Day 13, Bozeman, MT to Columbus, MT

Today, we left the high mountains of Western Montana and entered the rolling hills of Eastern Montana.

We rode most of today parallel to Interstate 90, the longest Interstate in the U.S.A.

We came pretty close to Yellowstone National Park. We did ride over the fast flowing Yellowstone River.

The vastness of the landscape gave an illusion of objects being closer than they are. Reminded me of 1987 when I went to Las Vegas for the very first time. Looking at the billboards, I would think that the casino was within walking distance when in reality it was miles away. The billboards are so huge that they create a similar illusion of proximity.

I rode solo the last 40 miles after lunch. Good meditative journey. A photo I took just before entering Columbus, MT. Columbus was once called Stillwater.

Today, I am thankful for my devoted office staff who keep the office running smoothly while I am out on one of my adventures. This is Debbie, my Physician Office Assistant who has been with me for over 9 years.

This is Jami, my office nurse offering her hair to cover up my bald head. She has been with me since my former nurse Kay Wolff retired in July of 2012.

Today, Saturday, is a big day for the LCGH Auxiliary. The members are bringing an internationally renowned magician to Lowville. Francis Menotti will perform in the Lowville Academy & Central School Auditorium at 2 P.M. & 7 P.M. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for children from 5 to 18. Tickets are still available at Kinney Drugs. If you call Elizabeth Woods at 717-7016, she will reserve seats for you. Otherwise, there will be tickets available at the door.

All proceeds from this event will go to the Auxiliary's nursing school scholarships and buying special equipment for the hospital.

Please go for the show & bring your friends. It is sure to be a fun afternoon & evening.

Day 12, Helena, MT to Bozeman, MT

Let me introduce you to another member of the team: JoanneErnst. She is an American former triathlete who won the 1985 Hawaii IronmanTriathlon. It is so amazing to see her in action on a daily basis.

Every day we refer to the profile sheet that helps us mentally plan for the day. It instructs us as to what will be the elevation gain and at what distance will we be either ascending, descending or encountering flat terrain.

It is no wonder why Montana is called the “Big Sky Country”. We were hoping to see some wildlife along the way but so far there has been none. Today, we departed from Helena, the capital of Montana and made our way to Bozeman. Millions of tourists fly in to the Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport to go visit the world famous Yellowstone National Park. The temperatures have been on the cooler side the last 2 days. We are starting our day with the temperature in the 40s. We dress in layers to stay warm and shed the layers as the day warms up. It will take us all of 4 days of riding to cover the 4th largest state after Alaska, Texas and California.

Finally, another local organization that can benefit from your generosity is the Double Play Sports Center in Lowville.

Day 11, Missoula, MT to Helena, MT

I am pictured with Larry and Kelli Oaks of Houston, Texas. This is their 4^th cross country bicycle ride. I have had the distinct pleasure of meeting some of the nicest people one would ever dream of associating with. I find their stories fascinating. 

We leave for our destination of the day at first light, which was around 6:30 this morning. One order of business is to get our bicycle ready for the day. Pictured here is Jim Cox, a retired military officer pumping up his tire. Helping him is his wife Gretchen who came for a few days to provide him with companionship and support.

Lunch stop today was 59 miles from the start. We enjoyed the “big sky” state of Montana all day long. The longest day of our entire journey was made considerably less grueling by a fairly strong tailwind. The rest day did make the going a lot easier too. Our team of 4 arrived at our destination in reasonably good form, both physical and mental.

Today, we crossed the Continental Divide at Macdonald Pass.

We entered Lewis and Clark County, Montana. You can see by our clothing that the weather was cold today.

I took a couple of spills from my bicycle today. One was a dynamic fall while moving at a slow speed and one was a static fall when a gust of wind proved to be strong enough to topple me over to the right side while my shoe was clipped in to the pedal. I think my ego was more bruised than my body. I will just have to be that much more careful going forward so that my trip does not prematurely end because of a simple blunder.

