Day 24 - Cody to Sturgis - Part 2

Dropping down again to around 3,500 feet, we turned onto US 212 and headed up the Beartooth Pass. This road is legendary with bikers for its scenic beauty and challenging twisties. It was all I had heard it would be. We stopped at Top Of The Earth for pins and a break, before heading over the summit at 10,947 feet (pics)

Dropping down into Red Lodge, we stopped at the Harley shop for the mandatory t-shit and more Beartooth pins, then took MT 306 to Belfry; MT 72 to Bridger; and MT 310/WY 789 to Lovell, WY.

Day 24 - Cody to Sturgis - Part 3

(I added a photo here of Red Lodge). We arrived in Lovell at noon and had lunch. We then picked up US 14a through the Bighorn National Forest. I had not known what a spectacular ride this would be from the maps, but it turned out to be just as great as the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway, but not as great as the Beartooth. We rose from 3,500 feet very rapidly to the summit at 9,430 feet. The scenery was breathtaking. (pics).

We finally hit I-90 around 3:30pm and pounded our way the final 220 odd miles to Sturgis. While the scenery was sometimes beautiful, there is not really a lot to say for interstate travel, especially after having ridden three of the most scenic and challenging roads a biker could imagine. Barring the long treck on I-90, this, along with the ride from Durango, CO to Ouray, CO, was my most memorable day of riding so far. It will be hard to beat it in the future, but you know I will try!

We arrived in Sturgis after 7:00pm after having been on the road for 11 hours. Suzanne was a trooper all the way and loved the scenery as much as I did. We now spend three nights in Sturgis and will report on the events.

Day 23 - Yelloswtone to Cody

We left West Yellowstone after breakfast at about 8:15am and headed back into the park. Since I was on the bike and Suzanne was in the car, and I had the "Senior Citizen Lifetime Parks Pass," Suzanne had to pay the $25 weekly pass rate. Oh well, the alternative was a 150 to 200 mile detour around the park.

Se saw more wildlife, bull Elk (for the first time - pic) and more buffalo (pic). The park is truly beautiful with massive stands of Lodgepole Pine so thick it makes walking difficult. Lodgepole are interesting in that they reseed themselves with an incredibly thick cover of new trees after the forest is destroyed by fire. Forest fires are the regenerating force of the forest.

We crossed over the "Fishing Bridge," from which there is no longer any fishing permitted (since 1973) due to the near decimation of the Cutthroat Trout population by fishermen. As we reached the summit of Sylvan Pass (8530 feet), we ran across the "Road Work" sign (pic). The East Entrance to the park has been under repair for over two years now due to a massive slide. Supposedly, it will be completed this year, but in the meantime, travelers are required to follow a lead vehicle down the very steep descent over a largely gravel road into the Shoshone River valley on the way to Cody. The speed rarely exceeded 15 mph and the dust was abundant! Needless to say, the car and Goldie both got baths when we arrived in Cody.

Once out the East Gate, we traveled through some beautiful landscape with very interesting features (pic). Once in Cody, we checked into the Best Western, washed the vehicles, had lunch at the historic Irma Hotel (Buffalo Bills hotel), visited the Beartooth Harley Davidson shop for the mandatory T-shirt, and then took in the marvelous Buffalo Bill Cody Museum (pic). There are five museums in the center, covering all aspects of life in the West from arms, to wildlife, to Buffalo Bill's life, to western art and history. A truly remarkable museum.

We are now about to meet Mick Barrus, a very old friend with whom I went to undergraduate school and lived with in Elwood Manor, our cooperative living group. Mick lives in Cody and I haven't seen him in 43 or so years, so the visit is long overdue.

Tomorrow it's on to Sturgis!

Day 22 - Yellowstone (South Loop)

We headed back into the park around 10:00am, this time to see the much more popular South Loop. We saw more Elk early on, then stopped at Fountain Paint Pot (pic). Lots of colorful geysers. Next was the Firehole Lake Drive and more active and colorful geysers (pic). Finally, we stopped at the grandaddy of them all - Old Faithful - and after a quick lunch, the geyser erupted right on schedule at 12:44pm (pic).

We then drove over Craig Pass (8262 ft.), crossing the Continental Divide twice, and stopped at the West Thumb geyser basin for a quick look. We drove along Yellowstone Lake and stopped at the beautiful Lake Yellowstone Hotel for a look. The lake is beautiful and someone was actually swimming (it's COLD). Then we headed down the Yellowston River and stopped at the Upper Falls for a (pic). Heading to Canyon Village, we ran across a couple of herd of Buffalo (pic).

The rest of the journey was effectively retracing the last part of yesterday's route, however, we did spot a Coyote alongside the road. Suzanne was happy with all the animal siteings!

Tomorrow we head back through the park for the third time on the way to Cody. A short day of about 131 miles. More later.

Day 21 - Butte to Yellowstone

We left Butte on I-90 at 8:15am. After a few miles we reached the continental divide at 6,900 plus feet. From here on, all the water flowe=s to the Gulf of Mexico. Twenty odd miles later, we switched onto US 287 and headed up the Madison River Valley. What a beautiful ride. It goes through cattle country and the fields are mainly devoted to growing hay. As one acquaintance in a bar told me: "Montana and the other western states have banned the use of square hay bales in favor of round ones." I naively asked why, he said because the square ones constipate the cattle. One on me!

