Sunny skies this morning, but raindrops from last night's thunderstorm glisten on the roof of my tent

A pleasant, but chilly, last-morning-of-the-trip. Pleasant enough that I almost forget I have a cold; cough, hack. Or maybe I'm just used to this cold after living with it for a week.

I make my last two cups of strong coffee of the trip and enjoy the views while I procratinate the task of breaking camp

I lazily consume beef jerky, granola, tamari almonds, dried fruit, and vitamin-C drink for breakfast again. The nearby power lines are buzzing loudly again this morning.

As I pack the tent's contents into my saddlebags, I remove the big rocks I placed inside the tent to keep it from blowing away

I do bring tent stakes with me, but rarely use them. Desert terrain tends to be too crumbly or sandy for stakes to help much with holding a tent down.

It's that everything-out-of-the-tent moment again; time to leave the Kelso Dunes area!

I like this area west of the Kelso Dunes and would like to come back to explore more. A vehicle or two may have driven by on the power-line road yesterday while I was hiking Bull Canyon, but I haven't seen anyone since I passed Kelso Dunes two days ago.

After packing up, I carry my saddlebags and bicycle down to the power-line road for final assembly

I've done plenty of bikepacking, but have only backpacked once. I'm glad I'm not carrying my heavy load on my back, but backpacking can sometimes be easier than bikepacking, depending on conditions.

The 10-ton bike reassembled, I'm ready to put my helmet on and start riding up the Kelso Dunes power-line road

Actually, I won't put the helmet on just yet. I first have to walk the bike through the sandy area ahead, but once it becomes rideable, then the helmet will go on.

Off the Kelso Dunes power-line road, I notice vehicle tracks going past a Wilderness boundary marker

Cars and bicycles are prohibited in official Wilderness areas, but the signage is generally absent or so weak (a non-descript metal post in this case) that accidental trespassing should be expected.

I cut over from the power-line road to Kelso Dunes Road and make a stop at the washroom near the dunes trail

The nice thing about this is that I didn't have to dig a cat hole this morning!

The last couple miles up Kelso Dunes Road is enjoyable with the view toward Providence Mountains in my face

Plus, the road was recently graded, so the usual sand and washboard has departed. I'll turn left at the stop sign ahead and start riding down the hill to Kelso.

At the end of Kelso Dunes Road, I start riding down the paved Kelbaker Road, with the Granite Mountains behind me

After hiking Bull Canyon yesterday, I want to return to the Granite Mountains and poke around more.

I have 8 miles of downhill on Kelbaker Road before I reach Kelso, but a strong headwind is slowing me down

I've had a strong headwind going down this hill several times in the past. Bicyclists hate it when they have to pedal downhill!

As I head down Kelbaker Road, I glance to my right at the Providence Mountains, where I hiked a few days ago

"West Edgar Canyon #3" is roughly in the centre of the photo while Rex Mine is off at the left edge.

Coming up to the "big bend," I can now see the town of Kelso down in the distance

The headwind intensifies as I get further down into Kelso Valley. I'm pedalling quite a bit just to maintain 12 miles per hour as I head down the hill.

I stop for a moment when I pass the unmaintained Vulcan Mine Road

I haven't been up this road yet, but I was thinking that it might provide good access for hiking canyons in the Providence Mountains. However, Eric told me that he tried it and ran across a lot of deep drainages when hiking across the fan up in that area.

Approaching Kelso, I see a freight train in the distance with a lot of red cars

The Kelso Mountains and Old Dad Mountain rise in the background.