15. Fenner to Needles, CA

April 28, 2024

True to its name, the Needles Freeway gave me a flat. So there I sat on the side of the freeway, large vehicles rumbling past, for almost an hour in 90-degree heat changing my tire and then trying to get it to seat properly, which it never did. (I wound up removing the Tubolito tube, patching my butyl tube, and redoing the whole dang thang in my hotel room.)

Prior to this inconvenience, I merrily pedaled through deserts just popping with wildflowers and Dr. Zeuss shrubs. I was on the lookout for Joshua Trees, which I had spotted back in Hesperia but was moving too fast to photo on account of the tailwind. No JTs yet, but so many unlikely blooms met me that I couldn't stop smiling to myself.

Pro tip: Needles' Taste of India has the best mattar paneer I've ever tasted.

Distance: 38.9 miles

Climbing: .5 K feet

Totals: 803.8 miles, 28.6 K feet

Song: "Hotel California" by the Eagles