Day 63: 71 Miles

Ennis, MT to Dillon, MT

The 4^th of July celebrations were loud in Ennis, MT last night. There were 7 of us camping behind Willie’s Distillery in town and everyone got into their tents around 9:00 PM. As I was trying to go to sleep, some fireworks started going off. It was clear that it would be a while before things quieted down. I heard Noah get out of his tent and he mentioned he was going to head to the bar across the street to wait out the noise. I of course followed him and we had a few beers. I wasn’t surprised this morning when I woke up and found only 3 tents still set up. There were four cyclists heading west who were on the road before I woke up. Noah and I were left with the one cyclist heading east. He was also on the road before us. Everyone was up early, so even though I was the last one on the road, I still started the day before 8:00 AM.

Today’s ride started with a 10 mile climb that went from 4,900 feet elevation to 6,900 feet. I knew it was going to be tough, so I put a headphone in, found a good radio station, and slowly worked my way up the mountain. I only averaged 7 mph over that stretch, but once it was over, the rest of the day was easy. Unlike yesterday’s ride, today had several towns to pass through with a bunch of stops for food. Noah got up the climb ahead of me, but I found him in Virginia City, where we stopped for a quick snack. From Virginia City it was 9 miles to Alder, then 11 miles to Sheridan and finally 9 miles to Twin Bridges. I skipped the stop at Alder, but made a quick stop in Sheridan for 32 delicious ounces of Mountain Dew. Nine miles later I stopped in Twin Bridges. It was right around lunch time, so I looked for a place to grab a real meal. Noah and I pulled up to the grocery store in town and found Mike and Liz who had camped with us the night before. I grabbed some fruit and a sandwich and took some time to rest with them before getting back on the road.

It was only 28 miles from Twin Bridges to Dillon, but there were no places to stop. It was slightly uphill the rest of the day, but we had a tailwind helping us. Noah and I took turns drafting off of each other for a few miles at a time and flew through the rest of the day. We averaged over 16 mph over that 28 miles. When we got into Dillon we stopped at a Subway and a few minutes later Mike and Liz showed up behind us. There was only one Warmshowers host in town and the four cyclist who left early this morning, including Mike and Liz, were already staying with that host. The host didn’t have space for 6 people, so Noah and I decided to split a motel. After 2 days without a shower, I was ready for a motel so I could clean myself up and sleep in a bed.

After a much needed shower I walked over to the local Brewery with Noah where we met Mike and Dave, another cyclist heading west. We had a few beers and talked to some locals before heading back towards the motel in search of food. I decided to eat at a school bus next to the motel which had been converted into a Mexican restaurant. I had a great burrito and then headed back to the motel to get some rest. Tomorrow has 2 climbs that are each about 13 miles long. I haven’t decided where I’m going to end the day yet, so I’ll see how I feel after the climbing and then make a decision.