Rest Day
Road Trip Day 5 - Mesa, AZ
Today was our driving rest day. So far, we travelled 2,160 miles and stayed in 4 different hotels; we needed a break. We woke up early to an “Excessive Heat Warning” message on our phones. The morning news recommended people stay inside from mid day on and, if you need to go out, take lots of water. Hiking trails were closed from 11am to 9pm for safety. We quickly realized we had a window of opportunity and we put a plan into action. Robin found a 4.8 mile hike that we started at 7:30am with the temperature at 90 degrees. We brought a lot of water and saw a lot of other people on the trails which was comforting. After all, if everyone else is doing the same thing, it must not be crazy, right? The hike climbed and descended several large hills that gave nice views of Phoenix. We thought the up and down would never stop, which prompted a couple courses of the song “The Bear Came Over The Mountain”. We finished the hike around 10am and the temperature was 100 degrees. We went to the closest McDonalds and shared a large drink with multiple refills to rehydrate.
Feeling good that we got enough exercise for the day and not wanting to melt in the sun. We went to the movies to see Indiana Jones. We both appreciated the air conditioning, reclining seats, soda, and popcorn. The movie was OK, but we would not recommend it. I think we could have watched paint dry as long as we had all the other things.
Tomorrow, we hit the road for the final leg to San Diego. It is only 400 miles away, which almost seems like a another day off. We will spend some time with Scott and Shannon before starting the ride on July 7th. Robin and I are already thinking about different routes to avoid the excessive heat. Just another challenge we will certainly overcome. We are now off to dinner and the temperature is “only” 110 degrees at 6:30pm. Thanks for reading.
