Day 10 from Kayenta to Tuba City was a lot better than yesterday. The first 20 miles out of Kayenta was through interesting hills & canyons & interesting rock formations. There were trees & something to look at besides wide open semi-desert as in the previous 2 days. After climbing from 5,800 feet to 6,800 the next 54 miles was mostly a gentle drop to 4,800 at Tuba City. There was the wide open desert landscape & the ever present wind but maybe not quite as strong as yesterday & mostly coming across the road rather than into my face. So I was able to complete the 74 miles in 7 hours (6 hours & 20 minutes of riding) at an average riding speed of nearly 12 miles/hour.
I am grateful for the Armadillo tires I bought as the road surface on the shoulders is often quite stony & one needs tough tires to avoid punctures. So far so good.
A much better day! Tomorrow promises to be tough with 80 mles to the Grand Canyon & about 4,300 feet of elevation gain.
I will try & leave early (i.e. about 8am or earlier).