Day 23 Tuesday 7/28/09

Day 23 Tuesday 7/28/09
Chester to Havre, MT
64 Miles
959 Total Miles

Rode from Chester, MT with Gary Evans through some storms to Havre, which is about halfway across the state, now. The wind is very challenging-- either your best friend or your worst enemy. The winds have been switching direction frequently and yesterday we rode about 20 miles with a 20-25 cross wind coming at us from the northeast. Found lodging at Northern Montana State University dorms for $10 a night, and am very tired, so will take an extra day's rest before heading out towards Malta, 85 miles away, tomorrow. Check with Bill at the Student Union Building for availability. They prefer a call ahead and can't always guarantee that a room will be available, based on summer enrollment, sports camps, etc. http://www.msun.edu/stuaffairs/stuactivities/index.htm (406) 265-3732


Got a great massage and some good road food Havre Health Foods and Earthlight Wellness Center with therapist Kevin Campbell, NCTMB. He used some trigger point therapy to get some of those tight knots out of the gastrocenimius and other parts of my cycling engine! Thanks Kevin! www.earthlightswellness.com 406-265-5301.

Day 21 Sunday 7/26/09 St. Mary to Cut Bank,MT

Day 21 Sunday 7/26/09 St. Mary to Cut Bank, MT 63 Miles 825 total miles The plan to leave St. Mary campground at 8 was delayed by neither my new riding partner, Gary Evans , nor I being ready dto leave at the agreed upon time. We took a little longer, getting over to the St. Mary Lodge and grabbing a cup of coffee, getting connected with wireless and then finally got underway around 9:45 ... Making the initial ascent on US 87 out of the St. Mary area in a light drizzle, up St. Mary Ridge, which is a massive moraine through burned out lodgepole pine forests, the aftermath of pine bark beetle infestations. At the top of that first ridge, there was a great overlook back towards the park and out towards the plains that were our inevitable destination that day. We climbed a second ridge and then descended it down towards the Cut Bank Creek drainage where we turned east, headed down the drainage into the Blackfeet Reservation. The first 10 miles or so of that gradual descent were euphoric, with the plains ahead beckoning us, the mountains getting smaller in our mirrors and our sapeed sometimes exceeding 25 mph, which is a pretty good clip. Then the reality of the reservation roads hit us-- lots more trash and especially broken glass on the roadsides. Unfortunate, but with a little bit of aware riding we managed to get through there without a flat. We arrived in Browning around lunchtime where we stopped for a drink, some WIFI and a visit to the local IGA where we spit the ingredients for a veritable sidewalk banquet and answered questions of curious passers-by. "How far you going? " "Where you coming from?" "How many miles can you do in a day?" After lunch, we set our sights on Cut Bank, another 30 or so miles away where we would spend the night. The Montana camping guide I obtained from he chamber of commerce Libby showed that Cut Bank had public camping, and when we got to town we commenced to look for it to no avail, so we stopped at a local casino to ask directions. We discovered that the said campground had been closed for several years and the lady at the bar, Liz, offered for us to camp in her yard, after clearing it, of course, with her husband, Pat, with a quick phone call. She let us know that her 4 year old, Vladimir, would be there to greet us and be full of questions and directions, it being his back yard and all... It was a very welcome place to stay and after clearing some of young Vladimir's toys out of the way to make room for our tents, we set up for the night, did some laundry, went out to a big dinner at the Cut Bank Café and returned for showers and a solid night's sleep-- except for the 6 or so trains that thundered through town all night long, whistles blaring, as we are on the Burlington Northern Santa Fe's Hi-Line, one of the most frequented tracks in the country with 35 to 40 trains a day rolling through every little town out here.

