenery but rough in places. Do a short stint on I70, before turning south heading towards Moab. Same sketchy road as before and the wind pushes us towards the road. Make good time as it’s mostly down. Arrive at Utahraptor state park and go way down to our primitive site. Didn’t realize that meant no water. Back up I go to get water and ice. Still very windy as we make our dinner. Nice sunset.Read more

  • Green River

    May 20 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Get a late start but have a short day planned. Stop in Price for supplies as not much else for 60 miles. Ride mostly on 6, still very busy with varying shoulder. Mesas and mountains abound though hard to look as have to concentrate on road. Head off road to our “dispersed camping” but discover that river is a muddy puddle. With insufficient water have to Carey on. Quite late but book, fortunately down and on newly paved road, to Green River. Find a campsite. Phew, another long day.Read more

  • Up and over soldier summit

    May 19 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C

    Big day in store for us. A 40 mile climb with a 7400+ ft summit. Day is sunny but chilly. Mountains are beautiful, especially with their white caps. Head away from gowns and into the river canyon. This route is still used Bt trains and thus the gradient is reasonable. That also means that a lot of trucks go this way. Beautiful scenery which changes as we ascend and then descend. Way quicker down though end at Helper at 5700 feet. Get groceries and find our campground.Read more

  • Long ride on lovely bike paths

    May 18 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 8 °C

    Weather definitely turned for the worst. Chilly and drizzly. Barrel down the hill and make our way out of SLC on mostly dedicated paths. Mountains have a fresh dusting of snow. Return to Jordan River pathway which winds up and down the canyons. Find ourselves going slower than expected even though wind is mostly with us. Break for lunch and then continue on a different pathway. Incredible network around here. After hitting a plateau, cruise down into Provo - home of BYU. Decide to stop at a motel as getting too late to make it to campground.Read more