Day 21: A&M Reservoir to Teton Reservoir (72.1 miles, 1,947ft)
We got off to an early start from the A&M Reservoir. After making it past the washboard road that led to the reservoir, we turned southwest on route 3215 and made good time on the next 13-14 miles of hard, smooth dirt surface to County Road 63. At 63, we turned east and followed the paved road 25 miles to 287. Once on 287, we angled southeast and climbed, gradually, out of the basin to our 14th Continental Divide crossing of the trip at a modest 7,147 feet.
The rest of the way to Rawlins was an easy downhill ride to town, where we met Anna, Silas, and Eleanor for a late lunch in a park downtown. Rawlins had a nice downtown and was worth the visit, but many of the shops were closed when we came through.
After lunch, we left town, following 6th Street south over the railroad tracks, before climbing a small hill and turning right onto Wyoming Route 71. We followed pavement for the next 10 miles until Route 71 and the pavement ended; and we continued onto dirt County Road 401.
Another 3.5 miles brought us to the turnoff for the Teton Reservoir Recreation Area—a nice, basic camping area (with pit toilets but no water pump or shade) alongside the reservoir.
(For those riding self-supported, it’s worth noting that the Teton Reservoir and various other streams in the 20-25 miles south of Rawlins have alkaline water—best to fill up in Rawlins and refill further south at streams in the national forest. Big Sandstone Creek had nice water.)