It's been 6 mths... that's crazy!! Wanted to add this to the blog...
check out these sights about my trip from the companies who helped make the trip possible...
http://pacoutdoor.com/blog/laura-loretz-sponsored-athlete
http://www.raftmwd.com/blog/ (has a realy good bullet list of "things I learned while bike touring"
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Sunday, October 3, 2010
The End.
9/29… Last Day of riding
We woke up the following morning in what felt like a land of fairies and gnomes. We were next to a river with the moss draped trees over our heads. Giant spider webs clung to the trees and leaves and ground around us and giant slugs left their slimy trails on our bags. After cleaning up camp and getting the earliest start of the entire trip, we headed up the road to the Eatery and enjoyed a big breakfast. With 80 miles to Anacortes (the coast) and no climbing my mind raced with how quickly this day would be over.
It was a gorgeous day of riding. Along the way we made time for celebratory cheers. Toby had a large shard of metal pierce his tire… I think it was probably his 700th of the trip, but can’t be quite certain as I wasn’t keeping track. We stopped at the original Cascadian Farms. I picked out a perfect pumpkin for my bike and a few apples, and spoke a little with the current owner of the farm about its history. I also had the chance to “talk with” a hearing impaired man who seemed excited to discuss our mountain climbs, where I was from and tell me places to stop up ahead. I was sad to think that these conversations with strangers may soon become scarcer one I re-enter my little world.
The day seemed to slip away; we pedaled hard and fast, wanting to make the coast before dark. For awhile we were pushing 16 miles per hour and I was attempting to keep up with the boys, filled with adrenaline and anticipation for what it would feel like to finish. Eventually though I couldn’t hold the pace and dropped back on my own, leaving me time to think about how much I had accomplished. The views into Anacortes were amazing. Mountains erupted through the waters that surrounded the land and the lighting of days end gave a special ambiance as we pulled across the bridge onto the island. It was all I could have asked for to bring this day to its end.
Just as the sun was setting we reached Washington Park and dipped our wheels into the Pacific waters (technically the Puget Sound). The three of us celebrated with Champagne and toasted to a magnificent journey, to new strangers and to reaching our goal. We laughed and recalled stories and moments... The faces that had come into our lives, those we had been honored to ride with and those people who took us in and welcomed us to their towns. Through a series of days and miles, sweat and laughter a string of moments had become a memory to treasure. I accepted the end to my journey as the sun fell behind the mountains and echoed onto the water.
the end.
thanks for reading folks... pictures soon to follow!
Dog Chases, Sprinklers and Mountain Passes...
In the morning we woke up to the reality of another sky blanketed by the clouds. Sitting in Sharon’s beautiful house in Sandpoint, sipping on coffee and eating the fresh baked banana bread from the market the day before I kept thinking how badly I did not want to get on my bike and push the pedals. With only 8 more days to go I just wanted to drag it out as long as I could, or better yet settle in Sandpoint for a few years. The longer I sat at her table, the more I longed to stay, so I got up and spent another morning packing away gear into the two side bags that had become my home. With promises to stay in touch, Scotty, Toby and I said goodbye to Sharon and Lucy, her dog, and made one more stop for coffee at the Evan’s Brothers Coffee House.
The next morning we only made it 15 miles shy of our goal. Though the day was overcast, it waited until the very end to rain. Around lunch time we knew we were close to the Washington border, but we never got our “welcome to Washington” sign. At the Safeway we asked if anyone there knew about where the sign was. One of the employees pointed out the window to a traffic light and said, “That’s the border”…. So apparently we had made it to Washington State!
The day took us through the Kalispell Indian reservation. Warning: DOGS IN THIS PART OF THE US SEEM TO LOVE CHASING 27 YEAR OLD FEMALES!! I was chased in total by anywhere from 4-100 dogs (exaggeration). Little ones and big ones would dart off their property and with no awareness of the road they would chase after my heels barking up a storm. A few dropped off after not long, but a few also got pretty close. I pedaled aggressively and when I realized they weren’t going to stop running, I turned around wagged my finger and yelled “Git, git outta here” and sure enough they slowly faded behind me.
Finally, we found a closed campground site called the Panhandle Campground and realizing we would have about 15 more miles to go, with the rain just pelting down we decided to call it. In the wetness we made and ate spaghetti dinner, set up the tents, spent some time under the bathroom awning and called it a night.
Throughout the evening the rain had let up a little and I was up bright and early. Since the boys are usually faster than me anyway I took off a little early and headed off into the day knowing they would catch up eventually. Most of the day was spent following a river just north of the Kalispell Indian Reservation. You could feel the season changing all around. The trees, still wet from all the rain hung over me as I sped down the road. I passed a bunch of cyclists, one of which shouted out “Beautiful day isn’t it?”. At first I laughed to myself thinking of how it was still overcast and the air chilled… the chances of rain still looking high, but not many miles later I realized she was right… it was a perfect day! We pushed on with one good hill and eventually made it to Kettle Falls, WA where the town had a small park with free camping. We set up camp, excited for clear skies and a night to dry out all of our belongings.
To most people, other than the residents of Kettle Falls it seems like a quiet small town… but what they don’t tell you is this:
In the middle of the night at the Happy Del Park in Kettle Falls Washington (where they allow cyclists to camp for free) the sprinklers go off in the middle of the night, and they go off for hours! They also don’t tell you that the train that runs just behind the fence where your tents are set up… just behind the bushes so you can’t really see… comes through about every 45 minutes. And what they also forget to tell you in this small town with what appears to be little industry is a bustling lumber mill where the workers, saws, trucks and even the wood seem to work throughout the entire night to load the train that runs next to the park where the sprinklers go off… All. Night. Long.
After a long night, we all awoke a bit later than we had planned for a day of big climbing. Washington State is where not only most of our climbs, but the biggest climbs of our trip are. It was a much longer and harder day than anticipated. Sherman Pass was 25 miles of climbing with a gain of a couple thousand feet in elevation and took about 4 hours to climb. It was brutal! At one point I stopped to take a rest and when I realized my bike was just trying to roll down hill, I figured pushing it up for a while to rest instead of fighting its gravitational pull might make sense… It was the only time I walked my bike on the entire trip, okay I did it twice on that day. When Scotty and I reached the top, Toby lay napping at the summit sign… he had gotten there about 1 ½ hours before us… had time to recover and had had to eat dry pita pockets for lunch. I had a bit of an anger issue with Sherman Pass, I hated that pass…. And if I could translate the words in my journal to appropriately interpret my feelings, there is a good chance that this blog would be blocked!
Exhausted we pushed on for the downhill, excited for the chance to sit back and let the wheels roll… We headed on to Republic, WA where we had planned to stop. A few little uphill pushes later we stopped in to ask about the available camping and were told we had missed it and it was 3 miles back down hill. (only to get to ride 3 miles back up in the morning). We did find a nice bike trail though to take us back to the fairgrounds and as we rode it back towards our home for the night Toby’s tire suddenly began to violently hiss. Thinking it was a dropped beer he quickly stopped in fear and we realized he had blown a hole in is back tire. Scotty and I rolled on to set up for dinner and Toby pushed his bike on to the camp site.
The next morning realizing we had 4 fays, 300 miles and 4 mountain passes, I worried if we could push on and make it to the coast in time. As we started to climb Wacounda I couldn’t help but wonder how much I would be disappointed in myself if I had to just hitch-hike over the next big pass. Sherman Pass had left me frightened of what lay ahead! After just a little while, I turned a corner and sure enough there were the boys… we had reached the top of Wauconda in no time and it had been a breeze. The downhill felt like more work, with a strong headwind as we rolled on towards Omack, WA.