We passed through Ennis, a great little town completely restored to the 1800s. Further on, we stopped at Cameron, where we me four fellow bikers from Kansas City, Missouri (pic). Monte, Shannon, George and Sharron were riding softails (Loaded with chrome) and were a delight to talk to. Monte informed me that if you bought your bike in Montana, and you owned a piece of property in Montana, there was no sales tax and you could license the bike for about $125 for the life of the bike! Montana loves bikers!

Further up the Madison River Valley we saw many fly fishermen in the river and in boats with guides, fishing for trout. The river is absolutely beautiful and I was full of envy.

We arrived in West Yellowstone at 11:30 and checked into the Holiday Inn. We had lunch ane headed into the park (I have a seniors lifetime pass!). Our route was the North circuit to see some geysers and the Mammoth Hot Springs. If we had it to do over again, we would skip the North circuit. The roads are narrow and there are many places where the speed is less than 20 mph. We did see a few herds of elk, but no other wildlife. Some of the scenic sites were quite nice (pics).

We arrived back in West Yellowstone at 5:30pm and had a walk up Yellowstone Ave. Several nice shops, including a biker shop! We then returned to the Best Western and had a beer or two and dinner. Any typos are the fault of the bar in the hotel.

Talk to you tomorrow after we see Old Faithful and the other sites on the South Loop.

Cheers

Day 20 - Lewiston to Butte

We left Lewiston at 8:15am and headed East on US 12 up the Clearwater River Valley. What a wonderful ride. The first half took us up to Lolo Pass, following the river all the way with twists and turns all the way. The second half took us down to Missoula, Montana, again with twists and turns all the way. In total, the ride from Lewiston, Idaho to Missoula covered nearly 200 miles of wonderful riding road!

The scenery was great, with the crystal clear river and the Pine, Cedar and Douglas Fir forests on the West side and Pine and prairie grasses on the East side. We stopped for gas at Cougar Canonyon on the way up - a one pump station that loves bikers. We stopped for lunch on the way down at Lolo Hot Springs, where there really are hot springs that keep a spa at 103 degrees.

The whole route followed that taken by the Lewis and Clark expedition as it made its way over the Rockies down the Clearwater River to the Snake, and then to the Columbia and the Pacific.

Leaving Missoula, we headed down I-90 to Butte, one of the great mining towns in the U.S. and, coincidentally, the birthplace of my Mom! We checked into the Best Western at 5:00pm (mountain time) and headed up the hill to Walkerville to see what was left of Mom's old neighborhood. Unfortunately, not much is left, and what is, is in serious disrepair. But this is not hard to understand. My great grandfather bought the house (two or three rooms) my mother was born in from the Indians in the 1880's!

We also witnessed the beginning of Evel Knievel Days in Butte. This is an annual affair that honors Evel Knievel, who was born in Butte - and who is here for the event and staying in our very hotel! The entire "uptown" area is closed to traffic for the weekend. There are hundreds of bikes, some of which are headed to Sturgis after the event, and much music, drinking and frivolity! A good time by any standard.

Tomorrow we head for West Yellowstone and two day of touring the park. Talk to you later!

Day 19 - Wenatchee to Lewiston

We left Wenatchee at 8:15am and headed North to see Dry Falls and the Grand Coulee Dam. We stopped in Coulee City for a coffee and bought some wonderful snacks called "Wheat Dudes." They are only made in Coulee City and are simply whole wheat kernels treated with something, and they taste great. Bringing some home, and have the address to have more shipped.

From Coulee City it is about 3 miles to Dry Falls. This is a most interesting spot. The falls were created about 15,000 years ago at the end of the last ice age. The glaciers had moved down from Canada and blocked both the Columbia River and the John Clark River in Idaho. The latter, backed up into Montana and created Lake Missoula, which at its peak covered over 500 square miles and was up to 2,000 feet deep - larger than any lake in North America.

Finally, the pressure of the water broke through the ice dam and Lake Missoula drained rapidly through eastern Washington and Oregon to the Pacific. At its peak, the flow was over 500 feet deep and rushed along at over 65 miles per hour creating the largest flood the world has ever experienced. It scoured the area and was hundreds of miles wide. It carried with it pieces of the shattered glacier and deposited boulders, some weighing up to 200 toms, across thousands of square miles of Eastern Washington and Oregon. The main flow created Dry Falls, which is over 400 feet high and 3 miles wide, dwarfing Niagra, and once the largest waterfall in the world. I saw it when I was very young and was awed, I am still awed.

We then went to the Grand Coulee Dam, once the largest Dam in the world. There is enough concrete in the dam to pave a highway across America, and it generates an enormous amount of hydro electricity. While there we met a few other bikers from Utah and shared tales. We also ran across a number of antique racing cars, all of which ran and sounded like they were brand new. Amazing to see and hear.

We then turned East and headed for Spokane and then South to Lewiston. This area is the "Breadbasket of America." It is mile after mile of wheat and other grain fields. It is like a sea of grain for hundreds and hundreds of square miles.

We arrived in Lewiston at 4:30pm after the two Garmins took us on a merry chase over some side roads - can't figure out why. Ultimately, and with the help of a road worker, we found our Comfort Inn, checked in and went for drinks and dinner.

Lewiston is a nice town of 31,000 people, but it is really hot in the summer! As I dropped down from the high plateau to the Lewiston, which is located at the confluence of the Clearwater and Snake Rivers, the temperature was around 100 degrees. I was glad I had my Cool Vest on.

All is good and tomorrow we head for Butte, Montana - where my Mom was born. More from there.