The Pain in the Tushy Day

Wednesday, July 17th

So, our plans changed thanks to the mechanical problem with my bike.  I was plum depressed because we were supposed to do the Kaiser climb and then swim (well just me as The BF doesn't care for water)  in Shaver lake, with The Boyfriend taking pics of me in my fabulously dull but practical bathing suit where in my mind, I would be a bathing beauty.  Instead, we had to leave beloved Shaver Lake in search of a bicycle shop and pray my bike could be repaired.  This involved driving 53 miles to Clovis.  Oh my Gosh, we were so fortunate to discover the Clovis Bicycle Shop.  Our bike man the surgeon was super duper. The bike was hospitalized for an overnight stay.  Meanwhile, we drove to our next destination, North Fork, in search of our lodgings.  Here we are in the middle of nowhere driving to our airbnb.

We arrived much too early.  The door had an access code.  The BF couldn't get a signal in his iPhone to search his email for the details, so, this meant more driving in search of wifi access.  The area was confusing but eventually we found Bass Lake.

The BF got a signal and found the details for our lodgings.  Yay.  We were sort of pooped and I so longed to dip my toes and be a bathing beauty in a lake.

We drove around the lake and finally found a place to park.

Yay, I dipped my toes in the refreshing lake.  We returned to the airbnb and got situated.  And rested.  And had a good meal at a restaurant in Bass Lake.....

Shaver Lake Bike ride - It Went Down Like This

Tuesday, July 16th

And we're off, ready to tackle 40 miles of mostly climbing (10 percent grades and more here and there) and 7,000 feet.  Omg, it was challenging.

Spectacular scenery, more noticeable by bike than in a car.

It was tough but we were up for the challenge.

Stopping to catch my breath and enjoy the scenery.

A lot of climbing, so be ready should you go.  By the way, there are stores to stop at to refuel if necessary. Alas, we encountered a boo boo.

Or, more specifically, I did.  After 20 miles of climbing, I shifted and my right Sram shifter simply sheared off.  Yep.  The cable was done, obviously.  Was life over?  Well, in the big scheme of life, no, but, certainly disappointing, right. So, I sat for 3 hours while The Boyfriend dashed off for the remaining 20 miles of our route, much of it uphill, to get the car to rescue me. He was my hero.  Was our trip derailed?  Stay tuned.

Photos of Shaver Lake

Monday, July 15th

Sharing pictures we took as we drove along Shaver Lake to scout out the bike ride for tomorrow.

It's beautiful, and I can't wait to dip my toes in the water after tomorrow's bike ride.

Hoping there's time to explore the other lakes in the area after our bike ride.  The weather is perfect, too.

The winter rains brought forth the flowers, still evident everywhere.

Pretty, right.  Peaceful.  Quiet. Looking forward to seeing all of this again tomorrow but with the perspective of being on a bike not in a car.