In Omak we found our staple store: Safeway (imagine the gas points we have been racking up!) Omak's camping was at the Stampede campgrounds, and with the exception of Scotty’s camping side there were no sprinklers to interrupt our sleep. There was however two tents with radios and TV’s inside, one of which played all night long, imagine the pop-music nightmares I had! We got an early start and headed on to conquer Loop Loop pass. Just the name of it sounded too cheery for me to believe it was indeed that “Loopy” of a pass and sure enough after riding by beautiful orchards on a slow incline, out peeked the first hill.
Scotty turned back to me saying, “ I just became psychic, I see myself walking up this one…” With 15-20 miles of climbing ahead I agreed that we had probably both developed the same gift, and I could see the same thing in my future. But sure enough we pushed up that hill. The sun was out in full force and the day was hot, but I stopped little and ate a lot while climbing. At one point we had some pretty good drop offs on the side of the road and it was while passing one of these, where there was no guard rail something on the front of my bike began to feel not quite right. I knew I shouldn’t stop there with cars coming up and no guard rail, so I kept going until there was a good place to stop. Sure enough somehow my front wheels quick release had become opened and loosened and my wheel was barely staying on. I quickly fixed it, thanking the Lord I hadn’t hit any major bumps or fallen off the side of the mountain and then pushed on.
The picture above is looking back over part of Washington Pass from the switchback.
We hooked up with a beautiful back road and enjoyed little traffic, the good weather and our first good look at the North Cascades Mountains. Just passed Mazama we reached Early Winters Campground. The campground was nice and ran close to a creek. The three of us walked back to the creek and then one by one took turns being "brave" and submerging ourselves in the ice-cold snow melt runoff water. Feeling invigorated and somewhat clean we headed back to camp to cook. Unfortunately some fool had decided to hastily pack the white gas in with the food and somehow it had leaked out during the day, smothering everything in the smelly fumes. (who brought me anyway?!)
We built up a camp fire and ate gas soaked ramen noodles. We had a few beers to cheers the passes we had climbed and I anxiously wondered about the last big pass the following day.
Washington Pass, immediately followed by a brief downhill up to another pass, Rainy Pass was going to begin immediately. We started climbing and I was startled around each turn by how amazing the mountains looked. The rain began soon after we had started in a slight drizzle, but it didn’t dampen my spirits. I continued riding knowing that the boys were pushing on ahead as well. While climbing at one point a truck coming from the other direction rounded the corner. An old man was leaned out of his window with his hand jutted out in front of him. At first I began to wave, thinking he was waving at us as most other passerby’s do, and then I realized he was flipping me the bird!! Knowing that I was not riding in his way, or doing anything wrong for that matter I just had to laugh at him and wonder out of all the other people we had seen this man seemed particularly irritated at three cyclists climbing giant mountain passes on the opposite side of the road as him.
The views surrounding us of the North Cascades were just awesome! Each day that we encounter a new mountain, or mountain range I am amazed at how different every mountain can be from the ones I have seen previously. Even through this relatively similar region of the US, every mountain and range seems to have its own character and even personality.
As I neared the top a number of cars were parked on the side taking pictures of the amazing views sprawled out in front and the ones behind. I slowed down and took a few shots myself and then started to pedal on. Another man leaned out of his VW bus, looked at me and chuckled and shaking his head said “You rock!” As I closed in on the last mile of Washington pass and looked behind me I thought to myself… he’s right, I do kind of rock right now! He didn’t know how much I had needed to hear just those words. Not a you can do it, or stay positive, just a few simple words. Chugging up the mountain suddenly I saw a switch back and a steep incline… and I punched on thinking the entire way up about how much I "rock". On the last leg I decided to name my bicycle, I had been searching for a name for him the entire trip… Sherman. (after Sherman Pass, the first and hardest pass I conquered and the one that really made me realize I could do anything!)
After reaching the summit it began to rain harder, we had 2 miles of downhill and 3 miles up to the last pass of our journey, Rainy Pass. On the way down the rain pelted us as we sped around 30 miles per hour. It was cold and painful and I longed to start climbing again just to heat my body back up. ( I never thought I would long to climb!) At the top we stopped for hot chocolate, realizing that we were going to make the coast on time no problem and slowing down to take it all in. We headed for New Halem to camp.
In Marblemount we found that most of that town was closed down as well, but did sit down for burgers as the workers at the joint closed down shop and celebrated somebody’s birthday around us. Night fell and we pushed back a mile for camping, set up in the dark and quickly went to bed.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Where the West begins...
The days still seem to be meshing together, but I am once again trying to sort them out. Today is the 22nd, 21 days total on the road. We are now in state number 3, Idaho. It is beautiful here...
The day we left Whitefish, Tad cooked us up some breakfast, we re-loaded our gear back onto our bikes and headed on the road. Once we left Whitefish the rain began and didn't let up much all day. We stopped for lunch in Stryker, MT (aka at a post office with a few trailer houses around it). It was then I realized how wet I was under my rain gear and how miserable being cold and wet made me feel. The longer I sat eating, the colder it got, so I hopped on my bike and began to ride. We only stopped one more time at the Fortine gas station for some warm coffee and Toby's typical 4 packages of string cheese- snack. The Fortine gas station also serves as a grocery, deli, bar and casino... very typical in this part of Montana, very strange where I come from!
We remained in the cold rain until arriving in Eureka, MT and were debating if we should continue on or stop and check out the camping there when we saw two other touring cycles outside of a pizza shop. Loving our new touring community, we decided we had to stop in and say hello. When we walked in we saw two wet, down-trodden young men. As we introduced ourselves and inquired where they were from and heading it was obvious that it might be an awkward time to discuss such things. They soon explained, in amazing English that they were from France and had started in Canada... had been riding almost 3 weeks in straight rain through the mountains and were done! They were looking up bus travel back to Vancouver to get back home. We wished them well and ordered a pizza and took it to the bar next door to debate on free camping in the local park or pushing a few miles forward for a forest service site.
As we ate our pizza and made the big plans for the evening, in came the two men from France. We invited them to sit down, share our pitcher and soon we were sharing stories and pictures from the trip so far. Realizing that night was falling, we decided to grab some wine and share the park with our new friends to learn more about each other. Together the 5 of us shared our backgrounds, them helping us to translate and us helping them and we stayed up drinking the wine with our new friends. Their mood took an upswing as they were impressed with how much cheaper the US was then Canada and I would like to think that we helped to raise their spirits a little as well.
In the morning we woke up to rain, again... packed up camp and headed to Jax's for breakfast, coffee and more stories. I passed on the maps we had already used and they decided to head towards Yellowstone and then take a bus back to Vancouver.
We said our goodbyes... hugs, double cheek kisses for me and handshakes for the boys. Our ride started with overcast skies and continued on with rain. The hardest part of these days isn't the rain though, it's knowing that there are mountains surrounding you that must just be breathtaking, but you can hardly sneak a peak because of the clouds! And either way... you just keep riding.
Most of the day we spent riding past Lake Koocanusa... a beautiful huge lake just south of the Canada border. The hills went up and down.. .over and over. I spent most of the day singing to myself "this little light of mine"... trying to keep the promise to myself that no matter how difficult, I wasn't going to ruin any day with a bad mood... and just as I was singing and crested one of the many "hills" a beam of light burst through the clouds and directly down onto the water below. It was just magnificent! It was enough to rev my spirits and continue you on (despite a very uncomfortable saddle day). Finally we pulled into the Lake Koocanusa Marina resort and the rain cleared. Warm showers and a lakeside campsite were all we needed to hear to say "We'll take it". And although the shower was now warm, but rather very cold... the spot was beautiful and we enjoyed the sunset as we cooked our dinner.