So today I thought of the good work done by Lewis County Search and Rescue. If I succeeded in bringing to you some joy with this blog, please make a contribution of at least $1 to Lewis County Search and Rescue.

Day 10, Rest day in Missoula

What to do on a rest day? Rest? No way!!! I climbed University of Montana’s Mount Sentinel up to the big “M”.

 A view of Missoula from just above the big “M”.

A panoramic view of the many mountain ranges that converge at Missoula.

Addie and her dog enjoying a peaceful afternoon along the banks of the Clark Fork River. This photo is from the balcony of my room.

Day 9, Lolo, MT to Missoula, MT

We departed from Lolo, MT on Monday, September 1, Labor Day for Missoula, MT. We covered a distance of 37 miles in a little less than 2 ½ hours. Bathing in the hot springs at Lolo was very invigorating.

We were a team of 4 that rode a paceline today. Besides me, there was Randy Kohlhase, Janis Bond and Nicole Mazza.

Someday, if Sheree will allow me, I will own a motorcycle and have more adventures.

And here we are expressing our joy at entering the city of Missoula.

The evening was bittersweet. 5 of our teammates had signed up to ride only up to Missoula. We had a farewell banquet. Lots of camera clicking went on all evening. Exchanging of email addresses and pledges to stay in touch going forward. All I know from past experiences is that once we all get into the rhythm of our work lives at home, these pledges go unfulfilled. Memories are there, the longing to create more such memories is there, but life moves relentlessly in the onward direction. All the photos and video clips will only have relevance to the ones in them. The fun times, the laughter, the hardships endured, the chemistry, the bonding between friends who were total strangers just over a week ago. I will endure this heartache too as I have others in the past. I wish them safe return home to their loved ones. Here are the photos of the 5 that will not ride with us to Helena on Wednesday.

Steve Suche from Calgary, Alberta, Canada

 Larry Stark from Centennial, CO and Sandi Mullat from Myakka City, FL

Walter Wundrow from Houston, TX

Jim Gabbert from Sarasota, FL

I totally forgot about the "Wow" factor. Well, if I have touched you in some way today, make a contribution to the Caitlyn R. Pate Fund. Try to be a part of the Remembering Our Angels 5K Run/Walk. I would have if I were in Lowville on October 4.

Day 8, Kooskia, Idaho to Lolo, Montana

Today was a “Wow” day from the start to the end. We checked out of these beautiful log cabins in Kooskia (pronounced by locals as Kooskee). I had shared the “Angler” log cabin with Archie S., Jim C. and Evan M. I had the loft all to myself which made it easy for me to do my work in the early morning while the others slept downstairs. I am finding myself going to sleep early around 9 p.m. but then I am up by 2 a.m. So, it is from 2 a.m. until breakfast time that I get all my work done. This would include downloading the photos from the camera, the video from the Sony POV camera, the information from the Garmin GPS, writing this blog, checking up on office work, packing up my bag and getting my day pack ready.

The entire group devouring enormous quantities of food at breakfast as we burn over 6000 calories a day riding the roughly 100 miles on our bicycles.

We pedaled along the middle fork of the Clearwater River for a while and then along the Lochsa river. I learned about the elusive HarlequinDuck and also gathered more information about the Lewis and Clark expedition over 200 years ago. The hardships they faced traveling this rugged landscape, negotiating fast flowing streams and rivers, and how they overcame the obstacles along their path with cunning and ingenuity. It was here that for the first time on their 8,000 mile journey, they had to retreat because of deep snow and inability to locate the trail when they had traveled westwards.

There is a perfect reason why it is known as the Clearwater River. The water is pristine. You can very easily see the riverbed. There was a gradual uphill gradient as the road paralleled the river.

No wonder Althea G.P. looks so happy in this photo. Who would not enjoy a picnic lunch in such a serene setting? Also seen in this photo are Sandi M., Lori G., and Terry M. 

