Libby, MT to Shelby, MT ~1000 total traveled miles

Tue Aug 11 – Thurs Aug 13 -- Ride from Libby, Montana to Shelby, MontanaTue. Aug 11 -- After getting 2 new tires for my bike on Monday, I left Tuesday morning and rode 55 miles to Kalispell, Montana. Rolling hills all the way. A few 4 foot shoulders and the rest were 1 foot to nothing. A little uncomfortable with the narrow shoulders. Things went well on Tuesday. I made pretty good time going to Kalispell. Saw some deer in a field a couple of miles out of town at 12:30 in the afternoon. Bought a mirror for my bike in Kalispell.

Continued on to Columbia Falls. Nice flat road with 4 foot shoulders. Very nice. Got a little tail wind for about 5 miles going to Columbia Falls. Went on to Glacier Park and rode up close to the start of the climb to Logan Pass over the Continental Divide. Stayed in a park campground and shared a tent site with a couple of other bikers that rode from Texas to Glacier Park. They are finished with their ride and were just resting for a few days and drinking beer. I rode 106 miles today. I’m tired but not totally wasted.
Wed. Aug 12 – Left camp at 7:30 AM to get over the pass before 11:00 AM. About 18 miles to climb today to get over the pass at 6650 feet. The park kicks bicycles off the roads between 11:00 AM and 4:00 PM if they are climbing the pass because they go too slow. The ride started fine. Beautiful country. As I got closer to the top, the clouds rolled in and the wind began to blow and the rain started coming down pretty hard. I rode the last 6 miles or so with the wind in my face and it was raining pretty hard. I struggled but finally made it to the top at about 10:40 AM with 15 minutes to spare. I was wet cold and freezing my rear end off. I went to the building but it wasn’t any warmer and there was no Hot Chocolate. Logan Pass was a pretty tough climb for me today. Thanks a lot Logan. I owe you one.

I decided there was nothing to do but keep on going so I went down the mountain to St. Mary’s, about 18 miles, shaking and shivering the whole way. I got to St Mary’s and ate some lunch and got some Hot Chocolate and tried to warm up a little. I found a little store and purchased another light rain coat to help me stay a little more dry. It was too expensive to stay in St Mary’s in a Motel and I did not know how to get dried off in a campground so I decided to just keep on going to Browning.
I rode toward Browning and rode 7 more miles up another mountain and crossed the Continental Divide again. I am a little tired of crossing the Continental Divide. I then climbed up 3 more mountain passes that were not nearly as bad as the 1st two and finally rolled into Browning about 8:00 pm. The rain had finally quit and I was somewhat dry by now. Riding the bike made me tired but it also warmed me up. I ate at Taco Johns and tried to find a place to camp. Nowhere to go. I did not know what to do so I just kept riding toward Cut Bank, MT. I got about 5 miles out of town and realized I forgot to fill up my water so I stopped at a small house and the Killer Dog from Hell came out to Snack on My Leg. The lady finally got the Dog put away in the house and was very nice and gave me some water.

I still could not find a place to stay so I finally came to a sign called “Camp Disappointment”. The sign fit well. It was the end of Lewis and Clark’s journey when they discovered they could not find a river going where they wanted to go. I took my bike down the hill to a horse water trough and put my sleeping bag on the ground and went to bed. It was 11:00 PM. I Rode 82 miles on Tuesday. The mountains just about killed me off. But I’m not dead yet. The sky was clear and the stars were very beautiful that night. Thursday, Aug 13: Rode 46 miles today. I woke up at 3:30 AM and the clouds had rolled back in and it was starting to rain again. I was not in the mood to get soaked in my sleeping bag so I got up packed up my gear and got back on the road by 4:30 AM. On the way to Cut Bank the skies cleared up a little and I saw a Beautiful Sunrise and took a few photos. I rode about 21 miles to Cut Bank, MT and found a small café and had a good breakfast with some more Hot Chocolate. By the time I was finished with breakfast it was pouring down rain again. I put on my new rain jacket and rode to Shelby, MT. I got there about 11:30 AM or so. My daughter lives there so I will hole up there for a while and try to warm up and rest my old tired bones.

Summary: Montana is very beautiful. I have seen a lot of wildlife and very scenic country to include lots of deer, some horses, fish, and a wooly mammoth or two.

For all you Yellow Jacket and Dragonfly enthusiasts out there -- I have had several Yellow Jacket bees fly beside me on my trip for some reason not totally clear to me. I have determined that the average cruising speed of Yellow Jacket is about 15 miles per hour although I do believe that they can have bursts of speed greater than that. I don’t have enough data to know their speeds exactly. Dragonflies seem to be slightly slower.

The mountains are a little tough on me, but I should be in some rolling hills for a while and they are not so hard to deal with.

I’m still fat and my fat rule still applies. 200 miles of riding and you too can lose 1 pound of fat, BUT you have to ride at least 60 to 80 miles per day or the rule does not necessarily apply. Riding 200 miles a month won’t do much for your excess fat.

I am a little tired and I don’t always feel real good, but I am hanging in there.

Later,

Dan