The beginning of the end

Nightly occurrence

I am getting so tired of writing this, but of course a storm came up.  While no rain fell this time, the wind was powerful.  It sounded like the tent was going to get ripped apart.  It wasn’t conducive to sleeping, but I was comfortable in the tent.

The wind was so fierce, I couldn’t keep my JetBoil lit to make my coffee.  THAT was a tragedy.  The wind was blowing up a lot of water from the lake, so all my stuff was damp.  Everything I was trying to pack up was trying to blow away.  I even had to leave my tent staked to the ground to roll it up.  I was hopeful that I’d be okay riding Lucille in this.  Riding in the wind is always a challenge.

   

These are the same views from yesterday.   There’s quite a difference.

Used to it

By now, I’m used to riding in the bad weather, so I didn’t let it stop me.  A woman in the RV campground approached me and asked me how I would be able to ride in this wind.  I wasn’t really being a smart alec, but I said very carefully.  I mean, what are you going to do?  She recommended I stay at the campground for a day or so until the storm passed.  My experience tells me that I could be here a long time if I do that!  Time to head on.  The wind was tough, but I did okay.  It wasn’t even scary anymore.  Just something to be careful of.

Excited

I was actually getting pretty excited to hit the Interstate and have regular access to gas and food.  The smaller roads are fantastic for seeing the country, but sometimes gas stops are tough to find.  Believe me, it is possible to choose roads where you miss every possible gas station! I was planning on taking the North Dakota 1804 (that same road that had let me down yesterday) to the U.S. 85, eventually hitting the I-94 in Montana.

Made it to Montana!

I guess I should have considered the state I was in before thinking I would have ready access to gas!  And the speed limit in Montana is 80mph!  It was great.  However, at 80mph, Lucille is hungry!  She only gets about 35-40 mpg at that speed, so I would need gas. A lot.

Check out that speed!  Damn, it’s fun to ride this fast!

Montana

There weren’t a lot of exits with gas and food!  I did have to hit a rest area, and it was a nice one.

I looked hard, but didn’t see any! 

Cool information on Jedediah Smith. Seems like he got around. 

A really nice view from the rest area. 

I did have to hit a couple of gas stations because Lucille was only getting about 35mpg!  At least the gas was non-ethanol 91 octane.  Lucille was sure to love that.  She’s been doing pretty well this whole trip, but I’ve not been on roads with speed limits like this yet.  I had left early because of the wind, and I forgot about the time change, so I arrived at the hotel early.  They said I couldn’t check in, so I order some food, and checked some maps to determine my route for tomorrow.  I was thinking about taking the Beartooth Pass into Yellowstone, but it had only opened a couple of days before.  The high temperature for tomorrow would only be about 40 degrees, so it would likely still be below freezing when I would be riding over.  I’ve ridden Lucille through a lot on this trip and I am a lot more confident than I was when I started this, but riding on ice, with big berms of snow, was not my idea of a good time.

I really wanted to go through Yellowstone.  It is my favorite national park and I love it there.  I was hopeful I’d be able to see over the berms of snow that were sure to be lining the roads on the pass.

More rain

Of course, because this is the way this trip has gone, the weather went to the dogs.

Yet another storm coming in.

That’s Lucille taking yet another shower.

I looked on the weather again, and it was snowing over Beartooth.  It was looking less and less likely that I’d be able to make it over the pass.  Dang it!  Yet something else I wouldn’t be able to do.  Well, there was plenty of things that I HAD done, and I was proud of myself.

Nearing the end

Hitting the Interstate told me I was coming close to ending the trip.  That made me sad but it also made me reflective on all that I had accomplished.  I am amazed that I have done what I’ve done!