Unhealthy Land

I woke up early and started on the road I was dreading the most... There were lots of trucks and there were a lot of oil fields. It didn't feel like a healthy place at all and I didn't enjoy riding at all. There were a ton of rocks on the road and the trucks did not move over for bikes. There were oil well everywhere and it didn't feel like I was out in Mother Nature.

 After riding for about 3 hours in the "battle grounds" I broke a rear spoke on my bike, I had to hitchhike again... I stood on the side of the road for about 30 minutes and a truck pulled over and I loaded my bike into the back. His name was Tim and he was headed to Stanley, ND which was about 20 miles away. He was a good guy and we talked about his business and how he is trying to sell it and focus on farming and his family. We got to Stanley and he dropped me off at a gas station, I thanked him for the ride and I started asking people if they were going to  Minot, ND which is about 55 miles away. The second guy I asked was heading all the way to Minnesota, so he was going to pass through Minot. He told me to hop in and we had a great conversation the whole way to town. His name was Darrin and his father owned a small oil company and he was heading to Minneapolis to pick up his girlfriend who was flying in. We had some good laughs and he brought me almost right to the door of the bike shop. As I was saying goodbye he handed me $100 to go toward "Cycle to Recycle". I thanked him very much for the ride and the donation, it was pretty awesome!

The bike ended up taking a lot longer than expected and I contacted a friend of a friend who lived in Minot and he offered his apartment for me to crash for the night. I walked around town and checked out a Scandinavian village while I waited. I contacted Rob and we ended up going to the state fair and looking at some of the local attractions and then we went to watch a local band play that night. It was a great time and Rob treated me to an awesome dinner at his house and made a killer breakfast.

Out of Montana and into North Dakota

I woke up early in the morning and set off east (like every day) on route 2. The ride was great and it was good to see everything so green from the rain the previous day. I really wasnt looking forward to the next two days of riding because I would be entering the fracking/oil fields of ND. I met a couple while stopped at a gas station and we got to talking about life. They are planning on moving to Maine and starting a business selling tiny houses made out of shipping containers. They were great people and really loved the idea of "Cycle to Recycle". They right away went online and made a donation, thank you very much for that. We shared some information and hopefully I will see them in Maine when they're there. I left and headed toward the North Dakota border.

I hit the border and was excited to see Teddy Roosevelt's face on the welcome sign. He was an avid outdoors man and really help grow the national parks system in the country. He helped create the Badlands. I had spoken with some people in Montana and they said just stick to route 2 because they have the widest shoulders of any road. I was heading towards a big town called Willison and I heard the traffic is very heavy heading into the city and out of the city, so I was lucky to hit the city after rush hour traffic. Route 2 had become a 4 lane road and it became very fast. I did not enjoy riding on it very much and there were lots of rocks on the road. I rode through the town and it was starting to get darker, but I knew I didn't want to stay in town and fight the morning traffic, so I put the lights on the bike and rode on. I rode for about another hour and I found a nice little camping spot off the road in a field next to an old bail of hay. It was comfy to lay on the hay, but there were mice or rats living in the hay and they were walking all over the tent all night. I didnt put the fly cover on the tent because I didn't think it was going to rain... It started raining around 4:30am and I got up and headed to a local gas station to pass the time.

The Storm

I left Genevieve's house feeling well rested and she provided an awesome breakfast as well. I rode through more wheat fields and talked to more cows along the way... not much else to do in Montana. They call it "Big Sky" because you can see for a very long distance because it's flat and the sky looks HUGE. I rode for a few hours and stopped in a town called Wolf Point, MT and I met a guy at a local McDonald's who was also riding his bike. McDonald's is good for free wifi that always works and they have fresh water, so I stop at them often to use that as well and charge up the phone... I try not to eat there. But, I met a guy named Kirk who is also traveling on his bike from Florida and he went up to Maine and now hes headed over to Washington and then he's going to go down the coast to California. We talked a bit about North Dakota and the fracking/oil fields and about how I hadn't heard good stories about people passing through there. He had just come from North Dakota and he got sick passing through the fracking/oil fields from all the trucks and dust. We had some great conversations about the road and some of the parts we enjoy about riding and somethings that make it difficult. I wished him well and he rode west and I headed east.

