Day 14: Watch out for your pi-ki-nic baskets . . . Oh wait, that's Jellystone, not Yellowstone . . .

Ennis to West Yellowstone: 63 miles

Ennis itself was a small cute town. Its main street is about a half-mile long, and on this stretch is a veterans' memorial, 2 grocery stores, 3 bars, a wilderness museum, and a fish and tackle shop. There were swarms of mosquitoes hovering every 10 feet, so that made for a really brisk night walk.

I camped out on the lawn in front of Ennis High School last night. Apparently there was a big party down the road and a bunch of kids were driving back and forth and blasting their music until 2 or 3 in the morning. Needless to say it was difficult getting rest. Fortunately, the ride today was only 63 miles with very little steep climbing. I crossed into Idaho for a few mile stretch, but, yes, I'm still in Montana. (This state is HUGE!)

It was a tiring ride, however. There were headwinds for nearly 50 of the 63 miles. There was time when a farm tractor that was driving on the shoulder of the road, at about 20 mph and I ducked behind it with some other bicyclists to draft off of the tractor. The farmer driving the tractor smiled and slowed down to let us keep up with him. I dropped back after biking behind the tractor after about a mile or so because one of my riding partners, Paul (biking for UK Cancer Research), felt really ill and dropped back and so we finished the ride together. The entire group watches out for each other-- it's wonderful.

Since we're camping near West Yellowstone, we're on a "bear lookout" and are keeping all of our food locked up in the support vans. I really do hope to see a bear (a live one. Every town I've been in I've passed at least 2 taxidermy shops and almost every store has either an elk's head, bear skin, or antelope hanging from the wall. Can't quite get used to it...), of course, from a distance . . .

Day 13: Grand? Amazingly, Joce channels for Holden Caulfield in her spare time . . .

Dillon to Ennis: 74 miles

It's been SO COLD in Montana. Yesterday afternoon was a pleasant 70 degrees or so, but it definitely dipped down at night. I wore 5 layers and I was still freezing in my tent! I think the hard part about waking up is not necessarily needing more hours to rest, but that I don't want to crawl out of the little warmth that's in my sleeping bag!

The ride today was absolutely gorgeous. I rode from Dillon, MT to Ennis, MT. Most of the way out of Dillon was flat with farms and estates stretching out from the main road. Some of the land is also preserved for wildlife, and I caught a glimpse of an antelope peeking out over a bluff. So graceful! It maintained eye contact until I pedalled away.

I passed through Nevada City (a ghost town, though it's become a tourist attraction) and Virginia City (same old buildings that were up since the 1800s) on the way to Ennis. A good number of tourists come to check out these old mining towns. I stopped to have a single scoop of "Moose Tracks" ice cream and to ring the bell on an old train.

There was a 3-mile climb coming out of Virginia City and boy was it tough! It was the first climb that I didn't have to stop, a great accomplishment for me! After the ascent, it was a straight 8-mile drop into Ennis, right in the heart of Madison River Valley. I got up to 40 mph on the descent and while I did keep my eyes on the road, I couldn't help but look around me and think of how GRAND and breathtaking everything was. I had a great view of the Lone Mountains while I zoomed down.

Can't get these kind of views from a car.

Day 12: Rampaging rodents and the buzzing of cows she heard . . .

Jackson to Dillon: 49 miles

Well, the springs were hot, but the night was not. I woke up this morning to frost on my tent. It dipped down to 29 degrees in the night, though the weather during the ride today warmed up quite a bit. I biked over two mountain passes today, but the ride into Dillon was mostly flat. A deer stared at me as I rode past it along the road, and a whole bunch of little rodents (don't know if they're prairie dogs or chipmunks) ran across the road as I bicycled by. (yes, I passed many squashed and flattened ones, too)

During the descent after the first climb, I heard a strange buzzing noise out of my right ear. I had thought it was strange that my jacket was making so much noise as I was zooming down the mountain, so I turned my head to shake my jacket a bit and COWS (yes, more than one) mooed right back at me. An entire herd of cattle was less than 10 feet away from me (no fence in between) on the side of the road. Apparently they had gotten out of their grazing pasture and the cowboys (yes, they had the long moustaches) were herding them back.

I only rode about 48 miles today, and so the day's riding was done by lunch. I got a chance to walk around Dillon and get some chores done, such as doing laundry. It is a small, clean town (no graffiti or litter anywhere), though the buildings look as if they need repair and the roads have been well-used. All of the locals have been very friendly and I've gotten a really pleasant impression of the people in the Northwest.

Day 11: In hot water . . .

Darby to Jackson: 78 Miles

These are the times that try . . . . A very difficult day. It was about 30-some degrees at around 6A, warmed up a bit to upper 40s by around 8A, but that was about the time I started on the ascent to Chief Joseph's Pass to get over the Bitterroot Mountains. The steepest 8-mile portion of the 30-mile ascent to the Continental Divide was very trying. There were headwinds, a downpour, and just simply going UP the mountain was tough! There was a very nice downhill after the ascent to the Continental Divide (which I had thought would offer some breathtaking views, though all I saw were trees all around), though the rainclouds burst and it POURED the entire way down. I thought my toes and fingers were about to freeze off! I had on a sports top, jersey, long-sleeved shirt, polar fleece vest, rain jacket, and a fluorescent hazard jacket-- and I was still cold!

