August 12, 2023
Day 90 - ending at Tioga, ND
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Woke up this morning at 5:42am. Posted yesterday's report, then went for a repeat of yesterday's motel breakfast, except I added two hard boiled eggs this time. Packed up and checked out at 9:17am. There's a shack at the front of the motel by the road that sells coffee. I hadn't noticed the name of the place until last night walking back from Applebee's. Williston is definitely a proud oil town.
Today's destination is Tioga Park in Tioga, North Dakota. I mostly followed the GPT today. I left Williston on a trail on its northeast side. Then it was on paved roads past Springbrook. At noon I was 1.5 miles south of Epping, and had come along 17.6 miles.
I arrived in Epping at 12:13pm. Buffalo Trails Museum is in this town. They were open so I went inside the office to ask about touring the museum. There are six buildings to go through, and the tour guide would escort me the whole way. Cost is $5. I paid and signed in. There is a theme related to most of the buildings. They also have a lot of collections from past local residents. What was interesting to me was a collection of purple glass. The backroom of another building has spheres cut and polished from rocks. Also lots of paintings and three dimensional model displays. One other item that surprised me was an original document with Theodore Roosevelt's signature. [Though checking the internet just now, I don't think it is his signature.] At the end of my tour I received a free keychain and wishes for a safe trip home.
I was back riding at 1:14pm. It was beginning to look like rain to the west. The town of Ray ahead has a gas station, and I was looking forward to getting there for lunch. So I skipped the gravel roads section of the GPT to Ray and got on US-2 to get to there a little quicker. I arrived at Horizon Resources Cenex at 3:10pm. They have a very wide selection of food to eat there and they also have tables inside, so that worked well.
I left Ray on a gravel road on the northeast side of town. The two miles north on this road was somewhat of a challenge, since the road had obviously been graded recently. Also, the wind today was from the northwest. When I turned east, the wind was helping and the road was in much better shape for bicycling on. A few more turns north and east brought me to the northwest side of Tioga at 6:13pm. I detoured from my routing to the campground to check out downtown. Also located the cafe I plan to eat breakfast at tomorrow morning.
Arrived at Tioga Park Campground at 6:40pm. I was figuring out where to set up a 'tent with electricity' when it started to sprinkle. A check of the weather radar showed it was going to rain soon, so I walked the bike over to a pavilion to wait out the rain. The rain wasn't much at all, but there'd be more coming this evening. I did like the looks of the pavilion and the thought of camping underneath it. There's a power outlet here, so I went ahead and set up. It was a little challenging because of the northwest wind and not being able to use stakes, but with gear weighing the tent down, I got the job done.
Worked on picture selection for today and then the evening report. Today's riding was fun. The roads are flattening out and I had the wind helping me, for the most part. The wind has calmed down a little now, but it feels like it's going to be a cold night. At least it should be a dry night for the sheltered tent.
Jeff
Spent: $5 (tour fee) + $10.27 (lunch items) + $17 (campsite) = $32.27
| Heart | 3 | Comment | 2 | Link |
| Heart | 2 | Comment | 3 | Link |
Google tells me the original building was built in 1954 and has had a couple of remodels, the most recent in 2022. It is now a non profit.
8 months ago
Thanks for researching about this theater. I thought it was newly-built.
Sorry this reply is so late.
Jeff
6 months ago
| Heart | 1 | Comment | 2 | Link |
Another great thing about touring in the remote areas of the Great Plains is that you can still find a $10 tent site. I've been reading some journals in which folks are paying $40-50.
8 months ago
$10 isn't as good as free city park camping, but is certainly reasonable.
Jeff
6 months ago
Today's ride: 48 miles (77 km)
Total: 3,241 miles (5,216 km)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 8 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 2 |
Thanks for continuing to take us along on your journey.
8 months ago
Thanks! What I wasn't able to do was keep up with replies to comments received. Not being able to later correct spelling and grammar errors makes me hesitant to type them up too quickly.
Jeff
6 months ago