Day 14. North Lake Dickey Campground to Columbia Falls, 50 miles

Today was a day of mostly terrible riding and stellar everything else. It did not start auspiciously. I’d set my tent up in a lovely spot chosen for its view of Dickey Lake; I noticed that the site was exposed to the chilly headwind that had hindered the last third of my ride, but since I was just going to be getting into the tent it didn’t seem like it’d be much bother. Now as I woke up, that same frigid wind was rocking the tent and making getting out of the sleeping bag a truly unappealing proposition. I could also hear across the lake the early morning roar of US 93 starting up, which was a double bummer because that was the road I was to be on for a good stretch of the morning. But the road don’t care and the weather don’t care, so I packed up my current life and was on the road at 7.

Spoiler alert: the headwind was not so bad at all, likely mostly wind off the lake; US 93 was deeply unpleasant. Generally speaking I keep my eyes on the road in front of me (for debris, obstructions, cracks, shoulder drop-off, etc.) and my ears on the road behind me. The latter isn’t available on downhills with the wind rushing in your ears and on busy roads with the constant approaching and receding roar-whine of traffic; you have to rely entirely on the drivers behind you–just grit your teeth and try to ride steady. So I did, even though I think we all agreed that me being there was not in anyone’s best interests. And after 20+ miles of that, as we neared Whitefish. I was rewarded with a seven-mile turnoff to the less trafficked Farm to Market Road, presumably named for its earlier function. More on that in a minute. I took the first chance to have a sit by slow-moving Stillwater Creek and enjoy some snacks (dried apricots, mini frosted fudge pop tarts, hard-boiled egg) and the relative quiet.

When the mosquitos got too interested in me I moved on and quickly learned why there was more heavy traffic than I’d expect from a detour: real estate boom. The once farms were being torn up, earth-moving equipment everywhere, and houses and townhouses being erected in clusters and luxury singles. I wonder what it will look like in five years.

I spotted my first yellow-headed blackbird (that’s both a succinct description and its name), which was very cool—such a striking bird!

Back onto US 93 for a miserable few miles, and then I rolled into Whitefish and stopped at the first cute cafe I saw and got a fancy omelette with the potatoes AND the greens. LUXE.

The lovely server let me sit for two hours and charge things and write a post and catch up on texts with folks; I hadn’t had real service for days and mostly had my phone in airplane mode to save battery. Shelby’s friend Mel had invited us to stay with her and her family in Columbia Falls–about another 10 miles on–and was kind enough to keep the invitation open when Shelby couldn’t join. It would get me closer to Glacier, which I needed to enter by 11; cyclists aren’t permitted on much of the main road through the park between 11 and 4. And Whitefish was a little overwhelming: traffic, license plates from all over, enormous campers, so many people. So having refreshed my spirits, I jumped back on the road for a much quieter and more pleasant ride to Columbia Falls.

And then I was at Mel and Asher’s house and met Fuzzy, whom I loved immediately and who loved me (and any attention-giver, I subsequently learned) with equal ardor, and several cool backyard chickens. Mel and Asher have the most lovely home and a perfect, cozy guest bedroom. I was ready to ditch the trip and beg to move in.

Then they came home with their adorable son Theo, and they made dinner and we sat on their back deck and talked and drank beer, and it could not possibly have been lovelier. Like with Steve and Judy, it felt like meeting friends. We stayed up past my bedtime and then I got into a bed with a cat curled up at the foot. Sometime in the night he went to be with his real people, but around 4:30 he came back in and snuggled in my arms until I had to get up a bit after 5. DREAMY. Did I mention shower and laundry? The whole evening was so fun the two usual standouts paled in comparison.