TRANSAMERICA BICYCLE 2015: Days 75-81: I'll take the high road: Life on the Northern Tier

Day 75: Whitefish, MT to Eureka, MT (51.5 miles)
Day 76: Eureka, MT to Lake Kookanuska, MT (47 miles)
Day 77: Kookanuska, MT to Bull Lake, MT (54.9 miles)
Day 78: Bull Lake, MT to Sandpoint, ID (68.8 miles)
Day 79: Sandpoint, ID to Newport, WA (35.9 miles)
Day 80: Newport, WA to Ione, WA (51.9 miles)
Day 81: Ione, WA to Kettle Falls, WA (ride to warmshowers from Colville) (40.9 miles)

The Kootenai River, downstream from the

waterfall

Ear Worms:
Florence and the Machine - Seven Devils
Jackson Browne - Doctor My Eyes
Annie Lennox - Honestly
Amii Stewart - Knock on Wood
Houndmouth - Sedona
Nina Simone - See Line Woman
Moon Taxi - Morocco

I call the Cedar Park RV campground asking about tenting there for night. Greg, the owner, says no problem. "But I just have to warn you, it's likely that people will start playing bagpipes at about midnight." I confer with Brigid. This seems like just the kind of adventure us touring cyclists need. "We'll take it!"

We're cycling along Hwy 20 in Washington state after an unsuccessful 45 minute search for the 'welcome to Washington' sign in Newport. (Seriously Washington State, how could you let me down for my final state line crossing?!) So far, though, this day has been an amazing cruise of flat and declines with a glorious tailwind (seriously needed after battling the headwinds since basically entering Montana). We're planning on camping at a USFS campsite about 14 miles past the small town of Iona which would set up for a nice ride to Kettle Falls the next day before the final frontier begins - Schurman Pass and the rest of the monstrous Cascade mountain climbs. But as we stop for a little snack break, I look at my maps. "Iona: Down River Days - last weekend in July. Vendors, street dance, and snowmobile derby. Um, yes, please sign us up. Because a snowmobile derby in the middle of summer? I most know more. Plus, this exact weekend is when Flint Creek Valley Days is happening in my home town, so experience another rural town's summer weekend festival seems like the perfect thing to do. It means start the next day off with a climb and add 14 miles to the day, but sometimes you have to sacrifice some miles for the experience.

And so as we are enjoying our huckleberry lemonade by the river, I hear a revving an engine and then do a double take as I see a snowmobile taking off across the Pend Oreille river (which is very large). Yes, the core of this entire festival involves hundreds of people on snowmobiles trying to make it across the river and back without sinking their machine. We continue to watch as this same guy attempts to get back to our side. And fails, his snowcat sinking down into the river. This happens three more times before a young kid successfully gets there and back to much clapping from the gathered crowd. And this is just practice. The big derby is tomorrow and 300-400 riders will attempt this crossing. Apparently there is a barge that just boats around scooping up these drowned snow machines! And for those who don't get their buoy deployed in time, there are scuba divers that will go down and locate them on the bottom of the river! Awesome.

That snowcat is going down....

After a great couple of days break visiting my family and celebrating my nephew's 3rd birthday, my Mom drove us on up to Whitefish so we could hop on the Northern Tier there and enjoy more of northwestern Montana (as opposed to taking hwy 200 out of Missoula that would hop us on the route in Sandpoint, Idaho.) And so starts our own true adventure. We're away from my TransAm community that I've built. We're in the land of beautiful lakes and rivers and evergreens that reach on as far as you can see. (Oh and the usual incessant and maddening up and down climbing that riding by any body of water seems to entail!)

Fortunately the weather warmed up just enough to cross my degree limit for getting in water (80 degrees!) and we've got to do a lot of lake swimming - Lake Kookanuka, Bull Lake, and Lake Pend Oreille! The latter being pretty special. We stayed with wonderful warm showers hosts, Kathy and Chris on their beautiful lake shore property in Sandpoint with three other cyclists heading east. First even though they weren't there when we all arrived, having all met each other at the bike shop earlier, we found a note on the door inviting us in and encouraging us to jump in the lake. So of course we did. And as I was treading water and enjoying the waves carrying me up and down, I just had one of those joyous moments where I was so filled with the love of life and all there is to experience. That the simple act of swimming in a lake can be so rewarding and life-filling, and how excited I am to get to have so many more of these kind of small little experiences in life that bring so much joy. Anyway, it was just a real reminder of how special every little moment is that we get to have, especially when we are there in a full present state.

