Adventures

Day 13: Lava Mountain Madness

Colter Bay, WY (26 June 2019)Even though it seemed destined to be a short day, everyone was up early. Because of choices made days ago, it seemed to me that we found ourselves with two options on this day. We could either have a short day or camp rough, high on Union Pass. The later was attractive and would have probably been a wonderful experience. At the same time, however, that choice seemed inconsistent with the luxury tour we attitude we seem to have adopted over the last week or so. In addition, several accounts of the Tour Divide mention that the area of Union Pass is where problem grizzly bears get relocated. In hindsight, this should not have been a big concern. First, if we camp in a group, the risk is lowered. Second, the risk is exceedingly small to begin with. Thirdly, the wilderness area of Union Pass is vast -- coming upon a bear that was actually relocated seems like a silly concern to me now. At the time, however, I was aware of this and had targeted the Lava Mountain Lodge as a destination even before the Tour Divide began.

Unsafe for travel

Not unlike the last few days, the sky greeted us with sun and clouds. A few dark gray saucers of cloud hovered below smatterings of white puffy clouds on a canvas of blue. The paved road was relatively quiet in the morning, as tourists slumbered and we rolled toward the valley of the Buffalo Fork river. Fortunately, before the turn up the valley, I remembered to stop and take the iconic picture of the Grand Tetons to later compare with the one I took back in 2001.

After only about 25 miles, we stopped for second breakfast. The Buffalo Valley Cafe was busy and the food was spectacular -- especially the coffee. We lingered there for over an hour. We talked about the day ahead and the fox that walked through our camp in the morning. At one point I got myself in trouble with the guys in an attempt to help move things along. There was a big discussion about staying at a place Bill and Mark found using the Great Divide Route Map phone app. It was apparently part of the way up Union Pass and would make today a reasonable length day without having to camp high in the cold night of grizzly country. It seemed like an excellent choice to me when I finally understood what the discussion was about. With the number from Bill, I made a call and was about to reserve space for the group. Fortunately, Larry spoke up and made it clear he wasn't on board with this decision, saving me from giving my card number for lodging we might never use. As we left the cafe, I wondered why this place never showed up in my research. For better or worse, I researched the routes in grizzly country particularly well.

Signs near the pass

It was in 2001 that I first became aware of the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route (GDMBR) which is the route the Tour Divide mostly follows. On that tour, near to where my route reached Towgetee Lodge, two cyclists entered the roadway. Eric and Christine were using their honeymoon to bike from Eurkea, MT to the Mexican boarder on the GDMBR. This was before the Tour Divide even existed as a race. Eric was pulling a BOB trailer and Christine jokingly painted the picture of the trailer flipping forward on steep downhills and the unavoidable crash that followed. This young couple was on my mind as we pedaled away from the Buffalo Cafe and toward the Towgetee Lodge. It was a feeling of fond nostalgia that held me whenever the memory of cycling Towgetee Pass in 2001 occurred. At that moment on the Tour Divide it was more than that -- it was a feeling of appreciation and gratefulness that my journey in life has brought me back to this place.

The paved road eventually turned to gravel as it gently wove up the green valley, lined with horse farms. The gravel became rough and after a switchback, the incline became steep. The valley disappeared and we were surrounded by pine forests dotted with bright green meadows speckled in sun and the shadows of clouds. We stopped to remove clothes and soon continued our way through the Bridger Teton National Forest, on degrading gravel roads. Thusly, the mountains of the Wind River Range were truly engaged. These mountains had a grip on us for three wonderful days. Today and tomorrow the Wind River Range would hold us close as we gently attempted to ascend her passes and swiftly fall from her sides. The day after tomorrow the range would grip us with her distant beauty, as seen from the desert plain at her feet.

A group of mule deer were spotted grazing near the edge of some trees. The deer appeared to be undisturbed as the rough road narrowed and continued a sinuous path though forest and meadow. Typically, the deer stare at cyclists briefly and then quickly run out of sight. This small group was noteworthy for not bothering to notice. The mountain road was climbed in bits with short climbs followed by even shorter descents or flat sections. There were signs of fallen trees in the area due to high winds but I thought nothing of it at the time.

After some descending and more climbing we came to a turn onto a road that was closed and, according to the sign, unfit for travel. Admittedly, the map was not consulted and we all pressed on past. The Tour Divide only allows for official deviations and we were not aware of any. Why the road was unfit for travel wasn't clear until we reached its far end which marked the final approach to Towgetee Lodge.

Bill starts the snow-covered jeep road

A crew of four or five men appeared on the road ahead. They were standing, chainsaws in hand, on the opposite of a large tree that had fallen across the road. The apparent foreman did not seem pleased to see me approach and everyone stood there watching as I came to a stop. He said I could not continue and would have to turn back. Did I not see the sign? Before I could say something in reply, Joe and Nathan appeared from behind and, without hesitation, bushwhacked past the fallen trees. I followed, leaving the foreman to scowl at the crazy cyclists. Later I learned that the others, not far behind, found the road had been cleared of the trees. It's possible the foreman was just trying to have some fun with me. It was a case of no harm, no foul in my book.

