July 6, 2021
Day 89 - Glen Ullin to Bismarck
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It was slow and steady today. We were on the road for nine hours. There were seven hours of pedaling and two hours of resting and eating. I was up early enough to say goodbye to Seth as he started out heading west. He left a very nice note that I shared with Kerry.
We first went to the Cenex station right by the motel where we stopped on the way in yesterday afternoon. They didn’t have much to offer for breakfast, but it was something to eat to start our long day. We were surprised to see the same group of women who had been snacking and chatting there yesterday afternoon there this morning having coffee. They were friendly and funny and it was fun to see them again. The usual group of men, talking and complaining, trying to solve the world’s problems, were sitting on the other side of the store, as well.
It was very chilly this morning. We arrived yesterday with a temperature in the upper 90’s and left this morning with it in the upper 50’s. It remained cloudy and never got above the low 60’s until late in the afternoon. We also had a moderate headwind all morning, so it felt even colder.
On the way out of town, we encountered road work – I guess it was “track” work – at the railroad crossing.
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The cold, headwind and hills made me very uncomfortable this morning. I was seriously wondering how I was possibly going to be able to make it all the way to Bismarck. At the first stop, I added some warmer gear and that helped.
We had ten miles on I-94 at the beginning of the route. As we had heard from Seth and read in Buddy Hall’s blog, the section is terrible for cycling with rumble strips perpendicular to the road, every few feet and across almost the entire width of the shoulder. We sometimes had enough space to ride to the right of the rumbles, but in other places, we had to go over them. It did not enhance our enjoyment of the ride! I should have gotten a picture, but I have a hard time handling the camera with my full finger gloves and I just wanted to keep my head down and pedal. It was wonderful to get off the interstate and on Hwy 10.
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3 years ago
Near the second stop in the town of New Salem, we got to see Sweet Sue, the world’s largest cow.
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Nice to see your picture. Thank you for your lovely Picture. You perfectly are in the right place so you can be seen by everybody.
3 years ago
3 years ago
While we were in the store in New Salem, it started to sprinkle rain. Kerry put the rain covers on the panniers and their magic worked. The rain stopped and it was dry the rest of the way. About this time, the headwind diminished and I began to think maybe I could make it to Bismarck after all.
Bismarck is on the Missouri River. The bridge we crossed into the city had an excellent bike/pedestrian lane and we were able to stop and look around.
By the time we got to Bismarck, it was mostly sunny and in the upper 60’s. It was excellent cycling weather then, but we decided that after nine hours travel, it was time to check in and call it a day!
Today's ride: 59 miles (95 km)
Total: 3,396 miles (5,465 km)
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3 years ago