Biking to Oregon: Day 7 - Taking the Afternoon Off

Waking up before sunrise and before my alarm clock prompted an early start to the day to take advantage of the cooler temperatures, less traffic, and calmer winds. I stopped by the same gas station I got ice cream at the night before to get two breakfast sandwiches. The unmasked cashier asked me if I was scared of the virus, prompted by the mask I was wearing. I said no, but that some people don’t care if I wear the mask, and some people do, so I chose to wear it.

I was so happy that I chose to leave early with the slight tailwind and lack of traffic. 17 miles into my day, the road suddenly dipped down into a valley where the terrain changed from rolling farm hills to an area with lush trees. A welcomed sight after a week of mostly stereotypical midwest terrain. At the bottom of the valley was Little Yellowstone County Park and campground. I stopped in to see if they had any drinking water. I had barely drank any water so far, but I knew there were few rest stops between me and my destination for the day, so I wanted to top off.

As I started to head towards the exit, I saw a camper standing outside an RV drinking coffee. It was still early in the day and nobody else seemed to be awake, but I biked by to say hello. His name was Eric, and he mentioned that he had passed me on the highway the previous day and was wondering if I would be passing through the campground that night.

Eric wasn’t sure if I was touring given the minimal amount of luggage on my bike. I told him about being a week into my trip to Oregon, and he talked about the touring he used to do. He even brought his old 1970s touring bike with him camping, and mentioned he would ride it up the hill I had just descended for some exercise. I told Eric that I had camped in Enderlin and was just passing through the campground to refill on water, and asked if he knew of any water fountains nearby. He wasn't sure, but he brought out a water my jug and offered me some. After topping off my water bottles, I thanked him and continued west.

The night before, I was making a rough plan for today's ride. I noticed the minimal amount of towns and services on the map and weather forecast, with the heat index reaching 100 degrees. 112 miles would put me in Napoleon, but I was ready for a shorter day. One town closer was Gackle - 76 miles from Enderlin. I noticed another COL - Cyclist Only Lodging - on my map, labeled as the “Honey Hub of Gackle”. I found an older blog post from one of the owners, who described it as him and their family opening their home to passing cyclists. My goal was to stay there for the night.

I ran into some road construction, but the workers let me bike through while still holding up a line of cars, allowing me to enjoy to enjoy some car free riding. It was still the morning, but it was warming up fast and the winds were picking up out of the south. Although not a direct headwind, crosswinds still have a big effect on the speed and enjoyment of riding. I almost welcome passing semi trucks who provide a couple seconds of wind blockage.

With the exception of the few curves when I passed through Little Yellowstone, the highway I was on that day was dead straight, going directly west. I made it to Gackle by noon and had no problem finding the Honey Hub in the town of 287 people.

After parking my bike and "checking in," I went in the bathroom to take a shower and noticed the list of chores posted on the wall, separated by the day of the week. Today was Friday, shower day. As I showered, I used the cleaning supplies they had to wipe down the shower.

I started a load of laundry and laid down on the couch, feeling good that I had the whole rest of the day to relax and recuperate. I moved to one of the beds and took a much needed nap after sleeping less than I would’ve preferred last night.

Waking up in the early evening, I ordered takeout from a local bar. I remember feeling hungry enough to order the biggest burger on the menu, and it ended up being this dense, heavy monstrosity with onion rings and a fried egg in it. It tasted amazing, although I’m sure my body would’ve preferred eating something different.

As I was eating dinner, I heard noises from outside of Jason and Ginny playing with their kids. I went out to say hello and to retrieve my clothes that were drying in the hot and windy weather. They were friendly and asked about my trip. Jason said he was looking at my bike earlier and mentioned he’d never seen it before, being used to the usual touring bikes such as the Surly Long Haul Trucker.

The winds were picking up and a storm was approaching, so we said good night and they went inside. I was still outside putting my bike in the storage area to protect it from the impending storm.

One of the kids came back outside and offered me brownies and ice cream, which I can't turn down. I took my dessert back inside and watched a thunderstorm start to roll in before calling it a night.

Jason is a 5th generation beekeeper, and he and his family live in California most of the year. They travel to Gackle during the summer, along with 15,000 bee hives filling 30 semi truck trailers. North Dakota has less intense summers for the honey bees.

In 2012, they began noticing a lot of cyclists coming through Gackle. It was also at this time that ACA had diverted the Northern Tier route in North Dakota due to high truck traffic from oil drilling operations occurring in the northern part of the state. As a result, Gackle was along the new route, and Jason and Ginny heard cyclists ask for the usual amenities such as showers, lodging, laundry, and wifi.

One day during a storm, they invited a cyclist into their basement, and from there the Honey Hub of Gackle was born. Jason and Ginny had since moved to a bigger house in Gackle with the extra additions to their family of six.

Jason’s father was one of the founders of Honey Stinger, a sports nutrition company that makes snacks containing real honey for athletes. A large selection of Honey Stinger products was on display in the Honey Hub, along with reasonable donation suggestions.