The end of the journey was very rewarding, though. I ended up in Jackson, MT and camped outside the Jackson Hot Springs Lodge. And yes, all of the water going to the lodge came directly from the hot springs. Do you know how some sinks only have one knob for water? Same here, except it's the knob for HOT water. And some people can pay a lot of money for high-tech toilet seats that can stay warm at the touch of a button. In Jackson? No need! The water in the bowl warms up the seat for you. :) I had a chance to dip into the hot springs pool (103 degrees) and I could instantly feel my muscles relaxing. Ah, little luxuries. At the pool, I met a boy scout troupe that was hiking/biking the Louis and Clark Trail as well as a family from MT that was taking a little vacation in Jackson.

Day 10: Riding-eating-riding-eating . . .

Missoula to Darby: 67 miles

A BEAUTIFUL DAY!!! I cycled only about 67 miles today from Missoula, MT to Darby, MT. I rode the entire day with a girl named Kari, a 24-year-old from Rochester, NY who is cycling for Teens with Cancer. We stopped after about 18 miles of riding in Florence, MT at Glen's Cafe for some pancakes (the BEST pancakes I've EVER eaten), eggs, and hot cider (even though it was sunny, the temperature was running in the low 50s for most of the day). We chatted with a woman named Candi for a bit and found out that her grandmother painted all of the portraits and landscapes that hung around the restaurant. Darby is a small little town which attracts quite a number of tourists. Along the way, we also stopped with a bunch of other riders at Memorial Cafe, a converted church, that serves the absolutely best root beer floats and ice cream shakes. I must say that it was difficult to get on a bike after that, though the sugar boost was much needed! (Hmmm . . . interesting theme here . . . . riding-eating-riding-eating...)

The mountains of Montana are absolutely breathtaking. Didn't see any wild animals during the ride, but hopefully in the next few days . . .

Day 9: In the Missoula Zone and the beauty of Oreos and M&Ms

Today is a layover day with no cycling. The town of Missoula is basically shut down on Sundays--most stores are closed. I dropped by the mall and it was quite empty. However, the people are very friendly and quite willing to make jokes about their "hick" ways . . . . I've walked around downtown Missoula and the University of Montana. Everything seems deserted, though I am sure that if I were here on a weekday, the town would be bustling.

I'm so happy to have this rest day. My legs are not so stiff as they were in the beginning of the week and I'm actually walking around quite normally now. I continue to eat about 3 times as much as I normally do (though for people who know me, you might be asking: can that be POSSIBLE??). It's strange: you would think that with so many fit cyclists we would all be on extremely lean diets. True to an extent, but after cycling for nearly 100 miles everyday, your body CRAVES fat and sugar and salt. We load up quite well. I've become a big fan of Oreo cookies and M&Ms.

Day 8: "The most intense thing I've ever done," striped cows, and sweet motel dreams . . .

Thompson Falls to Missoula: 86 miles

Thompson Falls, MT to Missoula, MT, home of University of Montana where apparently, nearly half the population of the town crowds into the football stadium for home games.

Today was probably the toughest day of the entire week. Not only did I cycle over 100 miles, but the day started off at around 39 degrees, and during lunch, dropped from 50+ degrees back down to nearly 38 degrees. There was rain almost the entire way and during the last two miles, it started to hail and thunder. (my first time being caught in hail--WOW what an experience! ;O)) I was able to get under shelter, however, to wait out the storm. To get through the rain and the strong headwind, I rode with 6 other cyclists in a pace line, each person taking turns pulling the rest of the group. It was the most intense thing I've ever done. We zipped along through the horrible weather on average at around 19 mph.

The group cycled along MT 200 the entire way, and it was a HORRIBLE road for cyclists. The shoulder, when there was any, was extremely narrow with rumble strips taking half the shoulder. Drivers zoom by at 70 mph on average (that's the speed limit) and I think that no matter how long I am out on the road this summer, I will never get used to RVs, trailers, or huge vans whizzing past me. The horrible road conditions really got my spirits down and if it weren't for the people I was cycling with, it would have been a very painful ride. For the last 20 miles, we ended up grouping together, one person leading me in with two people flanking me in the back, all of us wearing bright fluoresecent jackets. My own personal motorcade!

Seriously, though, as drivers, we all really need to be more aware of cyclists on the road and understand that to slow down for just a few seconds to CAUTIOUSLY move around a cyclist and avoid head-on traffic will NOT delay us at all. Remember: cyclists are the ones out in the rain or sun while as drivers we have soft cushions under our okoles and a roof keeping us dry . . .

The ride into Missoula was beautiful, however. You come over a mountain pass with a great downhill into the town. Green, lush, . . . . On the way to Missoula from the small town of Arlee, MT, you can see the snow-covered mountain tops of Glacier National Park in the distance. There were striped cows and bison along the route as well as mountain goats (though I didn't see any of those).

Tough day. Ended up getting into camp, walking over to a motel with another rider who is riding for Teens with Cancer, and crashed on a nice, soft, warm bed. Ahh . . . little luxuries.