We woke up to the sun prying through the overcast sky and pushed on, stripping layers immediatly. nto long after, you guessed it the rain started. And then it rained and rained and rained. We made a stop at Koocanusa Falls... talk about whitewater! While we were getting ready to make the small hike another cyclist who had seen our bikes on the side of the road pulled in and began to chat with us. Willy hiked in to the falls and took a walk on the swinging bridge with us. He was from Portland and almost home after about 2 years... he had been sailing around the world and then got on his bike in NY and has been riding west. once we got back to our bikes we took a moment to discuss directions and realized we could all just ride together. Once again, another cyclist joining and we were quickly a group of 5!
As we continued the day in the rain, Willy told us about a place between 2 and 200 on 56 that was called the "Halfway House" that apparently had camping available. Not knowing what to expect we pushed on through the day and eventually arrived at a small bar on the side of this relatively desolate road. We inquired about camping and were told we could camp out back under the "shelter" they had, set up our camp and enjoyed a few beers while talking with Ellen the bartender.
The next morning (man these are long stories, eh?) The next morning... more rain! We hopped on our bikes and continued to push on towards Sandpoint, ID. I had been talking about Sandpoint the entire trip... and had heard so many wonderful things, I was very curious to how it would play out.
Most of the day we rode along the water, lakes EVERYWHERE! with the beautiful backdrop of mountains and clear-enough skies we could see them. Giant pine trees lined the roads we were driving down and even though there were still rainshowers throughout the day, it was more enjoyable then the previous days. We passed through a number of cute towns, including Clark Fork and Hope. The sun came out for a bit as we left Clark Fork and the boys rode on.
From day to day how we ride changes, but often for parts of the the day the boys ride ahead and I catch up, being of slower pace and a bigger desire to stop and take pictures. This day though, after the sun came out I hadn't seen them for awhile. I rode on and on with no boys in site... until I came to a cross roads. You see, I have the maps... they do not, and my maps showed a short cut off the highway with a bike trail, and decided to take the map route figuring they could somehow get to Sandpoint if they made it that far without me. I bee-lined it for the first place I could sit outside with my bike and wait for them in downtown Sandpoint, Idaho. It happened to be Mick Duff's Brewing company.. ordered a local brew and ate some chips. I was hungry, cold, wet and pretty worn out from the day. Not long after the boys who had taken the highway in and then stopped and waited for me figured out where I was.. Toby had headed back to Hope thinking I broke down somewhere... and as we all de-stressed about the situation, I headed to the outdoor store next door to inquire about camping in the area.
Right away we were told that there wasn't any camping unless we went a few miles back, HECK NO, or a few more miles, IMPOSSIBLE! Until a woman working at the store piped up. Sharon must have seen the exhaustion, hunger and frustration of the day on my face when she said, "You can camp in my backyard".
We were so grateful at that point... and took her up on the offer right away. Made our way to her yard, pitched our tents and she quickly invited us in for 2 buck chuck and a desire to hear our stories so far. The rest of us headed to Eichardts, a coffee-pub kinda place that I would highly recommend to anyone passing through. I had a fresh salad... something I had been craving for miles and we split the best garlic fries in the world! That night I slept well on a well manacured lawn in an amazing new town.
This morning we woke up and were welcomed to sunshine and morning tea. Willy began the rest of his journey while the rest of us took showers. Our original plans were to take a half day, get things done and then try and push about 30 miles on. Instead, we walked with Sharon down to the Evans Brothers coffee shop and met two women named Yvonne who had just met minutes before. All of us talked like we had known each other forever. I began to wonder how cycle touring has shown me that friendships can start with a simple smile or meek hello and within minutes you feel as if you have known someone your entire life. It didn't take much to decide we could stay one more day. Willy also showed us a link to when he "went missing in N. Dakota", really not that funny, but funny to us as we sat comfortably with him in Sharon's home. With about 4 days of no connection to his family (during his 2 years of traveling the world... ) they went looking for him and he even made the local news.
We spent the rest of the day doing laundry, blogging, airing out our damp gear, picking up groceries to get us through the next few days. After deciding to spend one more night in "Sharon's personal camp-ground" she walked us down to City Beach, a beautiful park on Lake Pend Orielle which this town rest on. Sharon told us her stories of travel and why she was drawn to help us out. Generosity seems to run rampent and continues to amaze me. ( I say as she cooks us dinner and I peck away at the keyboards)
This journey feels never-ending, and yet we are coming up on our last big leg of the trip! Washington is only a few miles away and then up and up and up, downhill and we are at the end ( I shouldnt talk about that yet!)
Closing in on the last week I am trying to hold every site and moment and memory close. Compared to Willy and Kala/Will and Scotty our trip seems so short. I can tell already though that this is just the beginning of many adventures I will get to take in my lifetime.
I may not blog again until the trip is over, but leave with this for now:
Out Where the West Begins- Arthur Chapman
Out where the handclasp's a little stronger,
Out where the smile dwells a little longer,
That's where the West begins;
Out where the sun is a little brighter,
Where the snows that fall are a trifle whiter;
Where the bonds of home are a wee bit tighter;
That's where the West begins.
Out where the skies are a trifle bluer,
Out where the friendship's a little truer,
That's where the West begins
Out where a fresher breeze is blowing,
Where there's laughter in every streamlet flowing,
Where there's more of reaping and less of sowing,
That's where the West begins.
Out where the world is in the making,
Where fewer hearts with despair are aching;
That's where the West begins;
Where there's more of singing and less of sighing,
Where's there's more of giving and less of buying,
And where a man makes friends without half trying,
That's where the West begins.
The day we left Whitefish, Tad cooked us up some breakfast, we re-loaded our gear back onto our bikes and headed on the road. Once we left Whitefish the rain began and didn't let up much all day. We stopped for lunch in Stryker, MT (aka at a post office with a few trailer houses around it). It was then I realized how wet I was under my rain gear and how miserable being cold and wet made me feel. The longer I sat eating, the colder it got, so I hopped on my bike and began to ride. We only stopped one more time at the Fortine gas station for some warm coffee and Toby's typical 4 packages of string cheese- snack. The Fortine gas station also serves as a grocery, deli, bar and casino... very typical in this part of Montana, very strange where I come from!
We remained in the cold rain until arriving in Eureka, MT and were debating if we should continue on or stop and check out the camping there when we saw two other touring cycles outside of a pizza shop. Loving our new touring community, we decided we had to stop in and say hello. When we walked in we saw two wet, down-trodden young men. As we introduced ourselves and inquired where they were from and heading it was obvious that it might be an awkward time to discuss such things. They soon explained, in amazing English that they were from France and had started in Canada... had been riding almost 3 weeks in straight rain through the mountains and were done! They were looking up bus travel back to Vancouver to get back home. We wished them well and ordered a pizza and took it to the bar next door to debate on free camping in the local park or pushing a few miles forward for a forest service site.
As we ate our pizza and made the big plans for the evening, in came the two men from France. We invited them to sit down, share our pitcher and soon we were sharing stories and pictures from the trip so far. Realizing that night was falling, we decided to grab some wine and share the park with our new friends to learn more about each other. Together the 5 of us shared our backgrounds, them helping us to translate and us helping them and we stayed up drinking the wine with our new friends. Their mood took an upswing as they were impressed with how much cheaper the US was then Canada and I would like to think that we helped to raise their spirits a little as well.
We said our goodbyes... hugs, double cheek kisses for me and handshakes for the boys. Our ride started with overcast skies and continued on with rain. The hardest part of these days isn't the rain though, it's knowing that there are mountains surrounding you that must just be breathtaking, but you can hardly sneak a peak because of the clouds! And either way... you just keep riding.
