Roundup Mt.

We were on I 94 when we left Miles City. It was the first time for either of us to pedal on a limited access Interstate highway. The speed limit was 80 mph! Traffic was pretty light though and we had at least an 8 foot shoulder so it wasn’t long until we felt pretty comfortable. So comfortable in fact, after one long and strenuous climb into the wind Rose stretched out on the guard rail.

There were lots of hills but wind was our biggest hindrance. Around ten miles into the days ride, we stopped to eat a few hard boiled eggs. We discussed turning around and heading back to Miles City. We had been over two hours and had only rode 10 miles! Even though we detest backtracking, part of me was all for it. The way the wind was blowing we would of been back to town in a half hour. But we decided to persevere. I’m glad we did. A few miles later we saw a disabled vehicle on the eastbound side with two ladies standing beside it holding a jack. Rose asked if I minded if we stopped to help them. After all the kindness we have been shown on this journey it was a rhetorical question. The ladies had a flat tire but could not find the handle to the jack. I started jacking up the vehicle, an older Suzuki Trooper using my Leatherman multi-tool for a jack handle. It was difficult but I had it up in the air by the time the correct handle was located under the driver’s seat. I do not remember their names but the two ladies were 67 and 70 years old. They were also on an adventure, they had flew to Billings, Montana and then decided to buy a vehicle and drive home to Wisconsin instead of flying back. I may have missed some parts of their story while I changed the tire but I think it was a very spontaneous thing to do and I was impressed. Kudos to them! I hope they have safe travels!

After the tire was on, they wanted to buy us dinner. We refused several times and told them how we have been shown so much kindness by so many strangers that we were way behind in the whole pay it forward department and we were happy to help them. They insisted though and gave us money for an awesome meal. With farewell, safe travels and big hugs we were back on our way. The wind was letting up a bit and we pushed to make up for the slow mileage we had earlier. We hoped the wind would stay down until we got to camp but after an hour it picked back up. After only 27 miles we came to a rest area and decided to stealth camp. There were 5 picnic shelters scattered around, each had a roof and two walls that formed a corner. All were situated high above the Yellowstone River and offered an amazing view of the valley below.

We chose the one that would have the best sunrise. Rose made a simple, yet delicious meal of andouille sausage red beans rice and an onion. I made a couple pots of tea for us while she worked on that. It seemed a lot colder then it was. It was still sunny and in the lower 60s but with the wind and our sweaty clothes we were chilly. After supper we hung up our hammocks, the shelters were a little small, but with a bit of creativity we made it work.

As I unpacked my hammock I realized I had a flat tire. The first on this trip. Earlier today when we stopped to help the two ladies, they had asked me why did you want to take this trip on a bicycle. It is a common question that doesn’t really have a good answer. I answered them jokingly by saying because it’s so much easier to change a flat. Haha. I guess she took me seriously. A short time later she received a phone call and after telling the caller that two people on bicycles stopped to help I guess whoever called had the same question. I heard the lady say “well he said because it’s so much easier to change a tire. I was reminded of this as I sat down to replace my tube. I put in a new tube and patched the one with a hole. Patches seem to only work about 50% of the time, so my preffered method is put in a good tube and then pump up the patched tube and let it sit overnight. If it still has the same amount of air in the morning then it gets packed up if not it gets thrown away. I spent more time watching the light fade and darkness slowly climb up the hills from the river then I did actually doing the repair. Definitely the most beautiful place I ever had a flat!

It was chilly in the morning. I got up around 6 and made coffee. I took down my hammock so it wouldn’t block Rose’s view of the sunrise. She was staying in her hammock cocoon until the sun hit her. Sunrise was amazing!

We were packed and on the road by 8:30. The wind was still and the air crisp and cool. Perfect for cycling. Unfortunately my legs did not seem to agree. I hadn’t slept to well. Not very often but several times throughout the night vehicles would stop. Not really a suprise since it was an interstate rest area, but the car doors always awakened me and I was instantly on full alert until I reminded myself where I was at. As much trouble as I have with sleeping through alarm clocks, I should get one that sounds like a car door slamming! Haha. Also I don’t think Rose or I have recovered from our 126 mile day. We both have seemed to lack energy since then and are often stiff in the mornings. But our daily elevation gain has been getting a lot more so that might have something to do with it.

After 8 miles we stopped for second breakfast. Hardboiled eggs and bagel chips. Sitting on the guardrail, looking down into a little ravine we could see pronghorn antelope bedded down they seemed to be enjoying the morning sun as much as us.

Right after our break, Rose had a flat tire. She unloaded her bike while I got out the necessary tools. The shoulder of the iterstate has lots of debris. Mostly shredded chunks of truck tires and the little steel wires from them what causes most flats.

We got into Forsyth around 2 o’clock. At the Speedway Diner we had a cheeseburger and French fries. Rose’s bike had another flat tire. From the diner we could see a motel that advertised being $38 dollars a night. We decided to head there. I pumped up her tire and hoped if we rode fast enough we could make it before all the air leaked out. She didn’t even make it 3 blocks. Once again we pumped it up and rode fast but it was just too fast of leak. So she walked her bike. The $38 dollar a night motel did not look very inviting. So we went to one a little farther down the road. For dinner we cooked pasta with canned chicken alfredo and cauliflower and broccoli with cheese

We have been doing really well with starting earlier but somehow our morning slipped by and it was 11 before we headed out of town. We didn’t have a destination in mind and we’re planning on camping when we got tired. The winds were calm and it was a beautiful day. I absolutely love Montana.

Around 2:30 we found a ok tent site. We were both tired and ready to stop for the day. It was a nice big open area away from the road. Unfortunately there wasn’t any shade. We stopped with the intention of camping there but after sitting down for a half hour we decided to push on. We both said it would be a great spot if it had been much closer to sunset. But to sit there in the sun for 4 hours wouldn’t of been enjoyable. So we continued west on beautiful route 12. An hour or so later we took a break in the shade cast by a road grader. We had just came through the 6 mile construction zone that had a pilot car. We were the only ones following the pilot car and we did our best to maintain a decent speed. The driver was extremely patient and would often stop and let us catch up. There was only one vehicle at the other end so I guess we didn’t hold up traffic too much. Anyway the construction equipment offered the only shade for miles around and we sat down in the dirt and greedily drank from our water bottles. Rose was looking at maps and saw that the town of Ingomar was only 11 more miles. Ingnomar was more of a ghost town then anything. Google says it has 14 residents. But on Google maps it showed a small rodeo grounds and we figured we could camp there if nothing better appeared before then.

We got into the “town” around 5 pm. It was surreal. There were cattle guards across the gravel main street and horses were just wandering around.

Two older men were chatting through the windows of their stopped vehicles. I asked about camping and was really suprised at how welcomed we were. We were told we could set up in the old schools playground and the community center had bathrooms and showers. It would be unlocked and we could use it at any time! Wow thank you!

We hung our hammocks from the swing sets and had a quick dinner of last night’s leftovers. All of the residents were very friendly and welcoming. Well all except one. This rattle snake was right before we turned to go into the town and I don’t think he wanted visitors. Maybe we interrupted his nap. He wasn’t very pleased to see us. But everyone else was.