Flat desert. Scrub brush. Another day of riding. Early morning. And then... a huge hole in the Earth.

No gates. No barriers. Just a giant, heart thumping gap in the Universe.

I sat on the edge, and I'm not embarrassed to say a few dew drops slipped from under my bike goggles. Oh, to be one of the crows, flying hundreds of feet below. I wandered.

A curious tower in the distance.

A small cactus at my feet.

A few hours... Not nearly enough. I rode on.

Southern Utah is magic. There is no place like it. Then storm clouds loomed. I stopped to suit up raingear. A tiny lizard took refuge under the Crow.

After 700k of riding, and a pack full of still sodden camping gear, I succumbed to a cheap hotel.

Once again, she sits outside the window as I stretch and crank out pushups and back bridges on a stained carpet, preparing for the morn. The Crow is overdue for an oil change, and tomorrow I hit Salt Lake City to find somewhere to remedy that...