Day 67: 59 Miles

Missoula, MT to Powell, ID

Last night was a great way to end my time with the group I’ve been riding with the last week. Missoula was the point where we were all going our separate ways, so we decided to meet up at a bar for one last drink together. Mike, Dave and Camille were all headed north from Missoula to Glacier National Park. Liz had always intended for her last stop on the bike to be in Missoula. Noah and I are continuing on the Trans America Route. I also found out that Stephen was still in town, so I shot him a text and he also joined our group for a drink.

This morning I woke up in the hostel and quickly got my things together. I didn’t want to be that guy getting up earlier than everyone else in the room and waking them all up. It was supposed to get hot today, so it was best to be on the road early. I stopped at McDonald’s on my way out of Missoula and was on the road just after 7:00. The first 15 miles of the day were spent backtracking on roads I had already been on. Missoula is technically off route, but close enough that everyone makes the stop in town. The 15 miles were all on a paved bike trail that went alongside the highway back to the town of Lolo. When I got to Lolo I found Bill and Eric who told me that Mark and Patty were up ahead on the road. I haven’t ridden with this group since Pueblo, so it was nice to see some familiar faces again.

From Lolo, it was 31 miles to Lolo Pass, our high elevation mark for the day. The riding in the morning was great. The temperature was still cool and the climbing was gradual enough that it couldn’t be felt. The ride through the west side of Montana and all the way through Idaho is almost entirely through national forest land, so the scenery was great. Just before the national forest, I was stopped on the road so some cowboys could cross a herd of cows. That was a first for me.

The first stop of the days was at a restaurant at Lolo Hot Springs. I was still full from my McDonald’s stop, so I just got a Coke and spent some time catching up with everyone. After the break, there were 8 miles to the top of Lolo Pass. The last 4 miles were the only hard ones, but they went by quickly. By the time I got to the top of the pass, the temperature had gotten much hotter and I was in a full sweat. Luckily there was a visitor center at the top where I could refill my water bottles with cold water and take a short break. Just before the visitor center I crossed into Idaho, state number 14 on this trip. I also crossed into the Pacific Time Zone.

The final 12 miles of the day were all downhill. I finished up quickly and arrived at Lochsa Lodge, where we are all camping for the night. The lodge allows cyclists to camp for free which is very nice considering they also provide bathrooms and a shower. I stopped in at the lodge to grab lunch with Noah and Stephen while we waited for the rest of the group to show up. After lunch, Noah decided he was going to continue riding today. He is on a tight schedule and we had finished early, especially with the extra hour we gained by crossing into the Pacific time zone. I wished Noah well, as I don’t think I’ll see him again this trip.

After lunch, I set up my tent and grabbed a shower. We’ve got quite the cyclist tent village forming tonight. Once I was all setup, I headed back to the lodge where I found a couch to sit and relax. Tomorrow the weather is supposed to be cooler and the entire ride should be downhill. I think Stephen and I are planning a long ride which will separate us from the rest of the group, but set us up nicely for the next few days.