If you bike 100 miles in Nevada in one day, that's an exceptional feat because there are mountains and winds everywhere.
That's why Saturday's Park to Park 100-mile bicycle ride in Lincoln County that links four parks along with the rural towns of Caliente and Pioche was one of the most challenging single-day bicycle rides.
I will be writing a travel story on this bicycle trek for the Review-Journal, but I wanted to give people a pictorial peak at beautiful Lincoln County and four of its state parks.
More than 200 riders pedaled the 100-mile, 60-mile and 40-mile rides, with people happy about the great support stations and the low-key, casual atmosphere of the ride.
I can't imagine anyone could have been more cheery and upbeat at 7 a.m. than the ride organizer, Dawn Andone, Nevada State Parks interpretive ranger.
Some rides have loud rock music to kick off the ride. This ride had a ranger say on a microphone: "OK, 100-mile riders, you can go."
There wasn't a lot of flash -- just friendly rangers and volunteers making sure we were filled with water, Clif Bars, bananas and peanut butter sandwiches.
Let's go to the pics.
And we're off -- it was 47 degrees when we took off -- it hit 88 on the ride.
Here's my friend Larry from Mesquite biking into Cathedral Gorge State Park off US 93. We hit this state park at mile 20.
Cathedral Gorge is a mini Bryce Canyon National Park.
Then it was off to Pioche.
Looks like Pioche was a hopping place at one time.
Then it was a visit to Echo Canyon State Park at mile 46..
There was a sweet back road that linked Echo Canyon with Spring Valley State Park through Eagle Valley.
We had lunch at Spring Valley State Park at mile 56..
Then it was a big climb back to Pioche.
And this is how you feel after biking 100 miles.