Most of the day we spent riding past Lake Koocanusa... a beautiful huge lake just south of the Canada border. The hills went up and down.. .over and over. I spent most of the day singing to myself "this little light of mine"... trying to keep the promise to myself that no matter how difficult, I wasn't going to ruin any day with a bad mood... and just as I was singing and crested one of the many "hills" a beam of light burst through the clouds and directly down onto the water below. It was just magnificent! It was enough to rev my spirits and continue you on (despite a very uncomfortable saddle day). Finally we pulled into the Lake Koocanusa Marina resort and the rain cleared. Warm showers and a lakeside campsite were all we needed to hear to say "We'll take it". And although the shower was now warm, but rather very cold... the spot was beautiful and we enjoyed the sunset as we cooked our dinner.
We woke up to the sun prying through the overcast sky and pushed on, stripping layers immediatly. nto long after, you guessed it the rain started. And then it rained and rained and rained. We made a stop at Koocanusa Falls... talk about whitewater! While we were getting ready to make the small hike another cyclist who had seen our bikes on the side of the road pulled in and began to chat with us. Willy hiked in to the falls and took a walk on the swinging bridge with us. He was from Portland and almost home after about 2 years... he had been sailing around the world and then got on his bike in NY and has been riding west. once we got back to our bikes we took a moment to discuss directions and realized we could all just ride together. Once again, another cyclist joining and we were quickly a group of 5!
The next morning (man these are long stories, eh?) The next morning... more rain! We hopped on our bikes and continued to push on towards Sandpoint, ID. I had been talking about Sandpoint the entire trip... and had heard so many wonderful things, I was very curious to how it would play out.
Most of the day we rode along the water, lakes EVERYWHERE! with the beautiful backdrop of mountains and clear-enough skies we could see them. Giant pine trees lined the roads we were driving down and even though there were still rainshowers throughout the day, it was more enjoyable then the previous days. We passed through a number of cute towns, including Clark Fork and Hope. The sun came out for a bit as we left Clark Fork and the boys rode on.
From day to day how we ride changes, but often for parts of the the day the boys ride ahead and I catch up, being of slower pace and a bigger desire to stop and take pictures. This day though, after the sun came out I hadn't seen them for awhile. I rode on and on with no boys in site... until I came to a cross roads. You see, I have the maps... they do not, and my maps showed a short cut off the highway with a bike trail, and decided to take the map route figuring they could somehow get to Sandpoint if they made it that far without me. I bee-lined it for the first place I could sit outside with my bike and wait for them in downtown Sandpoint, Idaho. It happened to be Mick Duff's Brewing company.. ordered a local brew and ate some chips. I was hungry, cold, wet and pretty worn out from the day. Not long after the boys who had taken the highway in and then stopped and waited for me figured out where I was.. Toby had headed back to Hope thinking I broke down somewhere... and as we all de-stressed about the situation, I headed to the outdoor store next door to inquire about camping in the area.
Right away we were told that there wasn't any camping unless we went a few miles back, HECK NO, or a few more miles, IMPOSSIBLE! Until a woman working at the store piped up. Sharon must have seen the exhaustion, hunger and frustration of the day on my face when she said, "You can camp in my backyard".
We were so grateful at that point... and took her up on the offer right away. Made our way to her yard, pitched our tents and she quickly invited us in for 2 buck chuck and a desire to hear our stories so far. The rest of us headed to Eichardts, a coffee-pub kinda place that I would highly recommend to anyone passing through. I had a fresh salad... something I had been craving for miles and we split the best garlic fries in the world! That night I slept well on a well manacured lawn in an amazing new town.
We spent the rest of the day doing laundry, blogging, airing out our damp gear, picking up groceries to get us through the next few days. After deciding to spend one more night in "Sharon's personal camp-ground" she walked us down to City Beach, a beautiful park on Lake Pend Orielle which this town rest on. Sharon told us her stories of travel and why she was drawn to help us out. Generosity seems to run rampent and continues to amaze me. ( I say as she cooks us dinner and I peck away at the keyboards)
This journey feels never-ending, and yet we are coming up on our last big leg of the trip! Washington is only a few miles away and then up and up and up, downhill and we are at the end ( I shouldnt talk about that yet!)
Closing in on the last week I am trying to hold every site and moment and memory close. Compared to Willy and Kala/Will and Scotty our trip seems so short. I can tell already though that this is just the beginning of many adventures I will get to take in my lifetime.
I may not blog again until the trip is over, but leave with this for now:
Out Where the West Begins- Arthur Chapman
Out where the handclasp's a little stronger,
Out where the smile dwells a little longer,
That's where the West begins;
Out where the sun is a little brighter,
Where the snows that fall are a trifle whiter;
Where the bonds of home are a wee bit tighter;
That's where the West begins.
Out where the skies are a trifle bluer,
Out where the friendship's a little truer,
That's where the West begins
Out where a fresher breeze is blowing,
Where there's laughter in every streamlet flowing,
Where there's more of reaping and less of sowing,
That's where the West begins.
Out where the world is in the making,
Where fewer hearts with despair are aching;
That's where the West begins;
Where there's more of singing and less of sighing,
Where's there's more of giving and less of buying,
And where a man makes friends without half trying,
That's where the West begins.
Friday, September 17, 2010
Moving to Montana!
Okay, I've lost track of the days. Today is Sept. 17, I've missed a few friends birthdays... Happy Birthday Kim and Becky! But the days are all blending together in such a way that I can't quite seperate them from day to day... insert format change, now! (besides, it was hard for me to talk in proper tenses anyway) forgive the writing, I'm just trying to get it done, probably not even gonna edit it this time but hey, Loving Montana!
Day ?
We last left off at the bike camp in twin bridges, a 6-some now gathered together; Will and Kala, heading from NH to Portland and Scotty and Lucy from Denver, heading to Baha via Vancouver and the California coast. After the last blog session in Twin Bridges Bill stopped by, he was the brains behind the bike camp... the man who payed for the little building we called home for 2 nights. He had only lived in town for a few years when he brought up the idea about having a shelter for the cyclists who come through TB (Twin Bridges). He had to do a little bit of convincing of the townsfolk many of whom at the time didn't really like the idea of travelers like us rolling through town. Bill broke it down and explained how people like us would stop and enjoy the town and maybe even spend some money with a welcoming spot such as bike camp. The 6 of us were easily persuaded to stay two nights in TB just because of bike camp. Between the 6 of us we definitly helped to boost their economy just a little bit. Anyway, Bill stayed and chatted for awihle sharing stories of other cyclsits he had met and about the area, we shared our stories and thanked Bill for the accomadations.
Kathy and Shane, or new friends from Twin Bridges did end up stopping back down to the bike "camp" that evening. They brought us pizza and beer and some good conversation. After we filled our stomachs to the brim, Toby and I headed over with those guys to the watch the friday night football game. Kathy's son was the quarter back and we cheered on the Falcons as they played (or rather smoothered) White Sulpher Springs who had only driven 4 hours to get to the game. We took in the small town feel as the young boys played ball in the foreground of the beautiful mountains. It seemed as if everyone knew everyone... and usually they knew their brother and dog too. As we headed back to bike camp I reflected on how differently the world in TB was compared to the world I knew, and tried to figure out what I could take from it. Falling asleep in my sleeping bag at "camp"I thought about the choices we can make everyday to get to know people a little bit deeper.
Another day
The next morning, after saying goodbye to the twin bridges bike camp... and taking some very cheesey camp photos, we all headed on our way. It was 9/11 and we passed through a few small towns with Fire Trucks proudly waving flags in honor of those who lost their lives in 2001... now 9 years later its hard to believe how much time has passed since then.
It was a long, slow day with some good size climbs. We climbed Badger pass and Big Hole pass. They were long slow climbs up short grades, but the day seemed to drag on. Somehow we made it to the top and ended up in the "Big Hole." That is literally what it was. We had climbed up and looking all around mountains surrounding us on all sides... 360* of mountains. The views were amazing!! After a short stop at the visitors center it was time to ride down the other side of the pass towards Jackson, MT. The descent was rewarding. Coasting after climbing all day was a relief to the legs, which have slowly begun to feel the burn of miles of riding everyday. We arrived late in Jackson as the sun was setting.
