Day 75 Jackson to Sula MT

July 26, 2023

I thought my phone said it was 53 degrees before I left but my body said it must be no more than low 40s. The day was crisp and beautiful.

I kept stopping and adding more layers. I started with my fleece lined leather gloves that Irene gave me but my hands were still cold. I was worried I’d have a Reynaud’s phenomenon so I curled all my left fingers and thumb into the palm of the glove and used it ad a fist to stabilize the handlebar. After a while , I did the same thing with my right hand. I reached Wisdom (the town, not the state of mind) after 18 miles and had a hot chocolate at the Goose N Bear bakery and gift shop. While I was there I met Rich who was born in Dillon but grew up in Wisdom. He appeared to be of my vintage or older and had worked many jobs from fence building to livestock management to highway work. I asked him about the Montana and Wyoming fences that I was pondering about yesterday and he said those are called Jack Leg fences. They build them like that because they’re flexible to the contour of the land and because if you sink a fence post in the ground here it will get heaved out with the freeze/thaw effect. So it’s not that they can’t sink a post, it’s just that the post won’t stay in place. He also told me about a Worm fence that is built of interlocking wood logs in a zigzag fashion for stability. He said there was a worm fence that he built in 1978 north of here and still standing.

I wonder if this was the fence that Rich built. There were other worm fences that appeared more recent. 45 years is a long life for a fence, especially in this environment.

About ten miles after Wisdom, I came to the Big Hole National Battlefield where 60 to 90 Nez Perce Indians, including women and children, were slaughtered by the US Army during a predawn attack on their encampment as they were trying to flee to Canada to escape being forced on to a Reservation. They eventually made it to within 40 miles of Canada when they were overcome and had to surrender. It’s a very sobering place.

Thirteen more miles brought me to the beginning of the climb to Chief Joseph Pass which tops out at 7241 feet and also represents another Continental Divide crossing. You’d think there would be a sign designating either of these but I didn’t see one. I did run into the two mountain bikers, Lisa and Robert, who had just finished a group ride on the Great Divide Trail. They ride about three times a week. Sounds like a great biking community.

The rest of the ride to Sula was completely downhill. The first seven miles or so were very steep and curvy. There were frequently rocks and sand on the shoulder, so I would ride on the road until a vehicle approached from behind, then scoot onto the shoulder. Thankfully there were no rumble strips!

I was very excited because Peter’s nephew Ricardo and his wife Lety and son Sebastian were coming to camp with us on their way back to Texas from Lummi Island. They picked up dinner on their way and we had a great time catching up. We played miniature golf. Sebastian fed the pet trout in the pond which mesmerized Henry. It was a good end to a tough day.

Today's ride: 58 miles (93 km)
Total: 2,812 miles (4,525 km)

Rate this entry's writing	Heart	5
Comment on this entry	Comment	0