Adventures

Day 11: Idaho Ho

Snack time alongside the grass and shrub of treeless pastures

Lima, MT (24 June 2019)The sky was mostly blue when we cycled away from Lima in the early morning hours. Riding with Mark, we spent the morning pedaling and chatting about our respective experiences on the Tour Divide. It turned out we were both suffering from the same problem, severe saddle sores. His attempt to solve the problem put him behind the rest of us. He recovered ground on us by taking a long day on the bike to Helena. It was interesting to learn how he arrived around midnight and camped at Walmart. Many but not all Walmarts allow camping in the parking lot and the stores generally have long hours which you can use for resupply and the facilities. This can make for easy-to-find camping on the edges of urban areas. The catch is, due to local ordinances, not all Walmarts allow this and store hours may vary. Before engaging in a trip of the magnitude of the Tour Divide, it is essential that you do your homework.

Two women heading north on the route

Mark and I rolled ahead of Larry and Mikki through an open landscape of brush and grassland. After rounding a bend, a group of pronghorn antelope were spotted crossing the road ahead. Our appearance caused them to quicken their pace to reach higher ground. The pronghorn moved gracefully and calmly, gliding through the open grassland past where a herd of cattle grazed. The two of us rolled along at a nice pace and enjoyed the morning sun for a change. The gravel was mostly smooth with rough patches and potholes in places.

There were five of us riding within a few miles of each other. On the Tour Divide, most everyone rides at their own pace either out of necessity or habit. Riding with Bill, Larry, Mark and Mikki meant that we rode long sections two abreast chatting or stretched out in a line, spread out, sometimes over miles. The rules of the Tour Divide prohibit drafting and even though none of us will be competing for the win, everyone wants to respect the rules.

Mark and Bill at Red Rock Pass

Photo by Mark Carter

The road gently rolled and twisted before us and at times smooth gravel encouraged our bikes to roll gracefully along. Sometimes the gravel was rough with washboard sections and in those instances we picked our way along in the vain hope of finding a smooth line to follow. The road meandered through pasture land with cattle in the fields and on the road. It also passed a large reservoir and I wondered where John Schilling ended up camping rough last night. There were essentially no trees and the side of road was lined with fences in most places and filled with brush in others.

Bill at Red Rock Pass

At one point, a strange image appeared to emerge from a herd of cattle on the road. The image soon resolved into a pair of cyclists heading toward us on the Great Divide route. When I stopped, the two young women also stopped and we talked briefly as Mark came up from behind. Strangely enough, like the pair from the other day, these two women were also from Switzerland. After making sure they hadn't seen them already, I let them know about the first pair of Swiss women we left behind in Lima. This second pair were heading north to Banff after starting in Tucson in the spring. I marveled at all the gear they carried and had no doubt they would enjoy their summer trip to Banff before heading back to their teaching jobs in Switzerland. It was interesting to think that many of the more challenging stretches of the route were already behind them and they looked no worse for wear. It was also worth noting that all four women from Switzerland spoke perfect english.

Further on, we stopped at the office for the Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge where some of us filled water bottles. In the office there was a notice warning of a bear approaching people in the area which seemed incongruous with the open pasture we had just traversed and the sparsely forested area around the refuge. Not long after, this sign might have played tricks on my mind.

With water replenished, we headed toward the main challenge of the day, Red Rock Pass. This was a relatively short 8 mile climb which started gradually and ended with a couple miles of steep grade. Over the last few days the climbing has felt really good so my energy level rose as we approached the start of the climb. Leading up to the climb, the gravel road started to get rough as it twisted and turned toward the mountain. Trees appeared and a falcon flew low overhead.

While still on the gradual part of the climb, I began to feel low. It finally occurred to me that calories were needed. It was sunny as I tucked myself and bike onto a bank at the side of the road where a stand of trees gently rose behind me. On the opposite side of the road, there stretched a wide and open grassland. After only a couple of bites of the sandwich, a loud crashing sound of branches breaking came from the trees behind me. I heard a sound like this before and at that time it was followed by the emergence of a large brown bear onto the road I was cycling. That was back in 2001 and occurred while cycling in Glacier National Park. This time, I Immediately turned around to peer into the woods but the crashing had stopped. My jaw was frozen in mid-chew as I glared into the sloping forest of pine and deciduous trees. No movement was detected and all was quiet. Too quiet, I decided and packed up the sandwich to resume the climb, lunch would have to wait.

