It was a hot night. No need for a sleeping bag. I woke up and prepared for another hot day. I left the church around 5:30am and stopped by the cafe to drop off the growler. Today was going to be a longer one, since my goal was to stay with my aunt and uncle in Redmond. There were two mountain passes in the way. The …

Another hot day in the forecast for today. I rejoined my route and, similar to yesterday, started going up another big climb towards Tipton Summit. Although the remaining days of my trip would involve big mountain passes, it was feeling much easier having lower traffic, prettier views, and less wind compared to earlier …

I started the day with a decent climb out of Halfway, towards Richland. The climb wasn’t as steep as the ones in Idaho, being on a state highway, but it was long enough for me to be happy that I didn’t go on any longer the day before. It was supposed to be another hot day, so I had another early start. I stopped in a …

I woke up at my usual early time again, but I was in mountain time since crossing into Riggins yesterday. This meant I was up extra early, leaving my hotel room with no daylight. I went back to the gas station and bought two breakfast sandwiches and ate them at the table outside, watching everyone get fuel and coffee …

I was looking forward to today’s ride while planning my day last night. A lot of the roads were off of the main highway and looked like they were designed by a 5 year-old who liked to scribble a lot. The waitress at the bar last night had coincidentally suggested the road I would take out of Stites. I thanked her, …

Another early start: On the road by 6:00am. I was excited to cross into Idaho today. The highway outside of Lolo only had a few cars. I made it to the top of Lolo Pass after the gradual ascent with fresh, smooth pavement, and stopped at the visitor center to refill water bottles. I had the whole place to myself. I …

Another early start today. I wasn’t worried about the wind, but I wanted to avoid the traffic going towards Missoula. It was the coldest morning of my trip so far. I had my numb hands under control, but the mid-40s temperatures made me forget about any improvements I had made. It was mostly downhill outside of Lincoln …

Today was my first mountain pass of the trip. I joined the Lewis and Clark route out of Great Falls and stayed on highway 200, which I was ready to be done with at this point. The road out of Great Falls wasn’t that bad, but highway 200 was starting to be associated with traffic, wind, and narrow shoulders. I stopped …

All those trees yesterday were short lived, as I left Lewistown and went back into cow grazing land. The Lewis and Clark and Northern Tier routes diverged in Lewistown. Alan would be leaving town to the north while I would be continuing west. Our routes did meet up again briefly in Great Falls where I would be leaving …

Early in the morning, I was reminded of that state park in Minnesota as I heard thunder around 2:30. It wasn’t raining, but I saw a possible storm approaching on my weather radar and decided to go into the convenience store bathroom just to be safe, which the owners kept unlocked for us. The storm dodged us, and my …