Pedaling Pilgrim Blog Home

Miles to date: 1173.8

We waded through a Monet painting, we were the protagonists in a Looney Tunes cartoon, we acted like kindergartners in Prairie Dog town… it was a magnificent day (except an easy 77 miles turned into a battle against the wind).

After successfully guiding our bikes down the stairs at the Motor Lodge without damage to equipment or riders, we had a lovely coffee and simple breakfast. We were rolling out of Livingston under overcast skies before 8am.

As usual, the morning was lovely riding. We felt fresh after yesterday’s short day and a night on a mattress. Though as we pedaled along I felt a little melancholy knowing the mountains would soon disappear from our rear view mirrors. Even through all of the challenging climbs, it’s been lovely having peaks of various ranges popping up around us: Rattlesnake Mountains, Flint Creek Range, the Boulders, the Tobacco Roots… then today the Crazies and the Beartooths.

After our first stretch of riding, the we had a picturesque stop amongst some Montana agricultural land. We had such fun here that we all made phone calls and took plenty of photos; it was hard to drag ourselves away from this scene.

After our morning saddle break, we had an entertaining encounter with a coyote. He/she crossed the road right in front of us, then ran with or away from us for over a half mile. We all had fun with this, and after a while it seemed the coyote was actually enjoying our little race.

Beautiful scenes unfolded as we rolled along through the morning, mostly on very quiet paved frontage roads near I-90. We were forced to hop onto the interstate a few times, which served as a reminder of how peaceful it can be away from the fast traveling and commercial trucking crowds. On the side roads at times we were surprised by cars passing because it happens so infrequently that we all tire of looking into our rear views. When cars do pass, they continue to do so respectfully, giving us a wide berth and an occasional wave.

We stopped for lunch supplies in Big Timber. It was a lovely little Montana town, seemingly more charming and alluring than Livingston. Lecy pressed us to make it here last night, and the Grand Hotel & Restaurant looked like a place we would’ve happily stopped to knock off the trail dust and put our feet up. Maybe we shouldn’t have let the tequila do the talking.

Fresh loaf of bread, pickles, salty snacks… we were ready for a short 10-miles to Graycliff Prairie Dog town for lunch! Yesterday we passed the grizzly bear experience and the museum was closed, we don’t take enough time for nearby sights. This one was not even a quarter mile off our path so we couldn’t pass it up. We all had memories of seeing prairie dogs as kids, and we had fun watching and listening to these fun little animals. We were already more than halfway through our miles for the day, and it wasn’t even noon, so we lounged a while without much to care about.

As I’ve said before, Lecy always declares that the mornings are always lovely and the afternoons always bring some form of pain. I’m starting to feel now that this is inevitable. It’s in the back of my mind every night, as it is right now; I’m thinking “how early can we get going to make the afternoon as short as possible?”This afternoon the pain came in the form of headwind. It was a steady 10 MPH with gusts 15-20. We were averaging nearly 16 MPH before lunch; after lunch we were less than 13. A month ago on our overnight training to Wisconsin, we planned to average 12.5 MPH; so we should be happy with 13, but we’ve gotten so much stronger in our Palouse and Rockies conditioning that we rightfully expect more.

Without the wind, we could’ve finished our day two hours after lunch. Now, nearly 90 minutes after, we were hunting for snacks and a long rest in Reedpoint, a town of 96 people proclaimed as the sheep driving capital of the world.

The Waterhole Saloon looked like it was made for us, but it was closed. I guess with only 96 people, there’s probably not a surplus of bartenders. We went down the road to pick up gas station snacks (with lemonade and pickle juice being the main feature). We saw 2 of the 96 residents, and they were very friendly. After lingering for many minutes in the shade of the Reedpoint post office, we were on our way to Columbus.

As the sun heated up the afternoon, and the wind remained, we powered into Columbus after 3:00pm. We had a recovery drink at the New Atlas bar; this establishment was the first bar to reopen after prohibition thus they have the state’s liquor license #1. It’s also known as the horniest bar in town – I counted 25 sets of horns, most keeping a keen watch over the pool tables. The bar was once on a Mississippi paddle-wheeler, and the footrests have enclosed spittoons. This place had a rightful swagger to it, and I felt privileged to be a patron.

At the bar, we learned that Nye MT has the only platinum and palladium mine in the US. The bartender’s husband operates a jack leg (like the offspring in a romantic encounter between a forklift and a jack hammer) that chips out the ore for processing . This mine is the major employer in this area; the miners I assume I saw today seem pretty hearty individuals.

Tonight we’re staying at Itch-Kep-Pe Park; it’s a free campground next to the Yellowstone River. The locals call it Itchy-Pee-Pee park (naturally I thought of Judah’s paternal grandparents who go by the monikers of Mimi and PeePee). We’re all excited about getting tents out and having another sleep under the cool Montana big sky tonight.

Tomorrow we have 81 miles planned. We’re stealth camping along the Yellowstone River, so we could travel longer or shorter depending on what the day brings. For anyone following on Ride w/ GPS: Day 18: Columbus to Big Mary’s Island

Sometimes for playlist additions, the songs choose themselves. As a Mark Knopfler fan, I can’t really pass this one by: Coyote

And, as most of you probably know, Dolly Parton passed away today. I have to say that I’ve never been a big Dolly fan; sure I love Jolene and Coat of Many Colors, but 9-to-5 and Islands in the Stream are painful. I’m struggling to find a Dolly song that fits the mood of our day, but as I’ve had plenty of introspective moments, wondering about the past and the future, this song kinda fits: Do I Ever Cross Your Mind