Valentine, NE to Bassett, NE - Realizing we are ahead of schedule.
7/6/26 - 7/7/26 - 70 miles over 2 days based in Ainsworth, NE
Celebrations during the 4th had resulted in a little furriness in my brain July 5th. The bunny and I looked at each other and decided that we had the ability to take some time, so we decided to take an extra day and engage in some minor retail therapy and housekeeping.
We spent the day hitting a local laundromat to clean clothes and bedding, did some financial stuff, and then hit the local western wear store to cowboy/cowgirl up. I am the proud owner of a pearl snap short sleeve shirt. Bunny got some shirts as well....one of which is embroidered with flowers like Bunnies love.
The next day I headed out on the cowboy trail for real. Sections had been available in places earlier, but the sand on the new sections is a little soft, so I tended to only ride on those sections when I got tired of the jarring bumps in the asphalt on the shoulder of I-20.
The Cowboy trail out of Valentine is firmly compacted and only gets soft if someone breaks the rules and runs their UTV down the trail, or if you cross over the center of the trail where the sand/gravel tends to pile up a little bit.
The ride was warm with a side wind, but progress was fairly rapid. Bunny and Poodle met me at a wide spot in the road called Wood Lake, but I only stopped for an iced water bottle. I'd been craving a burger and tater tots for a couple of days and local knowledge said that the D&B cafe in Ainsworth would provide exactly what I desired.
I arrived in Ainsworth around 1:30P and told Bunny to meet me for lunch. Had I known how close the ton park where we were camping was, I probably would have just ridden there and walked back for lunch, but a hungry Squid will not be denied.
The staff was welcoming, as were the locals, and the bacon double cheese was almost as big as my head. Seriously....I think it might have been close to 3/4 of a pound AFTER cooking. with 4 pieces of thick bacon. The same thing would easily cost $30 or more in Seattle just because of the meat.
Camping in the town park was only $10 and we'd been doing the math and realized that we were actually WAY ahead of schedule. there were only 220 miles left to get o Onawa, IA and we had more than 10 days to get there. With a swimming pool next to the park offering all day access for $4, staying for an extra day was a no brainer.
That said, the next day I rode from Ainsworth to Bassett, NE. The plan was to still get a few miles in AND give Bunny the opportunity to not have to pick me up. I would do some 'penance' mileage to make up for some of the places in Montana and Wyoming where I had been shuttled into the next camping area.
We happened to meet in a town called Long Pine and I loaded up the bike and we took a drive around based on a local recommendation. SW of Long Pine is a tiny little enclave of vacation houses in an area called 'Hidden Paradise'. It is a tiny little treed valley that follows a creek about 20 feet wide. In many places people have placed homemade bridges. Some made of wood, some of steel. There are places where I found myself questioning whether something was 'built to code', but frankly, I should probably just mind my own business and let Hidden Paradise remain as it is.
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