halfway up the climb to willow creek pass, these men (randy, justin, and matt) stopped in a pickup to offer a beer (no thanks, not pre-happy hour yet...). besides, i had just downed one i happened to be carrying (still on some ice, no less !!) along with a bagel just before they passed me. they gave me Gatorade instead which was welcome. then they asked if I wanted to go to their ranch for the night and go with them the next day to a big community calf branding. I told them that it sounded like fun, but i was already planning on meeting Josh and Dana (who were ahead of me) in Walden, but thanks anyway. turns out they caught up to her and talked her into it, so she waited for me and talked me into it. i felt a little bad for standing up Josh but we got in touch and all was good. we rode a couple of miles to the ranch and what a place! amazing mountain views and nice hospitality. a hot shower (oooh, ahhhh), a community pasta dinner and a big bonfire all were fantastic. a neat thing about being at elevation is that planes flying over look ALOT closer and you can see satellites flying over in the early night sky. very serene here. makes one yearn to work here, if just for food....
once again, the day had an unforeseen and festive ending. this cycle touring business is a never-ending stream of unexpected interactions with locals who all seem to be intrigued with our endeavor and are replete with hospitality. i love it !
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