Happy the steep climb was over

It was hard. With no one is sight, I guessed the guys were smart and stopped for a snack. The steep climb and the lack of calories began to take it's toll. Unlike the fun of climbing a couple of days ago, I just wanted this rough climb to be over. The effort was pressed for the last mile of steep gravel to the top and was rewarded by a nice breeze, blowing through a few scattered trees. It was frightening how happy I was to have completed the climb. This was a minor climb, celebrated for being the Idaho boarder, not for being a challenge! A few pictures were snapped and I ate all the lunch that was started a few miles ago near the base of the climb. It wasn't long before the others arrived. Still low on energy, I was slow to help them get their pictures taken at this entry to Idaho. Humbled by the climb and for letting let my calorie stores get low, I collected my stuff and dropped off the mountain with the group. Most of the rest of the day was spent tagging along, somewhere behind the rest of the group.

Except for a couple of short climbs, it was mostly downhill to Island Park, Idaho. The road was mostly rough and contained washboards that shook rider and bike violently at times. It reminded me of how rough the route can be and how badly some of my bags are attached to my bike. The front accessory bag required constant attention when the roads got very rough and I began thinking about how I might get rid of it.

As we approached the Island Park area, the rough gravel road led us to a nifty little dirt and gavel path. The path took us south, crossing Sawtell Creek before turning east toward the highway and Island Park. We negotiated the path as it rolled and weaved through a pine forest. Clouds loomed above as we emerged from the path onto a gravel road which finally connected us to the paved roads around Island Park. For the first time in days, we found ourselves in traffic. After we stopped at a convenience store to replenish our supplies, we headed out on the streets toward the Idaho Trail.

The sky continued to darken with the threat of a summer shower as we started on the Idaho Trail. I recall vividly how this ATV-worn trail started with a succession of loose gravel rollers. The fine volcanic gravel was dark and loose as the trail sharply rolled like the whoops of a roller coaster. The gravel was so deep and loose in places it caused my forward progress to suddenly stop. Very quickly, however, the rollers became less dramatic but the volcanic gravel, having been chewed up by motorcycles and ATVs, remained deep and loose in places. Riding became a game of pointing the bike through the thinnest patches of gravel available.

Idaho Welcomed the Tour Divide

The Idaho trail accounts for about thirty miles of the Tour Divide Route. At the southern end of the trail, there's a campground which is famous for mosquitoes that awaits the arrival of Tour Divide Riders. However, riding the loose gravel of the trail took a lot of effort and with possibly more than 3 hours of this trail ahead and darkening skies above, we wisely decided to look for lodging. We had only ridden 5 miles or less but I recall being very happy to have that much behind us.

We made our way a mile or so off route to the Pond Lodge or Elk Creek Resort, as it was called in my notes from the day. Shortly after checking in, the skies opened up and it poured rain, validating our choice to stop for the day. Larry, Mikki and I shared a cabin and we all enjoyed a large dinner before crashing for the night. A nice dinner with vegetables was enjoyed with guys. Typically food on the Divide consists of convenience store burritos and diner food. It was a treat to have higher-end fare with a fresh salad and vegetables for a change.

I slept well and it wasn't until I examined the route in the morning was it realized that we faced an interesting choice ahead. Having stopped in Island Park meant that we will either be camping rough on the cold high slopes of Union Pass the day after tomorrow or have a short day -- stopping earlier at Lava Mountain lodge. Another short day might be good but it would put me behind my goal of completing in 30 days. Should I care, I wondered. The honest truth was it was so much fun riding with the group that I didn't care. I was just grateful to be having so much fun riding with a great group of guys on the Tour Divide.

Lots of open grass and shrub, no bears here

Elevation Profile for Day 11

On to Day 12