80.5 miles
We woke up to partly blue skies and chirping birds - this will be a great day!
Heading out to Avon, we had anticipated a bad, icky road, based on a converstion with some people at the mercantile yesterday. They said it was twisty and narrow and not very good for biking. We were very pleasantly surprised as we cruised along: the curves are wide, there's a decent shoulder, the traffic was light and it was beautiful.
When we got to Avon, we finally experienced the blessing of the wind at our backs (thanks to you who moved on to that part in your prayer!). We had this tailwind all the way over the pass, through Helena and past Winston.
At Elliston, we met a couple on single bikes who had just come off McDonald Pass, the pass we were about to climb. Their accent hinted at Scandinavian. Talking with them, we learned they are riding from Dallas to Canada. They said they have a tandem also, but couldn't bring it on the airplane.
Climbing McDonald Pass was different than the others because of the altitude. This is the highest summit we've come over - 6325'. We had to stop every mile just to get caught up on our oxygen level. Our stops had to be very short because the wind was so cold and we were so sweaty. The descent - 8% in places - was a little tense and colder yet. We had to stop and add our rain jackets on top of our wind jackets. Once we got to the bottom of the steep part, it was a sweet ride into Helena, downhill for about 19 miles. You can't see it in this picture from halfway down the descent, but Helena is out beyond the range jutting out from the right.
After "lunch out", we left town for Townsend. The sun was out and we got warmer so shed the jackets. It got warmer still and we peeled off the tights. This was completely opposite of what we had been doing just 25 miles back. Only in Montana.
We still had the tailwind until about Winston, where the road turns a little more south, then we had a crosswind. Not a bad ride, though, down along Canyon Ferry into Townsend.
By the time we reached town, the rainclouds were building up and threatening again. (Have you noticed that since we crossed the border into Montana, this has been a recurring theme? Hmmm.)
It's a good thing we're finished with the major passes as they've taken a toll on Gerry's knees. After checking into the motel (we could find only one campground here and it's forest service, and rain is coming again.), Gerry collapsed on the bed and packed some ice on his knee. With the help of Dr. Advil and the ice, he was feeling much better in a short while.
We checked the Weather Channel often throughout the evening as we heard and watched the downpour outside. We didn't really want to spend the next day cooped up here, only 70 miles from home. We decided that if there was a break in the morning, we'd take off.
So we just cozied in for the night.
Pat
Day 11 - TOWNSEND TO THREE FORKS, MT
31.3 miles
I woke up at 5:00, looked outside - still pouring - and crawled back under the covers. At 7:00, we saw it had let up to a drizzle. We checked the Weather Channel again; the radar showed that it was moving out, so we figured this was our time to do so also.
It wasn't too bad for about 15 miles. The Weather Channel deceived us - it didn't move out. It moved with us. It wasn't too long before our plastic covered feet were sloshing inside our shoes with each stroke. That wasn't so bad because we were working hard enough to keep warm, even with the spray that came from the vehicles.
This might be a good time to mention that Hwy 287 is not an ideal road for bicyclists. We had our first close call on this stretch when a semi-truck passed us just as he met a pickup. With no room to pull over, he came close enough that I could've reached out and touched him. But I didn't; I screamed instead. Which was of no help to Gerry as he worked hard to steady the bike. And as Forrest Gump says, "That's all I have to say about that."Reaching Wheat Montana at the junction of 287 and I-90, we decided this would be a good time for a cup of hot soup and a warm rest. As we sailed (Hey, as much water as there was, we almost could have!) into the parking lot, something felt...not right. Looking down I saw our first flat. My first thought was "Thank you, God." If it had been even 1/4 mile sooner, it would've been miserable trying to change it in the rain alongside that road. And we have no complaints: our first flat in 703 miles.
We pulled the bike up by the building and hustled inside to decide what to do. There was no place to change the tire out of the rain, we were soaked and cold to the bone at this point. So, rather than risk even mild hypothermia, we called Kevin who brought his truck and took us home where we could change the flat in the warmth of the garage.
Believe it or not, this decision wasn't made lightly. If you know me at all, you know that I'm a stickler when it comes to commitment and keeping my word. This felt like bailing to me because we still had 40 miles to go. Kevin said, "Hey, you rode this whole section twice a few weeks ago when you camped at Lewis and Clark Caverns, I think you can say it's covered." And Susan added later, "How many times have you guys ridden this over the past years? I think you're good." If anyone seriously has a problem with this, let me know and we'll ride it again this fall when we get home.
So, now we're having to grow webbed feet just to survive these few days at home while we rest and take care of some business.
Thanks for your faithful prayer for our safety and well-being; you can see that God is listening.
His,
Gerry and Pat
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