Day 20 Saturday 7/25/09 Sprague Creek via Logan Pass to St. Mary, MT

Day 20 Saturday 7/25/09 Sprague Creek via Logan Pass to St. Mary, MT 40 Miles762 total miles Rose early and hit the road at 6:15 to make the ascent over Logan Pass via the Going to the Sun Road, 18 miles to the pass and about a 3400 foot climb. Park rules require that all bike traffic past Logan Creek must complete the last 12 mile journey before 11 a.m. Not a problem if you aren't too loaded down, or if you get an early start. Today, though, we had Matthew and Eleanor's 6 month old Olive in tow in the chariot behind Eleanor's bike. Matthew, for his part , has decided to give himself a bit of a workout and carry some of his camping gear, extra food, and some other rocks, bricks and lead bars in his pack, just for the sake of being a mountain man. I, for my part, have deferred to the gracious Manita and her Subaru to carry all but the essential food, water and foul weather gear. The pass ride was beautiful-- we made it with a little time to spare as we stopped frequently for nursing stops, diaper changes and Olive activities! Spent lunchtime at Logan Pass talking with a Dutch couple, Stella and Joris, who are on an extended tour of the US after spending the past 9 months touring Chile, Argentina and Bolivia. If that's not enough, they completed a 14 month trip from Holland to China on those very same bikes-- truly a testament to their perseverance as well as interpersonal compatibility. The ride down from the pass was thrilling with incredible views of the (receding) glaciers , followed by a chilling dip in St. Mary Lake at the bottom. Matthew and I found our way to St. Mary Lodge on a hot afternoon, for a couple of cold beers and relaxation in the leather lounge chairs while we waited for the rest of the gang to join us for a great dinner-- then off to the campsite for some end of day relaxation and a good night's rest before heading south and east out onto the great plains.

Day 19 Friday 7/24/09 Whitefish to Sprague Creek, MT

Day 19 Friday 7/24/09

Whitefish to Sprague Creek, MT

40 Miles

722 total miles

Rode with Matthew Smeltzer via backroads from Whitefish 2 West Glacier Park.

Day 15 Tuesday-Friday 7/21-24/09

Day 15 Tuesday-Friday 7/21-24/09
Logan State Park to Whitefish, MT
60 Miles
682 total miles

Tuesday was the day that I made it to sanctuary to my sister-in-law, Manita's, home in Whitefish and a great extended visit with the family where i will stay off the bike for 3 days to rest and recover, visit with family and enjoy summer a bit in Whitefish. The ride from Logan State Park along Rt 2 is very challenging at times, much the same as the passage from Libby to Logan-- disappearing shoulders, big trucks, etc. Once you reach Marion, there's a huge 7 % grade downhill for 3 miles which is thrilling and takes you to a lower, warmer elevation for the remaining ride to Kila. Just outside of Kila, headed to Kalispell, there is a gravel surfaced bike path that eventually turns to pavement-- I don't recommend the gravel part with full touring gear-- too loose and soft in places and I almost lost control, but once he pavement starts, it's a welcome sanctuary from the hwy 2 traffic all the way into Kalispell. My friend and nephew, Matthew gave me a great tip to take the turn off of Rt. 2 onto West Valley Road-- which I followed up to Farm to Market Road (Mt. 424) and rode it all the way to the reconnect above Whitefish. It was slightly longer than going into Kalispell and then up US 93 north out of Kalispell, but so much prettier and far more relaxing, with low traffic and wonderful vistas of the Flathead Valley and surrounding farmlands. The last 3-4 miles of HWY 93 into Whitefish was treacherous! Slow down people!!!

Have spent the past 3 days chilling at Manita's house, spending time with her, Eleanor, Matthew, their baby Olive. Visited the farmer's market, did some errands, got my new contact lenses taken care of and recharged the batteries! Alfred, Audrey and their 3 boys Chase, Sully, and Hans came for dinner last night and we sat down to a big pad Thai feast. Finally niece Nathalie came rolling in late last night, returning from a trip to Phoenix/Tempe area where she was looking at a naturopathic school there. It was great to see everyone out here and enjoy the summer in Whitefish a little with the gang. Thanks for the wonderful hospitality!!!

This afternoon, Matthew and I will ride into the park from Whitefish (no baggage!) where we will meet with Manita, Eleanor and Olive for a night of camping and an early morning rise to ride the Going to the Sun road over Logan Pass and to St. Mary campground for Saturday night. On Sunday morning I get fully loaded again fro my chug across the plains of Montana, North Dakota and Minnesota. I figure it will take me about 10 more days to cross Montana and another 5 for North Dakota, putting me into Minnesota about the end of the first week of August. Time will tell-- it's Big Sky country out here!