Enjoyed a dinner and evening with our fantastic hosts Kathy and Chris -

out on the deck overlooking the lake

p.s. Sandpoint is a super awesome town, and I didn't get to spend nearly enough time in it. Perfect community and outdoor feel. Yep, another one to add to my "surprise, there are a lot of really awesome places in this country" list.

not a bad view, eh?

But of course this warmth did not stop the wild west weather from slipping us a major morning cold as we peddled out of Bull Lake on our way to Idaho. Oh we did so good at getting a really early start, but we spent the first 20 miles of our ride so cold that I really could barely feel my feet or hands even though I was bundled up. Somehow we got to singing made up lyrics about the sun poking it's head up from behind the mountain to the tune of "She'll Be Coming Round The Mountain." This morphed into basically anything that came out of our mouths was sung to this tune. Needless to say that when we arrived at the Big Sky Pantry store (BEST STORE EVER - scored $3 worth of 25 cents Luna Bars in their back bin!), we were both pretty much going crazy!

Speaking of songs, even in those couple of warm days, there always seems to be clouds/rain that eventually finds us. Because this has corresponded exactly with brigid's arrival, she has now been named "Cloud Magnet Brigid." We have even coined a song. everyone sing with me: clOUd magnet BrIGId / she's a cloud magnet, she's a cloud magnet / don't take off your jACKet cause she's a cloud mAGnet / clOUd magnet BRIGID!"

But these past few days haven't been all about enjoying the nature surrounding us. We've also had some pretty great encounters with people. Like the woman whose name I never got that owns the bar in a little enclave outside of Troy called Little Joe, Montana. We pulled up pretty hot and out low on water. After asking if we could fill up our bottles, from her rocking chair on the porch she tells us to go on inside and use the sink behind the bar. This is the first good sign of an entertaining visit. So we head on in and help ourselves to the sink behind the bar counter! Then we come back outside and she proceeds to tell us all about these crazy stories she has experienced owning this bar. Like Moldy Mike and his metal welded prosthetic leg. Or the Canadian who hurt his ankle and on his way into the hospital trips and has a wheelchair land on top of him in the hospital automatic doors that proceed to open and close on him because he is below the sensor. There is no one in the waiting room so after several minutes of crying for help he reaches his phone in his pocket and dials 911. From the hospital. Or the crazy lady who lives with her chickens and goats in an old school bus and who is now running around the country somewhere with Moldy Mike after she picked him up on his way of ditching town since he owed this bar owning lady a few thousand bucks. But he left his boat at her place so she figures she'll sell it and take the money. Then to top things off she points to a fake owl hanging by the door. "See that owl there? I bought that for $20 bucks to keep the birds away." We look. There is a birds nest now built right on top of the owls head.

yep, an owl with a bird's next right on top.

Oh and I'm officially a 'cool kid' now. Finally purchased a little bluetooth speaker to hook to my handlebar bag so Brigid and I can both enjoy tunes together as we're cycling. So appropriate that on it's first test run as we're riding down main street in Newport, WA, Echosmith's "Cool Kids" comes on my Pandora station. Oh by the way, why were we cruising down main street? Because we were on a 45 minute wild goose chase around Newport looking for the "Welcome to Washington State" sign. Which apparently just doesn't exist. Found about 5 "Welcome to Idaho signs" but it seems that Washington, my LAST STATE ON THIS RIDE, just didn't feel the need to welcome me. Instead it just foiled my plans for an epic last 'cross the state line' photo shoot...........

And into the last state! Since we'll be riding Hwy 20

for most the ride, we figured it'll have to do.

So I'm really approaching the final chapter of this ride. It's hard to believe it really. Tomorrow we start climbing into the mountains, crossing the Cascades - the final hurdle in this cross country adventure.