68 miles 4,300 ft +

I started out the day with re-heated Mexican food from last night, then looked out the motel window and saw a downpour. Weather radar showed it would pass by 9:30 so I read Steinbeck and waited. It did pass and I pulled on gloves and a sweater and headed out into the cool morning. There was snow on nearby peaks, 3-4,000' high which is the elevation of Wauconda Summit on my route. I followed the route to Riverside then Tonasket. The first part was beautiful but the middle was on busy Route 20, with variable width shoulder. I reached Tonasket about 12:30, had lunch, and checked mileage. It was 40 more miles to Republic and I was leaving about 1:30 pm! And there was a pass in between—Wauconda Summit, 4,300 feet. I'd already come about 20 miles so this was to be an intense day.

I took off climbing steeply out of the Okanogan River Valley and kept climbing with a few level spots. Lots of rest stops. I reached Wauconda at 5:30 pm and Wauconda Summit at 6 pm in a snowstorm. I put on rain pants, my Goretex gloves and sweater and begin the cold descent. I reached Republic about 7:30, checked in to my reserved motel (reservations are needed) and had a fantastic dinner and IPA by 8 pm. It was a tiring and long (68 miles) day. Republic is a nice little town. Most Seattleites recognize it as the city where Loren Culp, Republican gubernatorial candidate worked. My motel staff and restaurant servers were wonderful, so there is more to this town.