Mike's Journal

The inevitable movement onward

Day 22
Torrey Utah to Hanksville Utah.
50 miles

A man beaten and left for dead might walk like this an hour after his assailant’s departure. Staggering without rhythm, broken, and full of purpose. I awoke to the sound of nearby sighs as he passed and watched as he made his way across the moonlit meadow. His back was hunched and his frame contorted in a way that suggested a loss of faculties over time, the silhouette of his movement was that of the old man that takes two minutes to will himself across the street; focusing to perform each movement through pain. At the edge of the meadow, where grass turns to gravel he paused, and in an apparent search for comfort he looked skyward; then to the ground. It could have been that he wanted to fly but having not yet mastered that skill he dropped to his knees and felt the earth with his hands. Halfway there…

Our campsite in Hanksville was fifty yards away from the bathroom and Jeff made countless trips during the night violently releasing sickness from every possible orifice. Days of cycling through the flu symptoms and extreme heat had caught up with him. I sometimes forget how lucky I am to have my health… how much I hate vomiting…

Day 18
Cedar City to Panguich Lake
47 miles 5500 foot climb up Cedar Mountain.

And how lucky I am to have loved. It’s likely that Jeff picked up a bug in the plane on his return trip from Canada. How hard it must have been for him to leave Keri after a proposal of marriage and an intimate week celebrating their engagement. With all my heart, I offer heartfelt congratulations!

Many have attacked Jeff’s wish to pause our Journey to visit Keri and my support of the decision. They call into question our purpose, our tour, and“the purity of the experience”. From the beginning The Great Sitting has been about living as full of a life as possible, to take the time to follow dreams, and trust in the heart. It has been a gift for me to see the radiance in Jeff’s heart and to share in his celebration.

* * *

The climb out of cedar was everything I had expected, 25 miles at a constant 8% grade and heavy traffic. Jeff had arrived in Cedar around 4a.m. and he rode on three hours of sleep. He was completely out of it mentally and struggled up the first ten miles before we stopped in at a retreat center to fill our water bottles. A group of fifty lunched inside surrounded by tables covered in food: cake, fruit, sandwiches, crackers, etc. To a couple of men climbing a mountain via bicycle it was incredibly tempting. Before we left Jeff went inside and helped himself to a banana. No one knew who he was; there were stares and questions to which Jeff responded, “Everything’s Ok, I’m riding my bike to Maine and I need a bananna.”

The view atop the mountain was incredible! Cedar Breaks National Monument is a massive piece of geology that seems nearly incomprehensible and impossible to describe.

Day 19
Panguich Lake to East of Herryville.
65 miles

With its inevitable movement onward the The Great Sitting has begun to shift. No longer are days dominated by hours of personal perception and reflection within a silent space. These moments still exist but people now color the experience in a different way.

Lannie, my wonderful new friend and host from Cedar City drove out and joined us in Panguich for a few days riding through Central Southern Utah. The rides up Red Canyon, past Bryce, Escalante, and The Capitol Reef were stunning in their beauty but in my mind are now more than amazing landscapes. They are reminders of time with Jeff, and Lannie, roadside discussions about life, love, and happiness; tigers, kittens, and respect.

Day 20
East of Henryville to Boulder Town, Utah
46 miles

One such conversation took place at 3:00am on the lawn in front of Blake’s house in Boulder, Utah. I giggle now knowing that she heard our conversation through her open window and found our vernacular about befriending women to be hilarious.

How did we end up there?

A stop at a gas station mini-mart on the 4th of July leads to an invitation to a small town celebration, complete with talent show, watermelon eating contest, ice cream social, and fire works. We decide to attend and within minutes have met Blake and Jen the owners of Hells Backbone Grill and their friends visiting from San Francisco. We’re too late to enter the talent show (the prize money of $50 would have been great!) But Blake offers to open up the restaurant to get us some pasta. We eat the amazing food, make friends with the staff, watch fireworks through the large windows and read articles on the wall about the Grill; one is printed in Oprah’s magazine and another in the New York Times. The articles speak about Buddhist restaurateurs opening a gourmet establishment a small town of Mormon cowboys.

They all get along and after the fireworks 30 people continue the reveling inside the restaurant. Tables are moved aside and a man strums a guitar while another bangs on a bucket. Men women and children dance and laugh together. I can’t stop smiling. This is what I had dreamed about seeing and becoming part of. After a few hours Jeff picks up the guitar and plays a short set. Mouths are agape; they love the music and ask me how they can get a copy of his CD. I notice a woman with long brown hair and tight jeans. She is beautiful and our eyes meet; again and again they meet and we speak as I exit the restaurant. She is Lithuanian and I want to learn more about her

The party moves to Jen’s house where I enjoy a long conversation with Erica and walk home alone under the moon. Halfway back to Blake’s there is a red hillside with horizontal layers of sediment and vertical lines of erosion. It looks like an enormous turtle shell. I am so thankful to be in this place. It’s not just a small mountain town in Utah, it is the home of my new friends; amazing people.

Day 21
Boulder Town Utah to Torrey Utah.
48 miles

Brekfast at Hells Backbone Grill is perfect! We sip on coffee and tea as we visit with Livydia (sp?), Lynn, Erica, and Blake. We discuss music, literature, and trade stories. I love this place but we ride on up the mountain. Another guest rider brings our peleton up to 4. Margret is an amazing cyclist; a national elite at the masters level but modest too. She rides slowly to accommodate our pace. Near the top she admits to having ridden a 189 mile race at 24 MPH. Some people have a talent I can’t even comprehend!

Day 22
Lannie’s wife Erin picks him up in Hanksville before Jeff and I make camp with Charley, another cyclist riding East. It was a true gift to spend this time with Lannie I admire his willigness to jump in. He is now a great friend one of the many great humans I’ve met this week. Many more lie ahead I'm sure.

Posted by Mike at July 8, 2004 11:22 AM