I got a scolding from one of those voices in my head. You know the one... "Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"Zip it! I'm trying to concentrate!"

Granted, riding a snowy mountain road at 35º in the rain does beg the question. I swear I scoured the weather reports last night and there was no mention of rain. Curse you National Weather Service!

It was a beautiful ride up till now. Leaving Boise and heading north towards McCall on Idaho 55 the road climbed steadily into the mountains. The rain started as a drizzle but progressed into something worrying. As snow along the roads increased the temperatures decreased. My GPS showed that I was at 5200 feet and I could see a few flakes of snow mixed in with the rain and slush started building up on my visor. I knew that I needed to cross the pass at 5800 feet. It was going to be close.

It's times like these that you find out if you made the right choices for gear as getting wet in these conditions could be dangerous. Teeth chattering, fingertips burning and I couldn't feel my toes but so far I was still dry. I just needed to get to that pass before things got icy. It took a painfully long time to reach that summit.

I was relieved to drop down into the Salmon River basin. I hadn't ridden this section of Highway 95 before and it was a treat. The 50º temperature felt balmy after the previous two hours of riding along the ridge. The road was wide with fast sweeping curves and Tiggrr roared through the canyon.

I stopped in Lewiston for fuel and to thaw out a bit before pressing northward along Highway 195. I ended my day at my Dad's house in Spokane where I'll spend a couple days. This will be my last stop before returning home.