Pam. I need you to do me a favor. You know that Columbia long underwear bright yellowish top I sent home with you? I need it back! What the hell was I thinking?! Last night the temperature plummeted to the upper 30s. That's the good news. It was also raining. Not a lot but lightly through the night. I could hear it between the trains rolling through in our backyard in the night. I took it all in as white noise. Now where was I? Oh I remember. Shivering. Ok, Pam. Forget shipping that shirt. I'll improvise. Besides, I have no idea where I'd have you ship it to...
We had plans to start at 8 today because we had a short ride planned. 37 miles. So if it was raining, we would have a rain delay. And we did. It would start. Then stop. Then start again. All in a matter of 20 minutes. Sigh. What to do. Aw hells bells. Let's go for it. We decided to forgo breakfast until the next little town 11 miles up. That should be about right in this weather. So I thought.
I had my typical lightweight synthetic top. Ragbrai jersey. Yellow nylon vest. Shorts. Biking gloves. And ball cap under my helmet. Cycle geek! Bill and Sandy were similarly attired with variations. Both wore jackets. Mine makes me too hot. We pushed on. The rain started to fall and the wind showed up too. Gotta work on that timing thing. In a few short miles, the road started to rise. It would rise for the next 25 +/- miles. This would be the last of our big climbs. Up and over the Continental Divide. As it turns out, it wasn't all that tough. Just relentless. The road shoulder was pretty dependably good. I felt good to boot. I actually like being a little cool when I'm working hard. Typically the worser (my word) the weather the better I like it.
When we reached the alleged little town, it was off route. Taboo in this circumstance. Bummer. No hot drinks. We push on. And on. The rain follows us. I'm soaked. Starting to get chilly. Don't know the temperature but I'm sure its upper 40s or lower 50s. The slope varies in angle. So does the effort. Traveling between 4 & 10 mph. Bike shifting pretty well. A few hours into the ride we finally find a restaurant. We happily pull in. Another group of cyclists leave as we roll up. They weren't carrying gear. Lucky dogs.
We slowly pull off our dripping outer layers and sit at a 50s era Formica table. Hard to mess that up. The hot chocolate was watery but hot and our hands were cold. I would have drank hot water. Eventually I was served a big pancake and bacon. Went down well I might add. Eventually it was time to shove off into the lovely weather. Slowly I put my layers back on adding the Goretex rain shell. At first it was cold wet and breathtaking. After some controlled breathing, I started to warm up. Maybe too much. After a while I was beginning to think that maybe a good meal in the midst of a long climb was not the brightest thing to do. I took off my jacket. Slowed my pace and forged on.
Soon enough, well maybe not that soon, the Continental Divide sign appeared! The weather prevented us from stopping to capture the moment. But all that up could only mean one thing.
Down. Lots of joyful down. Miles of it. We would practically coast into Rast Glacier. Another good thing. The rain stopped! Yay! Now that will lift a cyclotourist spirits.
What is it about Montana that the closer you get to town the shoulders disappear. The traffic was very courteous giving us plenty of room. Only one pick up truck blew his horn not in a friendly fashion. The 3 of us had separated a bit and I learned that he blew his horn at each of us. That was the exception rather than the rule. Schmuck.
No motel rooms available. A big Indian festival starts in Browning tomorrow. We camped in an RV Park.
Tomorrow- Cutbank
Today
37 miles
10.5 avg
35.6 max
Thanks for reading.
Cheers!
KPW
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