Day 67 - August 9, 2013 - Riggins, ID to New Meadows, ID

Miles - 31

Total miles - 1,795

We woke up late today - the light in a canyon looks like 6:30am when it's really 8:30...oops!  We also stopped for breakfast, which turned out to be the best breakfast of the trip...

Since we started so late, it got hot quickly.  And we had a slight but definitely noticeable uphill all day long.  I was dragging by about mile 10, and we had planned about 60 miles today...umm, that wasn't going to happen!  I kept taking breaks for water and to rest, and it was taking us forever to get anywhere.

We passed a crazy landmark today...this odd Yahweh place that is probably some sort of weird cult.  I'm not even going to google it...I'll probably get out on some government watch list just for reading about it.  It is for sale, if anyone's interested...

At one point, highway 95, which we have been following for a while, got windy, and the shoulder was pretty much non-existent.  The bail out option for the speeding logging trucks, RV's and semis that fly by turned into a gravelly ditch.  And of course, we were run off the road several times.  It was a frustrating afternoon.

We got to what was mostly the top of the climb, and were in another beautiful valley full of meadows.  And even a little downhill.  We knew we weren't going to make it our scheduled 60 miles to Council, so we decided to stop short at Zim's Hot Springs, just outside of New Meadows, ID.  I've been wanting to go to a hot spring forever, so I was excited!

We set up camp near one of the covered picnic tables, then headed in to enjoy the hot springs.  This hot springs has been around since at least the turn of the century - they have one large soaking pool that they keep pretty hot...it was warmer than a typical hot tub, and a swimming pool that was 92 degrees when we were there.  They felt great on our aching knees!  The swimming pool was the perfect temperature - not chilly, and you were comfortable in it even just floating around.

We cooked some backpacking lasagna (surprisingly good!), and the couple in the RV parked closest to us that we had talked to earlier brought us over a bag of popcorn, some 7-ups and a couple of beers - they are awesome!  Thanks to The Webbers!!

We headed back to the rec hall at the hot springs to have some snacks and try to download some Friends episodes onto the iPad for entertainment as we fall asleep, but the wifi was very slow.  About 10, we went back to the tent to turn in.  It had been smoky all day because of some fires in the area, but the sky was clearing, and the stars were pretty...but clear skies also mean cooler nighttime temperatures...

We climbed into our sleeping bags, but it wasnt probably more than a few hours before we woke up shivering.  Time for sweats, sweatshirts, and socks!  It wasn't supposed to get below 50, but our bags apparently said it was cooler than that!  To add insult to injury, I went to use the porta-potty, and could see that glorious steam coming off the springs...if I could have slept in there, I would have!

Day 66 - August 8, 2013 - Grangeville, ID to Riggins, ID

Miles - 45

Total Miles - 1,764

We were back on our own this morning. We headed out of the cabin and quickly found ourselves climbing up a 4 mile stretch of hill. So much for easing back into our routine! Thankfully, the scenery was great, with mountains in the distance and the smell of pine trees all around us.

We even caught a glance at a couple of young bucks about 500 feet from the road. When we reached the top of the hill, the scenery changed again to a sort of desert-mesa, and we could see for miles and miles.

 Due to some wildfires in other parts of Idaho and Oregon, the sky appeared hazy and smoky in the valley below us. We started our descent down the 7% grade, stopping quite often to keep our rims cool. We decided to ride down what is known as "new 95" instead of following Adventure Cycling's directions to ride down old 95. This decision probably saved us quite a few extra miles and uphills, and kept us on a more direct route to our destination for the day. At one point, we crossed the road to check out a small National Historic Site center for the Nez Perce battlefield. Continuing downhill, we arrived in the town of WhiteBird, stopping at a little cafe for some snacks and a cold drink. We briefly entertained the idea of staying in WhiteBird, but decided to press on to Riggins. The rest of the day was a beautiful ride, as we continually rode along the Salmon River, and next to beautiful walls of stone. 

We came across what appeared to be a small roadside fire that had started on some patches of dried grass close to the road. Local police and forest service personnel were out in full force and had it all under control. 