At Jackson Hot Springs we paid $10 each for camping and took a dip in the warm water. My feet melted in sheer happiness! We were moved by hunger hunger and forced ourselves out of the pool and went to the bar to check out the menu (we weren't " aloud to" use campstoves on the property... ) We selected an overpriced chicken alfredo entree to split and were saddened when a 1/2 cup of luke warm egg noodles covered with drippings of white sauce and small chunks of fatty chicken were placed in front of us. The meal disapeared quickly and then so did we into our tents, foregoing a second trip in the hotsprings due to the 30 local high school kids that showed up just as we were fininshing our "dinner".
It was a cold night and even colder morning, but we managed to pull ourselves from bed, pack up our belongings and enjoy a few cups of free coffee offered in the lodge. We shoved off early, and about 7 miles outside of town I realized I had left my rain pants inside the lodge while filling up water bottles for the day. I called the lodge and they drove them the 7 miles out to me... revamping my negative attitudes towards the bad food at Jackson... once again strangers helping out strangers in lycra.
The day after the last
We went on our way for a day of more climbing. Chief Joseph pass was a long, but very small grade... until the end when it decided to go vertical. It was another long day. 80 miles the day before and another 75 and my legs were starting to feel it. We pulled into a fishing access camp sight just south of Darby, MT. As we began to set up camp, Will rode his bike into town to pick up some dinner to cook for the group. There was a river that ran along the campsite and the sound of the rushing water put me at ease. Will returned from town with ground beef, corn on the cob, potatoes and we made a grilled feast...shared some more bad stories and eased into bed for another night of hibernation.
After the sun went down:
The next day we headed on for Missoula, another long day. We were up early, our earliest leave time yet I think. It was a beautiful day to ride. Tensions were high among the groups, individually and totally... but mostly downhill and sunshine. About 2 miles outside of Hamilton I heard a clacking on my tire and after I caught up with the group Will discovered a staple in my front tire. Despite pleading with him to leave it in there, he popped it out and the air began to hiss... my first flat of the trip. Being in a stubborn mode, I tried to change it myself... but sometimes trying to fix things in a negative state of mind just takes longer. The boys helped me out and we were soon on our way.
for a few miles we had an awesome bike path off the road, and then were back on the road, some shoulder, bumpy, uneven pavement... and the logging trucks started right around then too. After a good bit of miles on this intense stretch of road we had another great bike trail just off of the road. It undulated... up and down and up and down... the miles stretched on and it felt like we were NEVER going to reach Missoula.
Throughout the day I had begun to take inventory on the road garbage that we had to swerve to avoid:
-a giant paint brush
- a broken pedal
- bannana peels... hundereds of them actually throughout this trip!
-2x2's with nails sticking out
-roadkill.... skunks, turtles, snakes, big birds, little birds, deer, deer hoves
- a barbie leg
By the time we made it to Missoula we were all exhausted. I had begun chaffing, my butt was sore, my legs were sore... and we were all hungry. We headed straight for the Adventure Cycling headquarters where we had purchased our maps and who had made up the routes we were following. We took advantage of the free ice cream and soda, waterbottles and conversation of other cyclists . We were given a tour of the building. Jim, our tour leader for the day told us how the ACA had started off as a celebration of America back in '76. They had amazing pictures from the first trek on the Trans America trail... and it was inspiring to see. The gear they used, the clothes... they definitly did it differently back then. They also shot some pictures of us all, as they do of groups that come through... which they will archive forever.
The 6 of us split up to do our things in Missoula and reconvined for our last dinner as a group. Lucy decided she was ready to go home, Kala and Will were heading west for Portland and Scotty was still figuring out his next move.
Toby and I headed with Will and Kala to our hosts house for the night... They had found a place to stay through warm showers (an org. that helps cyclists like us have a place to stay once in awhile). Ed and Laurie and their daughter Christy welcomed us into their home. They played a slideshow of their trip on the continental divide and opened up about their adventures to us. Coincidently they had met in Fort Collins at CSU and so we connected with them about their days back at the Mishawaka and other sites in Fort Collins. We went to bed, dry, warm and with a real flush toilet and shower just a hallway away.
And then the next day...
We woke up and Laurie put on a pot of coffee, we all checked our bank accounts (cringing... ) Then we said fairwell to the family that had hosted us. It still amazes me that there are so many people who reach out to help us on this journey. We said goodbye to Will and Kala and parted directions... I wish them well on their last few miles of a very long trip! New Hampshire to Portland... wow! I hope to meet them again someday when I make it to Oregon and they know they always have a place in Fort Collins.
Toby and I headed on our way... at this point my legs decided they were tired and not wanting to move. It was for sure the slowest moving day we have had yet. I felt bad... I know Tobs wants to go faster... but it was just one of those days. We pushed on through the day and both agreed it was weird to be on our own again.... it was good, but it was different and we missed our little group of 6. Eventually we made it to Swan Lake State Campsite where we cooked dinner and went to bed hoping for an early start to the day the following morning.
The following morning:
We got a better move on in the morning, although I was still moving slow, it was a bit faster than the day before. It was cold, there was fog rolling off the lakes along the road we were on, but it was beautiful. One of my favorite days so far.. Montana is growing on me, I must say... Tall pine trees hugged the winding road... just awesome! As we pushed on it felt as if you could see the trees cool breath on the air and I felt refreshed and rejuvinated... The rain pelted down on us most of the day but it cooled me off and the day pulled me out of my slump.
I've been thinking a lot about grandpa these days... his birthday has been on my mind. Everyday of beauty on this trip I can picture him riding along with me and just loving how gorgeous our country is!! I thought about him all the way into Swan Lake, MT.
We stopped at the trading post in town and the couple who owned the place convinced us to stay there instead of the National Forest site up the road. For the same price we had showers and flush toilets, a pond right next to our campsite and free coffee in the morning... we were sold! Toby woke me up not long after I had fallen asleep because there was something outside the tent... we heard digging and snorting directly by our heads. He asked where the bear spray was and I stayed frozen in silence trying not to move or talk or even breath... just be dead I thought, play dead, think thoughts of brussel spruts and it won't eat you.... moments later we saw the shadow of a doe light up against the tent.
Joe and Jocelyn at the Swan Lake Trading Post made for good conversation and an amazing breakfast sandwhich the next morning... the "McSwan". We stayed a little longer than expected, sitting at the counter sipping on the freshly made coffee and listening to Joe talk about his eagles and share stories with us.
That day which was also Kim's birthday:
We left as usual, wishing we could spend just a little more time, but we had stayed about 2 hours longer than expected and it was raining a good bit. Once again the rain felt great... The next town over we stopped to pick up some lunch and a woman there told us good luck and that she had been on that first centennial ride in '76. Onward from there I saw a vulture getting ready to attack its prey... 57 miles of riding until Whitefish.
We stopped two times at local produce stands... peaches and spud nuts, huckleberries and cherries, yum! Most of the ride in was on country backroads, and it may be official, I am loving some Montana. I can already see my little house out in the coutnry with the mountains towering over, I just may have to move here someday. Once we arrived in Whitefish we were greeted with a familiar face... Scotty! He had left later and still beaten us to Whitefish. Not long after Tad met us in town and we were welcomed to his little piece of the world. We sipped on beers, ate at the Bulldog Saloon and then headed over to the palace for a few PBR's.... We did laundry, showered and rested well.
