From Burley, Idaho. Sister, it's COLD out there.

I left Ogden,Utah this morning in 50 degree weather which was cold enough. In fact, I thought that was as cold as it was going to get, but as usual, I was mistaken. By the time I got to Burley, it was 42 degrees, which is much colder than that on a motorcycle. It's a proven scientific fact that cold is colder on a motorcycle than in any other place.

I left about 7 this morning, and it didn't start raining for almost an hour, but then it rained non-stop until I cried, "Uncle," about noon. I thought I was covered in both senses of the word. I thought it was going to stay about 50 and that I was going to drive through the band of rain. And I thought my rain jacket, rain pants, and rain boot covers would keep me dry. Wrong on both counts.

The temperature kept going down, but I didn't have a thermometer on the bike, so I just thought I was feeling a little more chilled and a little more chilled and a little more chilled. I knew that my gloves turned out to not be waterproof, which still surprises me. Maybe the rain ran down in the cuffs. But I was not aware that my left foot was getting wet too. My right foot was not wet. I think the rain must have ran down my pants leg under the bootie and into my boot. I don't know how else my left foot could have gotten wet. Wet and cold, I should say. So my hands were wet and cold, my left foot was wet and cold, and my belly was wet and cold. Yeah, my rain jacket only came down so far and my rain pants only came up so far, which was a surprise to me. I thought I was covered. Well, until I stopped for lunch and started realizing just how wet I was. I knew I was cold, but I didn't know how wet I was until then.

I am sure I would have been in trouble way before then except for my heated jacket liner that I mentioned in my last post. That kept my core toasty, but eventually when the rest of me got wet, even that was not enough to keep me warm.

When I stopped for a burger at noon, I realized, "Hey! I'm in trouble here. I'm wet! Wet and cold!" So I looked on my phone and found a Super 8 just 9 miles away and hustled there... Here.

It's going to warm back up in the next few days and get back to normal temperatures - 50, 54, 58, 60, 62, 64 and finally back up to 71. But there will still be cold nights in the 30s for awhile. Most of all it will be dry. I think I can handle the cold with my heated gear, but the wet and cold was too much today.

So now it will probably take me three more days to get to the coast. The coast as in TW200 coast to coast! That will be the achievement I set out to do. But then I have to go home! And that will probably take nine days of hard riding. So this adventure is a ways from being over. I may have to study the weather forecasts and decide if I want to return by a more southern route to avoid this cold. But I think this was a fluke weather event and it's going to return to normal temperatures for awhile. We'll see.

But hey! Before the rain finally got under all my rain gear, I was having a big time. I was still too cold to stop and take a picture of my bike at the Welcome to Idaho sign. In fact, I took no photos today. You will just have to use your imagination and picture the rain and a wet and cold biker plowing through it.

Another day; another state. Only Oregon is left. Well, and more than half of Idaho.

What a grand adventure! Hope you are enjoying going along with me!