Big Cottonwood Canyon to Guardsman Pass

The climb up to Guardsman Pass is considered one of the toughest rides in Utah; so of course we had to conquer it! We started down in Holliday, about 5 miles from the turn onto Big Cottonwood Canyon. Start to summit was 23.5 miles with 4820' of climbing. YOWZA!
We stopped in Brighton for water and a short break before making the final push to Guardsman Pass - an additional 2 miles and 1000+ feet.
No fancy summit sign... But the view was great! Just under 10,000'.
No rewarding descent for me. A mile down from the summit I flatted, and found my rear tire shredded. Fortunately it was Sunday, and there was quite a bit of traffic; so it was easy to hitch a ride down. Nice views even from the back of a pickup truck.
Here's where I waited for Brian to come get me.

Wasatch Crest Trail, UT

Some of you may have expected to see posts from Colorado... But, alas - we didn't get there. Who-da-thunk we needed to make RV park reservations more than 6 months in advance... Which we didn't. So we couldn't get a single place to take us for more than a day or two. So here we are in Park City, Utah.

We've been here before - so we knew the mountain biking was EPIC. Today we did a trail we'd never done, which is one of those MUST DO trails: The Wasatch Crest Trail. Here are some pics from our 29 mile, 3100+ feet of climbing, primarily singletrack, most excellent day!

A Bit Of Nostalgia

As we journeyed back towards the west, we made a brief stop to visit a close friend that lives in Kansas, not too far from where Brian spent his formative years...
Brian's childhood home: I wanted to knock on the door and ask if we could look inside and also check out the backyard; but Brian was too shy.

Brian said the house looked smaller, and the trees on the block were way bigger.
Ahh... High School. Brian said it looked exactly the same except for the new swimming pool. Also, the ball fields used to back up to farmland and endless greenery; and now there are just endless strip malls. Well, they say you can't go home again...

St. Louis, MO

We're here in the St. Louis area for four nights. It's HOT and muggy... but we're making the best of it.

We rode 50+ miles of the Katy Trail- America's largest rails-to-trails path. It's 225 miles stretching from just outside Kansas City to St. Charles (20 miles from St. Louis). Over half of the trail follows Louis & Clark's path up the Missouri River.

Who could resist Grandma's cookies in St. Charles? Not us! Honestly, three of the BEST cookies we've ever had. Delicious, soft and YUM!
Brian feeling small next to the greatness of Lewis & Clark, who started their journey right here in St. Charles, MO.
Riding along the Missouri River.
Can't come to St. Louis without experiencing the Anheuser-Busch Brewery Tour. One of many of the Budweiser Clydesdales. They're HUGE!
One of Lance's yellow jerseys on display in the Anheuser-Busch tour museum.
Brian is smiling because there's FREE BEER at the end of the tour!
The Arch. We didn't go to the top because it was insanely busy and the wait was over 2 hours! Oh well! It was cool to see from the outside.
We next visited the City Museum, which is sort of a museum, sort of a crazy playground for kids. The gist of the museum is to display artifacts, statues, signs and other quirky things from St. Louis and other cities in the U.S. It was wacky!
Artifacts from historic buildings demolished because they didn't meet ADA requirements. Sad. Very sad.
Brian on the wheel. He didn't last long. He said it was a barf machine.
Brian's probably too young to remember Bob's Big Boy - but I got a kick out of this shot.
The City Museum has all sorts of crazy slides, ladders and things to climb on; most of which would make personal injury lawyers drool.
Brian at the end of the 10 story slide... A spiral from the top of the museum that made both of us a little dizzy.
For dinner we went to the Iron Barley, which was featured on BOTH "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" and "Man vs Food." Thanks to the Travel Channel for this great find! The food was excellent and unique and the service was friendly!

Nashville

Here's a quick summary of what we did and saw in Nashville:

The Hermitage: Home of our 7th President of the United States, Andrew Jackson.
The Parthenon: A replica build in 1897 - and the centerpiece of Centennial Park.
We ate at Jacks Barbecue. Yum!
Country Music Hall of Fame.
Belle Meade Plantation: The birthplace of American thoroughbred breeding and racing.
Riding the Natchez Trace Parkway: A 444-mile road with awesome scenery and 10,000 years of North American history. Virtually traffic free!
Cheekwood Mansion - Museum & Botanical Gardens: Home of the Maxwell House family.