Day 16 - A Snowy Climb (June 17th, 2024)

By
City To City: Powell - Missoula
Miles: 55
Miles Total: 1,000
Flats: 0


KT and Liam







Down Lolo Pass




Liam's RV




    It was cold in the morning; really cold.  We slept in as much as we could, packed up, and got to the Powell lodge around 8.  It was so cold we didn't want to stay out anymore than necessary.  Since we weren't going to leave until around 10, and it wasn't a huge ride, we had time to kill.  Since my dad had gotten up early, he chatted with KT and Liam.  It turns out that Liam helps his dad run a business, has an online business of his own,  lives in Guetemala, and speaks Spanish fluently, but was in the United States for the summer.  
    As my dad was discussing the plans about going up a mountain pass, named Lolo Pass with Henry and I, we overheard Liam say to KT, "Breakfast's on me."  My dad said something like, "If I knew that, I would've come sooner." 
    "Well, you should've gotten here sooner," Liam joked back.
    After KT and Liam left, we ordered a meal to share, and as Henry and I were sitting at the table, a guy switches tables to get our attention.  It turns out that the guy, Mitchell, found us on YouTube, and recognized us.
    Mitchell had quit his job and decided to also do the Trans am trail.  During the first part of his journey, his mom was along for the trip.  Apparently on her way back, the mom told Mitchell that she saw three bicyclists.  So, Mitchell kept his eye out for us.
    After eating, we put our gear on, and as we were on the porch, a guy stopped to talk to us.  When we told him we were heading up Lolo Pass in the snow, the guy exclaimed, "What!! You're going up that mountain, when it's cold out, raining and snowing, with no rain pants and only bike shorts??!!!"  The guy then went on to say he purposefully chose to stay in the lodge because of the snow and cold weather.   
    We then headed out into the cold rain with shorts and rain jackets (and no rain pants).  The uphill helped us in keeping warmer with steep climb.  As we got closer to the top, we could see ahead, was snow falling, but where we were, it was still raining.  Then we passed into the snow zone.  At the top, KT and Liam were cheering us on.  At the top also, was a rest stop, and we made a beeline for the restrooms so we could warm up, and warm up our soaking wet gloves a little bit.  
    Henry discovered another room, were hot chocolate, coffee, and tea were served.  With the warm beaverages starting to thaw our insides, we started talking to a couple who were on motorcycles going up Lolo Pass also.  After chatting with them, we got back out in the freezing air, and started the downhill.  After a minutes none of us could feel our fingers that were frozen on the brake handles.  After five tortureous miles of downhill, Liam, a lifesaver, had his RV parked in a parking lot, and invited us in.  While warming up,  KT told us some more about herself.
    KT is a volunteer at CASA of New Hampshire, and has always loved the athletics world.  So, while on the bike tour, she raises people's awareness of kids who have been neglected and abused.  And as she's talking about her work for CASA, her face lights up with a beautiful, passion for these kids.  She then goes on to tell us a story of a kid who was in the system, and now works on the board of CASA of New Hampshire, all because of his casa worker who's been the one person that's remained all throughout his childhood.  The rest of the day was rough, cold, and wet.  But we were able to appreciate the beauty of the evergreen trees along the road.  
    Once in Missoula, Henry went to the store for groceries, while my dad and I went to a bike shop to get an expert's opinion in fitting me for my bike.  After five minutes of tweaking the handlebars and seat, the man said we were free of charge, and we got to our warm showers host, Ethel.  Ethel, a woman who is eighty-six, is still riding her bike, and takes her e-bike everywhere she went.  After having warm showers, and eating dinner, we hung out some with Ethel's tenant, Andy, and later with Ethel, who was gone for the evening.  That night, we had real beds to sleep in.

Comments

  1. Aimee DuebberJune 23, 2024 at 5:18 PM

    Sounds like you're meeting some awesome people. Also, I can't belive you were recognised by a stranger!!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Huge Thanks To All

By
     We would like to thank all of you for all your support, well wishes, love sent our way, and most of all, your prayers.  Without your prayers, things would've undoubtedly gone worse than it did.  We are so beyond grateful that we had so many people praying for us!  Every prayer counted and meant so much to us!  Thank you all!  We appreciate it!      To all the warm shower hosts, and Trans Am volunteers.  We can't imagine how different our journey would've been without your generosity and attentiveness to what we needed.  We enjoyed getting to know all of you and hearing your stories of wild adventures and problems that rivaled our own.  Your hospitality and generosity helped us get a different perspective of how deep hospitality goes, and seeing that has changed us and our way of thinking about hosting others in the future.        To all of the people we've never met but we know have follo...
Read more

Day 56 - The Famous White Dog Of KY & VA And An Encounter With An Angry Mom (July 27th, 2024)

By
Image
City To City: Wheelwright - Council Miles: 68 Miles Total: 3,779 Flats: 13 Video:  https://youtu.be/B7SmDLTdaTg? si=G4c_BF4QKStYTxkc Hanging Out With Norma With Food Piled On Our Plates In the morning, my dad immediately told Henry to take Advil. Henry was feeling it but felt like he could do it, so he got on his bike and rode almost seventy miles. Mark returned to the store early and got some eggs for French toast. We ate that and finished it all. We ate some leftover cookies from the night before, too. We took it slower for the day, and the morning flew by. We stopped for lunch at a grocery store and ate lunch at an employee table just outside the back door. They had a sign that said EMPLOYEES ONLY TABLE, but all the employees who came in and out of the back door nodded to us and were never bothered by us using their table. We got to the Virginia border, and Matt asked, "Where's the white dog all the cyclists talk about?" We had seen a white dog maybe a mile...
Read more

Day 64 - Our Last Day On Bikes (August 4th, 2024)

By
Image
City To City: Toano - York Town Miles: 25 Miles Total: 4,289 Flats: 13 Video:  https://youtu.be/Kxhg-w2BD3Q? si=avTXUWFmtaEtLqDA On The Road Riding In Unplanned Formation Matt And My Dad Mark And Henry Riding On New Cement Along The Ocean Waiting For Henry To Set Up The GoPro Sandy Tires Mark Washing The Sand Off Seeing The Freedom Monument Walking Towards The End Of The Journey (And Down The Beach Front)       After a good night's sleep and a hearty breakfast of eggs, sausage, and juicy cantaloupe.  We chatted around the breakfast table, waiting for Matt to return from Mass.  Since we only had twenty- five miles to go, and it was our last day of biking, we were in a relaxed mood.   Since Matt and Mark were going to stay with Kim and Ron another night, they unloaded their packs and were able to travel light....
Read more