Today:
Finally, it is today... 9/17, I can start to put the days together again. We woke up early and since Tad had things to attend to, his friend Doug and Kat took the three of us, reunited again up to the base of Glacier National Park where we floated on Sea Kayaks for a few hours. The evening is young, but we are cooking up (the boys are... I'm busy blogging) cooking up a feast of spaghetti and garlic bread! Plans for leaving have yet to be decided... I guess I should get off this computer I have been on trying to reconnect the days in my head... 16 days on the road. Maybe I'll just settle in Whitefish for awhile.... I don't see why not!
Day ?
We last left off at the bike camp in twin bridges, a 6-some now gathered together; Will and Kala, heading from NH to Portland and Scotty and Lucy from Denver, heading to Baha via Vancouver and the California coast. After the last blog session in Twin Bridges Bill stopped by, he was the brains behind the bike camp... the man who payed for the little building we called home for 2 nights. He had only lived in town for a few years when he brought up the idea about having a shelter for the cyclists who come through TB (Twin Bridges). He had to do a little bit of convincing of the townsfolk many of whom at the time didn't really like the idea of travelers like us rolling through town. Bill broke it down and explained how people like us would stop and enjoy the town and maybe even spend some money with a welcoming spot such as bike camp. The 6 of us were easily persuaded to stay two nights in TB just because of bike camp. Between the 6 of us we definitly helped to boost their economy just a little bit. Anyway, Bill stayed and chatted for awihle sharing stories of other cyclsits he had met and about the area, we shared our stories and thanked Bill for the accomadations.
Another day
The next morning, after saying goodbye to the twin bridges bike camp... and taking some very cheesey camp photos, we all headed on our way. It was 9/11 and we passed through a few small towns with Fire Trucks proudly waving flags in honor of those who lost their lives in 2001... now 9 years later its hard to believe how much time has passed since then.
It was a long, slow day with some good size climbs. We climbed Badger pass and Big Hole pass. They were long slow climbs up short grades, but the day seemed to drag on. Somehow we made it to the top and ended up in the "Big Hole." That is literally what it was. We had climbed up and looking all around mountains surrounding us on all sides... 360* of mountains. The views were amazing!! After a short stop at the visitors center it was time to ride down the other side of the pass towards Jackson, MT. The descent was rewarding. Coasting after climbing all day was a relief to the legs, which have slowly begun to feel the burn of miles of riding everyday. We arrived late in Jackson as the sun was setting.
It was a cold night and even colder morning, but we managed to pull ourselves from bed, pack up our belongings and enjoy a few cups of free coffee offered in the lodge. We shoved off early, and about 7 miles outside of town I realized I had left my rain pants inside the lodge while filling up water bottles for the day. I called the lodge and they drove them the 7 miles out to me... revamping my negative attitudes towards the bad food at Jackson... once again strangers helping out strangers in lycra.
The day after the last
We went on our way for a day of more climbing. Chief Joseph pass was a long, but very small grade... until the end when it decided to go vertical. It was another long day. 80 miles the day before and another 75 and my legs were starting to feel it. We pulled into a fishing access camp sight just south of Darby, MT. As we began to set up camp, Will rode his bike into town to pick up some dinner to cook for the group. There was a river that ran along the campsite and the sound of the rushing water put me at ease. Will returned from town with ground beef, corn on the cob, potatoes and we made a grilled feast...shared some more bad stories and eased into bed for another night of hibernation.
After the sun went down:
The next day we headed on for Missoula, another long day. We were up early, our earliest leave time yet I think. It was a beautiful day to ride. Tensions were high among the groups, individually and totally... but mostly downhill and sunshine. About 2 miles outside of Hamilton I heard a clacking on my tire and after I caught up with the group Will discovered a staple in my front tire. Despite pleading with him to leave it in there, he popped it out and the air began to hiss... my first flat of the trip. Being in a stubborn mode, I tried to change it myself... but sometimes trying to fix things in a negative state of mind just takes longer. The boys helped me out and we were soon on our way.
for a few miles we had an awesome bike path off the road, and then were back on the road, some shoulder, bumpy, uneven pavement... and the logging trucks started right around then too. After a good bit of miles on this intense stretch of road we had another great bike trail just off of the road. It undulated... up and down and up and down... the miles stretched on and it felt like we were NEVER going to reach Missoula.
Throughout the day I had begun to take inventory on the road garbage that we had to swerve to avoid:
-a giant paint brush
- a broken pedal
- bannana peels... hundereds of them actually throughout this trip!
-2x2's with nails sticking out
-roadkill.... skunks, turtles, snakes, big birds, little birds, deer, deer hoves
- a barbie leg
By the time we made it to Missoula we were all exhausted. I had begun chaffing, my butt was sore, my legs were sore... and we were all hungry. We headed straight for the Adventure Cycling headquarters where we had purchased our maps and who had made up the routes we were following. We took advantage of the free ice cream and soda, waterbottles and conversation of other cyclists . We were given a tour of the building. Jim, our tour leader for the day told us how the ACA had started off as a celebration of America back in '76. They had amazing pictures from the first trek on the Trans America trail... and it was inspiring to see. The gear they used, the clothes... they definitly did it differently back then. They also shot some pictures of us all, as they do of groups that come through... which they will archive forever.
The 6 of us split up to do our things in Missoula and reconvined for our last dinner as a group. Lucy decided she was ready to go home, Kala and Will were heading west for Portland and Scotty was still figuring out his next move.
Toby and I headed with Will and Kala to our hosts house for the night... They had found a place to stay through warm showers (an org. that helps cyclists like us have a place to stay once in awhile). Ed and Laurie and their daughter Christy welcomed us into their home. They played a slideshow of their trip on the continental divide and opened up about their adventures to us. Coincidently they had met in Fort Collins at CSU and so we connected with them about their days back at the Mishawaka and other sites in Fort Collins. We went to bed, dry, warm and with a real flush toilet and shower just a hallway away.
And then the next day...
Toby and I headed on our way... at this point my legs decided they were tired and not wanting to move. It was for sure the slowest moving day we have had yet. I felt bad... I know Tobs wants to go faster... but it was just one of those days. We pushed on through the day and both agreed it was weird to be on our own again.... it was good, but it was different and we missed our little group of 6. Eventually we made it to Swan Lake State Campsite where we cooked dinner and went to bed hoping for an early start to the day the following morning.
The following morning:
We got a better move on in the morning, although I was still moving slow, it was a bit faster than the day before. It was cold, there was fog rolling off the lakes along the road we were on, but it was beautiful. One of my favorite days so far.. Montana is growing on me, I must say... Tall pine trees hugged the winding road... just awesome! As we pushed on it felt as if you could see the trees cool breath on the air and I felt refreshed and rejuvinated... The rain pelted down on us most of the day but it cooled me off and the day pulled me out of my slump.
We stopped at the trading post in town and the couple who owned the place convinced us to stay there instead of the National Forest site up the road. For the same price we had showers and flush toilets, a pond right next to our campsite and free coffee in the morning... we were sold! Toby woke me up not long after I had fallen asleep because there was something outside the tent... we heard digging and snorting directly by our heads. He asked where the bear spray was and I stayed frozen in silence trying not to move or talk or even breath... just be dead I thought, play dead, think thoughts of brussel spruts and it won't eat you.... moments later we saw the shadow of a doe light up against the tent.
Joe and Jocelyn at the Swan Lake Trading Post made for good conversation and an amazing breakfast sandwhich the next morning... the "McSwan". We stayed a little longer than expected, sitting at the counter sipping on the freshly made coffee and listening to Joe talk about his eagles and share stories with us.
We left as usual, wishing we could spend just a little more time, but we had stayed about 2 hours longer than expected and it was raining a good bit. Once again the rain felt great... The next town over we stopped to pick up some lunch and a woman there told us good luck and that she had been on that first centennial ride in '76. Onward from there I saw a vulture getting ready to attack its prey... 57 miles of riding until Whitefish.
