Here I am, 10pm, kinda drunk, trying to write a blog post... again. Seriously, when I road toured I spent less time hanging out with people then on this supposedly remote tour. It's awesome! I'm really going to have to be brief tonight though.
The morning was awesome. The North and South bounders and I hung out awhile eating pancakes in one of the cabins, after I slept in in my warm cabin and listened to NPR on the wifi. I didn't leave until 9am, but it was worth it.
Then I climbed a shit ton, biked a bunch, saw pretty things, rode over rough roads, etc. On previous tours walking was taboo, but on this one it's often necessary. Climbing at 2 mph over crazy boulders vs walking at 2mph over crazy boulders is pretty much the same thing. Screw it. Hiking is also cool.
Anyway, I climbed for 20 some miles or so (with some flats and small downhills) and crossed the continental divide twice. It was through beautiful hills and lots of old mines. After cresting the last one I took about an hour break, and my south bound buddies caught up with me. We rode together downhill for about 5 miles and then I split of on an alternative route to skip Helena, which I've already biked through in 2014 and was a bit out of my way.
I then climbed a ton more through a really cool area, and thunderstorms threatened. Eventually they caught me and I climbed for while in some crazy weather, rain, thunder, lighting, all with me way up on the top of the hills - but my planned stop was just a few more miles at six thousand feet - Park Lake.
So here is where the story gets awesome. With about two miles left to go an blue truck comes up the deserted gravel road. I'm in full neon raingear so I know the see me. However, I hear their engine rev and look back and see them accelerating straight at me. I bail off the road into a ditch and they ride by laughing.
Don't worry, that's not the awesome part.
Then another truck comes up. Here we go again, right? But they slow down and talk to me. They have a friend riding the divide, and are cyclists themselves, and invite me to hang with them in their camper trailer at Park Lake. Score!
I show up, cold, wet, and tired, and they feed me, warm me, and are great company for several hours.
Steve is a retired probation officer and Jamie is a Nurse Practioner. They have done lots of riding and were pretty fun to hang out with. During a break in the rain I ran out and set up my tent, but instead of spending all evening in a cold tent, alone, cooking dinner under a rain fly, I got to hang out with cool people in a trailer while they fed me and gave me moscow mules! They had great stories, and were super cute together.
This is why I love bike touring. I wrote about it before back in 2014 - people are good. They help each other. This is proof. I am alone and vulnerable. Yes, I am self sufficient, but I still appreciate kindness and love. And, people like Steven and Jamie, they are kindness and love. They are Montana, not the jerkbutts who ran me off the road. I am so grateful to them for reminding me of that. This is a huge reason why I tour, to remind myself that people are - at their hearts - good. :)
