Today was a bit of a record for how early we woke up, had breakfast, and packed up camp. We took advantage of the convenience store at the KOA and bought a small container of milk to have with the homemade granola I had prepared before the trip. We were on the road shortly after 9am. I had checked the weather last night and it looked like the area we were in and Bozeman just north of us were both expected to have rain in the late morning or early afternoon. I suggested that we leave as early as possible in the hopes to miss any storms that may pass through. We bundled up in full gear, Keith had to stop for his full fingered gloves in the first 10km and then we were set. The valley between Yellowstone and Bozeman was very scenic with lots of cliffs that had little caves in them and a river on one side of the road. Some of the rock faces were bright red, then there were lush green fields. It was lovely.
We went into Bozeman and just happened across a luggage bag that Keith had been saying he wanted to buy before the next bike trip. The price was right and it looked like our tent would fit inside the bag that would then strap on top of his luggage rack, so naturally we made the purchase. After that, the day just got hotter and hotter! The terrain started to look more and more arid and we just shed layers of clothing along the way. The new bag made it very easy to toss extra gear or clothing into.
Most days we have unintentionally skipped lunch, partially due to the heat, partially due to the big American sized breakfasts we’ve been having. Today we actually had lunch! We stopped in Townsend and just so happened to stumble across a brewery! (I will take full credit for spotting this one). The brewery didn’t serve food, but had a couple of delivery menus that we could order from. We had a really good chat with the lady working the bar as we waited for our food. She told us about Montana’s State law regarding breweries. Breweries are only able to serve 48oz. per person per day. If the brewery and the attached restaurant are owned by separated people then that rule can be skirted around.
When we had set out int the morning the “plan” was to stop and camp somewhere around Helena. We passed through and the heat was uncomfortably hot so we thought it wouldn’t be the best place to stop to camp. After Helena we had planned to take a secondary highway to Missoula, but after we turned off Keith pointed out that the landscape was turning even more dessert-like. Instead we stayed on track to go to the interstate highway straight into Missoula, MT. We have been trying to avoid the interstates thus far, but today it way unavoidable. Speeds were typically 80 mph, and there was a bit of wind. (Keith tells me that was just the speed we were going, I thought it was windy). I had tried to look up camping sites, but they all seemed to be pretty far off the main highways and away from anywhere that we could get dinner at. As we rode the craving for an air conditioned room grew in both of us so the decision was made to just grab a motel room in town instead. This meant more super-fast highway speeds and heat to make it to Missoula.
We ended up being on the road for 8 hours today (a lot more than the short and easy day Keith had promised me). As soon as we checked into our cheap little motel room I was in the shower to rinse off the bugs, sunscreen, and sweat faster than than you could say “pour me a beer Charlie”. After the much-deserved shower, we located another local brewery that had an AMAZING food menu. I ate a salad. I also ate a salad yesterday. This needs to go down in history. We’ve now had our lovely meal at Conflux Brewing (only 48oz. of beer each) and are taking advantage of the wifi connection that is better than at our motel.
Keith and Leah's travel on 2 wheels 