June 30, 2018
Medora to Wibaux- Into the Great State of Montana, home of Phil Lilley
Why not go up to Montana? It's a cattleman's paradise to hear Jake tell it. -Woodrow Call, in Lonesome Dove
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My buddy Steve used to tell me stories about his dad, Phil, growing up in a small town in Montana called Buffalo. Then a few years later he and I went to Buffalo during a road trip. We also spent time with his aunt and visited a fantastic ghost town called Castle. Since that time I've been to Montana many times and it's one of my favorite places.
The Lewis & Clark route from Medora to Wibaux starts out on I94 for about a mile and then exits onto the Red Trail road, Old Highway 10. We stopped to throw the old tire away and then went to the Medora C store on the way out of town. The scenery was excellent and there was no traffic and only a moderate crosswind (11-13) that was not too annoying. We stopped at a store in Sentinal Butte and got an ice tea and V8 for only $2 and talked for awhile with the friendly owner and a few guys bin the store. There was one guy with several chins in the store who said that if we went to Oregon we'd forget what it was like to work because "they don't like the working man out there in Oregon and California."
As he was deriding the fine people of Oregon and California, his main chin and his numerous auxillary chins*, were flapping back and forth wildly, creating a nice cool breeze in the store. I wondered why he was sitting in the store talking instead of out working himself, but didn't want to pry.
*I suspect he has extra chins in case his main chin is ever unable to fulfill its obligations
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About 20 miles in we stopped and talked to 3 guys going the opposite direction. They were dental students doing the Northern Tier at 90-100 miles a day. They also got caught in the storms and tornado warnings too and one of their tents blew away. Luckily someone found it and returned it to them. If you want to check out their journey and fundraiser, they are on Instagram @coasttocoast2018.
The route merges on to I-94 at Beach for the final 11.5 miles into Wibaux. We rolled into the rest area outside of town and ate lunch. Then we checked out the campground, which didn't look excellent, and there was no one there. One of the things we have learned to look for are strong buildings (bathrooms, etc) where we can go if the heavens open up. This place had a few old rundown buildings so we decided to check the city park.
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There was a brand new picnic shelter and bathrooms, so I called the Sheriff to ask for permission to camp there. The deputy met us there and said they don't allow camping. We talked for awhile and she offered to take us to the next town, Glendive tomorrow on their way to church. So we took her up on it. This allows us to avoid 18-22 headwinds.
The hotel was ok, the owner/manager was friendly. It was probably a little overpriced at $70 but we were glad to have it. Tomorrow we'll go to Glendive in luxury.
Today's ride: 38 miles (61 km)
Total: 1,049 miles (1,688 km)
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6 years ago
6 years ago