We stopped two times at local produce stands... peaches and spud nuts, huckleberries and cherries, yum! Most of the ride in was on country backroads, and it may be official, I am loving some Montana. I can already see my little house out in the coutnry with the mountains towering over, I just may have to move here someday. Once we arrived in Whitefish we were greeted with a familiar face... Scotty! He had left later and still beaten us to Whitefish. Not long after Tad met us in town and we were welcomed to his little piece of the world. We sipped on beers, ate at the Bulldog Saloon and then headed over to the palace for a few PBR's.... We did laundry, showered and rested well.
Finally, it is today... 9/17, I can start to put the days together again. We woke up early and since Tad had things to attend to, his friend Doug and Kat took the three of us, reunited again up to the base of Glacier National Park where we floated on Sea Kayaks for a few hours. The evening is young, but we are cooking up (the boys are... I'm busy blogging) cooking up a feast of spaghetti and garlic bread! Plans for leaving have yet to be decided... I guess I should get off this computer I have been on trying to reconnect the days in my head... 16 days on the road. Maybe I'll just settle in Whitefish for awhile.... I don't see why not!
Friday, September 10, 2010
Tour de Franzia!
Day 6 (ctd.)- After lunching in W. Yellowstone and updating the blog we decided to call it a day. (yes a very short day of riding indeed). The four of us seem to travel well together and since deciding not to move onto Bozeman, we are all heading the same way. While we had the company we figured it would be a good time to split a hotel room, shower up and do some bathtub laundry. (I must say you get a lot more stinky riding bikes than you do on river trips, and that's saying something!) Lucy and I decided showers and a warm bed would make for a good campsite for the night. The Dude Motel ended up being the perfect spot. At the local grocery store we picked up some provisions for dinner and found a mini-grill on sale for about 4 dollars. Another delicious meal... steak, mashed potatoes and gravy with sauteed vegetables! Day 7
Freshly cooked breakfast burritos and coffee got us moving in the morning. It was mostly downhill, and even though dark skies followed us most of the day I can't say it made Montana any less beautiful. We passed through the Quake Lake area where historical stops every few miles told the story of the 1959 earthquake the shaped the landscape we were riding through. There was a small climb to the Visitors Center where a gathering of middle school students cheered us on up the hill, promising us food at the top. About a half hour from Ennis we were slammed with rain and wind. It was about 5:30 when we arrived at the town park. The last half hour in the rain was frustrating, but reaching that park felt great no matter how wet we were, and for just a second I had a glimmer of hope... until I rode up to the others and could not clip out and fell over on my bicycle at a dead stop onto the wet ground. I could only be angry for a brief moment, and than just had to laugh. None of the others seemed to react at all, so I asked them politely to just consider the humor in what just happened and laugh.
Not a few minutes later two bus loads of kids from the visitors center about 30-40 miles back arrived to use the same rest rooms, saying "Hey there's the bikers, they beat us here!"
Day 8
One week down and leaving Ennis! Toby left his camel pack at the Claim Jumper, but it was quickly recovered when the neighboring coffee shop gave him the owners number. The owner told him that "nobody ever steals in this town... and the one guy who did got the crap beat outta him". I like Ennis. (the good people of Montana rock!)A big climb immediately leaving town... 7 miles of vertical... probably only about a 4% grade, but it was tough. The view from the top was spectacular. The road below us stretching back into Ennis reached for the mountains in the background. Clouds were gently reaching around them and the sun was just barely peaking out and shining down across the land. Once we got to the top a man told us we were just around the corner from the downhill.
We packed our cold weather gear on... riding down is usually the coldest part of the day, and headed for that "just around the corner".
There was a downhill, but there was also more uphill "just around the next corner"... cursing the man we powered onto the top.
It was a much appreciated (and deserved) descent. We rolled easily into the historical town of Virginia City. The entire street is a museum itself. Many of the old buildings are closed, but if you peek inside the windows you can see the old toy store set up, the barber shop with figures going about their daily lives, you can go into the hanging building where vigilantes would hang thieves etc., and you can also get a pretty good cup of coffee at one of the little shops that is still running in modern day times. With plenty more miles to cover we pushed onward. Too many times we would stop to re-group and it seemed each time my legs found it harder and harder to remember how to pedal. After the town of Sheridan it got worse. My butt began to become one with the saddle and I could hardly sit any longer, my knee really started to ache with each push of the pedal and the wind picked up. I started to get just a little grumpy.
When we finally reached Twin Bridges, MT it was either stay or push on for 30 more miles, to the next services area... the four of us stopped into the Lost Cabin bar to discuss with the locals what they would do.
They gave us the usual "local" response... laughed and told us that north was the wrong way to go this time of year. They also laughed about the snow and the rain we were probably going to hit climbing over our next two passes. We were also told about the cyclist rest area just down the road that was built by a local man. They told us it had a covered area, showers and a bathroom and was sitting right next to the river. It was one of the easier decisions we have had to make.
We went down and found an amazing space truly designed for cyclists. I can hardly describe what has been put together here. There is a shower, with warm water and soap and shampoo, a bathroom, a covered picnic area, a little cabinet with bike literature, bugspray, sunscreen and more random things that might be nice for someone traveling through. There is even a stand outside to put your bike on for repair and a grill. The only thing missing is a mechanic and a chef!
As we spread out our belongings onto every surface we could take up, two more tourists rolled on in. Will and Kala, traveling from New Hampshire told us that they were also heading towards Missoula. The boys went into town grabbed some Franzia boxed wine and brought it back to our new shack. We all started talking and decided that maybe the next day off where we had such amazing facilities didn't sound like the worst idea ever... and since we were out of wine we headed back into town to the Anchor Bar. The locals there wine-d us well and we had a good time getting to know our new friends. Kathy promised to come and cook us dinner before the big football game the following evening since we would still be in town. She really seemed to love "us kids". Finally we all walked back to our new little hideout in Twin Bridges and crawled into our sleeping bags.
I must say that the motto here "Twin Bridges- the small town that cares" is dead on.
Day 9
So, here we are day 9. I had breakfast with Scotty and Lucy in town at the WagonWheel, while Toby and the others stayed back to sleep and shower. When we got back and we began clearing our stuff off the floor we discovered that we had been invaded by worms in the night. We plucked them off the ground from below our sleeping mats and bags and threw them back into the world.
It was almost impossible to stop showering... it was probably my favorite shower I have ever taken, in my LIFE! yea, that good. Lucy and I took the clothes to the laundromat and we are now sitting in the public library. Compared to the 7 books on a shelf at the Crowheart, WY gas station (with a sign above that read "Crowheart Library") this library has a lot more to offer. Although Toby did just manage to print off about 60 pages of something without realizing it was 15 cents a sheet... hahaha!
Time to go check the laundry... hopefully it's still there. And then maybe grab some lunch. Toby posted some pictures at http://sustainablebicycling.org/ and I will hopefully be able to post some pictures later.
I am still hoping Kathy will pull through and bring us dinner to grill tonight. Tomorrow is going to be a long haul over some steep mountain passes... I think we are all looking forward to reaching Missoula. I'm hoping the weather will hold up and the cold will try and stay away for a few more weeks. If it doesn't though I've realized you just push on...
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Greetings From W. Yellowstone
Whew! Day 5, first blog on the ride! Guess I should backtrack from the begining:
After a late start in F.C., due to car troubles (stupid cars!) we made moves up to Lander WY. A 6 hour car ride later we were abandoned by our drivers and left alone with just our gears and bikes. We stayed at a city park in Lander for free, great spot! Late that night we spotted our first other tourers setting up camp next to us.
Ride-Day 1
In the morning we chatted up our tent neighbors and found out they were from Denver and heading in the same direction after a day off in Lander. We on the other hand were on our way, after coffee, a tire change, and a few hours of lolly-gagging.
