October 6, 2017
to Lochsa Lodge: into Idaho
It is a cold and foggy morning in Missoula. Time to move on though; we will need the next nine days to ride to Boise. Beth feeds us a light breakfast and we say our goodbye’s to her and Charles. Their location is good for us, a short ride takes us down to US93 and the bikepath that follows it all the way to Lolo. The fog is dense and cold, but we have a second breakfast waiting for us. Right at the junction of 93 and 12 is the KT’s Hayloft saloon and restaurant. It is one of those places with Fox news on the TV and customers discussing how many guns they have, but the food is good and the coffee warm.
At Lolo we leave the Bitterroot Valley and head west on Highway 12 towards Lolo Pass and the Idaho border. The first 45k’s or so are very gradual up, ending with a steeper final climb of only a couple of miles. This valley was ravaged by forest fires this summer, covering the mountain sides are the black scars of burned trees, in many places clear down to the road. It appears a lot of effort was spent defending the structures, we do not see any burned down houses. Highway 12 is narrow and does not have a shoulder. Fortunately, the fog burned off while we were having breakfast so we are more visible. It does not seem to warm up much though.
At the summit of Lolo Pass we take our “Welcome to Idaho” photo, put on some extra windbreakers and head down into the Lochsa Valley. It is beautiful! The road surface is pretty bad though, Idaho is letting this one go back to dirt. About twenty kilometers down the hill is Powell and Lochsa Lodge. Not sure if there is anything more to Powell then the lodge. According to many cyclists journals there is free camping behind the store, but the waitress whom we first ask vehemently denies this and tries to send us to the campground further down the road. Things get cleared up by more senior personnel while we enjoy a Moosedrool Brown Ale with two other touring cyclist we met at the lodge. Pat and Tom, brothers-in-law are cycling the Lewis and Clark trail from Astoria to Missoula. A little later we meet yet another cyclist headed east on the Trans-Am at the bar. Brandon is trying to make it to the East Coast, a race against the weather this time of year. He seems like a very interesting guy, having lived in the Khumbu Valley of Nepal for the last two years. Unfortunately for us, for we would love to hear more of his stories, he wants to get down the road a bit further tonight. After a couple of beers and a short talk he heads on.
We spent the afternoon in the bar, the WiFi is too slow to get much done though, but the beer is good. Later we have dinner with Pat and Tom. Pat is a biologist in California, while Tom just retired from working in the gas industry. We have an interesting conversation about fracking while enjoying a bison burger and more of that good brew.
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Today's ride: 90 km (56 miles)
Total: 40,616 km (25,223 miles)
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