86 miles ridden – 4660 feet climbed
Today was a good day despite waking up with a headache – it turned out many of us did which is apparently to do with altitude. Instead of the usual breakfast buffet we had an option to go to a local restaurant where I had pancakes which went down very well. We left Jackson through the Teton National Park.

It is difficult to take in the majesty of this setting as it becomes over-powering. We cycled through it for about 2 hours stopping frequently to take pictures and by the time we left the park I think we had become desensitised and wanted a change. Here is the gang with the Tetons behind:

We followed Route 26 all the way from Jackson to Dubois and for most of our journey it was very quiet with almost all drivers being considerate and giving us plenty of space. The first 35 miles of today was a gradual climb before the gradient kicked up for about 20 miles or so to the highest point at Togwotee Pass (9658 feet) although just before the summit we crossed the Continental Divide – rain and water to the west of the line runs towards the Pacific and to the east flows towards the Atlantic or the Great Lakes.

I approached the climb at a slower more deliberate pace and was elated to reach the top in a reasonable state although, as with many others, it took a good ten minutes to get my breath back and heart rate down. I suspect another influence on my motivation was the sign below which was about 20% up the climb:

There has been much discussion about what we should do if we came upon them but it was actually horse flies and mosquitoes which caused the most aggravation.

Our reward for the climb was a 30 mile – yes 30 mile – descent with a 20mph tailwind. We covered the 33 miles to Dubois in about 90mins which put a smile on everyone’s face. Dubois is a charming little town – dinner at the Cowboy Cafe and milkshakes at the Drugstore which was a bit like the place in Back to the Future. 

Tomorrow is a ‘relaxing’ 79 mile ride, with allegedly very little climbing and potentially a tailwind although we no longer believe weather forecasts.