Since sitting in McDonald's for about an hour, a crazy storm was rolling in. The skies were grey and the wind was picking up. I had at least 20 miles to ride to the next town and I thought I could do it, so I peddled on. I started riding and the clouds got darker and the winds got stronger. There was lightning all around me in every direction. I had never seen so many lighting bolts in all of my life and this was probably the most scared I have been on the trip. I think because the sky is so large, you can see everything for miles, so I was watching the storm roll in.  I stopped on the side of the road an realized I had about 15 miles to the next town and where I was heading looked like the worst part of the storm... It started to rain a little bit and fortunately there was a building on the corner. I went to the building, it looked closed, so I just hung out under the awning and was waiting for the monster storm to pass. The rain got harder and all the sudden the door to the building opened up. A woman came outside and asked me if I wanted to come in, it was a restaurant. I went in and ordered a water and explained to her that I was just waiting for the storm to pass. The storm kept getting worse as the hours passed by and there were more and more people coming into the restaurant. I ended up making friends with a Native American named Joh-Mon and we shared some good laughs. They also had a poker game going on that night, so I joined in on that and was the first one out... After the game ended, I had spent about 5 hours there and the storm had now passed. I thanked the owner for her hospitality and went out to the bike and got another 10 miles in before I found a great tree on the side of the road to sleep under. The rain held off and it was a great nights rest. I slept between the towns of Wolf Point, MT and Poplar, MT.

Chester to Harlem Montana

G'day Y'all,

First, I want to appologixe for the time I have spent away from the blog. I have been riding at least 100 miles a day since I left Glacier National Park and I have been putting the blog off, so SORRY!!!

Lets get everyone caught back up to speed. I left Chester, MT and wish Michal good luck with his travels and set out on my way. There was a great tail wind again this day and I was able to travel fast again. There really isn't much to see in Montana, other than a lot of wheat fields and farms. I really enjoy talking to the cows as I ride by because they all look up at me and probably think about how crazy I am, but the horses don't even acknowledge me and the people.... well they walk away... haha.

I stopped in the town of Havre, MT to get something to eat and I met a guy named, James, who was on a skateboard with a trailer. I got to talking with him and he left Seattle, WA as well and was heading to NYC all on his skateboard. We talked for about 20 minutes just about the road and how his travels were going and he shared his website with me. He is raising money to find a cure for cancer and hopefully I will be in Rochester when he passes through. His website is www.jamesmcgary.com if you want to check out his travels. Seemed like a really great guy and his trip sounded much more difficult traveling on a skateboard...

I rode for a few more hours and came to a town called Harlem, MT and had contacted a woman on a website called "Warmshowers". Warmshowers is a website used by bikers who are looking for a place to stay and take a "warm shower" and freshen up a bit. You search people based on location and then you contact them and see if they're available to host you for when you're going to be there. I contacted the woman, her name was Genevieve and she lived with her daughter, Chloe, who was 11. Chloe is a great student and she was very helpful in helping her mom cook a great dinner of chicken enchiladas. Genevieve provided me with an awesome meal, shower and gave me a tour of the city. It was great getting to know her and hang out with Chloe as well. Thank you so much for everything, I really appreciate it. 

Sorry

I have been a little busy and haven't been updating the blog. I will try to get caught up today. Things are great still!!

