- Joined
- Oct 16, 2008
- Messages
- 3,824
- Reaction score
- 4,939
- Location
- Bryan, TX
- First Name
- Dennie
- Last Name
- Spears
I wanted to leave Texas on the first of May and casually ride to Canada by way of states I have toured many times, while hoping Canada would be pleasantly warm by the time I got there. Ross, my neighbor, commented one day that he was going to fly to Montana to participate in a Spartan race on the 4th of May. I wasn't sure what a Spartan race was, but I saw an opportunity for the both of us to get to Montana, him without spending nearly as much money as he would flying, and me without riding aimlessly across six states for a month. His 10 year old son saw an opportunity to miss two days of school while also participating in a barbaric ritual that included running two miles through mountainous terrain while simultaneously doing a military style obstacle course, all in sloppy, muddy and rainy weather. What fun. Thousands of other participants paid good money to do likewise. I watched.
Loaded and ready to go, using my custom made bare bones bike carrier. Purple paint was left over from a previous project for a little girl that loved purple. Thursday, May 4th. We drove off about 6:00 PM,
Ross and I took turns driving, with a few planned stops along the way. This waterfall was not one of them, but if you travel with a 75 year old man, you will probably make regular unscheduled stops. Ross and C check the water temp. It was cold, a harbinger of things to come.
C discovered my camera while I was driving. This picture was an accident, and I heard the shutter.
First scheduled stop-Bishops Castle, 820 miles. It was very early in the morning and we didn't see anyone until we had explored most of the castle.
C relaxing like he had just done an all night driving stint.
I climbed the spire while Ross and C went up to the dome. Some pieces of the dome were missing since I was last there.
The still unfinished balcony.
Every castle needs a dragon to be slain by the knights, so Mr. Bishop built this one.
If you go to the mountains, you will eventually encounter this. It gave us time to take pictures of our first big snow sighting. C is using my Canon while I am using my phone.
He continued while we were driving down the highway, capturing these deer about to flee from the slowing van.
Along highway 50, approaching the ski area.
This years snowfall in Colorado was not uniform. The drainage for Blue Mesa Reservoir was one of the areas that received a light snow.
I scheduled stops where it would be daylight when we were there. The Black Canyon was one of them. I think both were excited when they saw this beauty. 1,020 miles from home.
C again practicing his camera skills.
I wanted to drive through Yellowstone NP, but too many roads were still closed and we would get to the destination too late for Ross and C to get adequate rest.
1,940 miles after leaving Bryan, we arrive at our third scheduled stop, St. Ignatius Mission Church.
I had wanted to see the inside when I was there in 2020, but it had been closed for repairs. This visit was short, but I would return later in my trip for more pictures and a longer tour.
More practice, this time wearing one of my sweatshirts while using my camera.
A little over 2,000 miles since leaving home, we arrived in Bigfork, Montana, home of the Spartan races for that weekend. We camped in the van and had breakfast in the rain the next morning.
Ross was close to the leaders when he got to where I was spectating. He ran up a very steep hill right after this picture was taken. Most participants were walking up. Unfortunately, he missed a turn and his run was instantly doubled in length. He finished in the top 30% of his group despite running twice as far and probably doing more obstacles.
The last obstacle, slicked up by mud and a constant light mist of rain.
^^^^^Above picture.^^^^^ We left after C's race. We drove from Bigfork to Sheridan, Wyoming with Ross getting about 7 hours of sleep and they dropped me off at a closed convenience store around 2:00 AM. I could tell Ross was a little hesitant about leaving me there, but that was the reason for me being there.
After about 5 hours of sleep, I started my ride. I saw a sign as I drove through Clearmont, Wyoming and I investigated. This was a lock 'em up and throw away the key kind of jail. According to some workers nearby, the two cells were provided with a shared bucket that was emptied once a day.
^^^^^Above picture^^^^^ Devil's Tower from the parking lot
There were several Indian tribes that roamed the area around the tower. Each had a story to tell about how the tower came to be, none of which align with the scientific version, but as Ari said in his book, "what harm believing." My favorite: Seven Indian girls were being chased by a bear. The bear was gaining on them so they climbed on a big rock. The bear also started climbing so the girls started praying. God made the rock grow up into the sky and the grooves along the sides were made by the bear trying to claw his way up. You can still see the girls if you look up at the night sky. They are the seven stars of Orion, with the four older girls forming a perimeter around the three younger girls.
A little closer look after a short hike.