The road soon delivered us to Towgetee Lodge where a convenience store lunch was devoured and the group was collected together for the ride over the continental divide at Towgetee Pass. It was still partly cloudy with the faintest hint of rain in the air. Nathan sat with me while Joe was in the store buying supplies. I felt happy and relaxed sitting in the cool mountain air. When I last saw Nathan, we were on the road to Lima. Nathan and Joe seemed to be having a great time but at that moment the route was found to be wearing. The route so far was hard and rough which took a toll on our bodies and our gear. We talked about Nathan's homemade bags that looked awesome but have not been without problems. The conversation with Nathan reminded me that my own front bag continues to cause trouble whenever the road gets rough.

Mark with Larry and Mikki ahead walking over snow

From the lodge, the route takes the paved highway to the pass. Towgetee Pass was breezy, not unlike it was back in 2001 when I traveled in the opposite direction. It was not a steep climb but because of the changing wind, it took some work to get to the top. It seemed amusing to me that near the top of pass there were three signs. Two indicated the pass and a third indicated the crossing of the Continental divide. Perhaps I was getting giddy from the effort of the climb. Since we started the day, nearly 3,000 feet were climbed which brought us to the cool thin air found at 9,600 feet in elevation. Perhaps some of the joy of the moment, was brought on by the misconception that most of the days effort was behind us.

Shortly after the pass, we turned off the highway and things got interesting. It looked like a jeep road, wider than the one leading to Towgetee Lodge, except it was hard to see because it was under a patchy blanket of snow. The white and mud corridor led us through a tall green pine forest on the edge of the mountain. Occasionally, the snow covered road would wind to the edge of the forest, revealing long views of meadow, forest and tall mountains beyond. In these places, the road had less snow and more mud upon it.

At one point we were forced to leave the safety of the jeep road etched into the side of the mountain and traverse the sloping hillside. The dirt was rocky, loose and with bits of mud in places. We carefully traversed the side of mountain to keep our bikes and selves from tumbling down the side of the mountain. After this obstacle, the jeep road improved. While still very rough, the snow was mostly gone and the surface was dry and rocky.

Fantastic vistas from the jeep road

Eventually, the jeep road delivered us to a gravel road where we climbed again before dropping down to Lava Mountain Lodge. It was a fast and wonderful descent. Not since the day into Butte did we have a descent this smooth. Even better, this one did not have the deep loose gravel that caused a moment of fright on that day. Mark and I agreed afterward, it was a treat to finally have a relaxed glide down a mountain at 40 mph. Nearly all of the downhills on the Tour Divide route are rough and rocky. It's hard to relax on these downhills, especially when riding a bike without suspension, as most Tour Divide racers do.

I was convinced it would be more fun to ride the downhills with front suspension and perhaps even joyous on a full suspension mountain bike. There are Tour Divide racers that opt for suspension, Mikki for one. It's true, suspension is not necessary, besides making the route smoother, suspension adds weight for a ride on a route that is long and varied, making the decision very personal. It's a choice between an efficient rolling rigid bike or a smooth downhill-loving bike with suspension. Your choice might come down to what you love most about cycling because no matter your choice, there will be plenty of long hard days but I think it's the moments we truly love that sustain us for 27 hundred miles of rough mountains, vast open desert and everything in between. My bike returned to me what I love about cycling, sweet long steady rolls and rewarding climbs.

The trip down the mountain was not entirely without bumps and one of these caused a big problem for Bill. The dry bag that makes up the storage compartment of his seat post bag came free and bounced to the road. A motorist apparently collected it and found Bill still rolling toward Lava Mountain Lodge. When the motorist asked Bill if he lost a bag, he said no and the motorist drove off. It wasn't until we stopped at the lodge did any of us realize his bag was missing. He made several attempts to track down the motorist without success. He could do without the bag for now but would need to do some shopping soon in order to continue on the Tour Divide.

Mikki and Larry made a short stop at Lava Mountain Lodge and continued on their way. It was so quick, I hardly noticed they arrived before they were gone. Perhaps they could see that confusion was about descend upon the rest of us.

The jeep road got tricky

After a great late lunch at the lodge, Bill and Mark were getting ready ride off on their bikes. They were planning to head to the lodge identified by the GDMBR app in the morning. Now that I've had time to think about it, I was no longer convinced this lodge was on the Tour Divide Route. They were certain the lodge was on the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route (GDMBR) but that's not always the same as the Tour Divide route which all racers must follow. There are differences, some of which are important. The brutal climb to Koko Claims is not on the GDMBR, for example. Another difference is the GDMBR has several designated alternate routes. Because of this, they were challenged to prove to me the lodge was on the Tour Divide route. This turned out to be a good exercise because it most certainly wasn't, even though the main GDMBR route and the Tour Divide route are the same at this point. After careful inspection it was determined the lodge was on an alternative route for the GDMBR. What remained, after that was cleared up, was to decide whether we were camping on Union Pass or stopping here for the day. Without hesitation, I decided on the later. Had this been given more thought, I might have decided differently. Bill and Mark reluctantly agreed, perhaps thinking it best to have a group of at least three in grizzly country. Bill of course wasn't at that moment in the best position to be camping in the cold, having just lost is warm jacket among other things.

We made use of the extra time by doing laundry. Bill managed to do some shopping at the Lodge to replace some of the items lost on the way down the mountain. He was able to get some warm clothes and the next day he was able to replace the lost kit at an outfitters in Pinedale. With only 55 miles covered this day, several riders from behind passed us by. Overall I was happy to give my bottom some rest and was looking forward to climbing Union Pass with morning legs instead to grinding away at it in the evening hours.

The Grand Tetons

2001 Madison to Seattle	2019 Tour Divide

Elevation Profile for Day 13

On to Day 14