MT

We've been trucking across Montana--sometimes literally, so we're making good time.  

So we're leaving Glendive, Mt after waiting out the 90+ degree heat.  We left around 5 p.m. headed for a town called Circle, which is about 50 miles West.  Right out of Glendive we ran into another trio of bikers, a newlywed couple and an 18 year old guy. They were heading to the east coast via Washington and were happy to be done with Montana.  Anyways the ride was going well.  Cooler than earlier with gradual hills.  In some places the ground to the side of the road gave way to vast "breaks", as the locals call them, and you sort of get that 'whoa' feeling when looking off the edge of the road down a few hundred feet.  

Right around ten o'clock p.m. I felt my (Jer) chain break.  It had actually separated--one of the links slipped off the pin that connects the series of links to make the chain --most likely because Brady and I were racing up hill not long before.  Anyways, I start trying to fix it immediately in the quickly dissappearing light.  We figured we'd be camping in the ditch that night--we certainly didn't expect to get picked up in the middle of nowhere Montana.  

I hadn't been fixing the chain long and a truck pulls up and asks if we're ok.  We told them we're fine we just had a chain break and we're fixing it up.  The couple offered to take us to Circle which was about 8 miles away.  After a brief meeting we decided it was a good decision as the mosquitoes were closing in and it was getting darker.    

Once we got into their truck we learned their names, Pete and Teresa, they run an 8000 acre  ranch just north of Circle.  After chit chatting a bit they probably figured we weren't weirdos because they offered to put us up for the night.  Whenever you hear, showers and beds it's awesome, especially in mosquito country.  Yet the night kept getting better.  

When we got to their ranch, we unloaded all of our stuff into one of their sheds so we could work on the chain away from the mosquitoes.  We were dinking around with it for awhile before Pete gave us a hand.  He probably has not been on a bike in years and was able to fix it in about five minutes.  They invited us in.  They lived in a big ranch style house with native american throw rugs and stuffed game on the walls.  It felt great.  They gave us the basement guest bedroom.  After he showed us around Pete opened up a fridge full of beer next to a kegerator with a keg from Beaver brook on tap.  "Drink up", he told us more than once.  Soon Teresa came down and asked us if we liked steaks.  "Like the food?"  We asked.  We could not believe it.  She put 'em on the grill and made us the best supper we've had all trip--steaks, salad, squash, potatoes and beer.  All at 10:30 at night--we still can't believe that happened.  We couldn't stop smiling and shaking our heads.  That night we slept like rocks and were up for biscuits and gravy around 7.  

Another weird thing, Teresa's maiden name is Wolff with two f's so she spent some time researching ancestry.com to see if her and Brady were related somehow.  Have not figured it out, yet but it was neat to fantasize about.

It was raining pretty good that morning and we were headed for Wolf Point, Mt which doesn't have the best reputation.  Pete offered us a ride to Fort Peck, about 70 miles down our route and past Wolf Point.  We were happy to have it.  Before we left Pete and Teresa showed us their horses.  Teresa barrel races in rodeos and her aunt happens to be number 1 in the world in barrel racing.  Pete ropes cattle at rodeos, too, so they had a slew of awesome horses.  They showed us the newest edition to their troop a foal born on the 4th of july--they named him Firecracker.  He was beautiful, skittish and all legs.

When we got to Fort Peck Pete gave us a tour of the town and camping spots.  Fort Peck dam is the third largest earthen dam in the world.  It took thousands of guys about 5 years to build and a half dozen of them are still burried in it.  We have to thank Pete and Teresa for all they did for us, another great memory for the trip.  That night we camped on Fort Peck Resevoir which is the panorama at the top of the page.  The biggest lake in Montana.  The water is sky blue and ice cold.

The last few days we have been traversing the Montana range.  A lot of the parts are arid, desolate, and boring.  Not a tree on the horizon, just fields and sky forever.  Plus the land is swarming with mosquitoes and rattlesnakes.  The mosquitoes here of the militant variety.  Sometimes they swarm us even when we're going 15 mph on our bikes.  It makes sense considering the 'unofficial' Montana state bird is the mosquitoe.  

We had our first century day yesterday!  105 miles from Havre to Shelby.  Felt great.  Right now we're in Cut Bank with the Rockies just visible in the distance.  Should be in Glacier National Park tomorrow.  We're so jacked, Rocky Mountain fever!  More stuff to come...       

Just a little better than sleeping the ditch.

7/4/1988 v. 7/4/2014

 

 Group shot

 

 Fort Peck Dam

 

The poem:

http://www.alsintl.com/resources/poetry/the-house-by-the-side-of-the-road/

 

Nowhere, Mt