Week 5 Overview & Stats

Stats to date:

📍 Total Miles Ridden: 1,269

⛰️ Total Elevation Climbed: 41,804 feet 

Overview: We drove a Uhaul truck from Great Falls, Montana to Dickinson, North Dakota on Monday after taking a few days off due to heat. From Dickinson we rode hwy 10 which became 139 near Hebron all the way to Glen Ullin. We continued on 139, with 12 miles of gravel rd, to Mandan, and then took side rds and bike paths to General Sibley Campground. Took 1804 and moffit rd east, then south on the busier US 83 to Hazelton. Took Mt 34 east through Napoleon (Bliss says “get your own dang tots"), 30 north and then 46 east to Gackle. The state highways don’t have a great shoulder for the most part, but the traffic is pretty light, and the drivers are very friendly. Bliss has said several times that she loves North Dakota truck drivers. 

Highlights: A hard decision had to be made. Long before we started this trip, two of Bliss’ greatest concerns in crossing Montana were smoke from wildfires and heat domes. No smoke, but the heat has come. Thinking of skipping part of the ride really hurts Robert’s pride. His thought process is that if something has to be done you just do it and deal with the consequences. Bliss is disappointed as well, but on the other hand, her thought process is that if it’s a bad idea you don’t have to do it and possibly get sick or hurt and end the trip. Of course she is right. We have made some poor decisions on bike trips before and have regretted them. Learn from the past. We stayed 3 days in an extended stay hotel waiting out some of the worst of the heat, carefully considering the best choices. 

Did a little site seeing in Great Falls

Bliss reserved a 10 foot U-haul truck in Great Falls, when we showed up Monday morning all they had was a 20 footer they would give us for the same price. Overkill for two bicycles, even with the gear. Riding along the highway, it was natural to wonder if we had made the wrong decision. However, when we drove through over 10 miles (Bliss says it was 20) of road construction, with so much truck traffic and loose gravel, not to mention the super soft edges of the road we would have had to ride on, we found a lot of solace in our decision. 

We also got to see the new Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library, which we wouldn’t have stopped at if we were on bikes. Bonus! A lady that Bliss has met only a handful of times through the mortgage coaching circles, Karen Deis, has a daughter in Dickinson (Betsy) and she invited us to stay at her house while we get our bikes tuned up. Another Bonus. In Dickinson, Jason, the bike tech at Stefan’s Saw and Sales (not sure what that means) spent a good amount of time working on our bikes for free - wouldn’t let us pay anything. Third bonus.

Fun photos from the Teddy Roosevelt Library

It is great to be back on the bikes again! Yes, it is tiring and our bums are sore, but it really is fun. This part of North Dakota does not have mountains, but it is not flat. Very hilly on every road we’ve been on. Lots of farmland, a lot of corn and soybeans, Bliss went to pick some but the corn isn’t ready yet. As we got farther east there is a lot of marsh grass and wildfowl ponds, and the farmers use every bit of plowable land around it for planting. We both enjoy peaceful roads meandering through farmland, so it’s been good. The bad part is, even though there is a lot of water around, it doesn’t look very inviting to get in like Washington and Montana. 

We have been getting up early, leaving before 6 am to beat the hottest parts of the day. So we arrive at the campgrounds fairly early (we’ve done 3 days straight of camping this week). We put up our hammocks in the shade and rest until the sun goes down a little before we make dinner or set up camp. It’s hot, but we’re doing our best not to let it affect us too much. A couple days with some cloud cover have been nice this week. Another shout out for Frog Toggs.  Also, the metal Camelbak water bottles keep the water cool for much longer than even the insulated ones.

We stayed at a great warm showers in Gackle, ND.  They are the bee keepers in the summer and then farm 1,200 acres of oranges in CA during the winter.  It was so nice to be inside with air conditioning!