Freezing on Highway 12

Freezing on Highway 12

Our first day of riding was rough. Highway 12 sent us up into the clouds with its high altitude and froze us to the bone. Even though Mitch and I pulled over to put extra clothes on the 40 degree temperature plus 60-70 mph wind chill made for a very cold ride.

The only reason that I kept riding through the cold was knowing Mitch’s apartment had a hot tub in St. George. When we arrived at 11:30pm Mitch told me it was broken. So I climbed into my sleeping bag on Mitch’s couch and shivered myself to sleep.

Just outside of Escalante both of us got a speeding ticket. I’ll be happy to cross the border soon, where a traffic violation can be solved with a few pesos on the spot, or buying the officer a beer will get you a friend that can give you a police escort to the next town.

We came through Zion National Park after dark. And it made for a really cool ride. Cutting through the night with a narrow beam of light from your headlight down the twisty road, and glancing up at the towering cliffs above was an adventure.

The bikes have been doing great so far. Mitch gets a little annoyed at having to fill up twice as often as I, but I don’t mind taking a break every 100 miles or so. We will get there, eventually.

--Ryan