Kept on riding till I got to Skykomish and stopped to fill my water bottles where I met another guy. The guy approached me asking where I was going and I replied with "Maine" he then says "well you can definitely stay with my brother in Spokane, I'll call him and tell him my really good friend is coming to stay with him and then you can tell him the truth when you get there" haha it's people like that on the road which make these trips amazing. People who do all kinds of things for strangers and don't want anything in return.
Fortunately Dan told me about a road that runs parallel to Rt 2 and it is not as heavily populated. Rt 2 is packed with traffic and the shoulder is not the best in spots, so I was happy to take the Old Cascade Highway up the mountain, and am I glad I did. The scenery was much better and I didn't come across a single car. I got on the old highway and it said road closed 2 miles ahead, so I thought I would give it a try and I could always carry my bike across the stream if I need. Fortunately there was a waking bridge and I got right over and went down to the water to wet my head because it wasn't deep enough to go swimming. I was already exhausted from only the 2 miles and I still had plenty to go. The trek up the mountain was much more difficult than I was imagining. Not only was it only my second day on the road, it's also a mountain range, not a hill... I definitely didn't pack enough water with me, so I had to resort to drinking out of the stream to keep hydrated.
Not only were the temps in the high 90's I am riding a fully loaded bike which is way too heavy. I finally made it up the mountain and at the top is a ski resort called Stevens Pass. There is stopped to fill my water bottles with something other than stream water which I was a little hesitant to drink. Stevens Pass is the top of the mountain as well and I was very happy to see that sign. I met a guy there who was watering the flowers and his name was Rory!!
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