Near the end of our day, we stopped at a local produce stand to pick up some cold drinks. We always love going to these places to check out what fresh fruits and goodies they have. Unfortunately, we had to make the difficult decision to not purchase a jar of homemade pickles, due to their lack of portability with our gear and our lack of being able to keep them refrigerated properly. 

A little further down the road was the teeny tiny town of Riggins. We stopped in at the River Valley RV Park, secured a sweet camping spot right next to the river, and set up camp. We then decided to walk up the hill a bit to find some food, stopping in at Shelley's Back Eddy for a great dinner. We saw a couple of other cyclists in the restaurant, and when we returned to our camp later, we found they had set up camp not too far from us. 

We spent the evening chatting with two ladies that were vacationing in the area and were picking blackberries for pie making. They had a sweet little pup named Gracie that we got to hang out with.  We also swapped stories from the road with the other two cyclists. Before we knew it, 10 p.m. had rolled around and we knew we needed to get to bed. 

Day 65 - August 7, 2013 - Lochsa Lodge, ID to Grangeville, ID

Took advantage of one more day of jumping ahead a bit by car.  Not much of note today, stopped and had a pretty good lunch in Kooskia, ID.  Stocked up on groceries that we would need in the coming week.  Dropped by the bank for some cash.  Stopped at an RV park in Grangeville, ID and checked into a modest but cute little cabin.

Then we had to say goodbye to my mom...she needed to get back to real life and we needed to give up the crutch of having a car around to take the easy way out!

It was tough to se her go, we certainly had a great time getting to share part of our trip experience with her, and appreciate everything she did for us!!!

This part of Idaho reminds me so much of where I grew up in California - nothing but brown hills all around.  We did meet a sweet dog wandering around the RV park!  He followed us around, and even  came into our cabin once or twice...such a cutie.

The bathrooms and showers at this place were pretty cool - they give you a pass code for the doors, and the bathrooms are super clean.  The park is only a couple of years old, and I'd definitely recommend it to anyone traveling through!  Cabins were under $40, and a tent site was only $15 - not bad!  It's called the Bear Den RV Resort.

We spent some time replacing everything to your fully loaded again for the first time in a week and a half, enjoyed some downtime, and had some sandwiches for dinner before turning in.

Day 64 - August 6, 2013 - Lolo Hot Springs, MT to Lochsa Lodge, ID

Miles - 20

Total mileage - 1,719

We started riding today about 7 miles from Lolo Pass, at the Montana/Idaho border.  The ride was beautiful, but all up an incline.

We crossed into Idaho at the top!  And the Pacific time zone!  Though we will cross back into Mountain Time somewhere in Idaho.  Then back into the Pacific Time Zone.  Only Idaho knows why...

We checked out the Lolo Pass visitors center at the top, notable for its odd squirrels that look like a cross between a squirrel and a prairie dog.

Then it was back on the bikes for an amazing 13 miles or so of downhill.  And for most of it, we had the beautiful Lochsa River running alongside the road. Easily one of the best sections of riding of the whole trip!

We would love to build a house right there, and have that gorgeous mountain river run through our front yard!

We got to an Idaho dept of transportation site, and spooked a big herd of deer hanging out there...

Not far down the road, my mom had gone ahead to check out the cabins at the Lochsa Lodge - site of the last services for 65 miles on the road.  She had booked us an amazing cabin already - thanks mom!  By the way, she told us we have already spent our birthday and Christmas money for the next 5 years or so, but it was worth it to get to spend all of this time with her!

We checked out the river a bit, had a delicious dinner on the deck at the lodge, enjoyed an ice cream while playing a ton of rummy, watched a short film that our new friend Jamie, who we met in Florence, CO had directed (he was kind enough to drop a copy in our awesome gift bags from all of the lovely people in Florence - thanks again guys!), played more rummy while enjoying a few Angry Orchard brews, and turned in for the evening.  Had such a great day!

Day 63 - August 5, 2013 - Butte, MT to Missoula, MT

All driving today.  Along the way, we stopped at the Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site and took a tour of the old house and explored the grounds a bit.  It was a big cattle ranch around the turn of the century, and was a pretty neat history lesson.

The rest of the ride was pretty uneventful, Missoula is a neat college town, and we grabbed lunch there then found a hotel for the evening.  My mom and I checked out the casino - it was just a handful of video slot/poker/keno machines in a room.  Nothing like Vegas, of course.