Catching up ground

I woke up and bid farewell to Jim. I started out of the park thinking it was going to be an easy day because I had just crossed the continental divide, which means all the water now flows to the Atlantic, not the Pacific. Boy was I wrong about being easy. I left the park and had a strong headwind and a mountain to climb. I was still in the Rockies, so it is not all flat just yet. I rode about 9 miles over the next 2 hours and it was not very enjoyable with the wind at my face. I planned on getting 100 miles everyday after Glacer to catch up some ground and I thought it was going to be a very long day. When I got over the mountain the roads started changing directions and the wind now became a tailwind (awesome) the wind was blowing east and I was heading east, so it ended up being a great ride. The hills were becoming flatter and there were no longer any more stunning moutains, just rolling hills of farmland and cows. I was enjoying the tailwind and the flat roads very much. I was able to crank out 125 miles that day and it felt great. I got to a little town called Chester where I was going to find a place to crash when I saw another biker coming from the other direction. I asked how he was doing and it was a LONG day for him because my tailwind that I loved so much was his headwind all day. He rode about 50 miles and said it felt like riding over 100. I asked if he was staying in town as well and he said "yes" we went to look for the park in town to sleep in, but it wasn't there. So, we rode around and found the school and there was a nice field behind the school that would give us cover. His name was Michael and he was from Ohio. He is on a road trip from Maine to Seattle and then down the west coast to San Diego and then over to Florida. His trip will take him about 10,000 miles. He is studying English in college and they gave him some money to help with the trip, which he is going to do a project on. Good luck to you, Michael!! Cheers

Glacier National Park

I woke up in the morning and we all had breakfast together. One of the guys cooked everyone pancakes and we had huckleberry syrup with them. His little propane cooker ended up lighting on fire and we had to use one of the girls. After breakfast we took some photos and then I rode off intending on riding over the pass. I stopped for coffee at the cafe just outside the campground and warmed up a bit, it was a little chilly. I started my ride up the " going to the sun road" around 1030. It was a beautiful ride along Lake McDonald, but there were no shoulders to ride on... I thought that was pretty crazy as it's a national park and SOOO many people ride their bikes around the park. But, I kept on riding and then a park ranger pulled me over... He told me there is no riding on the road between 11am and 4pm due to the amount of traffic on the road. So, I had to load my bike into his truck and he gave me a ride to a trail head he said I could hike in the meantime. The road was gravel and it was not very fun to ride on with a loaded bike and street tires. All I kept thinking about was how I was in bear country and I'm just riding around on my bike alone. I came to one of the trail heads and read the board, it said "never hike alone" and "always have bear spray" so I was thinking to myself, I am alone and I don't have bear spray, so I rode deeper into the woods looking for the other trailhead. I rode about another 1.5 miles and I didn't come to it, so I just turned around and rode back to the parking lot. I was going to go hang out at the lake and charge my phone till 4 when I could get on the road. As I was riding back, there was an owl that swooped right down in front of me and picked up a snake that was crossing the road, it was AWESOME! I rode to the lake and waited a couple hours, just talking to the tourist that came by with their family. 

I finally got on the road and it wasn't too bad at all, I had a 33 mile trip to the top of mountain and then 18 miles down to the campground I was planning on staying. The road was not steep at first and I thought it was going to be cake the whole way up. After about 17 miles the slope stated to increase and it got much more difficult. I still think the Cascades were harder, but I also had a lot less experience at that time. But the views up the mountain where amazing and it was a great day to go up because it wasn't too hot or cold. There was a little cloud cover, but you could see a lot. The trip up the mountain took me about 4 hours up and about an hour to get down. I took far less photos on the way down, must have been enjoying the ride I guess. I think the west side (side I rode up) was much more scenic as well. I saw a goat on the top of the mountain and I was in the clouds, so I couldn't see much. I took a little rest there and then started the fun trip DOWN!! As I was riding down I saw an object enter the forest in front of me, I was only thinking about bears now and as I passed, there was a medium sized grizzly bear right in the woods. I tried to snap a shot, but I was flying, so I turned around and he was gone by the time I got back. I rode down the mountain and found the campsite at St. Mary's. I peddled around looking for people who might want some company... I saw a guy sitting by himself watching "caveman TV" (watching the fire as he called it) and I asked if I could join him and he said "yes". I set up my tent and sat around the  "caveman TV" with Jim and shared stories. He is an engineer from Ohio and loves to travel. He just started a new job in Salt Lake City and has some time before he needs to begin, so he's headed up to Banff National Park in Canada. We had a lot of laughs and he was a great guy. We went to bed when all the wood was gone.