Day 102 - Whitefish to Eureka - Two Far 2023 - Oranges to Apples

July 26, 2023

Day 102 - Whitefish to Eureka

Heart

Comment

Off of the top of my head I can't remember what every day of this adventure has been like, but this has to be one of the best. To begin with, the weather was perfect - mild temperatures, little wind and vivid blue skies. Throw in a decent US highway, great country roads and beautiful scenery and you have a winning combination.

I started the day riding through downtown Whitefish and visiting Great Northern Cycle & Ski to buy an additional bottle cage. I have some long days ahead with limited services, and after a recent experience of running short on water I don't want it to happen again.

Leaving Whitefish I had my first climb of the day, but overall, the day was not very strenuous. I had a lot of up and down, especially on the back roads, and the smooth surface meant the downhills were really fun (let 'er rip, potato chip). I actually had a net loss in elevation for the day but that is not necessarily a good thing - Eureka's elevation is just under 2,600 ft and Sherman Pass, with an elevation or 5,575 ft, is just 6 days away.

Much of the day was spent in either state or national forests. Stillwater State Forest is located just outside Whitefish.

Not long after leaving Stillwater, I entered Kootenai National Forest.

Getting ready to drop down into Tobacco Valley.

The water in Dickey Lake was a vivid blue.

Just a couple of miles from our motel in Eureka, I met Jeanna at Historical Village. The first thing I noticed were four deer grazing just in front of our car. They seemed very tame and basically ignored us as we walked past them to enter the museum. The volunteer in the museum told us that the deer are always hanging around on the museum grounds. I have more on the deer in the area later on.

The "village" consisted of a collection of old buildings moved to this site. There was a general store, school, library, church, train depot and log cabin among others.

The deer were very intent on eating the grass.

NOT taken with a telephoto lens - this deer was totally oblivious to my presence.

Inside the old General Store...

Does anybody know what theses held? The volunteer at the museum had no idea, nor do we.

This brought back memories. My mom sewed a lot and she gave me the wooden bobbins to use as toys.

Life before electric blenders. I remember mom using one of these to grind up ham for ham salad and cranberries for cranberry salad.

The sign says this is a water pump. I would have like to have seen what powered it.

One of the rooms in the railroad depot had an exhibit on logging in the area.

A collection of two-man saws and one one-man saw. I wouldn't want to have to use any of them.

I could not see any markings to determine the brand of this tractor.

One final shot of a gorgeous day. This is just across from our motel.

One final note: Eureka seems to be alive with deer. About 9PM this evening I was hungry and decided to drive back to town to get something to eat. I ended up at a convenience store / deli about 2 miles from the motel. On the way back, I counted 7 deer and had to slow down 3 different times to allow a deer to amble across the road. None of them appeared skittish and they all were unfazed by traffic, in fact they acted like zombies - it was weird!

Today's ride: 61 miles (98 km)
Total: 4,804 miles (7,731 km)

Rate this entry's writing	Heart	2
Comment on this entry	Comment	2

Kelly IniguezI had to go back to the title page and see how many miles you've ridden - 4,800 and change. I think you have your cycling legs! I remember this day as being strenuous.

Don't you love it when everything comes together and you get one of those magical riding days? :)
Reply to this comment
1 year ago

Jeanna & Kerry SmithTo Kelly IniguezYes, those days are great. Those are the days that keep you going, especially on a long tour.
Reply to this comment
1 year ago