In Rifle Gap

Wednesday, 9/26

On our way into town, we happened to look at the odometer....we've passed the 7000 mile mark! And there are still a lot more miles to go before we get home.

So you might have some questions about a town called "Rifle".  The answer is yes, it is full of hunters (and fishermen, and gun/ammo shops and etc.).  One of the motels in town is called the Winchester. ( Funny, we haven't found any vegetarian restaurants. ) "Nuff said.  It's a cute little town with a lot of cafes and boutiques....even has a sushi place (always a sign of civilization)!  The library looks very recently re-modeled and is quite lovely.  Although Nils and I have been noticing on our travels that the whole notion of libraries being quiet places for study and peaceful reading seems to be a thing of the past.  We need to bring earplugs, apparently.

We got to Rifle about 45 mins before the library opened, so we took a brisk stroll through "downtown".  Our street suddenly ascended a very high, long hill, so we hiked up and down twice for exercise.  A sign warned truckers of a 20% grade coming down.....that's steep for a residential street!  I was out of breath and glad for the exertion.

Nils is searching for our next camping spot, near the Continental Divide....Sylvan Lake was to be our next destination, but its campsites have no electric hook-ups, and with temps dipping into the high 30s at night at that altitude,  it would just be too durned cold. Nils just said to me that it's funny (ha) the way we assumed that we'd have no rain this whole trip....right now it continues to be cold, damp and dreary.  Clearly we've been spoiled by desert weather.  Time for a reality check.