I made it to Lead, South Dakota on my first day of riding and found this room for $35/night. With Sturgis, Crazy Horse, Mt. Rushmore, Spearfish Canyon, Badlands NP and great roads in the area, I stayed a week. The room was $10 a day more than the local campground and so much more restful.
More manufactured scenery, some much more splendid than this, will be forthcoming. I'm not going to split this report into days like most of my previous reports. The number of days in my log book do not match the number of days I was on vacation. Dates will be added when appropriate, or when I feel like it.
Loaded and ready to go, using my custom made bare bones bike carrier. Purple paint was left over from a previous project for a little girl that loved purple. Thursday, May 4th. We drove off about 6:00 PM,
Ross and I took turns driving, with a few planned stops along the way. This waterfall was not one of them, but if you travel with a 75 year old man, you will probably make regular unscheduled stops. Ross and C check the water temp. It was cold, a harbinger of things to come.
C discovered my camera while I was driving. This picture was an accident, and I heard the shutter.
First scheduled stop-Bishops Castle, 820 miles. It was very early in the morning and we didn't see anyone until we had explored most of the castle.
C relaxing like he had just done an all night driving stint.
I climbed the spire while Ross and C went up to the dome. Some pieces of the dome were missing since I was last there.
The still unfinished balcony.
Every castle needs a dragon to be slain by the knights, so Mr. Bishop built this one.
If you go to the mountains, you will eventually encounter this. It gave us time to take pictures of our first big snow sighting. C is using my Canon while I am using my phone.
He continued while we were driving down the highway, capturing these deer about to flee from the slowing van.
Along highway 50, approaching the ski area.
This years snowfall in Colorado was not uniform. The drainage for Blue Mesa Reservoir was one of the areas that received a light snow.
I scheduled stops where it would be daylight when we were there. The Black Canyon was one of them. I think both were excited when they saw this beauty. 1,020 miles from home.
C again practicing his camera skills.
I wanted to drive through Yellowstone NP, but too many roads were still closed and we would get to the destination too late for Ross and C to get adequate rest.
1,940 miles after leaving Bryan, we arrive at our third scheduled stop, St. Ignatius Mission Church.
I had wanted to see the inside when I was there in 2020, but it had been closed for repairs. This visit was short, but I would return later in my trip for more pictures and a longer tour.
More practice, this time wearing one of my sweatshirts while using my camera.
A little over 2,000 miles since leaving home, we arrived in Bigfork, Montana, home of the Spartan races for that weekend. We camped in the van and had breakfast in the rain the next morning.
Ross was close to the leaders when he got to where I was spectating. He ran up a very steep hill right after this picture was taken. Most participants were walking up. Unfortunately, he missed a turn and his run was instantly doubled in length. He finished in the top 30% of his group despite running twice as far and probably doing more obstacles.
The last obstacle, slicked up by mud and a constant light mist of rain.
^^^^^Above picture.^^^^^ We left after C's race. We drove from Bigfork to Sheridan, Wyoming with Ross getting about 7 hours of sleep and they dropped me off at a closed convenience store around 2:00 AM. I could tell Ross was a little hesitant about leaving me there, but that was the reason for me being there.
After about 5 hours of sleep, I started my ride. I saw a sign as I drove through Clearmont, Wyoming and I investigated. This was a lock 'em up and throw away the key kind of jail. According to some workers nearby, the two cells were provided with a shared bucket that was emptied once a day.
^^^^^Above picture^^^^^ Devil's Tower from the parking lot
There were several Indian tribes that roamed the area around the tower. Each had a story to tell about how the tower came to be, none of which align with the scientific version, but as Ari said in his book, "what harm believing." My favorite: Seven Indian girls were being chased by a bear. The bear was gaining on them so they climbed on a big rock. The bear also started climbing so the girls started praying. God made the rock grow up into the sky and the grooves along the sides were made by the bear trying to claw his way up. You can still see the girls if you look up at the night sky. They are the seven stars of Orion, with the four older girls forming a perimeter around the three younger girls.
A little closer look after a short hike.
I made it to Lead, South Dakota on my first day of riding and found this room for $35/night. With Sturgis, Crazy Horse, Mt. Rushmore, Spearfish Canyon, Badlands NP and great roads in the area, I stayed a week. The room was $10 a day more than the local campground and so much more restful.
More manufactured scenery, some much more splendid than this, will be forthcoming. I'm not going to split this report into days like most of my previous reports. The number of days in my log book do not match the number of days I was on vacation. Dates will be added when appropriate, or when I feel like it.
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