Day 12 Saturday 7/18/09

Day 12 Saturday 7/18/09
Sandpoint, ID to Clark Fork, ID
36 Miles
508 total miles

It promises to be another hot one. I am still in the Motel 6, getting my courage up for the upcoming 3 days ride to Whitefish. It's 193 miles-- but will probably end up being more, as the Noxon campgraound today is another 5+ miles up the road past the Montana Rt. 56 turn-off at Heron. Yesterday was really hot and took a lot out of me. While the road grade wasn't bad, the traffic planning for bikes wasn't the best. There really is no great way from Hayden up to here other than US 95, a really busy highway which although has a speed limit of 65 is frequented by big trucks and cars speeding in excess of 80. The shoulder almost disappears for sections and the rumble strip cutouts sometimes take half of what's left of a 2 foot margin. In places there were construction zones and the orange barrels took over what was left of the shoulder-- I was fortunate to have about 5 miles of uninterrupted brand new pavement all to myself that hadn't yet been open to cars- it was a good solution to an otherwise dangerous section. I will be glad to get off that highway today! On the other hand there were some great sections as well, including the dedicaed pedestrian lanes across the long bridge across Pend Oreille into Sandpoint. I arrived late in the afternoon/early evening with the sun flashing on the lake out of the west-- very scenic place. Decided to splurge and tatke a motel for the night vs. Looking for a campground and riding in the dusk. It was a good choice, as I got cleaned up, and went across the street to a bar and grill that served up a great ahi steak. I met some nice people, including Tammy, a truck driver who is repurposing her career from running a canvas and awning business for 20+ years to a life on the road. She lives here in Ponderay, but enjoys the change of scenery and activity of the road after raising 3 children-- and she always has a beautiful place to return to when she is finished hauling a load. She also takes some marvelous photos which she showed me a few of-- images of nature, elk and mountains in Banff, and the Oregon coast, and of course, one of her Peterbilt truck! The ride from Sandpoint to Clark Fork along the north shore of Pend Oreille was breathtaking. The lake was formed during the ice age and a glacial ice dam formed, with a sheet almost a half a mile thick in places. The mountains to the east literally fall into the lake nearly 2000 feet. When the ice dam from the glaciers broke Glacial Missoula Lake fomred in the valleys to south and east covering thousands of square miles and causing massive torrents which carved out some of the dramatic canyon passages in the surrounding areas. Stopped for while along the way to watch an osprey fishing over the shallows of the eastern part of the lake. The remarkable bird patiently stalked his prey, hovering over the spot where a fish was near to the surface, then swooping and diving into the water in a big splash-- all talons and wings flapping. 3 attempts before finally success! Made it to Clark Fork and stumbled onto a restaurant called the Squeeze Inn which is run by a wonderfully colorful lady named Janet and her daughters. Made friends and had dinner with a couple of motorcycle tourists from Missoula who originally were friends who met at a bike shop they used to work at a few years back. Micah is a carpenter, and Garth is a math teacher at Loyola High School and Marine reservist. Both enjoy their bicycling as well as motorcycle touring so they were interested in my trip. One thing led to another and we learned that Janet also takes tent campers at her home just up the street, so we ended up having a delicious meal, (tonight's special was a Basque prix fixe menu with snapper, squid, tomato garlic soup, salad , crusty bread-- and if you had any room left, huckleberry ice cream) great conversation, all at an affordable price and a comfy place to pitch our tents and grab a hot shower. Our waitress was Janet's daughter, Tia, who is a very talentted young woman and who is headed to study opera at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music in the fall. As it turns out, she was also an applicant to the Leni Fe Bland Foundation annual music contest in Santa Barbara for young and promising talent-- which has a family connection for me, as Leni is the wife of my late grandfather Lee Fe Bland. Tia will apply again next year and we wish her great success.