We also tracked down a sporting goods store and picked up some 45 degree mummy sleeping bags for the chilly nights we figure we have ahead of us.  Hoping they keep us warm!

We stumbled across the Adventure Cycling headquarters...good thing they were closed, or Mel probably would have told them a thing or two about some of the roads their maps have taken us on!

Day 62 - August 4, 2013 - Yellowstone, WY to Butte, MT

Miles - 0

We spent most of this morning and early afternoon exploring Yellowstone on our way out of the park.  There are so many geysers, hot springs, and waterfalls that you could spend a week here and not see them all!  And because it is so beautiful and unique, it is PACKED with tourists!  

Some memorable moments - getting stuck on a narrow walkway behind the one man who has decided he needs to be shirtless, and he really, really should have made another decision...the British lady telling her kids "lets sit here and wait for the geezer" (I thought she meant waiting for their old man to catch up, she meant geyser)...the lady saying she tried to talk her son into getting into one of the rivers that the geyser runoff drains into to get a hammer that had been dropped in there, when there are signs everywhere telling you to stay on the paths because you never know where you might break through the soil and into another boiling spring or steam hole - mom of the year...

Most of my pictures are on the real camera, which I'll have to add later, but here are a couple from my phone:

We crossed into Montana today - our 7th state of the trip!  Those pictures are also on the real camera, so I leave you hanging for now...

On the way to Butte, we made a good number of jokes that fourth graders would have thoroughly enjoyed (hint: remove the e from Butte, and everything in town sounds pretty amusing - "Butt hair stylist...hahaha"...you get it.)

There are casinos everywhere in Butte.  It's odd.  I will go in one of these before we leave Montana.  I have to know what they are like!  And they have a giant statue on top of a mountain...a likeness of Mother Mary, but they say it is completely non-denominational and meant to represent all women.  I don't see how those things go together, but hey...

Day 61 - August 3, 2013 - Grand Teton National Park, WY

Miles - 17

Total mileage - 1,699

We needed to have a bike shop finally fix the flat in Mel's rear tire this morning, since I had apparently pinched the other one when installing it in Rawlins, WY...we woke up the next morning and the new tube was flat again.  So that was the first order of business today.

We found a bike shop in Jackson, WY, but got there before it opened, so we ate breakfast at a nice little place called Cafe Bohem.  It took forever to get our food though, so much for getting out of town early today!  We went back and got Mel's tire fixed, picked up some groceries for the day at the store, and drove back to Grand Teton National Park.

I couldn't resist biking at least some of Grand Teton National Park...especially since part if it had a wonderful bike path! The weather was perfect today, and the bike path was nearly flat.  And with the mountains as a backdrop, it was a pretty perfect day!

My mom and Mel came back to pick me up once they realized it was getting late and I hadn't eaten lunch yet, so I hopped in the car and snacked while driving to Yellowstone.

I had been trying to talk my mom and Mel into camping in Yellowstone, and they gave in and we picked on of the few remaining campsites (in a primitive area - pit toilets and no showers!), set up camp, and then set off to see Old Faithful.  We got to one of the visitor centers, had a look around, then ran into Alex and Andy(www.lookmumnocar.blogspot.co.uk), who we hadn't seen since Utica, KY as we were leaving!  They had a medical hold up in Colorado, but are back at it!  It was great to see them for a bit again!

We made it to Old Faithful, made some sandwiches on the benches nearby, and waited for the next eruption.  It was pretty cool!  Except for the jerk behind us who loudly took a call as they geyser erupted, when they have signs up telling you to silence your phone so everyone can enjoy their experience.  Turd...

Shep is on that sign, if you can spot him at the top there!

After that, we headed back to camp, made a fire, finished eating dinner, and just hung out and enjoyed the atmosphere.  My mom and Mel used my moms two sleeping bags, and I used both of our fleece sleep sacks, figuring I would be warm enough.  But...I was pretty cold all night.  Even with a sweatshirt and sweatpants on.  That was when I realized that if we were going to camp at any sort of higher elevations, we were going to need some warmer sleeping gear!

Badtz and Shep enjoyed the fire too...from afar!