After only a short amount of riding we soon made friends with a half-starved pup named Skip. Skippers followed us up the road for awhile. Finally a couple from CA pulled over to let us know there was a dog chasing us down... after we filled them in they turned around picked up Skip and took him back to a vet in town. They paid for a few nights of boarding and tried to call the owner who apparently was from IN! This couple helps restore faith in the good of people... We hope Skip and his owner are reunited soon (maybe in a month if he is still there I'll bring him home!)
We treked through the Wind River Indian Reservation as fast as we could trying to make it to Dubois (do-boys). After 75 miles on day 1 we pulled into Dubois, WY and went straight for pizza at Playa Deli and a KOA.
Day 2- Day 2 should've been a big climb over Togwotee pass (Ta-goat-e), and there was a good bit of climbing until we were stopped and shuttled over the top because of construction. A 7 mile shuttle on our first big pass was kind of a downer, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't at least a little happy about it! On the way down the pass, we stopped at Angler's campground and were given a great view of the Tetons. Some animal rucus at night made us a little restless, and we didn't have the best night of sleep, but the view in the morning made up for it.
Day 3- I was reminded in the morning that sunscreen is very important... with blackened shoulders and a slight chill, I remembered my face, but forgot the part that was facing the sun for the entire first day! Riding day 3 wasn't too bad and we settled in for camp at Colter Bay Village in Grand Teton NP. They have a special hiker/biker campground, which seems to lack a special hicker biker rate as they still charge per person. At CBV we met J. MO, a dude from Oregon heading to Pittsburg and Hunter and Rick, a father son duo completing the entire great divide! As we sat with J. Mo around the fire later that night our conversation was interupted with a very distinct "ROAR!"... after a few more minutes of chatter we all look at eachother and asked aloud, "we all just heard a growl right?" And sure enough one more very bear-ish "Roar"... it had to have been just behind our neighbors campsite... The three of us quickly loaded everything we could into the bear box and stood around like a group of militia, waiting for the bear to attack. Toby held his light into the trees, I handled the bear spray can for dear life and J.Mo suddenly discovered in his pocket a packet of Hot Tamales that he ran to dispose of in the bear box as well. Even now, I can't help but laugh at how we must have looked!
Day 4
After all walking to the bathroom together, we went to bed early and surprisingly got a good night sleep. Woke up to rain on the tent-top and cooked some breakfast and heading on for a day of climbing. We powered on through the day, climbing up to the entrance to Yellowstone. At our first big climb we were greeted at the top by a strange man waving at us with his straw hat... turns out that was my friend Ray!
So happy to see Ray I immediatly begin ripping things off my bike for him to bring back to Fort Collins. We took his fruit said hello and just as we were saying goodbye, who shows up but our first friends from Lander Park. We thanked Ray, waved goodbye and went forward with Scotty and Lucy, forces joined together like a bunch of Power Rangers!
As a group we moved on until Lewis Lake, where we split camp with our new friends. Just as we began to set up for dinner flakes of snow began to fall... and then harder and then just a little more. Journal quote of the night, "Please God, let tomorrow be just a little warmer! I hate the idea of having to get up in the middle of the night to pull my pants down and pee." not graceful, but at this point I am dirty and feel less than graceful, but very grateful... This journey so far is amazing!
Day 5
Woke up with the tent frozen shut, but little accumulation on the ground. A morning fire sizzled while we packed up camp and made breakfast. We rode through day 5 covered from head to toe, our bags suddenly lighter since we were wearing just about everything we brough but our sleeping bags. We climbed up and down... crossing the continental divide 3 times.
Apparently bikers in Yellowstone are as big of an attraction as the bison and bears, as many people stop to take our pictures and ask us questions about our journey.
After a late start in F.C., due to car troubles (stupid cars!) we made moves up to Lander WY. A 6 hour car ride later we were abandoned by our drivers and left alone with just our gears and bikes. We stayed at a city park in Lander for free, great spot! Late that night we spotted our first other tourers setting up camp next to us.
In the morning we chatted up our tent neighbors and found out they were from Denver and heading in the same direction after a day off in Lander. We on the other hand were on our way, after coffee, a tire change, and a few hours of lolly-gagging.
After only a short amount of riding we soon made friends with a half-starved pup named Skip. Skippers followed us up the road for awhile. Finally a couple from CA pulled over to let us know there was a dog chasing us down... after we filled them in they turned around picked up Skip and took him back to a vet in town. They paid for a few nights of boarding and tried to call the owner who apparently was from IN! This couple helps restore faith in the good of people... We hope Skip and his owner are reunited soon (maybe in a month if he is still there I'll bring him home!)
We treked through the Wind River Indian Reservation as fast as we could trying to make it to Dubois (do-boys). After 75 miles on day 1 we pulled into Dubois, WY and went straight for pizza at Playa Deli and a KOA.
Day 2- Day 2 should've been a big climb over Togwotee pass (Ta-goat-e), and there was a good bit of climbing until we were stopped and shuttled over the top because of construction. A 7 mile shuttle on our first big pass was kind of a downer, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't at least a little happy about it! On the way down the pass, we stopped at Angler's campground and were given a great view of the Tetons. Some animal rucus at night made us a little restless, and we didn't have the best night of sleep, but the view in the morning made up for it.
After all walking to the bathroom together, we went to bed early and surprisingly got a good night sleep. Woke up to rain on the tent-top and cooked some breakfast and heading on for a day of climbing. We powered on through the day, climbing up to the entrance to Yellowstone. At our first big climb we were greeted at the top by a strange man waving at us with his straw hat... turns out that was my friend Ray!
As a group we moved on until Lewis Lake, where we split camp with our new friends. Just as we began to set up for dinner flakes of snow began to fall... and then harder and then just a little more. Journal quote of the night, "Please God, let tomorrow be just a little warmer! I hate the idea of having to get up in the middle of the night to pull my pants down and pee." not graceful, but at this point I am dirty and feel less than graceful, but very grateful... This journey so far is amazing!
Day 5
Woke up with the tent frozen shut, but little accumulation on the ground. A morning fire sizzled while we packed up camp and made breakfast. We rode through day 5 covered from head to toe, our bags suddenly lighter since we were wearing just about everything we brough but our sleeping bags. We climbed up and down... crossing the continental divide 3 times.
Apparently bikers in Yellowstone are as big of an attraction as the bison and bears, as many people stop to take our pictures and ask us questions about our journey.
From now on we are thinking about asking $ for each picture and letting them know that "biking across the country isn't cheap, you know!" We also got up close and personal with a bison crossing the road... and plenty of tourists in their RV's who wouldn't let us pass by. Finally after much patience with the traffic through the national parks, pushing us against the side of the road, pulling over in front of us etc, I lost my patience and shook an angry fist at a giant RV who pretty much forced us to shake hands with the bison in the road. We stopped to watch Old Faithful blow her top. We headed on and stopped about 3 miles outside of camp to collect firewood on our bikes (what a site!), then headed onto Madison Jct. to share another night of camping with Scotty and Lucy. We dinned and winned over the campfire with our most delicious meal yet (rice and summer elk sausage with green beans and Lucy's spices) and shared stories of life until we could not stay up another minute.
Day 6
It has started to be routine and packing our bags is not as much a science as it seemed but now just a more natural progression of our day. 14 miles later we arrived in West Yellowstone, MT. It's up in the air where we will head from here. Currently paying $3 per half hour to use the internet I am trying to type fast and recount to all of you the past 6 days. I'm sure it cannot do it all justice. Toby's posting some pictures (sustainablebicycling.org)... I will try my best to figure it out without paying for too much internet.... 
Life is going well.... more to come as internet is available!
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