No bears allowed south of Pinedale

Day 30. 36+ miles. 1144 miles to date. Whiskey Grove remote camp to the big town of Pinedale. Population 2,000 plus a few more. Last night we cooked in the camp space across the road and then took off our cooking clothes and put them in the bear box. We are almost to the line where”they say” there are no grizzlies further south. Did anyone tell the bears that?! I swear I heard one in the night, the snap! Crack! Of an approaching predator. I had my bear spray ready and contemplated being prey…..those thoughts don’t enter your mind very often as in most places we humans are at the top of the food chain. It was tough getting out of bed this morning. Our plan was to wait for things to dry up a little. Everything was saturated with the wet air and being so close to the Green River. As soon as someone unzips their sleeping bag or tent, soon everyone follows as you only have so much time to pack, eat, dress etc either before you are too cold or the posse is rolling. We were on the road around 9am in the fog. It was a fairly easy (I.e. not too hilly) ride into Pinedale. It took about 4 hours with views of mountains and grasslands, ranches and second homes. We saw our first Antelope today and two Sandhill cranes. Tara had a new rear wheel to pick up at the bike shop and they went over both bikes. New Chains, brakes, new shifter cable etc. Austin at the shop sold Tara a bike bag off from his bike! We went to the hardware store for toe warmers, had lunch at the brew pub, stopped at the gear stores, did laundry and shopping. We are headed across the Great Basin and need 4 days of food. Tonight we are at the Jack-a-lope inn, a hiker hostel/motel. Glad to be inside (again) as the thunder and lightning and rain come down! A shout out to Larry and Austin and Bison Bikes in Pinedale. Great job and great attitudes-love you guys!