August 1, 2008
Day 81: Libby, MT to Riverlake Campground (Near Clark Fork, ID)
72.71 Miles, 5:23:11 Ride Time, 13.49 Average Speed, 32.24 Maximum Speed
I was up late, as usual when staying in a motel. I'm finally tired of the cheap motels; my room had been cleaned with some sort of powerful disinfectant (probably to mask the smell of cigarette smoke), and my clothes and everything else I had with me smelled like it. For the remainder of the trip, I would mostly camp. I'd actually been enjoying the camping recently.
I didn't feel much like riding this morning, so I dawdled, talking to the motel manager and then stopping at the surprisingly nice supermarket where, despite the myriad choices (and the availability of fresh fruit), I bought the same old granola bars and brownies.
It was now cloudy and windy (from the wrong direction), and in contrast to yesterday's great ride, my last day in Montana was not off to a promising start. After fourteen miles on US 2 (WHEN am I going to be finished with this road?), I turned south onto State Route 56. I had heard this was a nice, scenic ride, but the traffic was just heavy enough, and the sky just dark enough, to render the whole experience gloomy.
Around noon I stopped at a bar and grill improbably located in the middle of nowhere, where I was the only customer, and an episode of "Monk" was playing on the TV. The guest star? Why, Willie Nelson of all people. Amazingly, for once Willie's version of "Columbus Stockade Blues" DID NOT get stuck in my head the rest of the day. I'm glad that whole thing is apparently over.
After the lunch break, I continued through the same would-have-been-nice-if-it-wasn't-cloudy scenery, before turning onto State Route 200, where signs warned me of "loose gravel ahead", and I ignored the admonition to "wait for pilot car". It started raining, just heavily enough to warrant getting the rain jacket out, and not long after that, a yahoo shouted out what sounded like a death threat. I would be glad to finally get the hell out of Montana.
Eventually I turned off the busy, under-construction SR 200, and onto a back road that is part of what Adventure Cycling calls the "Heron Alternate." There was no traffic at all, and despite the bumpy road, this was much, much better, and my mood lifted. Somewhere on this deserted road, I entered Idaho (and the Pacific Time Zone); the only indication was a county sign and drastic improvement in the condition of the pavement. Appropriately, the sun came out as I left Montana.
I located a campground a few miles later, and the nice lady there who apparently likes bicyclists charged me only $6.00. While she was showing me around, she mentioned that if I was concerned about rain, I could set up under the roof of a shed. Perfect.
After arranging everything, I rode a couple of miles into nearby Clark Fork, Idaho (pop. 530), where the first restaurant I stopped at didn't take credit cards, a fact that I learned only after being seated (and drinking some water). I was down to $9 in cash, so I sheepishly got up and left. After that slightly embarrassing episode, I had dinner at a modest bar and grill, where they happily accepted my plastic.
After the kind-of-lousy day, the weather was now perfect, and I rode around checking out Clark Fork, talking to some local people before heading back to the campground, where I celebrated reaching a new state by going to bed while it was still light outside.
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Today's ride: 73 miles (117 km)
Total: 5,924 miles (9,534 km)
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