Larry S., Evan M., Warren H., and John S. relishing their picnic lunches and a well-deserved midday break. 

Someday, I would love to come back to this part of Idaho and spend more time enjoying it. 

Can anyone identify this contraption sitting on pontoons in the middle of the stream? The barrels were rotating. I could not see any electrical wires from it so it was definitely not meant for power generation. Again, notice the clear water!

The winding and long climb to Lolo pass came towards the end of the day which increased the effort for one and all. I soaked it every minute of today’s surroundings, took my time, took lots of pictures and video footage, and also brought up the rear.

Time to adjust the wristwatch and the clock on all the other gadgets that I have, and believe me, I have quite a few. I have now entered the Mountain Time Zone.

I do not know what to make of this welcome with a grizzly looking at me wanting to make me his next meal. I hope I do not run into one of them as I travel through the “big sky” state of Montana.

After climbing Lolo pass, I had sore leg muscles. BadgerBalm always comes to the rescue. It puts be back in the bicycle saddle day after day for more adventures. Do you ever have sore muscles? Then I want you to get yourself a can of Badger Balm from Campmor. Every time you use it, you will thank me, and you will be reminded of me. That way, I will stay in your memory forever. Disclaimer: I have not received any incentive from the makers of Badger Balm but my friend Bill O. at Campmor did send me some complimentary gear that I am using daily during the ride. If you are enjoying this blog, I want you to express your appreciation to Bill O. by checking out their newlydesigned website.

Day 7, Lewiston, Idaho to Kooskia, Idaho

We have 4 guides with us. There are 2 support vehicles and a minivan driven by the masseuse Tara. On any given day, 2 guides drive the support vehicles and 2 guides are on bicycles circulating among us riders. One guide generally is towards the front of the pack and one guide is towards the rear. Through the day, over a 100 mile ride, the riders may become stretched apart by as many as 20 miles. Pictured here is A.D., one of the four guides. On the table is a spread of fruit, energy drink mixes, energy bars, energy gels and sunscreen. We initial the sheet recording the time we will depart and pack our day bags with the things we may require during the day, e.g. warm layers of clothing, rain gear, etc.

Now all that bicycling we do pushes a lot of blood to the working muscles of the legs. I just wanted my brain to know that I was not totally ignoring it. So, here I am, pictured in the middle of a desolate road in Lewis County, Idaho with such a wonderful screensaver-like backdrop doing a headstand to increase the blood flow to my brain. Have no fear. There was not a vehicle for miles in any direction and we could see clearly in both direction. And also, I had R.K., a radiologist from Green Bay, Wisconsin, who took this picture, looking out for me.

Not very unlike the Lewis County in NY where I reside, is Lewis County in ID. The mountains and the streams are very similar to the Adirondacks. The air is crisp and unpolluted. There is very little traffic. The roads are in good shape. The Nez Perce reservation and the Clearwater National Forest occupy a large portion of the area we traveled through.

The 2 support vehicles leapfrog all day long. So, as we ride, we reach one or the other support vehicle roughly every 15 miles for food and water. The guides are also expert bicycle mechanics and are able to quickly fix any minor mechanical troubles we may be having with the bicycles. If it is a problem that cannot be fixed, either the part is swapped out or as you can see, one of the reserve bicycles from the roof is brought down to replace the defective one. One of the other functions the support vehicles serve is to offer a tired rider to hop along for the rest of the day. Riders may also opt to not ride their bicycle on any given day for any individual reason and drive with the guide in the support vehicle. This is very convenient and offers riders of all abilities to be able to participate in a demanding journey such as this. Ours is not a race, and if we are unable to ride our bicycle every mile of the 3,600 miles across the country, it is considered perfectly okay. So far, I have ridden every mile along the route.

If you enjoyed today's blog, consider donating $1 to any charity of your choice today.