We weren’t sure if we’d get a second bike ride in this trip. The weather has been on the warm side, and today the high is 94ºF. Not exactly ideal biking weather, especially when there isn’t much shade.

With an early start and a modest length, we decided to go for it. We debated between an out-and-back east along OR 19 (advantage: can turn back whenever if the heat goes against us), and a loop (advantage: probably more fun, more climbing to keep things interesting). In the end we decided to go for the loop.

We actually succeeded in getting out early, with a rollout time of 6:30. The weather was cool enough for arm warmers and kid jackets. Just outside of Spray we encountered a group of unleashed, unfenced, and unsupervised dogs running out of a driveway into the road to assert their dominance. Fortunately it was slightly downhill, so we scooted over and got away quickly.

The rest of the ride was just about perfect. It heated up, but got back just before 11am. The roads were all paved (despite Ride With GPS’s warnings) and in great condition. The kids counted a total of 20 vehicles across the whole day. The climbs were manageable even with our untrained legs. The kids kept good spirits and helped us up the hills. I’m glad we decided to go for the ride.

Tomorrow is our last day in Spray. We’ll probably just lounge around. The forecast is for 103ºF, so hanging out in an air conditioned house sounds about right.