Wednesday, July 3, 2019
Ride Report: 45 Miles: 1,300 Total Miles (All you OCD types out there must love that one, eh?), 15.3 Avg mph, 2,004 Ft.Climbing, 3,585 Calories.
A bit shorter ride today than is typical, but the reader had not ought to get all up in arms about it since it was planned. We wanted a short ride day today in order to get into West Yellowstone sooner. Plus, with the wind at my back yesterday after leaving Cameron, it just made sense to keep going. I'd much rather ride 20-21 miles an hour with the wind at my back at the end of a long day than get up in the morning and do that same 16 miles at 12-13 mph with the wind in my face. Which, as it turns out, it exactly what would have happened had I waited till this morning to do those 16 miles. Ya play the aces when they're dealt to ya.
While I still had the wind in my face for the first 15 miles or so, it could have been worse. It shifted around to a sorta tailwind about the time we reached Earthquake Lake. If you've never heard of this, you'd ought to Google it. Basically, an earthquake collapsed the side of a mountain onto a campground in 1959, blocked the Madison River, cracked the Dam upstream that forms Lake Hebgen, buried a bunch of people in the landslide - it was a mess. It ended up forming what is now called "Earthquake Lake". There is still considerable evidence of the quake today - some 60 years later. Wow!
But enough of this 1980's disaster movie themed post. Let's move on to the pics. Because, as always, it was a good (if short) day.
The BLM campground was back up the road about 2 miles from where Susan picked me up last night. So she returned me to the same spot to start today's ride. This was the view. Terrible, I know, having to endure sights like this every morning. One would hope that the reader appreciates all I go thru for them. Used by permission of Susan Schoen Photography, LLC.
This, readers, would be the Madison River, up which Sig and I rode pretty much all day. Gorgeous, no? And as an added bonus, the clouds hadn't settled in yet.
Good thing we got those previous two pics, because the weather was a bit unsettled today resulting in the mountains being shrouded in mist and clouds for most of the day. This was also one of those aggravating days where my lightweight stuff didn't keep me warm and the heavier stuff was too hot. I elected to go with being cold. Sig and I also got rained on for about 4 miles late in the day when we were coming into West Yellowstone. No pics - ya don't lollygag when its raining.
OK - this was just amazing. An Osprey on its nest next to the Madison River. I zoomed the camera on the phone as much as I could. We saw one fishing last night while looking out the window of the RV. They just circle the river and when they see something (presumably something like a fish) they turn into the wind and "hover" for a short time, then dive on the poor fish. I think he got one because he didn't come up from behind the trees for a good while. But I think he missed the next time because he zoomed back up above the treeline with apparently empty talons. It was quite the show.
Ya don't see many signs like this in Kansas - "Bighorn Sheep Crossing" I kept my eyes peeled - no luck. So far I'm zero for two; no moose and no bighorn sheep. I really was hoping for at least one of the two.
The Madison River just below Earthquake Lake. I thought this one was fantastic. Note the three guys fly fishing in the river. I took the pic from right beside a sign that said, "Warning! Water may rise rapidly without warning!" I think these guys are crazy. But then, they prolly think the same thing about a guy riding a bike on the shoulder of the road with Semis going by at 70 mph. Bah! They can think what they want. I'll put my spandex pants up against their waders any day of the week.
This is the side of the mountain that collapsed as a result of an earthquake in 1959. This happens to be the same collapse that buried people and created the aptly named Earthquake Lake. The pic doesn't do justice to the sheer volume of rock that sloughed off the side of this mountain. On top of that, the entire valley floor dropped on (I think) the north end; as much as 21 feet in some places. Hebgen lake sits upstream in that same valley and was like a giant bathtub that had been lowered by 21 feet on one end. The visitor's center had a technical name for it, but the lake basically sloshed back and forth for a while. Go figure...
This is Earthquake Lake - it went on for miles. Pretty much as far as the dam for Hebgen Lake. There are still dead trees whose roots were subsumed in water standing along the shoreline. Quite amazing.
Susan and me in the parking observation area of the visitor's center. It was a very nice facility and had a memorial list of those who lost their lives in the disaster. One lady reported that she got up when she heard the noise and left her house with her dog, having to jump across a crack that was opening in the ground to escape. There were pics of her house (a lodge, actually) sitting in the newly formed lake after it fell there. That's a scene right out of a disaster movie.
These two are Joanne (on the left) and Jenny. They work at the visitor's center and were very helpful. We had to ask them about the weather since we (sigh) had no cell service all day. Jenny recognized my jersey and said she'd passed me on the way to work this morning. This occasioned a discussion about what I was doing. When I told them about The Thin Blue Ride, they commented that they get a lot of cross country riders passing thru. I bet - seeing as how they're right on the route. Note that I have something weird going on with my lips. Apparently I can't even time my own pics right, I was talking while taking my own selfie. They gave me a sticker! We're BFFs.
And just a few miles further down the road, it was lunch time - and the experiments continued. Evidence is mounting that Oreos make everything taste better. It certainly proved to be the case with this Hostess Cupcake. We shall see...
And with our arrival in West Yellowstone, Sig and I completed Section 4 (of 12) of the ACA's T/A maps. Four down, eight to go.
And just to inform the reader, this was the route. The reader might wonder why all the dodging around between Dillon and West Yellowstone. I certainly did. Turns out there are no roads there. Must have something to do with these big lumps with snow all over the tops. In fact, the maps take us over passes in order to get to the next river valley and, as best as possible, progress us to our destination. It's not like Kansas where ya can just point pretty much any direction and build a straight road to your destination.
Till next time.
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